By Valerie Franchi, Contributing Writer
Westborough – The area to the left in the front of the Westborough Public Library has always been a designated teen area. A sign on the wall reads “Young Adult” and the shelves are stocked with books by popular YA authors such as J.K. Rowling and John Green. Unfortunately, until recently, most local teens didn’t know it. To change that, the library asked for and received funding for a new teen librarian position.
Jen McGrath, a former school teacher and library assistant, officially began as the new teen librarian July 1 and is already on the way to increasing teen awareness of and participation in library happenings.
“Teens need to feel welcome here,” she said. “They are a valuable part of the community. The library is the hub of the community. We want to reach out to everybody. The new teen outreach will help bridge the gap between children and adults here.”
McGrath said she is enthusiastic about her new position.
“I like this age group a lot,” she said, adding that she has gone back to school to study library science.
“This is what I want to be doing,” she said.
McGrath began as an intern in the position in February – “dangling my feet in the water,” she said. She began doing research online and at other libraries for ideas about how to draw teens back to the library.
“We haven’t reached out to them before, so I wanted to develop new programs that would interest them,” McGrath noted. “We need to meet their needs, but we also need them as well.”
McGrath has help from her three children, ages 12, 13 and 15.
“I am always asking them for advice,” she said. “They are getting tired of it!”
She hopes to enlist teens more as volunteers to help run programs for the younger children, as well as create and maintain social media pages.
McGrath has already held several teen events over the summer, including “Iron Chef” and “Minute to Win It” events.
“I get so excited when teens show up and they are not mine,” she joked.
Ongoing events include the Super Summer Scavaganza – a cross between “The Amazing Race” and a scavenger hunt in which teams complete various challenges such as creating a reading flash mob. The team with the most points at the end of the summer will win miniature golf and ice cream for themselves and 10 friends.
For the summer reading program, McGrath created “Book Bucks” for teens to earn for reading and participating in events over the summer. She is planning to hold a “Survivor”-style auction in which teens use their Book Bucks to bid on items.
In addition to new programs, McGrath has plans to update the library’s teen space as well.
She has already installed a white board where teens can answer the question of the day, give suggestions and just express themselves.
She already opened up the space by removing some book racks and relocating some items to other sections of the library. There are plans to replace the windows, then she hopes to paint and obtain new furniture that is more youthful and teen-oriented.
McGrath wants the teens to help rename the room and is asking for suggestions.
“We want this to be their space,” she said. “A place they feel comfortable in and want to come to.”
Those who want to reach out with suggestions or to volunteer may contact McGrath at [email protected].