Teen Services Competencies for Library Staff: Putting Teens First

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yalsa teen services competencies coverWhen I started out as a librarian (35 years ago) much of the work I was involved in was about the things that I liked. I liked a certain type of book. Or, I liked a certain type of program. Or, I didn’t like a certain type of activity or book. The services I provided for the youth in the community in which I worked weren’t terrible. But, they were really just for those children and/or teens who had interests similar to my own. Can you imagine how many young people I didn’t support as a result? A lot. At that point I didn’t realize that library services require putting teens first. Focusing not on what the library staff thinks is good for teens to have access to or what library staff are interested in themselves, but instead looking at what teens in the community want and need. And, even if those wants and needs don’t match skills or interests of library staff finding ways to support them.

That’s why the phrases “teens first” or “putting teens first” that YALSA often uses are so important. It sends a message to everyone that it’s not about us. It’s about teens. As Kate McNair recently pointed out in her blog post, the Teen Services Competencies for Library Staff do that very well. The Competencies are focused on categories that support learning about and supporting teen needs and interests first.
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Putting Teens First in Library Services: An Interview with Ryan Moniz

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Shannon Peterson and Linda Braun talk with Ryan Moniz, community librarian at the Markham Library. Ryan talks about how he and his colleagues engage with youth and community to design responsive and flexible programs and services.

You can learn more about Ryan’s work in the YALSA webinar, No Hammer Required: Overcoming Barriers Between Teens and Library staff. Putting Teens First in Library Services: A Roadmap is available for purchase in the ALA store.

Putting Teens First in Library Services: An Interview with Cheryl Eberly

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In this installment of the video series, Putting Teens First in Library Services, Shannon Peterson and Linda Braun talk with Cheryl Eberly Teen Librarian and Volunteer Coordinator at the Santa Ana Public Library. Cheryl discusses the ways in which she integrates youth voice, outcomes, community partnerships, and informal learning into her work with teens.

Learn more about Cheryl’s work on the National Arts and Humanities Program Awards website. You can purchase Putting Teens First in Library Services: A Roadmap from the ALA Store.

Putting Teens First in Library Services: Community, Middle School, & College Career Readiness

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In this installment of the video series, Putting Teens First in Library Services, Shannon Peterson and Linda Braun talk with Hannah Buckland about her work in support of college career readiness of middle schoolers. Hannah is a member of the first cohort of YALSA’s IMLS funded Future Ready with the Library project. She is the Director of the Leech Lake Tribal College Library.

Applications for the second Future Ready with the Library cohort are being accepted through September 1. You can read more about the project on the YALSA website and in YALSAblog posts.

You can learn more about Putting Teens First in Library Services in YALSA’s new book edited by Shannon and Linda. If you would like to be interviewed for this series email Shannon and Linda.

Putting Teens First In Library Services: A Road Map

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Check out this 20 minute video in which I talk with Shannon Peterson, Youth Services Manager, Kitsap (WA) Regional Library, about the new book, Putting Teens First in Library Services: A Road Map, we edited for YALSA. During our conversation we talk about each of the topics (continuous learning, connected learning, youth voice, community engagement, and outcomes) covered in the volume. We also discuss some of the ways that the title will be useful to a wide-range of library staff from those just starting out to those who have been working with and for teens for many years.

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