Step by step, new teen space taking shape

Anthony Zilis, The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.
·4 min read

Jul. 9—CHAMPAIGN — Carved out of the corner of 8,000 square feet in the basement of the Champaign Public Library is a room with three alcoves and a green wall.

Of all of the high-tech features of the library's $3.2 million expansion — a space primarily made for teens called The Studio that will open in the coming months — the small room in the corner may speak to the unique interests of its core demographic the most.

Soon, microphones will be added to the three small cutouts for students to record podcasts. They'll use the green wall to record videos, many of which will presumably be posted to TikTok, according to library Director Brittany Millington.

The recording studio is just one way Millington and her staff have adapted to the this generation of teenagers.

"We're learning from them all the time," Millington said. "We know we have to be flexible, too, because when they're in the space, we know they'll have new ideas, too."

For now, The Studio is hollow, but soon, it'll be filled. One corner will feature 3D printers, Cricut machines and sewing machines. Large monitors will be hung in another corner for video games and virtual reality.

Another space will include ping pong, foosball and coffee tables along with a flexible space that can be used for performances, including poetry readings.

When it's completed, students will flood the building, like they have for the last several years when the library has hosted its Teen Lounge each day after school for 150-200 students, many of whom walk across the street from Edison Middle School. Attracting that many teens to a library, Millington said, is a rare feat. She and her predecessor, Donna Pittman, hatched a plan to engage those students even more deeply.

"The fact that we were able to build this with that in mind, of having this space dedicated to teens coming after school, I think, is pretty unique," Millington said. "But lots of libraries will have an open time for teens after school to try to keep them engaged and finding fun things to do for them.

"But the quantity that we see and the regularity that we see it with make it a pretty unique opportunity. ... We started thinking that if we had a more dedicated space, we could enhance what we were offering to the teens and maybe explore different types of technology and introduce different types of activities that they could develop new hobbies from."

The library was constructed in 2008 with the idea of expansion in mind, including a large block of concrete in the location where a staircase could eventually be built. Currently, an elevator is the only route for the public to access the basement, where the Friends of the Library bookstore operates. But now, a staircase leads to the main floor, although it isn't yet accessible or even viewable to the public.

In its previous form, the Teen Lounge took place in the library's conference rooms, with many of the same activities that will happen in The Studio. Students learned to sew pillows and make figurines and other objects with a 3D printer, guided by library staff, including a teen librarian and several other employees, which were paid for with the help of the Champaign school district. They played video games and engaged in virtual-reality activities.

"It's actually been exciting," Millington said, "because we've seen some of the kids, with some of the skills that they've learned in after-school activities, we've seen them start small businesses because they've learned jewelry making or doing sewing projects and giving those away as gifts. It's a really great thing to be a part of."

Around 230 students will be able to use The Studio at a given time. Like they were previously, students looking to read books or take part in quieter activities will be able to use the Dodds Teen Center on the main floor. Additionally, Millington said, The Studio would host "quite a bit" of adult programming as well.

The space, though, was clearly built with young teenagers in mind, and that's something that Millington thinks will have long-lasting effects.

"I think any time you have young people engaged, that's a benefit to everybody in the community," she said. "They're engaged in healthy activities or things that can become a lifelong hobby or a skill. Maybe they discover something that the library provided and try to explore that a little bit more, and maybe it becomes a career.

"Or maybe they hear the word 'entrepreneur,' and they've never heard that before. There are just so many different things they can do through these activities, and there's just so much opportunity."