Sophomore Chloe Baumgartner said since coming to this high school, she’s spent more time at the Carmel Clay Public Library (CCPL).

“When I was in middle school or elementary school, we didn’t go as much,” Baumgartner said. “We’d go sometimes on the weekend, just getting books and stuff, but now having it so close to the high school makes it so much easier to just go there after school.”

Baumgartner said she spends every day after school at the CCPL, working on homework, spending time with friends and enjoying the convenience of having a place to go directly across the street. 

Baumgartner is not alone in her use of the library as more than just a place to get books. Across the country, libraries have shifted from this traditional environment to community centers, especially for younger people. According to a 2023 survey, 43% of Generation Z and millennials don’t consider themselves to be readers although 54% of that group visited a physical library location at least once in a year. 

Libraries nationwide are embracing the idea of being a “third place,” where home is the “first place” and work is the “second place.” The “third place” provides a community space for people to connect with one another, receive academic help or even work in solitude.

Teen Services Librarian Zach Reynolds said the CCPL embraced this idea during its renovation process.

“That was the whole point of having a space designed just for the teens, and a huge impetus for the renovation was providing a significant space, hoping that the teens would come and use it,” Reynolds said. “There’s kids here almost every day after school, even over the summer, there’s still quite a few kids that will come in and utilize the space, and we’re just excited that you guys are using it how we had hoped.”

Reynolds also said he sees the library as a place to help transition high school students to college or adult life.

“It’s a bit of a bridge between being at your house or being even in the classroom, where you have such strict, rigid oversight over your schedule. Then you jump straight to college or adult life and have complete freedom and openness,” Reynolds said. “I feel like we’re kind of the middle ground to help transition (between teen life and adult life), providing that safe place that everyone’s welcome here and there’s adults around if things do go wrong.”

Sophomore Harshita Vallepalli, who said she is at the library at least three times a week, said she agrees that the new renovations are helpful for teens.

“I never really thought of the library as a big place, but now with the renovations and everything, I can actually be at the library and hang out with my friends or just check out a book, and it makes it really easy,” Vallepalli said. “It really shows that teens have a place to study that isn’t their home, where they can collaborate with their peers.”

Programs for teens

Reynolds said the library offers a variety of programs and clubs for teens, such as the Teen Library Council, Teen Volunteer Corps and the Teen Artist in Residence program, to name just a few. 

“In general we just try to find as many different activities or opportunities that you guys are interested in,” Reynolds said. “We’ve got Overbooked, which seems to be a nice overlapping sphere of interest from you guys as well as obviously, librarians love books as well. But anything from Dungeons and Dragons to chess to bullet journaling, crocheting, knitting, fiber arts type stuff and creative writing. Those are all just things that we offer as library programs. It’s not even touching on the student-led program, that newer initiative that we’ve been trying out as well.”

According to Reynolds, the CCPL has a formal process for people interested in running programs. There’s an application to fill out online and then the library will get in contact with the student running the program, which usually takes place on a Saturday. Reynolds said a lot of teens take advantage of this opportunity to teach people about things they are passionate about and it looks good on their resume. Reynolds said past programs led by members of the community include teaching younger children how to code a robot and making a bottle rocket while discussing the physics behind it.

“If you’re interested in doing it, you’re more than welcome to let us know, and we’re always happy to work with you guys,” Reynolds said.

Vallepalli said she is a member of Teen Library Council and went to the Dreamscapes event hosted by the library.

“I hung out with my friends and played a bunch of games and really experienced fun in the library,” Vallepalli said.

Baumgartner said she thinks it’s cool how many programs and activities the library has.

“I have been to a couple of things that have been hosted by the library, like Dreamscapes,” Baumgartner said. “I know they have a lot of good (clubs and programs).”

Resources for teens

But more than the activities, Baumgartner said she appreciates the resources and environment the library offers.

“(The library) just allows students to have better access to (study rooms, technology and tutoring) to help them, either at school or projects or with clubs,” she said. “It’s nice to get a study room because then you can just sit in there with your friends and get work done. You don’t have to worry about trying to find a seat.”

Reynolds said he agrees the resources he sees teens use most is the space itself.

“There’s not really anywhere else that you guys can go without the expectation to buy something,” he said. “We like to think that it’s a special place for you guys, something kind of unique that we can offer for you.”

New interests/skills

Both Vallepalli and Baumgartner said they felt like the CCPL helped them improve and develop new skills or interests

Baumgartner said beyond accessing what the library has to offer, her experiences there has helped her get more interested in reading.

“I didn’t read very many books in middle school. I don’t know, it just wasn’t something I was doing,” Baumgartner said. “But I think especially walking around in the teen section last year, I would see a book I would be walking past and be like ‘okay that cover looks good, looks cool’ and I’d pick it up and go to read it. I found a couple of good series in there that I liked a lot, that I probably wouldn’t have read if I wasn’t walking around.”

Vallepalli said she thought better access to the library helped her learn more skills.

“It’s helped shape my learning by helping me figure out where the books are in the specific category so that I can access more, and just boost my learning,” Vallepalli said.

Looking toward the future

Reynolds said he thinks the library will continue to grow as a community center, especially in a digital age.

“Obviously there’s kids that still enjoy reading but I think the future of libraries is more providing a welcoming environment without (so many) expectations,” Reynolds said. “A thing that is in higher demand is ways to connect with people face to face. I think libraries can kind of fill that gap, if you will, of providing that place and then hopefully having some other centered-around activities that kids are actually interested in doing.”

Baumgartner said she agrees with this sentiment

“I think it’s very open, right? Everybody can kind of do what they want and (the library) has something for everybody,” Baumgartner said.

“You don’t have to enjoy reading to be here,” Reynolds said. “Everyone is more than welcome here and we try to have different things. If you haven’t read a book in a while or you have that mindset of ‘well, I don’t like reading,’ that doesn’t matter. Still come in, there’s no barriers to using this awesome space.”