While most high schools do have their own library for their students, not every one also houses a public library. That’s the case with Kelloggsville High School, though. Also home to the
Kent District Library (KDL) Kelloggsville branch, the location serves both students and the general public, making it one of the Library’s most unique branches.
The collaboration for the community library was the first-of-its-kind when it opened in 2018. The two-story, 6,000-square-foot media center at the Wyoming-based public high school was made possible from assistance from a $250,000 Steelcase Foundation grant. Today, the partnership continues to challenge what a traditional concept of a library can be, furthering KDL’s mission to provide programs in a variety of means to the greater Grand Rapids community.
During the school year, the
Kelloggsville Branch operates as a typical high school media center for students. After hours, from 3 to 6 p.m., the library opens its doors to the public, inviting residents and neighbors to use the printing, scanning, computers, free WiFi, books, games, DVDs and programming.
Keith Caterino, director of library and media technology at Kelloggsville Public Schools has been in his role for five years. Before that, he was a classroom teacher within the district for 27 years. He oversees technology needs across the district and works in the Kelloggsville media center.
“At the highschool, we’ve been partnered with the Kent District Library for five years now,” he says. “KDL provides all the books for our students as well as for the community. We have books for high school teenage students, books for adults, as well as books for elementary students. KDL also provides circulation software and staff that come in.”
Throughout the library, the space features furniture such as high-top tables and chairs, booths, stools and open areas for kids to sit. On the second floor, there’s a classroom space for up to 30 students.
Caterino says the partnership has been transformative as most schools can’t afford to buy or update their materials frequently.
“Our school system, like any public school system, has limited funds on a year-to-year basis to update school libraries,” he says. “Books don’t come cheap. Typically, if they’re bought in paperback forms, they can sometimes last for a year or two — or three if you’re lucky. Kids read them, and they fall apart. Library-bound books are just more expensive, so it’s hard for a school library to be able to turn over their collection on a regular basis.”
With KDL’s help, the library is able to provide hundreds of high-demand new titles to all patrons, young and old.
“The books are constantly changing, whatever is on the bestseller list, whatever is trending in teen literature, that ends up in our library,” Caterino says. “Our kids also have access to any book in the KDL system, which is amazing.”
Anjie Gleisner, a regional manager at the Wyoming and Kelloggsville branches, has been with KDL since 2010. She began working as a youth librarian, and has worked in a few different capacities throughout KDL. Gleisner says she’s pleased with how the collaborative partnership has gone thus far.
“Keith has been really amazing to work with, and the district overall is very supportive of having us there,” Gleisner says. “He and I do a lot of talking about the changeover that happens when he’s leaving for the day, and when we take over,” she says.
“This is the only branch in KDL that’s housed inside a public high school and one of a very few in the state of Michigan,” Glesiner says. “It’s a very unique space. We had 8,148 visitors to the Kelloggsville branch in September and we currently have 8,235 physical items in the collection.”
In order to switch from daytime student library to evening public library, Glesiner says the library staff learned over time what swaps and changes needed to happen. Measures such as securing the rest of the school, a separate public entrance for the media center and other logistics were implemented for the safety of students.
The collaborative partnership requires working closely together and a lot of sharing, says Gleisner.
“We also have a public librarian who will occasionally work alongside Keith Caterino during the day, just helping keep that relationship with the students,” she says. “He’s been trained on all of our equipment, so he knows how to check things out to students and create new library accounts if he needs to.”
Just as many of KDL’s branches are lively, engaging, entertaining spaces, and not always the most quiet places, so is the Kelloggsville branch.
“We have 50-60 teen patrons coming in after school in there at once. Teenagers are sharing that space with the general public as well,” Gleisner says. Obviously, there are challenges that come with having an incredibly high volume of teenagers in one place at one time. It means that this branch tends to be a bustling hub of activity, it’s not a silent branch nor will it ever be, and that’s okay. It has its own personality.”
Caterino also makes sure to help the teens understand and be respectful of the dual-purpose public space while waiting for rides after school, or participating in “teen zone” activities.
Within the well-lit branch, teen materials are on the lower level, more visible to the teenagers during the day, and the materials for younger patrons are generally found on the upper level.
“That helps us in a couple of different ways,” Gleisner says. “It allows us to have a slight differentiation between the two spaces and focus on highlighting those teen materials that we know our high school students are going to like.”
The branch also has a small WonderKnook playspace with early literacy, child development activities and programming. Free family programming for all ages including adults increases during the summer months when school is not in session. Last year, the branch celebrated its fifth birthday with a summer bash, featuring a giant foam party on the lawn.
Although the community response has been positive to the space, Gleisner says many KDL patrons still aren’t fully aware of this unique branch and its offerings.
“Students know we’re here, but with adults, it’s kind of just word-of-mouth advertising. That’s something that I feel like we haven’t met our maximum potential yet. They’re still discovering that we’re there,” she says.
Being a sort of tucked away, ‘hidden gem’ comes with possible benefits for patrons, too.
“We have this really lovely collection of high-demand titles that tend to be on the shelf at Kelloggsville, simply because people are still discovering us,” Gleisner says. “Once people realize we have this great selection, we get them returning often.”
Gleisner’s favorite part about her job is being able to share knowledge on public libraries and learn new things about how schools operate.
“So many of our public librarians love to get into schools and talk about what the library has to offer. For me, that knowledge and respect for what we do and how we’re all there to help support students in the community, that’s just been so great. We’re both educational facilities in lots of ways,” she says. “It’s just been this really unique opportunity to learn more about other people in our community. That’s really what we’re all about is building a sense of community.”
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Literacy Matters is a series focused on the importance of knowledge, community resources seeking to remove barriers to access, and the value of our library systems to society. Literacy Matters is supported by Kent District Library.
Sarah briefly lived in Grand Rapids years ago, before moving back to Lansing, but that West Michigan love never really left her heart. Through her coverage on small businesses, arts and culture, dining, and anything mitten-made, she’s committed to convincing any and everyone —just how great the Great Lakes state is. Sarah received her degrees in Journalism and Professional Communications. You can find her in a record shop, a local concert or eating one too many desserts at a bakery. If by chance, she’s not at any of those places, you can contact her at [email protected].