Homeless books awaiting their new home as the library undergoes renovations. Photo Credit Hunter Carden.By Drew Linehan
Branford High School library is undergoing extensive remodeling and updating, with main focal points on what the kids need and adapting to a more technologically advanced age.
“We have a beautiful space down here we want to use,” says new hired librarian Ms. Jessica Mularski, “Kind of as a center to what the kids need in a twenty first century learning environment.”
Ms. Mularski believes that with the retirement of Ms. Roy it’s time to reevaluate the whole library program with new teachers and new programs. She said, “We have to look and see what the students need to adapt to new technology and the rise of E-Books.”
Down in the library students are already being given the opportunity to voice their opinions and write down what they think the library is lacking and how it should be updated.
Specifically Ms. Mularski plans to develop a book store model to the library, and also to update the reading catalouge by bringing in more contemporary literature and arranging the books by genre.
“We’re actually looking for making collaborative work rooms and individual client workplaces ” said Ms. Mularski, “More space, different configuration, and more technology.”
Ms. Mularski is looking forward to creating collaborative workrooms and individual client work spaces for students to come down and study and do homework with friends or on their own.
It will take a lot of money to finish the remodeling. “We’re going to try the best we can to get a budget from the office and the board of education and if we have to we’ll fund-raise.” says Ms. Mularski.
Surveys went around the school for students, giving Ms. Mularski opinions from students who haven’t shared their ideas yet and an even deeper insight to what the school needs as a whole.
Already the re-configurations have gone underway with many of the old computers having been taken away, and many of the book cases being reorganized.
