[CALIBK12] "Library" is now "Learning Center" - What do you think?

[jeweli annah]

Hello Colleagues!

Shakespeare said a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, however, that being said, our school has decided to change the name of our "Library" to "Learning Center".  The goal is to reflect the fact that we now host an after-school tutoring program and are working to put a computer lab in our facility.  My tried and true customers (students who have used the library frequently ever since elementary school) are perplexed.  The few adults I have spoken to acknowledge the benefit of distancing ourselves from the connotations of a word that conjures up dusty facilities from days of yore.  

I welcome this opportunity to advertise ourselves, yet wonder if we have to kill the "library" in order to showcase our modern usefulness.   

As someone very new to the profession (and as the daughter of a Library Media Teacher), I feel that PR work is our most critical area of need as an organization of professionals.  We don't necessarily have the time nor the staff engage in full-blown community outreach or education, and yet, if we don't prioritize PR work we face budget and staff cuts which endanger ourselves and our customers, the next generation of students we are trying so very hard to reach.  

Is renaming ourselves and our facilities the answer?  Where should our focus be?  What has worked for you and your community?  

I welcome your thoughts, opinions, and musings on the topic!


Julia Hedstrom
Library Media Teacher  a.k.a. Teacher Librarian
Granite Bay High School
Granite Bay, CA 95746
jhedstrom at rjuhsd.us


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