• Borrow books, music, and movies free of cost.
• Take advantage of the quiet atmosphere without distractions.
• Utilize various types of resources and catalogs for research.
• Seek help from knowledgeable librarians.
• Hold community activities and meetings.
• Enjoy events like computer classes; programs for kids, seniors, and parents; and workshops.
• Read newspapers and books in different languages.

If you rarely go to the library all you need to do is walk to your local library to see that many people in the community depend on them. Some examples are:

• Students who use libraries or their online tools for homework, research, and projects.
• Residents that are avid readers and save money as well as home shelf space by checking out books instead of buying them.
• People who use the library databases for job searches.
• Senior citizens that want to use the internet only occasionally and don’t have a computer or online access at home.
• Kids that need a quiet place to study for a few hours.

In some communities, the future of libraries is not secure.  As demographics in a community change, libraries may get less used.  In some neighborhoods, residents prefer to gather at large bookstores for their reading and socializing, meaning that libraries that once served thousands  of residents a month now only serve a small fraction of that number.  Their usage may be reduced but costs usually stay the same.

Libraries often face budget cuts that force a reduction in services or hours.  Some libraries have had to close altogether. For example, even in a city as large as Philadelphia, libraries are threatened with closure this fall. Read Article

What do you think about the chance of public libraries closing?

Share your thoughts with other students, parents, and the K12Genie community and tell us how such closures would impact your life and the lives of others. Speak Your Mind below or send your own story to submissions@k12genie.com.

Discover More:

• For the latest in library news check out LibraryJournal.com
• A list of the Public Libraries in the United States can be found on PublicLibraries.com
• Show your support for Public Libraries at GeekTheLibrary.org
• See what you can do to help save the Library of Philadelphia

Kaleb Eulls, an 18 year old quarterback and defensive end for Yazoo County High School, Mississippi helped save the day Tuesday morning when he disarmed a 14-year-old female classmate who pulled out a .380 semi-automatic on the school bus and demanded the driver pull over.   The female student, who had recently transferred to the school, said she was the victim of bullies who were picking on her and throwing paper at her. She had apparently been bullied on the bus the day before. Eulls’s football teammates have nicknamed him “Superman” and “Hancock” for his actions. Meanwhile, the female student is being held in the county youth detention center and has been charged with possession of a firearm on school property and 22 counts (1 per person on the bus) of attempted aggravated assault and kidnapping.

Read Full Article

Discover More:

• Yazoo County High School
• Where is Yazoo County HS?

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Colorado Youth News (CYN) is a new community engagement project for Colorado teenagers. CYN teaches high school students how to produce radio stories about their generation (Generation Z) , their schools, and their neighborhoods.

a program participant tests the microphone

In the course of reporting and storytelling, students learn how to engage the public in issues that are important to young people, and how to be more effective communicators about these issues. These are critical civic advocacy skills that students can take with them into future community-based ventures. CYN is hosted this year by the Denver Public Schools’ Contemporary Learning Academy, a small, alternative high school that gives students a second chance to earn their high school diploma.

About CYN and its Board

CYN is a project of the Colorado Nonprofit Development Center and  fall under the center’s 501(c)(3) status. CYN’s Board of Advisors includes Andrea Dukakis, a reporter and producer with  Colorado Public Radio, Kate Culligan, former marketing of Denver Clear Channel  and Jeff Miller, an independent education and youth consultant and a former policy  analyst at the Education Commission of States- National Center for Learning and  Citizenship.

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About the Author: Sarah Hughes is the Project Manager for CYN. She has worked with youth for over a decade in a variety of ways; as a youth media producer, as a bilingual teacher, and as a reporter on the education, immigration and family issues beat. Hughes is a freelance journalist with nearly a decade experience in local public radio. She is also the founding director of “Youth Voices” a radio workshop based at WAMU, in Washington DC.

Discover More:

• Colorado Youth News
• Colorado Nonprofit Development Center
• Where is Denver, CO?

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Are you involved with a youth-centered organization? Share your experience. Write to us at submissions@k12genie.com.

After 26 years, the PBS television show “Reading Rainbow” will go off the air because it lacks the several hundred thousand dollars in funds necessary to renew its broadcast rights.  The show, hosted by LeVar Burton ( of Star Trek the Next Generation and Roots fame) has won more than two dozen Emmys and is the third longest running children’s program on PBS.  Only “Sesame Street” and “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood” have run longer.

Read Full Article

Discover More:

• Reading Rainbow

Have you read any great books lately? Write or video tape a review and  submit it to K12Genie.

One of the entrances to the park at Gansevoort St. and Washington St.

The Standard Hotel appears to rise from the park.

Old railroad rails are incorporated into the park design.

It's a meadow in the sky.

The new plantings get a little water from Kasper of the Parks Dept. on this hot day.

The park captures the attention of kids and adults alike.

A view of the Frank Gehry designed building for InterActiveCorp.

Photos by: the K12Genie Staff

Resources:

• The High Line official website
• Park information- hours and access points
• Schools Program- information about curriculum guides
• The IAC Building
• The Standard Hotel
• Highline 23 Apartment Building