Not Your Parents’ Public Libraries: San José Public Library’s Maker[Space]Ship
Almost a year ago, I wrote a post for the iSchool’s Career Blog titled “Not Your Parents’ Public Libraries,” where I highlighted some of the fantastically innovative programs in public libraries today. It was a really fun article to research, but I knew I had barely scratched the surface of how library staff serve their communities. And so, the idea for this series was born. I hope to use this space to explore some of the best ideas in public librarianship.
If you’re new to the library and information science (LIS) world, you may not realize (yet!) that public libraries are innovators. Particularly in the last 15 years or so, public and academic libraries have been reinventing themselves. They’re not just buildings filled with books anymore; they are vibrant, engaged, sometimes noisy spaces brimming with computers and technology, hands-on learning programs, and whip-smart staff. They also are not necessarily confined to a building’s four walls.
At the San José Public Library, iSchool alumna Erin Berman developed the Maker[Space]Ship, a specially designed and custom-built bus that brings technology and STEM learning programs to San José, California neighborhoods. When the Maker[Space]Ship “lands,” Erin and her staff (AKA Library Mission Control) run programs designed to foster creativity, curiosity, and problem-solving. Participants also get to play with fun technology like 3-D printers, laser cutters, CNC machines, and tools for cooking, soldering, and sewing. There’s also plenty of ventilation, high-speed Internet, laptops, a projector, a sound system, and so much more.
The Maker[Space]Ship allows SJPL staff to serve its population by taking the library into the community and literally setting up shop on the corner. 65% of Americans told Pew Research that “libraries help them grow as people” (source). Bringing technology and programming directly to the people of San José helps bridge the ever-widening digital divide and demonstrates one of many ways libraries do just that.
Erin and her iSchool peers together are changing the world through these types of innovative programs and STEM learning workshops. Their creativity, talents, and MLIS skills have no doubt transformed the library of yesteryear.
