Due to a new agreement between the Glenview Public Library (GPL), South, and Glenbrook Off Campus, staff members will be given a teacher library card that will give them unlimited access to the GPL’s print and digital resources, Head Librarian Christi Shaner said. Previously, South’s teachers were only given access to the GPL’s online materials.

New resources that the teachers will have access to include the entire collection of physical books at the GPL, as well as their online resources, Linda Sawyer, Glenview Public Library Youth Community Engagement Director said. Teachers will be able to request materials online and pick them up in-person or visit the library to browse their collection, she added. This partnership aims to provide staff with a broader array of materials that South’s library may not have, Shaner said.

“As a school library, we don’t always have everything that a teacher may want,” Shaner said. “This [partnership] allows our staff greater access to more resources needed to enhance student learning.”

While this partnership will not directly affect students, Sawyer hopes that it can encourage teen engagement at the library. South will also promote the GPL and the resources it has in their weekly news letter to encourage teens and their families to visit, Sawyer said.

Junior Aoife McAleer has recently been going to the GPL more often to work on her Advanced Placement United States History
(APUSH) research project, McAleer said. Because of her frequent visits, she has a renewed sense of gratitude for the resources there, she added.

“The [GPL] has such incredible resources, and students don’t use them enough,” McAleer said.

Before this partnership, teachers were given school cards that only gave them access to online materials, English Teacher Annie Kim said. This posed difficulties for the teachers, she added.

“ W h i l e [South’s] library has great materials and librarians, this partnership with the Glenview Public library is going to provide teachers with a wider array of resources to enrich their classrooms,” Kim said.

While there are no current plans to extend this partnership, both Shaner and Sawyer are open to working together in the future, Shaner said.

“Community partnerships are really important,” Shaner said “This will allow us to strengthen ties across the community as a whole, increase involvement in and knowledge of the two programs, and allow us to expand our learning networks and professional connections.”