Category: Post-Emergent Makerspace Research
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Evolving community guidance for the mission of makerspaces
By Kathy Robins of T.E.C.H. Lab @ Billings Public Library At Billings Public Library, community excitement for the brand new state-of-the-art library and teen digital learning lab was high at the start. Community partners came forward to help make the library and T.E.C.H. Lab a welcoming space. But how could we shift the vital community…
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Creating Collaborative Partner Programming
By Corey Wittig of The Labs @ Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Library programming with partner organizations tends to skim the surface of learning, but what if we leveraged partnerships to help youth in maker programs reach the geeking out stage of HOMAGO? The Labs @ Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has been creating a structure for…
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Shifting Roles: From Mentor to Administrator
By Logan Macdonald + Mo Yang of The Studio @ Anythink Libraries As Anythink’s digital learning lab and makerspace matured, new staff roles were required to support the space. Mentors were asked to take on more administrative duties and a new position was created to guide the program at multiple sites. How do we facilitate…
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Onboarding new management: Transferring enthusiasm as well as responsibilities
By Kathy Robins of T.E.C.H. Lab @ Billings Public Library Taking on the oversight of a makerspace adds new dimensions to the responsibilities of anyone who is charged with the task. Billings Public Library shifted responsibilities for managing their popular T.E.C.H. Lab from the IT manager to the library’s Assistant Director. How did we ensure…
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Administrative Task Division Among Mentor Staff
By Goda Trakumaite of Maker Jawn @ Free Library of Philadelphia Evolving programming needs demanded that the Free Library of Phialdelphia’s Maker Jawn Mentors take on administrative duties on top of their duties as mentors. How could we work to identify and equitably distribute tasks among ourselves in a way that would support our program and…