Librarians—and parents—have always known that teens need their own space. So that’s exactly what the new teen department at the Republic Branch Library is called—Teen Space.

“We used to have a few shelves of books, now we have a whole collection and a cool new department,” said Kim Flores who manages the Greene County facility located on Highway 60 East. “The kids love it.”

The formerly staid adult reference department in the 8,000-square-foot branch has been transformed with bright, new graphics, a bank of computers in cool blue carrels, a flat-screen plasma TV—and, oh yes, lots and lots of the latest young adult books, comics (or in library parlance, graphic novels), DVDs and music CDs.

See it all next Saturday [September 8] at the open house for everyone from 5 to 6 p.m. “After 6, we’ll kick the adults out and have a special After-Hours Teen Night to celebrate,” says librarian Julie Rhodes. “We’ll have great music from Audio Chemist Productions, cool door prizes and gaming with our new X Box 360, DDR and Guitar Hero and free pizza and ice cream.”

Rhodes brainstormed with Republic-area teen patrons to come up with ideas for the new department: “We thumbed through catalogs and talked about all kinds of things including suggestions of a patio on the roof and chairs with seats so soft you sink right to the floor. The patio was a stretch, but we hope we found comfy chairs!”

The new department came about as a result of funding through a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Missouri State Library. About $9,000 in grant funds was used for this project, according to Carol Grimes, the library’s planning and development coordinator. “It was fun to see this go from nothing to this bright spot that attracts teens like a magnet.”

Adds Rhodes: “We have teens and adults every day comment on the changes to the branch. Our young patrons are excited to have a space of their own and are bringing their friends.”

Jeanne C. Duffey, community relations director for the Springfield-Greene County Library District, can be reached at jeanned@thelibrary.org.