Hastings College Students Open Little Libraries

Chansamone O'Meara

Hastings College students open Little Libraries. Retrieved November 23, 2015, from http://www.hastingstribune.com/news/hastings-college-students-open-little-libraries/article_a8a1d636-8fdc-11e5-97f8-239ffee4878f.html

Summary:
Four college students at Hastings College in Nebraska are opening to help encourage students to love reading again by opening Little Libraries. The students are education majors and are building three Little Free Libraries as part of their class assignment. The idea of the Little Free Library is that it is placed on someone’s front yard in a little box that holds books. The books inside the box can by taken by anyone that comes across them. Every Little Library operates differently. Some want the books returned while others ask that the borrower trades the book or replaces the book with another one. For the four college students, their aim is to get as many books as possible into the hands of children. The students have partnered up with local businesses and received donations from the public so they can build the boxes or miniature homes for the library books. The students have strategically placed the Little Libraries at locations that are not as close to a public library so it fills a need for students that may have a difficult time going to the library. Once the Little Library are built at the homeowner’s front yard, it is up to them to maintain and keep it up. This way the Little Library can be easily maintained. The students hope to expand their Little Library idea to smaller communities and rural areas that have more difficult time getting access to a library.

Evaluation:

This is a great project and idea that anyone can build in their community. It takes a little time and a small amount of fundraising/donation but it can be something a community can build together. There have been other types of Little Libraries that have sprung up around other cities in public areas. This is a more intimate and possibly easier way to build a Little Library because it doesn't require finding and getting permission from the city or town, this is from home to home. It is also closer access for people to find books. There are many people who purchase books and are finish reading them and this type of library would make lending out or giving out the books easier and allow for a sharing of a community based library collection.