A traditional library houses many shelves of reading and instructional materials and is also a research hub. Park City School District spokesperson Heidi Matthews said the high school shifted away from a traditional library setting several years ago in an attempt to have more blended learning. The high school now has a library program which still includes research and literacy programs, but relies on a blended learning specialist, who provides technology training and support, instead of a library media specialist.
Matthews said those programs involve teaching students how to assess for bias in sources and how to use databases.
“We know that our students are no longer researching the way that some of the traditional libraries work, you know, we don't research in nonfiction books," she said. "But we still need to teach our students how to access information from a wide variety of sources.”
Instead of a traditional library in the new addition to the high school, students and staff will be able to access a “flex space” which will open in the fall of 2025. Matthews said the space will be designed with student wants in mind.
Park City Centers for Advanced Professional Studies, or PCCAPS, students presented a proposed design for the area Wednesday. Students Perla Vazquez and Owen West said the multipurpose flex area had a lot of needs; students and staff want it to include spaces and furnishings for group work, meetings, games, books and relaxation. While there isn’t a lot of space for books, the team plans to have small bookshelves along the walls for a limited amount of high-traffic materials.
Part of the reason including books in the space wasn’t a priority is the number of books checked out of Park City schools has been decreasing. The largest library in the district at Treasure Mountain Junior High only had 852 print books checked out this year, while the district as a whole had almost 14,000 digital books checked out this year.
However, some parents and students are concerned about the lack of a dedicated, traditional library. Parent Jennifer Riff said having physical books helps students learn about the world around them.
"If you remove books, even if there's one or two shelves of books, you're removing those chances where kids might have more diversity introduced to them through stories,” she said.
Riff’s daughter Rachel said she spends a lot of time at the Treasure Mountain library and feels a flex space wouldn’t be the same. Further, Treasure Mountain’s library will be gone along with the school in a few years.
Rachel said the district has mentioned students can go to city and county public libraries for physical books, but added those spaces can be large, confusing and intimidating.
“Having a school library right there is just so easy, so welcoming, and also the librarian, she works with kids, that's her job,” she said.
Matthews said the district is considering incorporating interlibrary loans from city and county libraries into their system so students can get books at the high school.
