University of Illinois

University of Illinois will conduct a three-year early career research project that connects teens from diverse backgrounds at afterschool camps or summer camps to the research process from beginning to end. The project builds on a pilot study conducted with youth in Illinois. By training staff at five partner public library sites across the U.S., this project will involve as many as 100 youth as co-researchers who will help design, implement, analyze, and report on original research. This project will conclude by sharing a public curriculum and workshop series for LIS professionals on implementing co-research, and it will advance scholarship on designing informal learning opportunities in libraries and youth literacy development, especially as it relates to the research process.