New York Public Library

The New York Public Library, in collaboration with the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), will develop, pilot, iterate, and disseminate a Teen Engagement and Wellbeing virtual training for young adult librarians and library staff. Activities will include partnering with an expert on adolescent development and mental health to develop the curriculum; convening external and internal advisory boards to review project development and seek curriculum feedback; piloting, evaluating, and iterating the curriculum with cohorts of library staff; and launching an open source training curriculum and resources for widespread use by staff, broadly promoting the training, and continuing to gather feedback from pilot cohorts and new users to further refine the project. Project outcomes will include over 300 young adult library staff trained to support teenagers in addressing mental wellness and creating safe and welcoming teen spaces.