Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Monday, January 03, 2011

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Comfortable chairs and other homey decor give the TLC library a different feel.

In the Book Nook, students feel comfortable browsing the shelves and spending quiet time alone or with friends.

“It’s a nice hangout spot,” said ninth-grader Shane Haezebrouck, who enjoys the atmosphere in his school library. “It’s cozy and intimate,” added senior Kiara Root.

And what makes their library particularly special is that it was designed and put together by the students themselves.

When The Learning Center at Linlee opened last year, it didn’t have a traditional library. The original library space in the building, which housed the former Linlee Elementary, was converted into a museum to display student artwork.

TLC is an alternative learning center for students in grades 7-12 who need a smaller classroom setting or who want a more hands-on approach to instruction. Among the many successes of its launch is the now-completed Book Nook, the brainchild of librarian Amber Tongate.

“Everything in here, the students did,” she said. “It is with their hard work, time and effort that we have this gorgeous library full of great reads in a warm, inviting atmosphere.”

The project, which stretched from October 2009 through last June, included not only painting the walls and replacing the carpet but also repurposing bookcases donated by Cassidy Elementary, which was undergoing a renovation.

“They were disassembled, so we had to do each individual board,” Shane said, recalling hours and hours of sanding and staining the shelves.

For furnishings, Tongate rounded up six tables and two dozen chairs from a Fayette County Public Schools warehouse on 7^th Street. That’s when the students’ creativity came into play.

“All of the chairs are unique and individual,” said Kiara, who designed and painted a couple of them during White Tiger Wednesdays with Tongate.

The teenagers, who also sometimes worked during Museum time (an art elective), decoupaged the tabletops with different themes such as Winnie the Pooh, baseball parks, schnauzer puppies, graphic novels, Peanuts characters and University of Kentucky sports.

“Every little thing in this library gives you a sense of accomplishment,” Shane noted.

For accent pieces, Tongate added a few antiques including small school desks and an old typewriter; a homemade quilt made by TLC middle school students hangs on one wall. Natural light streams in through the many windows, and soothing music fills in the background.

Books started arriving late last spring.

With $18,000 in startup funds from FCPS, The Learning Center surveyed every student and purchased titles they wanted to see in their new library. Overall, about 70 percent of the library’s collection was donated by young adult authors. One community supporter, Ruth Cox Clark, contributed more than 2,000 new titles for a well-rounded library.

Tongate, who prefers the bookstore model, arranged the space and the books by genre rather than Dewey Decimal Classification. 

“It’s adventure and mystery and other topics teenagers like. I read certain books, and it’s all grouped right there together. I like bookstores, so it’s familiar to me,” said Kiara, adding, “It was well worth the wait.”

Tongate has seen a huge difference among the teens since the Book Nook opened in the fall.

“They’re just reading up a storm,” she said, adding, “It’s a great opportunity to build relationships with students using books.”

Online extra:

Watch the step-by-step transformation | Book Nook slide show