Agosto, Denise. "Envisaging Young Adult Librarianship from a Teen-Centered Perspective." In Transforming Young Adult Services, edited by Anthony Bernier, 33-52. Chicago: Neal-Schuman, 2013.
Denise Agosto's views on creating a more teen-centered perspective in library services are valid and to be valued. For example, her insistence on referring to the teens as their self-proclaimed label, teens, rather than adult-appointed terms like young adults, is important. If you want to get on the same level as this age group, it is important to respect them by calling them what they wish to be called. Having interacted with teens at my own library, I agree with this distinction. You can't refer to them as children, and you can't just slap an adult label on them, either--they are their own category of human. By paying attention to their own self-appointed labels, and using them when interacting with them, you foster more respect between yourselves. You don't treat them like something they're not. Carefully consider their views on their own lives.
Agosto puts a lot of emphasis on getting direct input from teens when conducting research in the field. The same goes for the day-to-day jobs in the teen services department of the public library. Yes, you want to get them the most popular book titles around, and you'll usually find that while looking at other library science professionals' research and booklists, but I must agree with Agosto: you need to go straight to the teens and find out what they think they need. When you go to them directly to find out what they find important to their lives, you are using a teen-centered approach, where they themselves contribute to the cause. The teens are the cause!
In my library, my director and the previous teen department head are always talking about how you need to give the teens a "yes" whenever you can--they're so used to getting "no, no, no." It's true, to some extent. They're enthusiastic and they have plenty of creative ideas--but how many of those ideas get turned down by the librarian in charge? Are they really considering the needs and desires of the teens? They can be one and the same. I've made it a point as a teen librarian to constantly ask the teens for their ideas on how to improve the department and give them programs and services that are simultaneously constructive and entertaining. My latest project has been to casually interview the teens about their favorite books, and this was inspired by one of the teens. They want to show everyone what their favorite titles are and encourage others to explore them... and discover their own favorites! We are collecting their favorite books and creating posters with their names and recommendations to put up around the department. This way, they get to be actively involved with their library, and have something to be proud to show off. It's their space, and they should be able to truly make it their own.
Sometimes with programming, it's all about trial and error. You come up with a program, you run it, and you hope that it's well received. I have to prepare myself for the teen department's upcoming programs for the fall and winter. By running these programs, I hope to get a concrete idea for what the teens want and need. Asking for them to review current and past programs in the department to ascertain what it is they want more of (or less of), and what new things they would like to see, is essential--I plan on asking my teens to review what we do and give me their honest feedback so that we can truly make it all about them. Will a pen-and-paper survey work? Or should it be more informal? Regardless of how you choose to do it, I strongly encourage librarians (myself included) to really reach out to their teen population. They are your biggest and best resource! They're the ones coming to your events and using the space. Actively show them that their opinions matter.
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