When walking into the library, a Taylor Swift bulletin board hangs welcoming students back from summer break, a Barbie board letting everyone know they are Kenough and the new librarian, Ms. Shawna Wilson, with a smile on her face. Ms. Wilson worked at Ben Barber Frontier the last four years, before moving to Legacy this year.
“I was kind of anxious. I didn’t know how people would feel about someone new coming in especially after Ms. Pinkerton has been here so long, but it’s been good,” Ms. Wilson said. “[The difference is] the usage of the library. Here, it’s more traditional: English, lunches. Over there, it was kind of a break place. The kids would come into lunch just to chill, but that’s really about it.”
Ms. Wilson joins Legacy with 26 years of experience in education. Before she was a librarian, she taught eighth-grade math and Algebra 1 at Wayside Middle School in Eagle Mountain Saginaw.
“I came from a STEM school, so kids love to read. It’s been fun with the kids who are reluctant readers and some of the fun things they are saying to me,” Ms. Wilson said. “I just wanted a more traditional role, and it seemed like kind of a fun deal. I thought, how fun would that be, big shoes to fill, but what can I do to change.”
There were four final candidates out of the interview pool for the librarian position after applications opened online. They each interviewed with Dr. Bonneau, principal, Ms. Monajami, Academic Associate Principal, Ms. Vorsino, Lead Counselor and Ms. McGarr, English Department Chair. Ms. Monajami noticed a high energy, passion and support for students in Ms. Wilson.
“I spent the first week with the TCC kids and there’s a different vibe. It just feels more lively, more energetic. I love that she’s got all the games in there with kids and that’s probably a combination of her and the games and then not being able to be on phones this year,” Ms. Monajami said. “There’s a lot of interaction in there and it’s just a happy place to be.”
Legacy is the last library in the district with a printed reference section, and that is slowly moving to all online reference materials. Students rarely use the physical books to research and study. Changes to the library have already started, with the addition of the dystopian genre in its own section. Ms. Wilson started to pull and change the labels of the dystopian books in the library. She also plans to open up the center of the library to have flexible seating options.
“I want it to be more like a college campus, where kids come in, chill, relax, things like that. That’s kind of my vibe,” Ms. Wilson said.
An open space where students can catch up on homework, grab a favorite book, or just relax is the end goal for the library. Ms. Wilson will likely be in her favorite genre section, historical fiction.
“My favorite young adult book is Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys. Every kid should read it,” Ms. Wilson said. “I think reading is power. Knowledge is power and when we read more, we know more. You know better, do better, because we all mess up.”
