Celebrating a New Chapter of the Furness High School Library

The atmosphere was electric on a chilly November morning as guests started to congregate at Furness High School, the growing din amplified by live music performed by Furness students.

The buzz was well-earned and long-coming: students, teachers, and community partners were gathering for an official ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the reopening of the school's library—for the first time in decades.

This milestone was the culmination of a years-long partnership between the Penn Libraries and the Furness school. At the direction of the school’s principal, the Penn Libraries Community Engagement team has been working closely with Furness staff and students since before the COVID-19 pandemic in an effort to prepare the library to reopen, sharing norms and procedures for the library space, building a collection, and assembling a cohort of interested staff. Staff from across the Penn Libraries have also contributed to the project; they have ordered books for the school's collection, assisted with cataloging, spoken with Furness staff and students about their work as librarians, and even coordinated the donation of furniture.

To give Furness students a real sense of ownership, school leaders stepped back and let them shape their own visions for the library: a place outside of the classroom where students can study, socialize, or just catch their breath during a hectic day. Students and staff are selecting books to be added to the library's collection in the many languages they speak, including titles in Vietnamese, Spanish, and Chinese. A welcoming environment is providing resources not just for students, but for their parents and siblings, too.

And these visions are already becoming a reality. Since August 25, the first day of this school year, over 350 books have already been borrowed from the library. A committed group of student leaders have taken responsibility for many day-to-day operations. Systems are in place to continue to grow the collection and respond to the evolving needs of the school and its surrounding community.

To commemorate this new chapter and recognize these accomplishments, we gathered reflections from the people who made it happen.

Transforming a Space

In March 2018, I met with [former Penn Libraries Community Engagement Librarian] Ancil George, and he asked me what my school needed. I said, my library looked like a library, but the books are older than I am. And I'm old. So I would love my kids to have a library that has current books, that has books that represent the many cultures that we have here. And he said okay, we'll adopt you.

- Daniel Peou, Furness High School principal
 

- Sylvain, Furness High School graduate, class of 2024
 

When I started teaching at Furness in 2020, this was an empty room, basically. There were a few very old yellow copies of books, but nobody really spent any time in here. And now we really have this living space, this working space. And that's thanks to the students. They've been consistent. They've been disciplined. They stay after school. And they not only set it up, but they maintain it. And that is the hard part.

- Theresa Daly, ESOL Teacher, Furness High School

A Library By and For Students

I am a huge believer in student leadership, so everything that we do in the library is student-led. Every day I meet with a library team of 12 students, and they all have different roles. I have two leaders, I have a shelving person, I have a person who goes around and finds every kid who needs to return a book. I have a publicity person. I have someone who is in charge of games and activities. They all have a role, and they work together to keep the library running.

- Aimee Daivs, English and ESOL teacher; faculty advisor for the Furness High School Library
 

Our school has many students who come from different countries and speak different languages. And so to make this library a learning space for everyone, we provide books in different language like Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese. That's important because maybe the people are still learning English, and they still want to read books and achieve new knowledge. 

- Claryn, 11th grade
 

 Libraries are more than books on shelves. They are safe and inviting, and they open up worlds beyond our own, help us find ourselves, let us choose, enable connections and teamwork. They are free in all senses of the word, and they need librarians to lead and guide their use.

- Gina Pambianchi, Community Engagement Librarian, Penn Libraries
 

I recently brought a class down to the library, and I asked one of my students, a very reluctant reader, "Would you like to take a book?" And he said, "Oh, no, I'm good." And then I remembered that he had little brothers and sisters at home. So I was able to show him the children's section back here, where we have books in English and Spanish. And sure enough, he took a couple books home and was able to share them with his younger siblings.

- Theresa Daly, ESOL Teacher, Furness High School
 

In my class, we do this thing called extemporaneous speaking, where students have to come to the front of the class, grab a question, and talk about it for a minute. Yesterday, a student, got the question, "How do you spend your free time?" And he surprised himself. He said, "Lately, I've been going downstairs and browsing books." And I was like, oh my God, it's so beautiful.

- John Kuhn, English and Public Speaking teacher, Furness High School

The Future of Our Libraries

What I want to see for our future in our library is students continuing to see themselves in books they love. I hope people feel excited and joyful to see the books they were looking for on our shelves. I also hope it will be a space where students' minds can be creatively at work as they sit in our library or chat with one another on comfy couches. I hope it is a space where students can connect to or just take a second to find some calm before moving on to class. I want our library to be a place where students can feel like themselves and express themselves.

- Avery, 9th grader
 

One thing I hope to see moving forward is that we keep adding books to the empty shelves until every student can find a book that they want to read in a language that they speak. I also hope to see students' artwork put up around the library, showcasing their talents, and to let students know that this is their space as well. I look forward to the future and our growth in this space, and I want to say thank you to everyone for helping our school.

- Maia, 9th grader
 

It should come as no surprise to most of you assembled here that Philadelphia Public Schools overwhelmingly lack staffed libraries. Currently, there are less than five certified district-funded librarians in all city schools. This lack of access to school libraries staffed with trained librarians who can support independent reading and research skills, provide digital guidance and support, and foster curiosity, not only limits the access of Philadelphia students to books and resources — a proven corollary for academic success — but can limit their futures as well. In the age of AI, algorithms, and manufactured truth, librarians and libraries can and do help students develop taste and perspective of their own based in fact. This is something that all students and all people deserve.

- Rosie Jacobson, Community Initiatives Manager