#PLA2026: Making Space for Teens Beyond Square Footage

Speaking on two panels at PLA 2026 meant missing sessions I genuinely wanted to attend. Making Space for Teens at the Library was one of them. Fortunately, Jade Parks of Downers Grove Public Library and Athens Moreno of Carol Stream Public Library uploaded their slides and resource packet to the conference portal, where attendees could access them through the mobile app. The materials reward close study. Parks and Moreno identify three recurring problems in teen librarianship: teens are underserved, library space and resources are limited, and behavioral incidents involving teens receive disproportionate attention. Their answer is a service design plan libraries can use now, even without a renovation. Parks and Moreno define space more broadly than furniture. In their model, space includes staffing, signage, scheduling, collections, passive programming, volunteer structures, and digital community. The broader definition shifts the whole conversation. It moves attention from square footage alone to the decisions…
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