Brown Deputy Librarian Nora Dimmock said that by investing in school libraries, the goal is to strengthen reading and writing proficiency, enhance critical thinking, and expand digital literacy and research skills among Providence students. 

“Libraries are spaces of learning that we often take for granted, yet literacy and reading comprehension are the fundamental building blocks for academic success and lifelong learning,” Dimmock said. “Reading develops critical thinking, exposes students to new ideas and introduces them to different cultures and perspectives — and, for many, it’s a source of joy.”

Expanding collections, enhancing spaces

With support from Brown’s recent Fund for the Education of the Children of Providence disbursements, seven PPSD libraries have undergone significant renovations in the last year. Improvements range from new study areas and upgraded technology to comfortable seating and dedicated reading nooks. Kelly Clifton, Brown’s head of library community engagement, said the enhancements were thoughtfully developed in collaboration with each school. 

“We began by visiting each school, learning directly from librarians about their goals and how we could support the unique needs of each community,” Clifton said. “Libraries aren’t just for studying — some students even spend lunch there instead of the cafeteria. Creating environments to support these varied uses was something we approached with care.”

To cultivate creativity and exploration, Classical High School is enhancing its ongoing library renovations this winter with a makerspace, supported by Brown. The space will provide teens with tools and materials for STEM projects, including a Raspberry PI starter kit for computer science, a smart TV for interactive learning, and a Cricut cutting machine for crafting. 

Separately, E-Cubed Academy has completed a major renovation, transforming its library into a flexible, modern learning commons with new tables, chairs and bookshelves. The space now features a reading nook, high-top charging stations and movable furniture, among other enhancements to support collaborative learning and independent study.

At Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School, Assistant Principal Judy D’Antuono has realized a long-held dream of revitalizing the school library. She described the library’s former setup as outdated. Tables with oversized monitors occupied valuable space, and tall bookshelves blocked sightlines from the circulation desk, making it difficult to oversee students. The layout left little room for flexible learning or collaboration, which limited student engagement, she said. 

“The library wasn’t a very inviting space for students to come and read or work,” D’Antuono said. “They could certainly use it for those purposes, but the tall, bulky furniture and poor layout made it neither comfortable nor welcoming.”

Each school was allocated a budget from the fund to revitalize their library’s physical space and developed a custom improvement plan with a steering committee of PPSD and Brown administrators and teachers. Plans focused on upgrading collections, expanding digital resources and modernizing spaces.

At Alvarez, the renovation reshaped the library into a bright, open, welcoming space that now features lower bookshelves and colorful, vibrant furniture, creating a more accessible, collaborative environment. The upgrades also include a new circulation desk, cozy reading nooks and a versatile classroom area equipped with smart TVs.

D’Antuono says students will use the redesigned space for independent study, group projects and research-focused classes, and she hopes the library will serve as a bridge for students who may struggle to access community libraries. 

“For many of our kids, getting to a community library is difficult because so many of them work,” she said. “We want to create a welcoming environment that inspires students to use the library here, and ideally, encourages them to seek out libraries in the community and as they move into college.”

Beyond the physical spaces, expanding and enriching book collections across PPSD’s high school libraries is a priority that will continue throughout the multi-year collaboration, Clifton said. To date, the project has added more than 2,000 books to eight libraries.

“Our goal was to ensure that every student, regardless of their school, would have access to similar genres including Spanish-language books and other popular titles,” Clifton said.

Connecting educators for impact

With most improvements to physical spaces complete, the project is now transitioning to a second phase focused on boosting collaborations between PPSD librarians and teachers to integrate library resources and programs into classroom learning.

Last summer, 15 PPSD librarians and English teachers gathered for a workshop at Brown organized by the University’s Center for Library Exploration and Research. Experts from Brown, Rhode Island School of Design and the Rhode Island Historical Society led sessions on teaching with primary sources, covering strategies like visual literacy, contextual reading, narrative building, online source discovery and lesson plan development.

Teachers and librarians left with new strategies to enhance students’ primary source literacy. Providence Career and Technical Academy Library Media Specialist Kim Yeaw left feeling motivated, equipped with new interactive lessons to use with students.   

“I needed a refresher on the primary resources available, and the hands-on activities we learned are perfect for teaching our students,” Yeaw said. “I joined with our ELA teacher leader, and we left so energized — we couldn’t stop talking about how excited we were to try these ideas with our students.” 

The second phase of the library enhancement project is also creating expanded learning opportunities for students through new programs, events and field trips. During the current school year, PPSD students are meeting accomplished young-adult authors, for example. In October, more than 300 students and teachers heard an inspiring talk by award-winning author Jacqueline Woodson. In March, students will have the chance to meet author Jason Reynolds at an event. 

Ivan Maribel Starr Rivera, a sophomore in the Providence Career and Technical Academy’s culinary track, read Woodson’s “Brown Girl Dreaming” — copies of which were provided to each school with support from the fund — and described meeting the author as inspiring.

“I read the book with a friend and would read it again because the way Jacqueline writes is amazing,” Rivera said. “I feel like when writers of such captivating books come to talk to the students who read the book, it helps us understand the book even more. It’s also just really inspirational to hear the author explain why she wrote it and why she loves writing.”

Loricen Jean, a senior at Alvarez, agreed: “I really liked the book — each part made me learn more about Woodson’s story, and her honesty and sensitivity completely captured me,” Jean said. “I think it’s crucial for high school students to attend more events like these because they inspire us to explore our own stories and voices.”

In its third year, the library enhancement project will focus on enriching K-12 school partnerships with public libraries and the University’s own library facilities. Together, Brown library staff and PPSD librarians hope to establish a workshop series on research methods, teaching PPSD students how to work with primary sources, engage in collaborative research and effectively use library resources.

Last year, Brown library staff welcomed Classical High School students to campus, providing support as the juniors explored research topics like opioid harm reduction, gun violence prevention and climate change solutions. Over two days in Brown’s Sidney E. Frank Digital Studio and Patrick Ma Digital Scholarship Lab, students refined research questions into searches and accessed scholarly articles through campus research databases — skills that future workshops will build upon.

Project leaders say that partnerships between high school and college libraries can bridge gaps in information literacy, equipping students with skills in conducting research, evaluating sources and navigating academic resources. By welcoming PPSD students into Brown’s libraries, Clifton hopes to empower them with knowledge they need to succeed academically. 

“We want students to feel prepared if they choose to pursue higher education — not only by understanding how to navigate their school libraries but by knowing how to connect with librarians and academic resources beyond high school,” Clifton said. “Building those connections now can help bridge that gap and set them up for success in college and beyond.”

Building financial literacy through other fund programming 

In addition to the multi-year initiative to strengthen PPSD libraries, a separate project supported with approximately $165,000 from the Fund for the Education of the Children of Providence is focused on boosting middle school students’ financial literacy decision-making skills. The “Power to the Pupil” collaboration gave eighth graders from Nathanael Greene Middle School the opportunity to decide how $100,000 from the fund should be allocated to benefit students across the Providence school district.

In the first stage of the “participatory budgeting” exercise, students generated lists of challenges faced by PPSD schools. Next, during a town hall on Brown’s campus, the students debated and voted on broad funding categories. The top three choices were skill-based learning, student health and hands-on learning experiences. Through group exercises, discussions and votes, students ultimately chose to fund hands-on learning.

In the final stage, a smaller group of eighth-graders developed a budget proposal, pitching ideas and ultimately combining two projects — internships and field trips — into an initiative they called “Fieldternships.” And last spring, the students’ vision came to life as all seventh and eighth graders across PPSD embarked on a daylong trip to the Boston Science Museum, marking the first major step in the new Fieldternships initiative.

Looking ahead toward next steps in both the library and financial literacy projects, Dimmock and fellow Brown colleagues hope to strengthen a partnership with the district that embeds unique learning opportunities into students’ educational experiences for years to come, including trip-based learning.

“I’m excited about building a sustainable partnership that brings more students into our spaces and creates new learning possibilities with teachers and librarians,” Dimmock said. “Imagine students from the Hope High School arts community having access to resources like the Gardner Museum or exploring topics at the Newport Art Museum — this kind of collaboration can truly expand what library programming means and redefine how we think about learning."

For Yeaw, who has served as the librarian at Providence Career and Technical Academy since its opening in 2009, the school libraries initiative has been a genuine collaboration.

“Brown has been an incredible support, truly making us feel heard,” Yeaw said. “Nora and Kelly don’t just listen to our needs — they take immediate action. That level of responsiveness and support really makes a difference. Brown is listening to us, and that means everything.”