Nearly 100 Teens To Display Tech Projects Created To Address Issues In Their Communities and Beyond

Where: The Bartos Forum of The New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street (enter at 42nd Street)

When: Thursday, May 28, 5 to 6:30 p.m.

What: Nearly 100 teens from high needs areas in New York City will share technology projects that they’ve created as part of the Library’s “Innovation Labs” program. The program – which launched in 2013 – serves middle and high school students at six branches in The New York Public Library system, and aims to help teens learn the essential skills they need to survive in college: the ability to gather and analyze information and communicate that information through digital media.

This year, about 200 teens in total are enrolled in the programs, including high school students in danger of not graduating who participate in the program for credit.

Branches offering Innovation Labs programs include Bronx Library Center, Westchester Square,  and West Farms Libraries in the Bronx, and Mid-Manhattan, Columbus, George Bruce and Harlem Libraries in Manhattan.

Students in these free programs are asked to identify and consider problems in their communities or beyond that they could potentially help solve by thinking critically and utilizing technology, such as photography, video, blogging, robotics, and so on. Samples of just a few of the projects that will be shown include:

• Plans for a robot that identifies where pollutants need to be removed.
• A PSA video about stopping the discrimination of the LGBT community.
• Plans for a “health emergency responsive robot” that will patrol the streets, notice people on the ground, and broadcast footage of those people to a local hospital so professionals can react as necessary.
• Multimedia presentations on the water crisis and cyberbullying
• Plans for an app that provides news and alerts on the latest hacks and online privacy breaches to combat issues of web privacy.
• A song recorded using Garageband that raises awareness of child slavery around the world.
• A documentary on homelessness by a student who documented community service trips to her local shelter.
• Plans for an app that gives reminders to give to the homeless, along with suggestions of where to give food and clothing.
• Plans for an anti-bullying robot that tackles the issue from the perspective of a bully. Research shows that bullies pick on other kids because they are lonely and have low self-worth; the robot will provide companionship.
• Digital mosaics based on teens' personal identity, with images taken during collaborative fieldwork exercises or sourced from digital catalogs including NYPL collections and Magnum collections. Students will be on hand to take portraits of visitors and help them create their own identity-based mosaics

“There are very few programs like this – programs that are high-quality, free, and allow teens to be active creators and explore identity in a supportive, judgement-free setting,” said Maggie Jacobs, the Library’s Director of Educational Programs.

The event will begin with a brief speaking program before breaking into an open house for teens to share their work.

Major support for after-school programming is provided by Arthur W. Koenig; the Andreas C. Dracopoulos Family Endowment for Young Audiences; Stavros Niarchos Foundation; the Mr. and Mrs. Timothy R. Barakett Endowment for Children's and Young Adult Programs and Services; the E.H.A. Foundation Endowment for Literacy Programming; The New York Life Foundation; The Pinkerton Foundation; The Bok Family Foundation; News Corp; The Walt Disney Company; and an anonymous donor, with additional support from the Estate of Brooke Russell Astor and the Estate of Mary McConnell Bailey.

Contact:

Angela Montefinise | 212.592.7506 | angelamontefinise@nypl.org

About The New York Public Library

The New York Public Library is a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With 92 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars, and has seen record numbers of attendance and circulation in recent years. The New York Public Library serves more than 18 million patrons who come through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at www.nypl.org. To offer this wide array of free programming, The New York Public Library relies on both public and private funding. Learn more about how to support the Library at nypl.org/support.  

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