The application period to be a Teen Reading Ambassador is currently closed. Occasionally positions become available throughout the year and will be posted on NYPL's Careers page. Find open positions here.
Portal: NYPL's Magazine Created by Teens
Portal is a magazine written, designed, and edited by NYPL’s Teen Reading Ambassadors! Aimed at an audience of kids ages 6–12, Portal contains stories and features, fun facts, comics, activities, and much more specially created by the Teen Reading Ambassadors for each of our issues.
The cohort of spring 2021 chose the magazine's name, which means a "doorway or an entrance to something new," to reflect the role books and libraries play as portals to exciting new worlds.
Check out recent issues of Portal and get inspired to become a Teen Reading Ambassador yourself!
New from the Teen Reading Ambassadors
We are excited to share the fourth issue of Portal with you! The theme for this issue is "Around the World." Inside you will discover new places, recipes, activities, stories, and much more. Print copies of Portal Issue 4 are available in branches starting Friday, July 5, 2024—while supplies last!
Book Recommendations and Downloadables for Kids, by Teens!
Read book recommendations for kids and download posters to hang on your wall—all written and designed by the Teen Reading Ambassadors!
Teen Centers at NYPL
Hang out, get creative, and much more at the Library's newly expanded and enhanced Teen Centers! These welcoming spaces in libraries across the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island have been created just for teens and are open for you to collaborate, make new friends, read, and enjoy all the Library has to offer. From video equipment to gaming consoles to art supplies—everything is free to use!
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Free Events & Programs
AttendAll the Library’s events and programs for teens are free, from book and manga discussions to arts and crafts, tech workshops, and our TeenLIVE author talks. Explore the calendar to find something for you!
Photo © Isseu Diouf Campbell for Afrikanspot LLC
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Teen Civics Ambassadors
Learn MoreNYPL’s Teen Civics Ambassadors program offers internships to teens to help develop job readiness and leadership skills, with a focus on library resources, civics, and peer-to-peer engagement. Get paid to create fun, exciting events and resources at the Library for other teens, and encourage your peers to learn about and become active participants in your communities!
More from NYPL for Teens
Discover free one-on-one homework help, college and career counseling, volunteer opportunities, book recommendations, free resources, and more that the Library has to offer teens.
Our Supporters
These programs and initiatives are part of the Library’s Tisch Youth Education Programs, led by the Merryl and James Tisch Director of Branch Libraries and Education. Major support for educational programming is provided by Merryl H. and James S. Tisch.
Major support for children's and young adult programming is provided by the Andreas C. Dracopoulos Family Endowment for Young Audiences.
NYPL After School at Harlem branch libraries is part of the Jane Lauder Harlem After-School Programs.
NYPL After School at Chatham Square Library is made possible by E.H.A. Foundation, Inc.
NYPL After School is made possible by Arthur W. Koenig, The Gottesman Fund, Mr. and Mrs. Evan R. Chesler, Michael ByungJu Kim and the MBK Educational Foundation, Krista and Michael Nickols, and Marilyn Friedman and Thomas Block.
The Teen Civics Ambassadors program is made possible by the generous support of The Gottesman Fund.
