Library Buildings around the World

are committed to fundamentally transforming school libraries into vital resources for the whole school community — students,
teachers, and parents — that will impact and contribute to improved student performance.
Robin Hood sought and received major funding and support for the Initiative from two major children's book publishers, Scholastic
and HarperCollins, each donating one million books. The Initiative also attracted cash as well as in-kind donations to cover
everything from architectural services to computers for a total of $40 million for the project. Major donors include Credit Suisse,
Apple, USA Networks, Pentagram, Sciame Construction, and HMGA architects, along with nine other top architectural firms.
Additionally, Robin Hood and the New York City Department of Education partnered with Syracuse University's Masters of
Library Science Program to train New York City elementary school librarians. Tuition for the program will be underwritten by
Syracuse University and the Department of Education. Robin Hood is also providing professional development for a core group of
teachers and every principal involved in the Initiative, as well as developing innovative educational programs that extend the reach
of the project, such as creating a learning garden for a school in a neighborhood with little outdoor space and a summer reading
program called Camp Bookaweek.
Since 2002, 62 libraries were reinvented in an unprecedented effort to improve the educational opportunities of New York's neediest
children. (http://www.robinhood.org/initiatives/library)
The Robin Hood Foundation prompts architects to re-envision the public school library
By Jane Kolleeny
I had a dream of reinventing the library for elementary students,” says Lonni Tanner, who headed special projects at the Robin
Hood Foundation for 11 years. In 1998, she and Henry Myerberg, AIA, a partner at Rockwell Group in New York, visited a school
in Brooklyn and saw what passed for a library: a room with a few dusty books and out-of-date computers. Soon they discovered that
many of the public schools in New York City had similarly dispirited spaces posing as libraries. The kids deserved better, Tanner
felt. Essential to their thinking is that libraries—at the heart of learning and education—can have a lasting effect on poverty. “You
can't change all the classrooms in a school, but you can make a library—which takes only 5 percent of the physical space of a school,
but has a 100 percent influence,” says Myerberg. “That's a great rate of return.”
So began the Robin Hood Foundation's library initiative, which has evolved into a unique collaboration with New York City's Board
of Education to create, fund, and maintain school libraries in some of the most impoverished areas of the city's five boroughs.
Myerberg worked closely with Tanner to jump-start the project, asking other architects to volunteer their services. He was amazed
at how easy it was to get help; it took 10 phone calls to get nine New York architects (plus himself) to design the initial 10 projects,
which were completed in 2002. Since then, on the second round, he designed seven of the next 21 libraries, which opened in 2004. For
the third round, he will undertake about five of a total of 25 libraries, which will be also be designed by seven other local architects,
four of whom created prior libraries for the project.
The goal of the first round was to create a model that might be applicable to other school districts in the U.S. “It's not about creating
a box or a room or putting books on the shelf,” says Tanner. “I wanted the library to do its duty with the rest of the building and the
school's program.”
The library initiative fits perfectly into the mission of the Robin Hood Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1988 by
commodities broker Paul Tudor Jones and two friends in an effort to give something back to the less fortunate in a society that made
them wealthy. The foundation has become a favorite of New York's high-flying hedge-fund managers, many of whom have given to it
generously in recent years as their own fortunes soared. The group funds soup kitchens, education, job training, and programs for
the homeless, supporting about 140 organizations in the greater New York City area. Executive director David Saltzman says, “The
library initiative is a model of what public/private partnerships can and should be. Generations of poor children in New York City
will benefit.”
The inspiration becomes reality
The architects involved in the library initiative knew they needed to understand the students before they could design for them.
Calvin Tsao, AIA, a partner at Tsao and McKown Architects, who has completed five libraries to date, says: “We examined what the
word ‘library' means today, technologically and sociologically, and then sought to define the word for this particular group of
people. We deconstructed and reevaluated the purpose of the library specifically for the students, to reinsert learning into there in a
way that would be relevant to them.”
From the beginning, a stream of donations—elicited by Tanner—sprang forth, including one million books each from Scholastic and
HarperCollins, paint from Benjamin Moore, computers from Apple, advanced education (Master of Library Science degree
programs) for the librarians from Syracuse University, graphics from Pentagram, and other gifts in kind. Even with donations and
modest spending, the budget for the design of each library typically runs $400,000 to $500,000, a hefty commitment for schools with
limited resources. But the Board of Education has committed its ongoing support—essentially in the form of a two-to-one matching
grant—putting in two dollars for every dollar contributed by Robin Hood.
The architects learned that the old-fashioned definition of libraries as quiet, private places to read has morphed over time into a
notion of settings for collaborative learning. They serve as gathering spots, where kids can work together on computers and watch or
deliver presentations. Libraries have become media centers where technology and the Internet provides access to the world at large.
Public performance and interactive learning appear to help the kids develop confidence. For that reason, the libraries feature
theater areas or town halls, as Tsao refers to them, a deliberate attempt to center the space in a traditional way and use design as a
learning device.
The team of architects from the first round of libraries established parameters to guide later designs. They agreed on the need to
accommodate librarians/teachers leading an active class, students giving performances, and individuals studying alone. Since each
space comprises no more than 2,000 square feet, flexibility became a key design component. Many areas have multiple uses
facilitated by custom-made movable furniture and shelving. Each library required a minimum of four computer stations, wireless
access, and storage for 10,000 books. While the design in each instance is unique, the aim has been to standardize the program and
develop an economy of means.
The designs themselves
Architect Richard Lewis has designed five of these projects to date and is slated to do five more. He has enjoyed the sense of common
purpose that Robin Hood encourages among the architects. “It is so satisfying to see the positive effect of these libraries. That's why
the issue of professional fees has been so unimportant,” he comments. The architects speak glowingly of their experience with Robin
Hood, despite modest fees, which offset a portion of their direct costs. Michael Beirut, a partner at Pentagram who serves as graphic
designer for the libraries, reiterated this experience. He described this work as the most fulfilling of his career. Perhaps the look on
the kids' faces as they use the places explains the motivation of everybody involved in the initiative.
Looking at tight budgets and existing spaces, the architects found that some of their best tools for enlivening the libraries included
customizing portable furniture, applying bright colors, and bringing in lots of daylight, original graphics, and whimsical light
fixtures. While the libraries are ambitious for this context, they are often conservative for the architects themselves, many of whom
have established reputations for innovative design. Marion Weiss, a partner at Weiss/Manfredi Architects, who designed a library at
P.S. 42 in the first round, made a big impact simply by changing the library's location. Moving it from the fourth floor—where, in
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