To say that I am a lover of libraries is an understatement. I, like Laura, have been an avid library-goer and make it a point to visit the main public library branch when I go to a new city.
I have a strong connection with education and books, as I am the daughter of a teacher and worked as a designer in an educational publishing house for several years. I was raised with major emphasis on education, complete with weekly library visits and math flash cards. In my adult hood I worked at a place where we made books!

My experience with libraries and education evolved after entering the world of architecture. At my current firm I have been lucky enough to work on two libraries and the experience showed me how the role of libraries must change and grow with their communities. I learned so much the days I had to do site visits just by looking around and seeing the way people use the library. There were people of all ages and demographics studying, on computers and being tutored. Libraries are vital to our communities and its important for them to be flexible and able to grow with the people in which they serve. I chose the library group (#1) to research this past week because they were a mix between community driven and academic libraries with digital media centers and catalogs, the things I have found myself very interested in in the recent months.

There was a little article about librarians in the paper yesterday, it was nice to see a little blurb about libraries out there. Hopefully it will encourage people to visit their local branch soon.