Topeka Relocation Guide 2009

T he Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library is “Your Place” Sharon Boranyak, Chamber/GO Topeka Communications Specialist Indeed, the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library is designed with the community in mind. “We’ve started ‘neighborhoods’ on topics like travel and murder mysteries,” Millsap says. “These neighborhood areas are like mini-bookstore displays where all the information on a topic is together, making browsing and research fast and easy.” To make things even more convenient for users, the book spines have a topic as well as the Dewey Decimal System number. Reliable Health Resources The Health Information Neighborhood, one of the library’s newer areas, consolidates the consumer health resources into one distinct area. Partnering with St. Francis Health Center and Stormont-Vail HealthCare, the area is staffed with trained librarians and volunteers to help you find highquality health information from reliable sources. The Health Information Neighborhood also has a private space, complete with chairs and a computer, as well as a blood pressure cuff. “The most searched topic on Google is health,” says Millsap. “A person’s health literacy quotient closely aligns with their health,” explaining that being an informed health care consumer can lead to better health. “Few consumers use the library as a health resource,” she continues. “Most are likely to ask friends or family health questions.” Neighborhoods for Newborns to Teens The Youth Services section has its own neighborhoods, or “zones,” based on development level. The neighborhood for pre-schoolers, for example, is called Topek a Reloc at ion Gu ide 20 09 “Your place. Stories you want, information you need, connections you seek.” This is the tag line for the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library, a strong presence in Topeka since the 1870s. Today, the library is a center where people of all ages and all walks of life can find books, CDs and DVDs; attend programs on art, health or travel; learn how to use a computer or discover the family tree. “The Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library is a cultural center and a gathering place,” says Gina Millsap, executive director of the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library. “You can meet a friend at the Millennium Café for lunch or coffee, take your preschooler to the Story Zone to play and learn, check out the Sabatini Gallery’s art collection or just relax with a book or magazine in one of our comfortable overstuffed chairs.” A “Library Card-Carrying” Member of the Community Millsap says she has had a special love for libraries all her life. “My father was an officer in the Marine Corps, so we moved around a lot,” she said. “One of the first things my mother would do when we moved to a new place was to take me to the public library to get my library card. Once I had my very own library card, I felt like I belonged to my new community.” 6 “Story Zone.” The room is decorated in primary colors with a mural along one wall. A big red car and a “dream boat” are full of books that small children can enjoy as they become acquainted with books. In an adjacent room are computers with color-coded keyboards equipped with learning software. “The library promotes reading 20 minutes a day to children, starting at birth,” says Millsap. “We also try to reach out to all populations and work together with other community resource providers to ensure books are a part of children’s lives. Reading to children helps with language and other development skills needed for kindergarten and preschool.” The library also has resources for teachers, after-school program leaders and child-care providers through Collection Connection bags that contain specific book collections, videos, objects and related activities by subject for easy check-out. Among the most popular with parents of younger children are themed bags of board books and accessories for children 18 to 24 months old. A new teen center down the east hall provides more room to better serve this growing population, with restaurantstyle booths, a long counter of computers for studying or computer games and vending machines for food and beverages. “Focus groups of middleschoolers helped to design the center,” says Millsap. “The library has to make connections with the teens and has to be where they are. That includes making computer games available. Studies are showing that games have positive benefits, such as sharpening decisionmaking and socialization skills.” “We want teens using the center to have a sense of community and, as future taxpayers, to get connected to the library,” she says. Primarily used during after school hours into early evenings, Gina Millsap and Robert Banks, director of operations for the library, share shifts working in the area. Services for All Ages and Abilities After a few visits to the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library and its web site, www.tscpl.org, it will be apparent that this article only skims http://www.tscpl.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Topeka Relocation Guide 2009

Topeka Relocation Guide 2009 Contents Topeka's Pioneering Spirit Prevails During Turbulent Economic Times The Topeka & Shawnee County Library is "Your" Place Topeka Arts Community Grows Through ARTSConnect Topeka Bragging Rights History of Topeka Choosing Topeka Little Know Facts About Topeka 15 Things to Experience in Topeka What's a Young Professional to Do? Topeka in Profile Transportation Lodging Brick Oven: American Cuisine with a Multi-Cultural Twist Great Overland Station: Rich History, Elegant Architecture Religious Organizations Libraries, Shopping and Child Care Referral Housing Income Demographics Business and Industry Topeka MSA Employment Education Higher Education Opportunities Healthcare Local Transportation Taking Care of Pets Utilities Cultural Activities Trails Festivals Attractions Important Numbers Community Information Sources Licensing Agencies Employment Agencies

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