Teenagers take on leadership roles at Ramona Library
By Karen Brainard
A group of high school students are not only earning community service hours for school as they volunteer at Ramona Library, but they are learning responsibilities as well.
“What we’re trying to do is prepare them for leadership roles,” Ramona Library Branch Manager Ellie Slade said of the Teen Action Council (TAC) program.
“These are life skills...we treat it like a job,” added librarian Charlotte King-Mills.
The Teen Action Council is an organized group with student officers that meets once a month, however, members spend a certain number of hours each week volunteering at the library. Slade said their schedules are dependent on school and library events.
Among some of their duties are assisting with classes and special library events, book shelving, working on the bulletin board, and helping elderly residents with computer skills and elementary students with homework.
King-Mills recently joined the library staff, substituting for librarian Cecilia Salgado who is on leave and oversaw the teen group.
“She has inherited a bunch of very talented teens,” Slade said.
The two librarians described the TAC members as being very focused on going to college, having lofty goals, and going beyond what is required.
King-Mills said the teens suggested bringing in an instructor for ACT or SAT test preparation during the Oct. 12 teen read week. The library will sponsor the instructor, said Slade, and the test prep will probably be held twice a week for four weeks. The class will be free, she said, and TAC will distribute information once plans are formalized.
During the TAC Sept. 12 meeting, the group discussed the differences between the ACT and the SAT college admission tests with the seniors offering advice to younger members.
Mountain Valley Academy High School senior Francisco Silva, who handles social outreach for the teen board, said he was taking the ACT test the next day.
The older students also talked about what colleges are looking for on applications. Ramona High School senior Stephanie Kovach said colleges like to see work experience, even if it’s babysitting, and like to see students helping out their community.
They discussed taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes and joked about late nights and making trips to Starbucks.
Silva advised students to challenge themselves as much as possible. TAC president Kimberly Salazar, also a senior at Mountain Valley Academy, told the younger students they can help them through the college preparation process.
“Go ahead. Ask a senior. We’ve all been through it,” she said.
The group has a Facebook page, SDCL Teen Action Council - Ramona branch, filled with photos of volunteering at events and other information. Salazar told the students that if they need any photos when applying for scholarships, they can use ones on the Facebook page.
“It makes it easier,” she said.
The officers also ran through requirements to be on the Teen Action Council. Students must have at least a 2.0 grade point average, and they must meet a 20-hour minimum of service hours.
TAC vice president Alicia Harrington, an RHS senior, advised: “If you’re going to work here, have a library card.”
According to Slade, during the three years the library has implemented the TAC program, about 150 students have been involved. She said it was a goal of all library branches in the San Diego County system to have a program to mentor teens and treat their responsibilities like a job.
For more information on the program contact Ramona Library at 760-788-5270.