The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation today hosted a celebration marking the grand openings of the 10th and 11th libraries renovated as part of the Baltimore Elementary and Middle School Library Project. The newly renovated spaces are located at Commodore John Rodgers Elementary/Middle School and Westport Academy, where today’s celebration took place.
The Library Project is a multi-year, collaborative effort to design, build, equip, and staff new or renovated elementary/middle school libraries in selected schools where existing funds can be leveraged. The Weinberg Foundation has committed $10 million to build or transform up to 24 Baltimore City Public School libraries in an effort to strengthen academic achievement among students.
Each new library is a well-equipped, well-staffed, and well-resourced space that includes beautiful design, new furniture and graphics, the latest technologies, an “Enoch Pratt Parent Place” for parents/guardians, informal reading areas; and separate areas for study and research, instruction, and group discussion.
In addition to showcasing the transformed libraries, today’s celebration will also include family tours of the renovated space at Westport Academy as well as a client choice food pantry, operated by Maryland Food Bank and The Heart of America Foundation, where each family will be able to select 25 pounds of food including fresh produce. Students and families at Commodore John Rodgers will showcase their space later in the week and will also have the opportunity to participate in family tours and a food pantry.
To read more on today’s events click here, and please follow all Weinberg Library Project developments at www.baltimorelibraryproject.org and on Facebook and Twitter at #libraryproject.
