Prince William County Public Schools

The Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) Student Learning Department recently secured funding to provide Little Free Libraries to every school in the Division. The libraries are small, freestanding boxes outside of a school where patrons can exchange books for free.

"The little buildings began as a curiosity and ended up being embraced by many in the community who not only borrow and return books, but also donate additional books to share their love of reading," said Schenell Agee, supervisor of library media programs and research for PWCS.

With the support of Doug Wright, supervisor of career and technical education, the project is a winning opportunity for PWCS. The effort to expand literacy and the love of reading in the community brings together students from the career and technical education program who often build the structures used for the libraries.

"The majority of PWCS Little Free Library structures were built by students enrolled in the cabinetry program at C.D. Hylton High School under the guidance of Mr. Thomas Ehman," said Agee. "However, a few model structures were put together by students at Graham Park Middle School and Beville Middle School."

The Little Free Libraries will be installed at schools in PWCS over the next several years.