The fundamentals for teen space design are the same as the fundamentals for any library. How large is the facility? How many hours is it open? And how many staff work there? In this chart the two school libraries and the Seattle Public Library should be considered outliers as school libraries tend to have a higher ratio of square feet per student, and the Seattle Public Library, in reality, serves a far greater population of young people than 1,543.
Findings
Size
- Min Size: 162 Sq. Ft.
- Max Size: 5,000 Sq. Ft.
- Median Response: 1,059 Sq. Ft.
With service populations ranging from fewer than 1,000 to more than 30,000, we see a corresponding range of teen center sizes. From the size of a teen bedroom in Frederick, MD, to the size of a small branch library in large cities such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Seattle, the size of teen centers is truly the clearest cue that a library is dedicated to teens. The median value for square feet per thousand teens is about 200. Checking with the state standards for several states, the recommended square footage for library facilities generally falls in the range of 600-1,250 square feet per thousand people. 1,2,3 While these figures represent not only space for collections and seating, but total public space, the low average for teens suggests that these spaces could be larger still.
Hours Per Week
- Min Hours: 16
- Max Hours: 81
- Median Response: 62
The majority of teen spaces are open the same hours as the library building, and those that are not open for all hours tend to have severely restricted budgets and target the hours they are open for after-school activities. While most teens come to the library after school and leave when their parents pick them up, many of the neediest teens are those whose parents work two jobs to support their children, or who may use the library as an escape from a difficult home life. A significant portion of the libraries surveyed did not open the teen center, or had very limited hours, on Fridays. Weekends are when students have the free time to use the library as a recreational space, and when teens are free from being students. This is one area where many libraries appear still to be responding to stereotypes of teens. It is also, of course, an area where libraries are struggling with all age groups. 
Staffing
- Min Staff: 0
- Max Staff: 6
- Median Response: 1
Perhaps even more crucial in the struggle to support teens at a public library than a teen space is a dedicated teen librarian. While a select few libraries report having multiple professional staff, the vast majority of these exceptional teen spaces do not boast enough staff to work the hours the teen center is open. While much of teen librarianship, like any library work, requires management, desk work, creating programs and dealing with a collection, the one way to get teens involved in the library is to forge connections between them and caring, responsible adults. Whether these people have advanced degrees is not the point, but making them a presence in teens’ lives is. That said, the data here does not support a definite correlation between dedicated staff and teen presence in the space.