PPLD Teens Archived

Pikes Peak Library District’s 2023 - 2025 Strategic Plan

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A photo of Colorado Springs with text over it that reads "2023 - 2025 Strategic Plan."

From a small reading room established 136 years ago, PPLD continues to evolve to meet the ever-changing needs of our sprawling community. Our service area covers 2,070 square miles of El Paso County with a population of nearly 700,000 – people of all ages and backgrounds with varying views and interests.

Thanks to taxpayer funding, we can continue to provide residents with access to 16 facilities, three mobile library services, and a large online hub of resources and services, all of which are inclusive and welcoming to everyone. The Library team strives to make its physical and digital spaces safe and respectful for diverse voices, perspectives, and pursuits; to foster community dialogue and connections; and to help people achieve their goals and dreams in life.

Overview and Process

In the winter and spring of 2022, our Board of Trustees and staff revisited PPLD’s mission statement and developed a vision statement and organizational values that best reflect our public library system and growing community in El Paso County.

This became our starting point to develop our new strategic plan for 2023 - 2025. After months of input from the public through surveys and in-person meetings, PPLD staff, Library patrons, and other community members and government officials, PPLD used the rich qualitative data it received from more than 1,600 responses to develop a new strategic plan for 2023 - 2025. Below are the six areas of focus the team identified that became the foundation of the plan.

Strategic Plan: Areas of Focus

    Access

    PPLD is an access point for everyone to engage with resources, services, and spaces as they choose.

    Accountability

    PPLD is accountable to all stakeholders through fiscal responsibility, continuous evaluation, and by sharing findings with the public.

    Communications

    PPLD invests in and elevates community awareness of its resources, services, and spaces.

    Community Connections

    PPLD builds community through relationships and partnerships to connect people to relevant resources, services, and spaces.

    Physical and Virtual Spaces

    PPLD provides equitable access to physical and virtual spaces in safe and inclusive environments.

    Staff

    PPLD values, trusts, and invests in staff.

 

PPLD publicly released this plan in detail on Dec. 6, 2022, so everyone could see where, why, and how PPLD will reinvest taxpayer dollars back into the community through 2025. We look forward to using our new strategic plan to fulfill our mission, uphold our values, and aim to achieve our vision for this great community.

 

View the complete plan here:

2020 Betty Field Memorial Youth Writing Contest Winners

The results are in! The Betty Field Youth Memorial Writing Contest, sponsored by the Friends of Pikes Peak Library District, is writing contest for youth in grades 6-12 that focuses on mystery stories. This year, 90 students submitted stories to the contest. These submissions were judged anonymously by volunteers from the Friends of the Library and Pikes Peak Library District staff, who entered over 400 scores for the stories!

6th Grade:

  • 1st place: "Pluto Found Missing" by Madalynn Moorhead
  • 2nd place: "Friend or Foe?" by Tristan Kumar
  • 3rd place: "The Girl Erased from Time" by Hudson Sheperd

7th Grade:

  • 1st place: "Scootered" by Jace Baehman
  • 2nd place: "The Dissociative Killer" by Raina Seybert
  • 3rd place: "The Case of the Cullinan Diamond" Daniel Bloomfield

8th Grade:

  • 1st place: "Buried Memories" by Isabelle McNett
  • 2nd place: "A Walk in the Woods" by Marian Griffiths
  • 3rd place: "A Hole in the Roof" by Cannon Lockburner

9th and 10th Grade:

  • 1st place: "Provocation" by Elaine Zou
  • 2nd place: "Blue Girls and Zombie Kits" by Riley Ferl
  • 3rd place: "The Ridge" by Angel Jimenez

11th and 12th Grade:

  • 1st place: "The Puppetmaster" by Sierra Montgomery
  • 2nd place: "Mystery of the Missing Happiness" by Evelyn Peake
  • 3rd place: "An Odious Case" by Christian Alvis

Winners will be contacted via email with information about their prizes.

Teen Art Contest 2019 Winners

The Teen Art Contest is for teens and by teens. Teens create the art, and teens determine the winners.

The theme for our 2019 Teen Art Contest was "Opposites Attract! "

All of the artwork will be displayed at either Penrose Library, East Library, or Library 21c during the month of April.

Here are this years winners, which you can also view below!

Best In Show
“Poseidon’s Goldfish” by Cole R.

High School - First Place
“Opposites Attract” by Isaiah R.

High School - Second Place
“A Spectrum” by Preston S.

Middle School - First Place
“Steamy” by Teddy K.

Middle School - Second Place
“Concrete Jungle” by Ava K.

Coordinator’s Choice - High School
“Calm Before the Storm” by Lydia M.

Coordinator’s Choice - Middle School
“Strong and Courageous” by Chloe H.

You can view the winners here:

Teen Art Contest 2019 Winners

2018 Teen Fiction Writing Contest Winners

In 2018, over 70 young authors submitted original stories to PPLD's Teen Fiction Writing Contest. Each story began with the sentence "The letter could not have come at a worse time", which was chosen by New York Times best-selling author Sandya Menon. The young authors in our community took this common beginning and crafted a huge variety of stories that tackled big topics, such as: grief and loss, growing up, building a better world, and the weight of responsibility.

Winners were chosen through anonymous scoring by a group of dedicated PPLD staff members. The three top stories in both the middle school and high school categories were announced at the awards ceremony on July 29, 2018, and will be published in a digital anthology in September.

Middle School Winners:

  • 1st Place: "A Girl, A Thousand Shirtwaists, and a Fire" by Molly Heinold
  • 2nd Place: "Dear Louella" by Emma Reeves
  • 3rd Place: "Elenora" Claire Deeds

High School Winners:

  • 1st Place: "The Apiary" by Alexandra Wollinka
  • 2nd Place: "An Impossible Choice" by Sophia Mayhugh
  • 3rd Place: "A Work-Ruled Vacation" by Shanleigh Glide

Congratulations to all the winners and entrants! Thank you to all the young authors who entered and to those who encouraged them to put their ideas on paper. If you were unable to attend the awards ceremony, your judge's feedback sheet and participation certificate have been mailed to the address listed on your submission form.

Teen Art Contest 2018 Winners

The Teen Art Contest is for teens and by teens. Teens create the art, and teens determine the winners.

The theme for our 2018 Teen Art Contest was "Hidden Beauty." Teens were encouraged to show us where they have found hidden beauty in the ordinary, everyday world.

All of the artwork will be displayed at either Penrose Library, East Library, or Library 21c during the month of April.

Here are the winners!

Best In Show
Clear by Isabella Huhn

High School - First Place
Letting Go by Celine Hanlon

High School - Second Place
Masked by Elizabeth Ward

Middle School - First Place
Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder by Connor Murdock

Middle School - Second Place
Beauty of the Mountain by Adyline Poirson

Coordinator’s Choice - High School
Color through Clutter by Rebecca Gearhart

Coordinator’s Choice - Middle School
A Shoe by Adia Byron

You can view the winners here:
Teen Art Contest 2018 Winners

2017 Teen Writing Contest Winners!

A big thank you to all our participants, and congratulations to our winners!

Middle School Division:
1st: "Unexpected" by Claire Deeds
2nd: "After Dusk" by Jessana Crouse
3rd: "Copperstar’s Nine Lives" by Shanleigh Glide
Honorable Mention: "Fox and Wolf" by Brinley Ruesch

High School Division:
1st: "Mayhem in Paradise" by Kristen Kater
2nd: "The Monster’s Come Out at Night" by Sariah Smith
3rd: "Fugitive" by Nicole Eiland
Honorable Mention: "Aiko’s Blue Moon" by Sapphire Esquibel

The winners were announced at the Award Ceremony on Thursday, July 27, after remarks from Evangeline Denmark. Winners were chosen by staff judges who read without knowing who wrote the pieces.

The stories by the winners listed above will be compiled into a digital anthology that will be posted on the blog by the end of the month. Please let rphilipsen@ppld.org know if you have any questions!

2017 Teen Art Contest Winners

The Teen Art Contest is for teens and by teens. Teens create the art, and teens determine the winners.

The theme for our 2017 Teen Art Show & Contest was Transformation Teens were encouraged to show us how art impacts your life, or how it transforms the world around you.

All of the artwork will be displayed at either Penrose Library, East Library, or Library 21c during the month of April. Questions? Contact Becca Phillipsen at (719) 531-6333, x6336 or rphillipsen@ppld.org.

Here are the winners!

Best in Show

"Mirror Reflection" by Aleyah B.

High School

1st Place: "My Fantasy" by Elizabeth W.
2nd Place: "Summer Sunsets" by Kaylee T.
Coordinator’s Choice: "Hands of Time" by Mary R.

Middle School

1st Place: "Transportation through Time" by Liberty H.
2nd Place: "Evolution" by Mikayla R.
Coordinator’s Choice: "Coy Fish Pond" by Kristine B.

You can view the winning works here:

2017 Teen Art Contest Winners

No More Overdue Fines on Kid, Teen Materials

Beginning Jan. 9, 2017, PPLD will no longer charge fines on overdue children and teen items. Removing overdue fines will provide greater opportunity for children and teens to use the full range of library services. Currently, 15% of children and teen cardholders are blocked from checking out items at the library due to overdue fines.

Also, overdue fines on DVDs and games will be reduced from 25 cents per day to 10 cents per day.

PPLD seeks to foster literacy and life-long learning for children and teens. The Library regularly evaluates policies to see what barriers for service exist and evaluates how to eliminate such barriers. The Library’s Board of Trustees approved the new policy at their December meeting.

Items that will not accrue overdue fines must be designated as “juvenile” or “teen” in the Library catalog. The policy will take effect for any items checked out January 9 or after. Lost item and damage fees will still apply.

Overdue notices will still be sent as reminders to return Library items. Items not returned within 21 days of the due date will be considered lost, and the full cost of the item will be charged to the patron’s account.

Click here for more information