There’s a new librarian at
It’s not like he’s enacting any extreme policies — there are no racy books on the shelves and students still can’t play “Grand Theft Auto” on the library’s computers.
But Jack Gilliland has introduced something new that’s catching on quickly among the student population.
Coffee hour.
On Friday mornings, from 8-9 a.m., the LHHS library temporarily turns into something like Starbucks. Students (and some faculty) line up for coffee — even some chi-chi caffeinated drinks — hot chocolate or tea, then lounge around on chairs and at tables, talking, playing chess, kidding around, and generally getting revved up for their day.
The coffee hour has been going on for a couple months now, and it didn’t take long for it to draw crowds.
“The first time, it was kind of slow until 8:30. Then a huge mob came at one time and the line was out the door,” says Gilliland, who came to LHHS from
Gilliland’s reasons for starting the coffee hour were two-fold. First, he wanted to bridge the gap between different groups of students.
That’s already working, he says. “There’s a very broad mix in here on Friday mornings — all different types of students who normally might not be in the same social circles. Makes it more of a collegiate atmosphere.”
He also wants kids who don’t normally come to the library to see how approachable it can be.
“A lot of it is it kind of takes the stuffy atmosphere out of the library — makes it a more inviting and enjoyable place to be,” he says.
Volunteer Kathy Shytles, who helps run the event with the help of a few other neighborhood moms, agrees that the coffee hour has been a success.
“It’s been great … really fun,” she says, adding that at least one teacher has decided to hold his study session in the library when the coffee is served. “It makes it a nice place for a group to come in, study or relax before the day starts.”
As of now, about 65-75 cups of coffee are sold each week at $1 a cup, Gilliland says. That’s just covering expenses, he says. But he’d like to expand the event to make it a more permanent physical feature or do it more than once a week. If that happens, the money earned could become more of an ongoing library fundraiser, he says.
In the meantime, the coffee hour has one more perk — it’s helping Gilliland get to know the students, faculty and parents at his new school. He says he already feels great about his new job.
“It’s been very positive,” he says of his interaction with the Lake Highlands community. “It’s a great school. I love being here.”
