If you don’t have any teenagers in your life you might not be aware of the Youth Hubs offered by the Toronto Public Library (TPL). On the TPL website, these spaces are described as an “after school space for all youth, ages 13-19. You can spend your time doing homework with tutors, hanging out, playing board or video games, and participating in events, programs and workshops.”

These Hubs are run by volunteers and library staff. This is where Jason comes in, he’s a Librarian at the Sanderson branch. One of Jason’s favourite things about his job is interacting with the youth who visit the Hub. For many of these teens, he explained, the Hub and its staff play a significant role in their lives.

“We primarily get youth from the local community, nearby high schools and middle schools, and many transitional group homes or refugee resettlement centres. For the most part, aside from traditional tutoring and homework help, a lot of our youth rely on the Hub as a safe and consistent space where they can get a decent meal, some technology access and adults that care about what’s going on with them. So, in terms of the support roles played by our staff and volunteers, we listen and involve youth in decision-making steps to help them feel ownership over both the space and their place within it.”

Programs in the Youth Hub address health and wellness, personal development, mental health, stress regulation, problem-solving, teamwork, and arts and culture. The Sanderson branch even has a gecko habitarium that’s open to the Youth Hub once a month. When Jason isn’t organizing programs and workshops he’s performing other essential tasks around the library like online promotion, budgeting and community outreach. It’s this variety in his work—combined with the important role that libraries play in their communities—that makes Jason excited to go to work each day.