As part of the Palm Beach County Library System’s mission to promote “community enrichment, economic vitality, and individual achievement through reading and life-long learning,” the library has been offering computer training at all branches for many years, with the focus on teaching basic skills to community members. The classes have been immensely popular and have provided the opportunity for patrons to develop basic technology skills and for library staff members to assess the ongoing needs of the community as related to digital training.

Staff identified the following issues that were not being addressed with then-current programming:

• Citizens with knowledge and experience, but without the technical capacity or communication expertise to effectively share and engage.
• The desire on the part of community members to learn in a digital world, but no access to equipment or free training.
• The availability of local content (music, video, print) but no platform to share it.

The community was informally surveyed and library staff developed a plan to address these issues by creating a digital media lab in the library, launching a website to host local content, and developing new, community focused training for the use of new digital technologies for the community.

The key elements of the CreationStation project included securing funding, designing and opening a digital media lab in the library, developing a curriculum for digital training, and creating an online platform for sharing locally generated content. CreationStation is a learning lab that serves as a magnet for the community, with a physical space in the Main Library supplemented by offsite training at regional branches.

Process steps included researching libraries with digital media labs. We contacted libraries, who shared both their successes (and failures). A blog was created so that library staff could stay informed and other libraries could follow our progress. Funding was secured through our local community foundation, and we created a framework for staff training, developed a marketing plan, and reached out to community groups to share our plans. Staff training, both on and off-site, began. A committee met to create policies and procedures for use of the lab, and current technology trainers discussed how best to train users on new technologies. A separate committee met to plan the launch of a CreationStation website that would be both informative and offer a platform for shared content. Programs for both adults and teens were planned, equipment was purchased and the lab was opened on February 24th, 2014.

Since the opening, CreationStation has had steady use (80% from the public and 20% from library staff throughout the system). The first pieces of content have been submitted and posted online. We anticipate that in the coming months, the site will host local content in the form of video, music, podcasts, and image galleries.

Library staff has achieved the original outcomes of opening the CreationStation digital media lab, developing an online platform to showcase created content as well as other locally generated content, and designing digital media learning opportunities for our community. However, we continue to learn and evolve. There have also been unanticipated outcomes, including networking opportunities for patrons who share similar interests and an increase in offers to volunteer.

CreationStation has also resulted in new patrons who are discovering the library for the first time. Future anticipated outcomes include the following:

• The development of a more refined vision for digital media learning
• Opportunities for assisting patrons with the creation of digital portfolios for career development.
• New workshops aimed at citizen producers, distributors and curators of digital work (including practical knowledge about such topics as distribution rights, copyright, journalism ethics and more).

Lessons learned have been many. We’ve learned that we have a diverse and knowledgeable library staff, many with multi-media knowledge that they were happy to share. Also, reaching out to other libraries for information and advice saved us time and money. Another lesson that was learned was that time for staff training was crucial to serving patrons in an effective manner. Most of the hardware and software in CreationStation was new to staff members, so adequate time needed to be allotted for staff training.