New
Orleans Public Library Partners with
Best Buy to Open New Teen Tech Center
NEW ORLEANS – Today,
Best Buy and the New Orleans Public Library (NOPL) celebrated their
partnership by opening the newest Best Buy Teen Tech Center, located at the Main
Library. Mayor LaToya Cantrell congratulated
the Library officials and partners in the opening of this addition to the
library during a program that featured a tour of the
Center, which is located on the second floor of the Main Library on Loyola
Avenue.
The Center, the first of its kind in Louisiana, is the 17th
built by Best Buy, which plans to install 60 by the year 2020. Best Buy Teen
Tech Centers address the nation’s opportunity gap by offering teens free,
year-round, hands-on technology access and education in an after-school
setting. Over the next decade, 77 percent (1.4 million) of all U.S. jobs will
require tech skills, yet only 400,000 people will be trained for these jobs.
With community-based job readiness resources on the decline, Best Buy is
working with local non-profit partners to provide essential access to
technology tools and training for low-income youth and families.
The partnership between the New Orleans Public Library,
Best Buy and The Clubhouse Network provides a Center for teens who can learn:
- music production and audio editing
- the creation of art
- photography and video editing
- coding to control robotics and make mobile applications
- animation and design for interactive poetry, stories and games
- 3D-object design
“Our libraries are the heart of any community. So I want to say
thank you so much to Best Buy for understanding this as well, and having this
value at your heart,” said Mayor Cantrell, who toured the Center before the
event. “Going through and seeing the coding opportunities, the music
opportunities where they’re making their own music, [and] sewing opportunities.
It’s about giving these young people these opportunities so they can reach
their full potential.”
Mayor Cantrell also noted the launch in the first month of her
administration of the Department of Youth and Families so that the City can have stronger partnerships with the NOPL and other city agencies to better meet the needs of
area youth and families. She followed her comments by presenting Best Buy with
a proclamation from the City.
Mayor Cantrell was joined by Charles Brown, Executive Director of the New Orleans Public Library; Donald Songy, Education Policy Advisor to Gov. John
Bel Edwards; Ross Ledoux, Best Buy Senior Market Director; and Jennifer Castro,
a rising senior at Net Charter High School in Central City and a frequent
visitor to the Main Library.
About Best Buy Teen Tech Centers
Best Buy Teen Tech Centers are a place where teens can develop
critical skills through hands-on activities that explore their interests in
programming, filmmaking, music production and design. Each center works to
address the opportunity gap by giving youth access to tech education
opportunities, relationships that help to build confidence, and a foundation
for school and career success. A partnership with The Clubhouse Network
connects members to a global community of over 100 clubhouses in 20 countries.
By 2020, 60 Best Buy Teen Tech Centers across the U.S., Canada and Mexico will
enable nearly 20,000 teens annually to experience technology through
year-round, after-school programs.
About New Orleans Public Library
Guided by the mission statement “Transforming lives, enriching
neighborhoods and preserving history,” the New Orleans Public Library annually
circulates more than 1 million books, e-books, audiobooks, downloadable music
files, DVDs and CDs and provides a wide range of free educational,
informational and recreational programs and activities for all ages. In
addition to traditional library offerings, the Library is actively engaged in
supporting school readiness and early school success, workforce and business
development, and providing access to new and emerging technologies.
Check out images from the event on Mayor Cantrell's Facebook page.
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