Alecia Foster
LA CRESCENTA -- A group of students gathered around the computerized
card catalog, while another group wandered through the aisles of books.
As ninth-grader Ryan Spencer walked through Crescenta Valley High
School's newly constructed library, only one word came to mind.
"Spacey," he said, eyeing the room around him.
The school's new library building recently opened to students. The
library was one of several renovation and new construction projects that
have taken place at the school during the past year.
The new library is a vast improvement over the old one, said Linda
Jensen, school planner and vice principal at CV High.
"Our other library was designed for the middle school," she said,
referring to the school's former life as a junior high. "It was just way
too small."
The new facility is more than double the size of the old. The high
ceiling and several large windows add to the feeling of openness inside.
"The best part is, it's been brought up to date technologically,"
Jensen said.
Besides computers in the library itself, a large computer lab will be
installed on the second floor of the building and each will have access
to the Internet, she said.
Wiring and installation were expected to take place sometime after
January, said Library Assistant Sharon Mark.
In the meantime, a handful of computers have been installed for word
processing jobs to help students with classwork, she said.
One amenity that didn't make it into the final construction -- a
fireplace. The feature seemed to fit with CV High officials' theory that
school should be a home away from home, Jensen said. Private funds were
even offered to the school for construction of the fireplace, but that
idea eventually fell by the wayside, she said.
