The Evanston Public Library plans to expand youth participation by creating a teen editorial board on The Virtual Loft, the library’s online teen space.

Local youth can already instant message youth librarians via Meebo, contribute video book reviews and Flickr montages inspired by their favorite novels and produce adaptations of young adult literature for the stage.

When it comes to getting youth to read, Christie Chandler-Stahl said Evanston Public Library tries to meet teens where they are.

“When I hear people say ‘Teens don’t read,’ I’m shocked,” said Chandler-Stahl, EPL’s young adult librarian. “There are always those people we haven’t reached yet, but it’s an ongoing thing. It’s really exciting to be a part of it.”

Chandler-Stahl reaches out to teens by meeting with student book clubs once a week at places like Nichols Middle School. She also oversees the library’s Teen Advisory Board, a group of teenagers who convene to organize discussion groups, plan events and film book reviews.

Evanston Public Library doesn’t try telling youth they have to read, Chandler-Stahl said. Instead, its programs create a strong sense that reading is fun, whether it’s through the escapism of a novel or learning about an interesting topic in a nonfiction book, she said.

“Our whole approach is to make it such a friendly space that people will want to come and want to share,” Chandler-Stahl said.

She said the library also incorporates this into the rest of the community. One of the library’s partnerships is with Northwestern fraternity Sigma Chi, Chandler-Stahl said. The fraternity puts on a junior science cafe where college professors present science to young people in fun ways. Chandler-Stahl said reading is an outgrowth of this kind of youth programming.

Young people who visit the Evanston Public Library usually head toward The Loft, a multi-purpose space for teens on the third floor. The Loft offers Internet access and two study rooms that can be booked in advance as well as a lounge area where teens read, do homework or hang out.

Bridget Petrites, a young adult reader’s advisor, senses when teens using The Loft have an important assignment.

“There’s usually a quiet hum during finals,” Petrites said. “Everyone knows and respects the fact that everyone else is studying.”

Tony Gates, an eighth grader at Chute Middle School, comes to The Loft to take advantage of the computers.

“It’s a place that has a lot of resources for school,” said Gates, who checks Facebook and works on his algebra homework while at the library.

The Loft periodically offers movies on Saturdays and gaming consoles on Friday afternoons. It’s an “inviting” place where teens can socialize, said Kyla Steman, an eighth-grade student at Haven Middle School.

“I don’t feel like I have to be quiet because there are usually people in here talking,” Steman said. “I like how they have a space we can come to.”[email protected]