Teens Lead at the Greene County Public Library
Rose Hernandez - Greene County Librarian
Teens Lead at the Greene County Public Library
We are proud to recognize Haley Kinzler and Tamya “Mya” Porter as the latest Teen Interns to complete the Teens Lead program at the Greene County Public Library. As part of Neuse Regional Libraries’ ongoing commitment to providing meaningful, paid learning opportunities, the Teens Lead program offers teens the chance to gain real-world work experience, develop essential life skills, and explore the field of librarianship. This initiative supports our strategic objective to open doors to positive learning experiences for diverse individuals in our community. Each intern dedicated eight hours per week and completed a STEM-focused project designed to highlight the library and promote literacy in the community. Additionally, the program included comprehensive training in financial literacy, entrepreneurship, work etiquette, and healthy lifestyle choices.
We are incredibly proud of Haley and Mya’s accomplishments and can’t wait to see where their futures take them!
As part of the Teens Lead program at the Greene County Public Library, each intern is required to complete an individual capstone project, which our spring cohort took as an opportunity to truly shine. For this round, both interns chose to develop and host public teen programs from the ground up. From idea conception to marketing and execution, they created engaging events designed to educate, entertain, and build community among their peers.
Intern Haley Kinzler, a senior at Greene Central High School, hosted an educational program on solar energy and environmental sustainability. Her creative twist? A pizza party and hands-on workshop where participants built their own DIY solar ovens using recycled pizza boxes. After assembling their ovens, the teens tested them out by making s’mores. The event was a hit, and several participants have since become regular participants in the library’s monthly teen cooking program thanks to Haley’s engaging approach.
Intern Tamya “Mya” Porter, a senior at Greene County Early College, developed a Mystery in the Library event. Teens took on character roles and immersed themselves in a thrilling, interactive experience, working competitively to solve clues and riddles that revealed the mystery. The first participant to crack the case received a prize, and the event ended with everyone asking, “When’s the next one?”
In addition to their capstone projects and completing courses in financial literacy, entrepreneurship, work etiquette, and healthy lifestyle choices, each intern also contributed 12 hours of volunteer service outside of the library. From assisting at local churches to helping with community events like the Special Olympics, the interns gained meaningful, hands-on experience and a deeper connection to their community. We are so proud of Haley and Mya—not only for their creativity and dedication, but for the way they inspired others to see the library as a place of connection, learning, and fun.
The next internship cohort will begin in the Fall of 2025, and applications will be accepted from all Greene County students entering the 11th or 12th grade. For more information about the internship program or Greene County Public Library programming, please call 252-747-3437 or email greeneco@neuselibrary.org.
The NRL Teens Lead program is made possible by funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (IMLS grant number LS-256834-OLS-24).
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