Spending at least one hour each day in the Learning Commons since the start of school, freshman Alice Chen has amassed at least 120 hours helping the Learning Commons staff with everything from day-to-day tasks to big projects, especially the Paper Cranes project. 

“I wanted to help out because I like being in a quiet, organized space like the library,” Chen said. “I like being in a place where I can contribute, [a place] in which people are interested in books.” 

Like other Learning Commons volunteers, Chen helps with conventional tasks such as wrapping books for protection from water damage and shelving books. Additionally, the Paper Cranes project was an idea that Librarian Phoebe Kern came up with toward the end of last school year that Chen heavily contributed to. As students passively make cranes throughout the year with help from an instructional sheet, Chen collects the cranes, strings them up into long lines of 100 each and displays them in the Learning Commons. 

“She’s in here every day, she’s excited about it and she’s always up for anything,” Kern said. “It’s hard to match my level of enthusiasm for the library, but she gives me a run for my money, for sure. The two of us get together and just smile and get on. We’re so proud of the library, and we love it so much that those big projects become extra fun because she’s here doing it with us.” 

Additionally, Chen contributed to developing the new manga and graphic novel section of the library, sticking barcode stickers onto the novels. Without her support, the new section would not have been ready in time, according to Kern. 

“Working with Alice makes me smile,”  Library Media Technician Amanda Cramer said. “She is lighthearted, but hardworking. She is quick to laugh and doesn’t judge. She’s curious and has an incredible growth mindset.”

The collaboration between Chen and Kern has developed since Chen’s first time volunteering, evolving into a creative partnership on the library’s projects and improvements, according to Kern. 

“At the beginning, it was a lot of training, and top-down stuff where I was showing her how to do something,” Kern said. “Now, I go to her in a collaborative way. I ask her, ‘What do you think about this, or what do you think we should do? What’s a creative way to solve this problem?’ because I know she knows the library so well that she might think of something that I wouldn’t. We can collaborate on how to serve everyone best, and she gives me a student perspective, which is great.” 

Chen said that she is excited to continue spending her high school years further helping out the library and making it feel welcoming for other students like it was for when she first arrived in the fall 2025. 

“I love working with Ms. Kern and Ms. Cramer a lot,” Chen said. “They are really nice and supportive. They’ve taught me a lot, and it honestly feels like we are a small family working in the library.”