Darren Li is a senior who works at the St. George branch of New York City Library in Staten Island. Even though he has a liking to his job, he still manages to balance both his work and his school. He helps both adults and children in the library and makes sure that all the books are put in order.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
What’s your job? Can you describe what you do?
I usually help shelve books. If I’m done with shelving books, I help the librarians with the programming and other things. I tend to carry discarded book bins or books that are on hold to the shipping area so they can be sent out to other branches.
What’s the most interesting thing at your job?
The different patrons that come into the library. There is a wide age range from elderly to children and the children like to go upstairs. You might see a lot to change. I go upstairs and pick up books so they can [read]. After reading the books, they’ll be able to go on the computers afterwards, or I’ll help the elderly. Others tend to get jobs done during an adult floor, and we sometimes have to help them with that because of the digital divide.
What’s your least favorite thing about your job?
I have to sometimes look at every individual book and see if they’re out of order.
How did you get your job?
So, I did SYEP over the summer, and because of SYEP, I formed a connection with the library; the branch I work at specifically. And from that, I was able to network and through an interview and submitting my resume, I was able to get the position as a page.
Does your job affect your grades?
I try. It affects my sleep schedule, definitely. I try to keep my grades up and yeah.
