BBB Partners

Build a Better Book was pleased to host a virtual conference on September 13-14, 2021! If you missed the conference, you can still view the session recordings on the BBB Virtual Conference 2021 webpage. Get inspired to start a Build a Better Book project at your library, school, or makerspace!

Build a Better Book finished out the year by awarding Participant Support grants of up to $750 to ten partners around the country. Each organization submitted a proposal and request for materials that will support their on-going or new BBB projects. Most of the projects will be completed in 2021...

This panel discussion opens up a conversation around building personal relationships between students and BVI partners during the time of COVID, responding to relevant challenges together, and the difference between working with vs. working for someone. Luanne Burke is a blind artist and athlete who has participated in past BBB...

The Laredo Public Libraries was recently awarded a $10,000 Texas Reads Grant from the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. The funding will go towards purchasing equipment and materials to support the library's Build a Better Book initiative that will teach teens and adult volunteers technology skills and offer avenues for exploring STEM career paths through the creation of multimodal books and games. Congratulations to Laredo Public Libraries!

. In Glen Ellyn, Illinois, the local library partnered with several schools and nearby organizations in a project culminating in an immersive exhibit called The Empathy Expo. Christina Keasler of the Glen Ellyn Public Library and John Bower of Ben Franklin Elementary attended the Build a Better Book workshop in...

3D Giving Day & 3D Pen Projects / Phyllis Davis (Library Station) & Mindy Brodecki (Springfield Public Schools) Get ready for 3D Giving Day on December 1, 2020! Whether to launch your BBB project or as a culminating project, 3D Giving Day is a great way to connect student makers...

Neal Mckenzie (Sonoma County Office of Education) & Eli Sanchez (Earle Baum Center) What is it like for blind and low vision people working and learning in an online environment? Find out how two BBB partners adapted their formal and informal programs to fit their student's needs and keep them...

Build a Better Book partner Neal Mckenzie with the Sonoma County Office of Education was featured in an article and radio interview by KQED. Read about how he helped his students with visual impairments adjust to the rapid change to on-line learning that occured during "Stay-at-Home" orders at the start...

Phyllis Davis, librarian at The Library Station has pulled together a wide-range of community members through participation in her Build a Better Book programs. Without a designated makerspace, Phyllis incorporated BBB into a regular "Teen Night" library program on Friday nights, introducing Design Thinking models, and partnering with 3Doodler who...

Conference date: June 28, 2020 Location : Anaheim, CA Build a Better Book: Empathy-Driven Design in School and Library Makerspaces Presenters: April Chamberlain, Dr. Stacey Forsyth, Ian Matty, Chelsea Sims Build a Better Book engages youth with an empathy-driven design task: creating accessible books and games for children who are...