KEVA Planks are now available at all 12 public libraries in Umatilla County, the Cook Memorial Library in La Grande, Enterprise Public Library and the Oregon Trail Library District.
LEO (Libraries of Eastern Oregon) purchased the planks for the libraries with grant funds provided by the Wildhorse Foundation. Funds from the Community Outreach Committee of Cayuse Technologies were also used to purchase the planks for Umatilla County and Oregon Trail libraries.
Each set of KEVA (Knowledge, Exploration, Visual, Arts) Planks come in a wooden bin with handles/wheels and 1,000 maple planks. The planks are designed for stacking and layering in endless formations – from simple play for young children to complex towering structures by students and adults without using glue or connectors, just gravity and imagination.
KEVA planks transform libraries into engaging, interactive, community learning places. The planks serve as a gateway to math, science, and physics and can be used by any age. The planks provide an innovative approach to connect and energize young persons and encourage interest in science, math, and open-reasoning.
Library directors are reporting a great response to the addition of the planks. Sherri Contreras, Ukiah Library Director, reported when the planks were introduced, two boys began using them.
“They were having a ball and being about as noisy as the library ever gets,” Contreras said. “Others had to come in to see what they were doing. It was fun to watch, but the parents came to see what the holdup on going home was.”
The mission of LEO is to create and deliver 21st century public library services for 50 libraries in eastern Oregon. LEO is governed by an 8-member board of directors. The organization has a long track record of bringing exemplary community programs to rural communities and in assisting libraries with their internal needs such as database services, collection development and infrastructure.
