Private School
Library Planning
& Community Development
Contact Us
Our Approach
Library Consultant — Private School Library Planning and Community Development
This is a sample list of the projects Aaron Cohen Associates has worked throughout its years. Additional projects can be sent upon request. Private school libraries present a distinct planning challenge: they must serve a tightly defined community while anticipating how that community's learning needs will shift over the life of the building. Aaron Cohen Associates brings the same rigorous needs assessment, space analysis, and service planning methodology to independent and private school libraries that we apply across academic, government, and public library settings — adapted to the scale, culture, and governance of each institution.
Core Capabilities
What We Bring to Private School Projects
Private school library planning requires balancing the aspirations of a school's mission with the practical realities of space, budget, and community use. Our work spans needs assessment, architectural programming, collection and shelving analysis, technology integration, and long-range strategic planning. Each engagement is shaped by the specific character of the institution — from urban day schools to residential academies.
Translating educational goals into functional square footage: stack layout, reading areas, collaborative zones, and technology infrastructure.
Evaluating existing collections, shelving capacity, and service models to align resources with curriculum and community expectations.
Planning for OPAC systems, digital access, networked learning environments, and the infrastructure that supports them — now and over the long term.
Facilitating workshops and consultations with faculty, administrators, students, and trustees to build consensus around a shared vision for the library.
Project Portfolio
Private School Projects
A Sample of Our Private School Library Work
The following institutions represent a portion of the private school library planning and community development projects Aaron Cohen Associates has completed. Each project reflects a tailored engagement — no two school libraries present the same set of constraints, aspirations, or community dynamics. Additional project references are available upon request.
- Boys Latin School — Baltimore, MD
- Blakefield – Loyola School — Baltimore, MD
- Calhoun School — New York, NY
- Gilman School — Baltimore, MD
- Harpeth Hall School — Nashville, TN
- Kreiger Schecter Day School — Baltimore, MD
- Madena School — Washington, D.C.
- Notre Dame — Baltimore, MD
- St. Mary's School for Girls — Memphis, TN
- St. Paul's School for Boys — Baltimore, MD
- St. Paul's School for Girls — Baltimore, MD
- Spence School — New York, NY
Why Private School Libraries Are Different
Planning for a Defined Community with Long-Term Vision
Private and independent schools operate under a governance model that gives them unusual latitude in how they define the library's role — and unusual accountability to a community of parents, trustees, and alumni who care deeply about the result. That combination of freedom and scrutiny makes the planning process both more creative and more demanding than in many other library settings.
Our work with institutions like the Spence School in New York and Harpeth Hall in Nashville has shown that the most successful private school library projects begin not with a floor plan but with a clear articulation of what the library is supposed to do for students, faculty, and the broader school community. From that foundation, every decision about space, collections, technology, and service follows logically. This is the methodology we bring to every engagement, whether the project is a renovation of an existing facility or a ground-up new building.
For schools considering a library planning initiative, we recommend beginning with a comprehensive needs assessment and a review of how the current space supports — or constrains — the school's educational mission. Our strategic planning services can help frame that conversation for trustees and administrators before any architectural work begins.