BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — Walk by it too quickly and you might miss it. Outside the door, a small plaque hangs to offer a reminder of the legacy that can be found inside.
A room at Calhoun Community High School has been transformed into a library to honor a beloved teacher who was killed in the Kalamazoo mass shooting.
"Her goal was to help kids who didn't even think they could read believe that they were readers and they could do it. She was amazing like that," Superintendent Tim Allard said of Mary Jo Nye.
“The library serves, not just as a place to house books but as an environment where kids can come connect with a staff member to expand their learning."
Nye was one of six people killed Feb. 20, 2016 in a shooting spree in Kalamazoo.
Allard said Nye spent her life helping teenagers and adults fall in love with reading, so the school decided to complete the dream she started of creating a library for students.
"It’s one thing to get up and just teach, but if you don’t care and the kids don’t care about you, you don’t have that connection and this library is an indicator of the connection," said Pete Mathis, a longtime teacher who worked for nearly a decade alongside Nye.
