Help Out a Fellow School Librarian
I couldn’t help but notice that this blog appears to be on a website for something called "School Library Journal". Hm! So when I got a recent email from a brand new Library Aide, it occurred to me that perhaps there are school librarians that read me. More importantly, perhaps there are school librarians who would be interested in sharing their experiences with a woman who has taken a librarian-ish position but hasn’t our training or degrees. Please be so good as to read the message below.
I recently retired from my corporate job of 16 years to spend more time with my 5 boys. Within a week of retiring, I noticed a job opening at one of the elementary schools in town for a Library Aide position. Perfect! I interviewed yesterday and within 5 minutes of walking out the door I had a call with a job offer to start August 11th.
This is thrilling and terrifying at the same time. See, I have no experience whatsoever of a working library, or even a bookstore. The only thing I have in common with this job is my love of children’s literature. Oh, and one more thing…I thought the aide position meant there would be a librarian on site and she would tell me what to go do – a gopher of sorts. Well, no – that’s not the case. The aide position is basically THE librarian for the school. There is a district librarian, but she is shared between the 3 elementary schools, middle, jr. high and high school. The library is mine to do with it how I want. And boy does it need work. This is an inner-city school with houses crumbling down around it. The library is dark and blah…like a 50’s government building. They only have one fund raiser a year and that is a book fair. Now who in their right mind would offer a book fair for these parents to come in and purchase a brand new $25 book when they can’t even put food on the table most nights?
My salary will be $14,000 a year. Yes, you read that right. So I won’t have much money of my own to turn this library around. I would really appreciate any help you could offer – suggestions, ideas, grant sites, web sites, etc.My interview was held in the library there at the elementary school. They had a few lights off in the corners (perhaps to save money???), but I just remember leaving there thinking this did not appear in any way to be a library children would find inviting. No windows, no stuffed animals, nothing to spark the imagination. From what I could tell, the space is about 800 square feet. I honestly don’t know much about the condition of the books. My interview was about 20 minutes and within 5 minutes of leaving they called to offer me the job. I think they just want someone to breath new life into it. The library at the school where my children attend is a beautiful space – trees with twinkling lights, flowers hanging from the ceilings, comfy tables and chairs, a couch in a corner – just a great place. This inner-city school where I will be working had nothing of sorts. I’m thinking it is because they only hold the one fund raiser a year – all 3 elementary schools hold the same fund raiser – a book fair. This school simply isn’t bringing in the funds to support the library. The demographics are 26% Hispanic, 40% Black and 25% White, with 70% qualifying for the reduced/free lunch program.
I’ve already given her my advice on the matter, but perhaps you experts in the field would be better qualified.
If you’ve any advice you’d like to tender, feel free to do so in the comment section. Always remember to COPY your comment before attempting to post it on my blog. My comment function is wonky, so if you have a long piece to post, write it, copy it, then type in the three letter code and attempt to send it. That way you can always repaste your message if the comment box rejects your words intiially.
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About Betsy Bird
Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.
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Perhaps we authors could donate some books?
Subscribe to American Libraries Direct and keep a close eye on the grants. A set of 17 books on American art here, a set of 25 books on liberty there, $300 to get an author in to give a presentation… it brings in valuable resources, gives you a sense of accomplishment (it’s easy to feel overwhelmed) and demonstrates to the administration what you could do with more funding.
Solicit discarded books and other supplies from the public library system –
don’t add these to the library collection, but GIVE them to students and parents. This has worked very well in our school to raise awareness for the library.
Encourage the school to hire a librarian. American Libraries has a ton of articles and statistics supporting the thesis that school librarian = better test scores.
GOOD LUCK!
BB, can you beat on SLJ and get them to accept paragraph breaks in comments? It’s frustrating!
After judging the Golden Kite Awards I gave 250 books to two school libraries. You can ask SCBWI and see if their judges would donate the books after the awards are chosen. http://www.scbwi.org. Ask the Caldecott committees and other award committees.
I know that publishers give boxes of unused books away.
BTW, the reality is as an author-illustrator my salary is not much more than that library aide’s per year. We get 20 personal copies free of our books. Period.
Because of my own money situation I always find the Dollar stores will have those twinkle lights, stuffed toys, and odds and ends to decorate the room. Being artisitic doesn’t take alot of money, it takes time and imagination.
Just an aside that is not judging the new library aide, but what a statement on the conditions of our school system to hire a non librarian for the library, give it a new name, under payments, and let the students suffer. That’s sad. Our country has plenty of money to build bombs that destroy life and civilizations. What’s wrong with this picture? ALOT!
I think you need rituals. If you’re at all comfortable with a hand puppet, try using one with the children–they will at once bond with the puppet and look forward to seeing him/her. (The malleable, soft kind are the best–especially if they can bite the children). I like to begin library with poetry–I have a big cauldron of poems, typed or copied on colored paper, and I choose a child to reach into the cauldron and take out the poem–they fight like rats for the privilege. If they’re not used to poetry, start with short poems (but not haiku, which are difficult.) If your book covers are beyond grungy, have the students make new ones–you can make cheap bookmarks from construction paper cut on the school paper cutter, and stickers. If you have a librarian friend who goes to conventions, ask her to pick you up some snappy new posters. A story telling candle can also be helpful. Don’t let teachers bully you into starting off with library skills–it’s much more important to establish with the children that the library is a place for stories and kind words. Use plenty of funny books, suspenseful books, scary books, books that call for audience participation like STORIES TO SOLVE or WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? And don’t forget–even if your library looks like hell, it’s still a treasure-house. You’ve got STUFF in there.
To add to the chorus of great ideas: crafts, crafts, crafts! D-I-Y projects! And displays! As mentioned, one of the most important things you can do is to make the library a fun and welcoming place for children. But take one project at a time. Try the doorway and the entrance space first. Find some books on a theme- maybe joke books and funny chapter books and display them. You can type up knock-knock jokes and decorate the table with them. This will encourage the kids to come into the library and maybe even pick up a book. Start small, take before and after pictures, and use your successes to argue for increased funding. The best thing you can do is get the principal in your corner. Keep her/him on board with what you are doing and involve her/him in the process as much as possible. If you convince the principal that the library is a vital and essential part of the school, you will have gone a long way towards securing funding and support for your space.
May I just take a moment and note that you guys are friggin’ awesome? Just thought I’d mention it.
Yes — can we please have her address to donate books, if needed?
Can you tell if there are certain genres, or areas, where your collections is lacking?
First, this library aide did the right thing coming here – the library community is amazing. I echo some thoughts here – there are SO MANY grants out there and you’re going to need to be vigilant about applying for them because this library clearly needs an infusion of money. Also, contact publishers – a lot of them will have contests where you win 100 free books…also, a lot of them have galley programs where the kids can read galleys and submit reviews – this might get the kids excited, knowing they’re reading books before anyone else. Do crafts ASAP – they’re inexpensive and you can decorate the depressing space with the kids’ art. Also, try to recruit some parent (or other) volunteers. There is A LOT of work to do so you’ll want some help…not to mention that it encourages community involvement and buy-in. Develop relationships with the teachers and the nearby public library – you’re going to need them!!! Lastly, and most importantly, document EVERYTHING. You’re going to need to constantly petition the school board and principal for funds and support – it’s important to have documentation for everything going on in the library to help argue your case. (NOTE: Am I the only one feeling angry about this whole scenario? Hiring a library aide so the school can pay a scandalously low amount of money relative to the amount of work that needs to be done… Not to mention that I feel bad for this library aide – she didn’t know the right questions to ask in the interview and now she’s faced with a monumental, but incredibly vital, task. People like her are my heroes because they’re making REAL differences in the world. I wish her the best of luck and assure her that the library community is behind her.)
The best thing to do at this point is to get to know your collection and the kids you serve. Surely you’ve got some good stuff on the shelves already that you can begin putting in kids’ hands. By knowing your collection, you can determine where it’s weak and how best to spend your limited dollars. Knowing the preferences of your reading audience, too, will help you to better select new materials to meet their interests and needs. Once you know what you have and who you serve, you can better begin to seek funding through grants and donations. Perhaps your former company could take the school library on as a pet project? Or your children’s school could have a used book drive to collect books in good shape for the library? There’s money out there and if you know what you need for your collection, it’s a little easier to go after it. Don’t knock the book fair fundraiser. We have one every year and it is a large source of our library funding. I’ve seen children for whom money is dear clutching a $3 book bought at the book fair as if it was pure gold. It seems books are always considered a good buy and a good gift no matter how little money families have. And I’d be happy with your salary of $14K – I’m the librarian for a school of 350 pre-K thru 8th graders and I make about half that! Good luck!
Obviously I don’t want to post this woman’s information all over the internetzzzzz. If you would like to send her books, shoot me an email (my email address is visible when you click on my name at the beginning of each post) and I will have her contact you about what she needs for her collection. Off-hand note: Did I mention y’all were friggin’ awesome?
This conversation will launch a thousand screenplays. I can’t wait to see the hand puppets on the big screen!
Over the summer find out the PTA contact through your school’s administration and begin setting up a library volunteer staff. People can come in for as little as an hour every other week. They can REALLY help you out. Perhaps there’s already a PTA library committee, but if there isn’t, start one! You also might check out the Donors Choose organization; I know it helps teachers, but am not sure about librarians.
I’m going to work for a posh independent school this fall and we have a very strong relationship with a more challenged inner city “sister” school. We lend all kinds of support to them and maybe you could form a similar alliance in your area.
Also write Laura Bush, she was a librarian, maybe she has some suggestions. Go ahead. Send the very same letter you sent SLJ. I’m sure she’d be willing to help.
Having put together a school library from scratch with a budget of $0.00 and run it as a volunteer for three years now, I have a bunch of ideas. The best bet would be to email me off list (go to my blog gottabook.blogspot.com and click on the email me link on the right OR ask Fuse herself for my email), but one great way to boost your collection is to have another school or school do a book drive for you. Approach a middle school and find their public service club, for instance, and ask (or beg!) for help. People love to help kids read — it crosses all party lines and class lines and, well, all lines!
And goooood luck! It’ll be the hardest AND most satisfying job you’ve ever had, methinks!
i have worked in a bookstore as a community relations manager and currently in an academic library. you’re already on the right track by posting here. secondly, before you begin thinking about collection development, you need money. try to find teachers in your school who have written grants and ask them to assist you in grant writing (it can be a tricky process). secondly, begin to canvas your corporate neighbors to institute partnership programs (actually, you include corporate sponsorships outside the neighborhood). thirdly, talk to your children’s school librarian and create a partnership with them. also, find the wealthiest school districts and propose a partnership with them (a percentage of their fundraising can be donated to your school as a goodwill gesture). go to your local barnes & noble and talk to the community relations manager and submit your school for consideration for their christmas fundraiser/book collection drive. hope i didn’t overwhelm. good luck and thanx for having a servant spirit.
Check out the Coretta Scott King Books Donation Grant (do a Google search-I can’t post the link).
Oops-hit submit too soon. Library Grants by Stephanie Gerding and Pam MacKellar is also a great resource. They have a blog (same name-just Google “library grants blog”)