HIT: LMC Parent Volunteers (Long)

[Edward Varsa <varsae@SIU.EDU>]

Dear LM_Netters,

A while back I sent the following  target request for parent volunteers:

We are going from two full-time staff in a new K-12 LMC last year to half a
person this year (ouch!)...  Needless to say, I need to start a parent
volunteer program.  I would appreciate ANY information on you are willing
to share on parent volunteer programs.  The following topics especially
interest me:
         1.  Recruiting and screening
         2.  Responsibilities
         3.  Procedures
         4.  Reliability
         5.  Training
         6.  Volunteers teaching technology...
         7.  Keeping volunteers interested
         8.  Recognizing volunteers
         9.  What works and what doesn't
        10.  Security issues

Following are the wonderful responses:
                _______________________________________

This is going to sound harsh, but if I were you, I would scrap the
volunteer approach and keep half time service.  If they won't pay for a
whole loaf of bread, they should not get a whole loaf of bread.  Will
kids and teachers be hurt?  Absolutely.  Will a faster cure be found?
Most likely.

The only way to get back full staffing is to make them see that it is
necessary.  Furthermore, what about liability and such for volunteers if
they work unupervised?  Even more, what about liability for volunteers
who work with students without supervision?  You have a potential legal
nightmare.  And you will have no authority over volunteers.  What if they
don't show?  What if they won't cooperate?

I know this sounds harsh, but hang in and fight.
                        _____________________________

Last year our library went from ten volunteers, one library clerk full time
and myself at half-time to ten volunteers, a tech for one day and myself at
.66 time.  It was really a challenge. And I couldn't have done it without
the help of the volunteers.

Recruiting and Screening:
Most of our adult volunteers are parents of the students in our school.  We
are lucky to be in an area that allows some parents not to be working full
time.  We also have a couple of excellent people who are friends of parents
or teachers.  One wonderful lady works one whole day a week and is
incredibly efficient and hard-working.  We also have two women who are
mothers of teaching staff - one is my Mom.  I have not gotten to the point
of calling our Winnipeg Volunteer Bureau but would do that if necessary
because they do initial screening.  I would not advertise in papers myself
but we do request volunteers at the beginning of the year in our parent
newsletters.  I also encourage students who are interested to get involved
and they love it.  They are, however, not as dependable as adults because
school is very demanding and they get pulled away for other functions. I am
considering developing a credit for interested junior high students who are
looking for an alternative to French or some other difficult class. There
is lots of information in the LM_Net archives on this.

Responsibilities:
The adult volunteers do many jobs:
        - circulation
        - shelving books
        - carding magazines
        - filing vertical file information
        - straightening shelves, chairs, tables
        - deprocessing weeded materials
        - inventory
        - displays

Student volunteers can:
        - help with circulation
        - sort cards
        - shelve books
        - straighten shelves ??
        - prepare displays

Procedures:
I have a booklet for volunteers with all of the jobs described in detail so
that even if I am not around they can find something to do.  I also keep a
list posted of odd jobs that need to be done.  I do a short orientation
with each new volunteer when they begin.

Reliability:
The adults are very reliable but do miss if their children are sick or they
go away on holidays.  That's when you realize how important they are.
I've already talked about the students.

Recognizing Volunteers:
We give a small gift at Christmas with a card that the students have
created.  Something like candles or a tiny book- the kind you find in
bookstores around Christmas for @$6.00 - or I go to my favorite
environmental store and buy soaps and bubble baths and such.
At the end of the year we host a volunteer luncheon for all the volunteers
in the school.  This year we went to a local restaurant and it came to the
same price as when we brought food in the year before.  It was great to see
all the volunteers together because they rarely see each other.

Security Issues:
We have a volunteer booklet and an orientation session that goes over the
importance of leaving what you see and hear within the walls of the school.
That became a small concern in my school at one point but it was behavior
that had been encouraged by a staff member rather than parents and was
nipped in the bud.  You do, however, often become a sounding board for
parents as the library tends to become a meeting place for parents.  The
pluses far outweigh the concerns and I love to watch the parents meeting to
council each other on the ins ands outs of returning to university or
discussing parenting issues.
                ___________________________________

  I am *constantly* looking for adult volunteers and have several handouts
prepared (although not professional) which I could try to download for
you--if I knew how *or* if you give me your address I'll send you printed
copies.  I have a tiny thing I set out at everything "what does a library
volunteer do?" + a help wanted sheet for volunteers who only want to laminate
for us or who would xerox for us.  I use one of those science fair project
boards at registration, parent-teacher conferences, book fairs which have
nothing on them but "Library volunteers needed" in 10" letters and place all
my pamphlet out at those times.  I am currently going through the old card
system w/ a parent volunteer who knows everybody and we pull the cards of
parents who do not have kids at home anymore or do not work.  Then I put
these names on a data base and send them a personal letter next week asking
them to please consider being a regular volunteer, etc.
  Forgot to tell you--I am in a K-4 school (formally K-5) and only had about
23 adult volunteers last year but over 100 student volunteers.

Please let me know if I can help as I think the more we share our materials
we don;'t have to spin our wheels twice.
                ___________________________________

We "buddy-up" our parent volunteers, knowing that things come up over the
year that will take precedence over working in the library.  Rather than
have them call us to say they can't come we ask them to replace
themselves and do a trade if at all possible, only calling us if noone
can come at their time.
                _____________________________________

Recruiting and screening
I worked 1/2 time in a small school and the LMC was kept open by volunteers.
1.  Send home a memo with the school menu, principals letter, any way you
can.  On the memo, tell the times you need help so the library will be
open.  Provide a place for parents to fill out an application, including
their name, phone number,student name, skills they may have (typing, etc.)
and ask them to x the days they may be available
2.  Set up an afternoon when you can train as many as possible for certain
jobs such as circulation.  In advance, put together a procedure book, which
spells out how to do things, how many books each grade can take, how many
students can come at once, etc..

Responsibilities
This entirely depends on the parents you get.  I had one parent that
organized and increased my vertical file and made it into a wonderful
resource.  She just loved to lable pictures and file them where people
could find and use them.
I had others that really had trouble with anything I gave them.  When that
happened, I tried to transfer them to a time slot during which I was there
and ccould keep an eye on them.

Procedures
I put together a procedure book, which spells out how to do things, how many
books each grade can take, how many students can come at once, etc..

Reliability
That depends.  I had a few that worked with me for years.  The best were
always scoffed up by the district for aides, secretarial, etc.. Others came
once or twice and that was it.  Oh by the way, ask volunteers to call in if
they cannot come, and they should sign in when they work.  Otherwise you
may never know a time slot isn't being covered until teachers complain that
their kindergarteners were playing out in the hall because there was nobody
in the LMC when there was supposed to be.

Training
Try to train as many as possible at once.  Some may feel more comfortable
to try things if they start during a time you are there.

Volunteers teaching technology...
When I had this program, I had a CD rom machine which no one wanted to
touch because it was so new.  Can't help here.  However the public schools
in Syr., NY has a complete program (elementary, I believe) run by
volunteers. You may wish to contact them.

Keeping volunteers interested
Notes left with frequent praise, passing along compliments, touching base
even if you have to call once in a while from home....
Recognizing volunteers
We had a volunteer recognition tea at the end of the year.  Teachers were
invited, volunteers (and their children) would come after school for punch
and cookies (ordered from the cafeteria.)

What works and what doesn't
You cannot be a perfectionist.  We didn't bother to keep individual
statistics except for a straight count (# teacher books, # student books)
Interlibrary loans were done by me or the aide who did spend some time in
the LMC when she wasn't pulled for the office.  If you're automated, buy
the marc records.  Otherwise, I hope you find a person who can be taught to
type.  Make a cheat-sheet showing a sample of each type of CCard, the
spacing etc..
If automated, show them during training how it can go wrong, and what to do
when it does.  Make sure the opening procedures and shut down procedures
are spelled out in your procedure book.  Leave your server on all the time,
just have them turn off the OPACs and the circulation station.

Security issues
Students need to understand when they can come to the Library.  Our library
had a room with a door so I taught them if the door was closed and/or the
light was off, they should return to their classroom. Teachers had to
understand that if they used the library when I wasn't there (and they were
welcome to--of course!) they did need to shut the door, or else they would
have some students they could help with book exchange.
                ___________________________________

Hi!  That's an amazing adjustment to make.   I work in a K-8 school with 463
students and 30 parent volunteers.  We have a parent volunteer in the library
every minute the library is open.  They work in shifts, AM or PM, and are
scheduled every two weeks throughout the year.  I have a volunteer who's in
charge of scheduling volunteers.  She takes care of recruiting (newsletter
notices) and scheduling (she puts out a monthly calendar which I post so I
know who to expect).  We have a "tea" the first day of school to welcome and
orient volunteers, and a thank you lunch at the end of the year.
Volunteers do almost everything, depending on their interests.  They sign up
for a time their children will be visiting, and most like to check out books
and work with students on projects.  In addition, each volunteer files all
books, and works on various other projects.  All our "cataloging" is done by
volunteers - I write the dewey # in the book and the volunteer goes through
the Follett process for cataloging with Alliance Plus.  They save any
problems so we can talk them over.  I have clear laminated instructions for
this, and many parents enjoy the computer work.  They also print and apply
spine labels, organized the vertical file, bind books, cover books, process
books, etc. etc. etc.  Parents who prefer working at home take home boxes of
books to cover.

My first recommendation would be to get a volunteer to coordinate your
volunteers.  It saves much time and energy!  Gook Luck!
_________________________________

We have a K-5 elementary school.  Until three years ago it was a 1-6
elementary school.  We have approx. 500 students.  I have a full time clerk,
and a computer aide.  However, I do not know how we would survive without
our library volunteers.  We usually have 12 to 18 volunteers per year.  Some
have been with us for five or six years.  Others three to four.  Almost
every volunteer serves at least two years.  Occasionally someone bows out at
the end of the year (usually they are the ones we are happy to see leave).
It is difficult to set up a screening process, as these people are
volunteers, after all.  However, we do have a volunteer coordinator, (she's
been with us for four years - plus two as a volunteer ) and she sometimes
can steer people off if she thinks they may not fit in, and twice in twelve
years we have asked our coordinator to steer away from a certain person.
This, of course, means we know our coordinator very well, and have an
exception relationship with her - however, such relationships take time to
develop.  The majority of the time we have had fantastic luck with our
volunteers.  Once in awhile you get one that just wants to come when they
know their child will be in the Media Center, and this is not a great
situation, depending upon the parent.  Our volunteers shelf books, work the
automated circulation desk, and do other odd jobs -- such as checking in new
magazines, some of the physical aspects of preparing new print material,
help with bulletin boards, and any other jobs that are suitable.  You will
find that many volunteers are great workers, and excellent promoters of the
library.  I really don't know what we would do without ours.  One volunteer
is coming back this fall, even though her second child is now entering the
middle school.
                ____________________________________

The best place to recruit is at school registration, or if you've missed
that, at your parent open house.  Put out a sign-up list and mention it at
the general opening announcement assembly.  That way you have parents who
are really interested in the LRC. I "employ" these parents in various ways
throughout the year.  There are people who you discover to be super
efficient, follow your directions, and are available on a consistent weekly
basis.  These will be your few core people.  Others can be helpful during
one-time stints (such as book fairs). My aide and I call the list and keep
a record of answers/resulting projects so we can see who actually shows up,
who wants to be called regularly, etc. For a school of 1100 students I have
a list of about 30 parents with varying responsibilities.  As far as
security, I never let parents get into student records as that violates
confidentiality laws.  I used to have a party at the end of the year, but
that is a lot of cost and hassle.  Now I make up certificates of
appreciation for everybody who helped during the year and give small gifts
to the regulars (coffee cup or picture frame). Training depends on the
duties performed and can be minimal or time consuming.

Many many thanks to:

Kari Inglis    < kbw_inglis@k12.mec.ohio.gov>
Susan Fonseca-King     <kingjs@mts.net>
Holly Beaver   <Bookheart@aol.com>
Madelynne Johnson   <madelynn@helen.bush.edu>
Mrs. Jeanette B. Heath   <Heathf@dreamscape.com>
Kathy Collins   <KCWebfoot@aol.com>
Donna Peterson"  <Donna.M.Peterson-2@tc.umn.edu>
Carol Sturz   <sturz@mcs.net>

        *******************************************************
Sally Varsa, Library Media Coordinator, Giant City School, 1062 Boskydell
Road, Carbondale, IL  62901
(618) 457-5391            (varsae@siu.edu)
        *******************************************************