Re: new job/first week

[Anna J Russell <anna@TENET.EDU>]

Pat,
   You seem to have a wonderful situation. I however am not so lucky. I
too believe the kids come first.  I spend many days at school before my
contract starts sorting mail doing odds and ends.  I am contracted to
begin 3 days before teachers, those days are spent checking out materials
to early arriving teachers and doing duties assigned by the principal.
     I have on the average 2 to 3 hundred students per grade level.  We
now have an enrollment of almost 1200--I would say half new students.
     In an overcrowed school you learn to take things as they come.  For
example, the first day of school I spent welcoming students and helping
them find their classroom--this is also good pr because many of the new
students now know who I am before they arrive in the LMC.  The LMC was a
busy place the first week--no library activities except teacher
checkout--the library was used as a place to test and place ESL students.
This too was not my choice but, it was good pr in I met parents and
students.  I used the time to straighten out a mess left by district
employees who supposedly updated info in my computer.
     Oh, and by the way I returned to find my computer had died.  It is
beyond repair.  With almost 1200 students--a library not set up for
manual checkout, I automatically tried to find a solution.  We are now in
the process of working the bugs out of the new computer.  The 2nd and 3rd
week of school I hosted a book fair--at least the students enjoyed the
time spend in the lmc seeing books that we would have--I ask students to
select books from the book fair they would like to have in the LMC.
     I was informed last week that as of next week there would be a class
temorarily placed in the LMC until a temp could be built.  I have a small
library and there is no way to conduct a clas and library at the same
time. I have assured the teachers this time will be used
productively--most have been very supportive.  I will now use the time to
have the computer repaired, input and delete students and titles.  I will
also work on a plan to see students outside the LMC.
    I am a firm believer that kids come first.  I have been know to fight
for the right to break tradition and open the library early and stay
late, I have fought to have meetings moved from the library so studnets
would be able to visit uninterrupted. But there are also things beyond my
control.  As I said we have a large enrollment--last year we did good to
hit 900 students.  Our school is EC - 4th.  I am not happy with the
situation but do not feel I should be critized because the library is not
open.
     I too believe in priorities and right now my school needs
understanding and patinece.  The teachers on the most part are supportive
because they  know this is beyond my control.  I do not have to have a
computer to operate the LMC but I do have to have the library.  I have
decided that being positive and filling teacher request are top priority
right now.
     I don't think many people have situation like yours.  We all would
like to open the first day--but realisticly it is impossible.  Normally,
I open the 2nd or third week.  I hope you see that because some people
are not able to see students the first day ---they are not bad librarians
but more than likely subject to things beyond their control.
                               Anna Russell--Aldine I.S.D.










 On Fri, 30 Aug 1996, Patricia Lee Wassink wrote:

> Almost all of our elementary teachers spend at least two days preparing
> their rooms before the beginning of contract time.  I come in
> periodically during the summer to sort and discard mail.
>
> We have two days of "in-service" before the students arrive.  About half
> of that time is scheduled meetings.  During the remainder of the time I
> complete my schedule for classes, checkout computers (helps a lot to give
> the teachers the same computer back--they can just come and pick it up),
> cope with miscellaneous requests and enter student into the computer
> system.  I have about 65-75 students per grade (k-6), and that chore
> doesn't take more than 10 or 15 minutes per grade level--excluding the
> printing--but that is more or less automatic.
>
> I meet with classes the first afternoon that students arrive, and see the
> remainder of them during the rest of the first week.  If for some reason
> I get behind on entering student barcodes, I simply do the ones for the
> first classes and do the others in the short intervals between classes.
> I think this is all a matter of PRIORITIES--my top priority is getting
> some books into the hands of the kids.
>
> I do tell the teachers that their students can come ONLY during scheduled
> times the first two weeks. That means that anytime a class is not
> scheduled is MY time.
>
> We have completed two weeks of school.  My supplies are not all put away,
> I have two orders of new books in the backroom, invoices to check,
> computers to reassemble after summer repair and a host of things--too
> many to list.  I have no paid help and only a handful of student
> volunteers. My desk is piled high and so is the area around it.  BUT the
> kids have had contact with me and checked out lots of books--total
> circulation is already over 2000.  THAT is my top priority.
>
> Pat Wassink
> Colfax Elementary School
> 601 University Ave.
> Colfax, WI 54730
> wassinpl@uwec.edu
>
>
> On Fri, 30 Aug 1996, Lyn Anderson wrote:
>
> > I was here several times during the weeks BEFORE any teachers or students
> > arrived.  My feeling is that I am here for the students not myself.  I
> > will do whatever it takes to get things ready for the students the day
> > they come back.
> >
> > Lyn Anderson
> > Lincoln Middle School
> > Indianapolis, IN
> >
>