Hit: Library Aide/Assistant salaries, Part 2

[Elizabeth Hart <ehart@supreme.cde.ca.gov>]

More comments:
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I could have written your comments on the LM_Net. Here in Maine the
majority of elementary libraries are staffed by Ed Techs. My salary is
$9.30 an hour, only because I have been with the district 15 years!! The
beginning salalry is $7.10 and hour. When I too think that the
secretaries get more than us, I shudder. We see every class once a week,
just like music, art and phys. ed. There is an Elementary Library
Co-ordinator in our district, but I have only had contact with this person
twice this year. And she gets a stipend! I love what I do -
connecting kids and books. I am in a K-4 library of about 300 students. I
have a reading promotion program for three months for K-2 and for 3 and 4.
The latter is Books and Beyond (which began in California). I have been
doing this program for 11 years, ten of which we have culminated with a
sleepover for those that reached their goal! Crazy, but the kids love it.
Recently a young man came to the library to visit and told me, "Books and
Beyond is the reason he likes to read today"

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I am in your same situation.  Running an elem. school library (and loving
it) but not even paid at your level - I am one level below the office
manager and that is after a review a few years ago.

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The elementary schools in our district have a library tech aid working 3.7
hours per day. We are pd. from SIP budget. Some schools have chosen not to
have any librarian and operate with volunteers. We are paid about $10 per
hour,depending on a number of things, but I think that is what I started
at.

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I'm a library assistant in Fairbanks, Alaska and have been for 20 years. I
work in a 600 student school and run it by myself. Three years ago I got my
MLS but school elementary librarians are not required to have more than a
high school education (on paper). When a new one is hired, of course they
hire those with at least a BS. My salary is 18.50 an hour but it hasn't
changed in the last 13 years because I am at the top of the salary scale. I
make less than the school secretary. Technically we work under at library
media director who has an office in the main school administration building
downtown but we get very little help in that department. He mainly helps
other administrators. We are fighting for an upgrade through our union but
it's a very slow process and may come to nothing. It's very frustrating as
you've probably figured out by now.

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In our district the library clerks are low man on the salary totem pole,
paid less than the hall monitors and custodians.  We've been fighting it
unsuccessfully for years.  I'd like the people who make the decisions to
come spend a week in the library!!!  The salary begins at around $11000 per
year.

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I don't think I can help you any, but just for your info:  I'm the one
certified elementary librarian in our district of 16 elementary schools.  I
get in to visit with each one once a month, more for the newer ones and we
meet as a group a couple of times a month for 2 hours.  Other than that,
they are totally on their own and I only advise them.  I don't do any of
their work.  A couple are certified teachers; the rest are untrained in
library or were when they started.  They do everything that the certified
librarians do, except maybe more of the "babysitting thing" as some of the
elementary teachers are still living in the dark ages thinking library is
break time for them!  The library assistants pay starts out at about $7.35
per hour with a .40 raise a year until the 5th year, when it tops out,
because as the personnel director said, "After 5 years you know all you
need to know about running a library."  That was even before we started
trying to automate!

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My aide with 4 years experience in the lib. receives $6.90/hour and works a
7 or 7 1/2 hour day.  I think salaries may be low in WY, but we also don't
have any state income tax.

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I am a library aide in Los Gatos, CA (near San Jose). I am at a K-5 school
with 450 kids. I run the entire library program from the day to day program
to ordering and processing books. There are no "real" librarians in the
Union School District. I am, in truth, an aide to no one. I am paid
approximately $9.60/hour for 15 hours a week. When I started 3 years ago I
was given 5 years credit for my work as a manager of a children's bookstore
and as a nursery school teacher and as a classroom aide. I work closer to
40 hours a week on this job, needless to say. I think this situation is
horrendous. However, when my kids were in the same district (now are 16 &
18) there were
no library aides at all. Teachers and parents handled the library time
which was checkout only. Pretty sad. But that's also pretty typical in
California. I have lobbied with the union and sent letters to the
superintendent all to no avail. Even the computer aide is on a high level
than I. I get paid just like the classroom aides who walk in at 8:30 and
out at 11:30 and take nothing home and just do what they are told.

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I am the "library education assistant."  As such I have the full
responsibility of running the library in my school of 220 4th, 5th, and 6th
graders.  I do have my degree in elementary education and am certified to
teach K through 6, but this is by no means a requirement for my position.
I am paid 5.80 an hour for our school year.  When one spreads that out over
twelve months it magically works out to be equal to the current minimum
wage. (Our school secretary makes twice what I make.)
     I work 8 hours a day, but over two hours are taken up with duties,
plus I have to cover the office for an hour each day while the secretary
takes her lunch break.  If a student is sent to I.S.S., I have to supervise
him/her.  If we need a runner such as getting each class for picture day,
that's my job.  I have had to block out Friday mornings in case the
Behavior Intervention Team meeting requires a teacher to be away from their
classroom so I can cover the class for the teacher.
     My predecessor had no background what so ever, just learned as she
went. Our school district provides little no training. We can enroll in the
local community college or the state university which is 60 miles (and one
wicked mountain pass) away.  Of course, any courses we take would be at our
own expense, unless we can talk our individual building principals to
spring staff development money, and/or our E.A. unit has some staff
development money available.
     I am treated and regarded as a second-class citizen in my school.  The
teachers are just beginning to realize I am a valuable resource, and this
is my second year there.