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i there:
I'm Sharon Silengo, and I am beginning my first full year as the
librarian at
Sierra Grande School in Blanca/Ft. Garland Colorado. We are a PK-12
School and
District located about halfway between Alamosa and Walsenburg in South
Central
Colorado--in the San Luis Valley.  We have Mount Blanca an over 14,000
foot peak
in our backyard, the Great Sand Dunes National Monument 4 miles to the
west and
agri-business all around us.

I started here at the school mid January this year--new facility, old
old collection.
The former librarian believed that everything would go on the internet
so he
didn't keep up the print collection and the previous librarian wasn't
certified.
Soooooo... needless to say I've got a lot of work to do.

I service 340 students and a faculty of approximately 25.  Teachers will
be back
Wednesday and students next Monday.  The teachers last year were so
surprized when
I asked them how I could help them teach their curriculum.  I pulled
books on topics,
did research, wrote webpages for theme weeks and they just couldn't
believe it.

Being new to all this--my first job out of library school--I'm not
always sure what
i'm doing, but if I have a doubt I contact my cohorts in the area.  In
fact after I
got started I went to the local area librarians meetings and started to
visit other
school libraries on my days off to get ideas (I work mon thru thurs 7:30
to 4:30).
Great way to make contacts that will help get work and things done.

I've written 3 grants since I started and had all approved including one
for $13,680.
That one is kind of scary--but I know I will get the program started and
run properly.
At least it gives me $7,000 to upgrade the collection.  I wrote in
salary for an aide
for 3 hours per day and now have to find someone to work for me as well
as raise the
matching funds for the grand.

The previous librarian had an automated circ system, but when he lost
the job, pulled
the server and used it for the back-up server for the school.  (He is
the network tech
part-time now).  So it looks like I'll have to start from scratch again
as that was
three years ago and Follett has new upgraded programs.

In my off-hours I process books at home in front of the tv, drive around
to see
the new area I live in and read book after book as well as visit book
stores so
I can see books before I order them.  I prefer to see them first as we
have a
very conservative community and I've already had 3 challenges on
materials in
the first 6 months I worked here.

I've gotten lots of ideas from the 8 months I've been lurking--but
sometimes
have little time to respond as I'm on 6 listservs to keep up with
various aspects
of my job. Maybe after this year some of this will calm down and I'll be
able to
have a real life in addition to being a school librarian.  But it's
taken most
of the summer (unpaid) to get even half the mess cleaned up here at the
school.
I still have to weed and file the catalog cards, as well as get my
orientations
ready for all of the classes.  And then there is the grant--I have to
organize
and run a Book club and produce newsletters with reviews written by the
students--
sounds good--but can see lots of work ahead.

Anyway, thanks for all the various postings--always seems like someone
else is
working on the same topic I am within a week of me starting it.
--
Sharon Silengo
Librarian
Sierra Grande School
Rt. 1 Box 15
Blanca CO 81123
719-379-3257
sharons@fone.net

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