GEN: Advice

["H. Grant" <hgrant@GATECOM.COM>]

Help,
I am a new media specialist in a new district.  I am replacing a media
specialist who had been there for 14 years.  My main question to the
LM-Netters is how does one approach the principal to give him/her the
lowdown on the current status of the media center?

This media center is in shambles:
1.  Most of the books are incorrectly entered in the OPAC (mainly
because she thought she had to create her own MARC records from scratch
and link to them and there are problems all over the place - just try
doing a subject search).

2.  She rarely put spine labels on books.  Those that have them are
falling off or are handwritten.  Probably 90% of the collection needs
them.

3.  She has never taken inventory.

4.  All hardcover fiction is shelved by first initial of author's last
name but not the entire name.

5.  All paperbacks (fiction and non-fiction) were shelved by general
subject topics she created - no spine labels, no alphabetism (?)
whatsoever.

6.  Most of the collection averages over 20 years in age.  Weeding would
eliminate the collection and probably solve my problems!

7.  The entire collection needs to be moved since lots of nonfiction is
housed right behind the checkout desk.  (There is plenty of room to move
it which I will do but it takes time.)

I know many of you have faced worse.  And at every opportunity, I try to
rationalize why the previous med specialist did things the way she did.
I am not seeking solutions to these problems (I have a handle on what
needs to be done and how to do it but I would like advice about how to
approach my principal so that s/he will understand exactly what I am up
against. I know one of our biggest hurdles is convincing people that we
don't just sit around and read books all day.  My principal is very open
to talking but I don't want to look like I am criticizing the last med.
spec. (who went up to the high school and is still in the district).

I am not signing my name since others in my district may be lm-netters.
Just email me directly.
TIA!

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