Dear Pam
When I was told I wouldn't have an assistant because of the cut in budgets,
(schools here in the
A.C.T. are self-managing, responsible for the distribution of the bucket of money
allocated to them,
based on student numbers) I responded by listing all the services I provide, and
then asked the
staff and parents which ones they no longer wanted me to do because I would be too
busy doing
Jenny's job (mainly circulation and shelving). I kept my assistant.
I have also continued to build support amongst the parents by offering services to
them such as a
story-telling session for pre-schoolers, and bags of pre-selected books that they
can borrow so they
have a week's worth of read-alouds. You can also have family nights, read-ins and
other special
events that involve the wider community. It's hard to cut the funds when the
parents are so
supportive of the service!
However, if the cuts are a fait accompli then you might consider a Bring-and-Buy
Book sale where
people donate their unwanted books and others buy them; having a small-change jar
on the circ desk
or the canteen counter; establishing a wishlist of new titles and asking parents to
donate these in
their child's name, perhaps as a birthday present; doing the same thing as part of
your Book Fair;
raffling the first read of a popular title such as Harry Potter; asking the SRC
(Student
Representative Council) to adopt you as their charity for the year so the money
they raise comes to
you; negotiating with your local bookseller for a % of all sales to parents of your
school in
exchange for advertising in your school newsletter and in the library - the list
goes on.
Mind you, I don't think you will raise the amount of money you need, but you will
raise awareness of
the library and its plight. I remember a bumper sticker that said something like,
"Schools need
funding - when did the Air Force have to have a cake stall to buy a bomber?"
Because so many of us will not see your article, perhaps those more original ideas
might be
published on the list.
Barbara
Barbara Braxton
Teacher Librarian
Palmerston District Primary School
PALMERSTON ACT 2913
AUSTRALIA
T. 61 2 6205 6162
F. 61 2 6205 7242
E. barbara@iimetro.com.au
W. http://www.palmdps.act.edu.au
"Together we learn from each other."
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