I get that these are tough times.
I get that people are just doing the best they can.
I get that when your supervisor or someone in that position asks you for
information that it is your job to get that for them.
I also hope that the members of this community are not providing models for
unstaffed libraries.
First of all- an unstaffed library is not a library- it is a storage facility for
books and media and technology. Books, media and technology that are aging. It is a
very big closet.
I have seen what this looks like first hand in NYC. When I became a librarian, I
started my career in the public library. We often partnered with local school for
summer reading programs and cultural partnerships. We often met in the "school
library" It was a dystopic experience. Old dusty books, 15 year old encyclopedias.
pieces of overheads and projectors. Shelves full of books that weren't in any
order, leaning willy-nilly. Stacks of duplicate copies from long gone reading
programs. Faded construction paper peeling off bulletin boards. What happened here?
I would ask. Oh the district... the city...the school ran out of money so they let
go the librarian. The revitalization of the school libraries in New York only
happened in the last ten to fifteen years. It was part of recognizing that without
this vibrant center for literacy, the school administrators were basically saying,
literacy is NOT something we really care about. Did this turn-around happen in
every school? No. But I have seen what happens when the school librarian is let
go. It isn't pretty. The public library will not step in. Our public libraries are
understaffed right now, with the same budget restraints.
I don't believe there is such a thing as an unstaffed school library anymore than
there is such a thing as an unstaffed math class.
Lisa
Lisa Von Drasek
Children's Librarian
Bank Street College of Education
School for Children Pre-K- 8
610 West 112th St
NY NY 10025
lisav@bnkst.edu
212 875 4452
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