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Thank you to everyone who responded to my query a couple of weeks ago about 
managing multiple libraries.  A hit will be forthcoming for those of you who 
requested it.

After many conversations with my immediate supervisors and central office staff 
about my future position, I am feeling a little more hopeful about next year.  The 
big picture, as it has been communicated to me, is that efforts are being made to 
develop a long-term plan, bring unity to our schools' libraries, and to open 
libraries in the schools that do not yet have them.  (Sounds good so far, right?)  
The "phase 1" plan is to move the 2 existing librarians from their campuses and 
have them serve all of the libraries. (So much for student-librarian contact.)   
The new job would be to each manage 3 or 4 libraries and oversee development of the 
collections and facilities, for which money has been allotted. (more good news)

The problem, as I see it, is that this multi-phase plan was made without input from 
a librarian!  My principals (the best!) and I want to convince the chiefs there is 
a way to establish central coordination, and improve the facilities/collections we 
currently have, while maintaining adequate student services.

The message I have been communicating to central office is that if slightly less 
money is put into the collection (2/3 the suggested amount), we could increase the 
number of librarians in the district.  The librarians who share campuses would 
serve up to 1300 students (the current proposal is up to 3,500!).  I have 
communicated the scope of what librarians do, that we are teachers first, how we 
support and extend curriculum, and that library assistants do not know and cannot 
do all that we have gone to school to learn.  I have shared School Libraries Work! 
as well as every other document I can find supporting strong library programs 
STAFFED WITH LIBRARIANS.  While my supervisors indicate they understand and to some 
degree agree with me, they are still firm in their belief that we must build the 
collection first.  (Sort of an "if you build it, they will come" approach.)   Yes, 
I've explained the case for having a librarian do this!  And they agree - so they 
plan to have 2 people do it for all!

I have one more meeting tomorrow.  I am seeking compelling arguments for why we 
need librarians on campuses as we build the collections/facilities rather than 
wait.  I also need suggestions for how we can have central coordination without a 
full-time district coordinator.  (Can we justify a full-time district coordinator 
with the libraries understaffed at this time?)  I know some districts assign this 
to one of the campus librarians.  If you do this, please share.

I apologize for the length of this post and appreciate you for reading this far.  
If you have any suggestions, please email me off list  And THANK YOU!!!!  With your 
help I may not get to add my school to Shonda's map. :)

Cindy Rogers, MLS
Certified Media Specialist/Librarian
IDEA Academy & IDEA College Preparatory
International Baccaulaureate World Schools
401 South 1st Street
Donna, TX  78537
O (956) 377-8082
F (956) 464-8532
cindy.rogers@ideapublicschools.org<mailto:crogers@ideapublicschools.org>
http://www.ideapublicschools.org   
<http://www.ideapublicschools.org/Page.aspx?pid=563>

IDEA Public Schools are dedicated to providing students with the academic, social, 
and leadership skills needed to apply, matriculate, and succeed in a four-year 
college or university.

"It is more than ironic that school districts are willing to spend hundreds of 
thousands of dollars on reading programs and staff development which have had 
limited success in boosting test scores, but are unwilling to invest in school 
library programs that show such direct correlations to student success," researcher 
Douglas Achterman wrote in a 2008 study of California school libraries.

"In the nonstop tsunami of global information, librarians provide us with floaties 
and teach us how to swim." -- Linton Weeks, Washington Post


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