Equity in the Library

The library is at the heart of our school and it is a learning space for children during three out of their four years in our school.  When families visit the school the library is often a place that they seek out.  Therefore it is essential that the library be a welcoming space for the diverse community that is served.  

Developing a diverse collection of books is an ongoing process.  Diversity in the library means including diverse books that include race, culture, socioeconomics, physical disabilities, neurodiversity, mental health,  LGBTQ, and age.  I also need to consider accessibility to books to the range of readers I work with including a huge percentage who are not yet reading.  In addition, I check in with the ESOL team to see which languages need to be represented.  It is important for students and families to have access to books in languages other than English.  

One area that needs to be improved is the lost and damaged books policies and how we handle students who constantly lose or damage books.  Unfortunately our policy  limits student check out status to “classroom only” if they have chronic issues with returning books.  Students have several chances to earn back their privileges. If they can’t pay for a replacement, they need to show they are responsible.  Unfortunately, the same students lose and damage books repeatedly and it becomes difficult for them to earn back borrowing privileges.  The library staff do have an obligation to maintain and care for the collection.  But, the students who lose books the most are the ones who NEED access to books due to socioeconomic constraints, homelessness, or are from New Mainer families.  These families can be difficult to communicate with due to language barriers or a history of feeling alienated by schools or libraries.  

I would like to develop programming for families to be able to use the library and check out books as a family.  I think this will help engage both students and families with books and the library.  The most obvious measurement of this would be to see an increase in circulation by families and a decrease in lost and damaged books.  

Support Needed From The District

Providing family programming in the school library will be a major shift in how the school library is utilized.  Currently, the library is part of the diversified arts rotation that provides teachers with their 40 minute planning time each day.  In order for the library to provide engaging programming to families and to even further develop the collection, a huge shift in how the library is staffed and scheduled will need to occur.  The library is a revolving door of 40 minute classes with few breaks or flexibility.  There is no capacity to expand programming at this time.

Ideally, the librarian and library assistant would be available during arrival and dismissal times to provide students and families with time to come to the library together.  It would also increase access if the library had open hours during the summer.  As new families join our learning community (new Mainers, mid year move-ins or new Prek and K families in the fall), the library is part of the orientation and welcome to the school community.  Currently all communication is limited to written notices.  These are translated through Reach my Teach but a written notice is not the same as coming into the library.  

I think the overarching need and obstacle is funding.  Our community is struggling with the increase in the school and town budgets.  It is unlikely that staff will be added or that the library could be open during the summer.  But, I can continue to take steps towards this goal of expanding access to the library.  

-Diana Marc-Aurele

I combined both questions into one post because they flowed together logically.