1. Presented by Eileen Seligman for John Poole Middle School
School Library budget request to support student achievement & curriculum
Presented by Eileen Seligman for John Poole Middle School
Notes: Thank you for allotting me time to speak at tonight’s meeting regarding the school’s library budget this year. As indicated in your Parent Engagement Survey, almost 95% of you feel that you play an important role in your child’s education. I agree! Plus, 88% of you feel you are treated as a partner in your child’s education. Thus, I am here tonight asking for much needed funds because of the vital role you play in your child’s life and the relationship the school has built with you. I know you can make a difference in their learning outcomes, and the science department needs you. Some of you may say this doesn’t affect you, but you would be wrong. Every student in the building takes a science class. Some of you in this room may even have children that are in or applying to the nationally-recognized Science Magnet Program at the local high school. We need to uphold our library collection to the same high standards we have for our children.

2. SCHOOL LIBRARY Objective & Budget Request
OBJECTIVE: The school library needs to maintain a quality animal collection for continual use to support the needs of our students and teachers. HOW: The school library will do that by ordering materials for the 590s that support the science curriculum, especially food webs. BUDGET REQUEST TO MEET OBJECTIVE: $800.00
The role of the library is to provide the most up-to-date resources for our students to become effective users of ideas and information (AASL). As the school librarian, my job is to foster lifelong learning skills at the same time as providing access to a variety of formats (print, audio, periodical, etc.) that respond to curricular needs and interests of the students and teachers. Over the summer, we did extensive weeding of the 590s (Animals) collection. In evaluating the 590s, I saw some areas that need to be addressed. We need more current resources for our students, and we need to increase our variety of formats, especially our DVD collection with this subject area. I have been working with the science department for input and adherence to the science curriculum, and they are very excited about the possibility of these new resources.

3. Current Status of the library collection
Total student population: 351 students
6th Grade Science Students: 108
7th & 8th Grade Environmental Science Students: 60
Total Science Students: 168 = 48% of student body
Circulation/Usage of 590s: 462 times checked out ( )
Items Per Student:
3 books per 6th Grader; 5 books per 7th/8th
0.9 reference books per 6th grader; 1 per 7th/8th
0.3 audiovisuals** per 6th grader; 0.6 per 7th/8th
Total size of collection: 15,520 ( ); 14,456 ( ) Total size of 590s collection: 455*
Books: 327
Reference books: 93
Audio & Video Titles: 35 (2 DVDs; 33 videocassettes)
Age of 590s collection: 1996 (1997 for DVDs)
*There are 12 online databases that are pertinent to the 590s, and 1 animal e-book that has not been utilized to its potential. MCPS does not keep individual school records for database logs. Based on science curriculum, World Book would be the most likely resource for use. Enrollment figures were received from Counseling Department. According to the Standards for School Library Media Programs in Maryland, the recommended guidelines for middle schools are a minimum collection of 15,000 library media items. 15,000/351 (Total Enrollment) = 43 items per student. Being a small school is skewing the numbers since a school of 1,000 total students would be a 15 item guideline. The audiovisuals are quite old, and teachers have indicated they rather find something online or a DVD rather than mess with the videocassettes. This illustrates a great need to increase the DVD collection with current material.

4. Average Cost & Purchase Statistics
Format
Number Purchased
Amount Needed
Average Spent Per Item
Notes
Periodicals 1
$29.95/10 issues
$14-$29 for specialty magazines
Includes free digital subscription; online animal games
Books 14
$325.16
$19.03-$20.82
Included 2 Spanish version books since none in collection
E-book
$27.96*
$9.47
*Unlimited access
Playaways 2
$94.74
$24.99 to $79.99, depending on the length of the book
There are no nonfiction Playaways in current collection
DVDs 8
$318.82
$20-$40
Teachers and students have requested more DVDs that feature Bill Nye, the Science Guy
TOTAL 26
$796.63
$797.40**
Currently, there are no periodicals for the 590s. The periodical I have in mind has no advertising and is geared to the science curriculum, specifically habitats. Plus, it is colorful and appealing for the reluctant reader! The price of books includes two Spanish versions that are similar to Reference books with indexes and color illustrations. All the selected books will include broader number of animals, like zooplankton, macro invertebrates, etc., to meet the gap in the collection. In addition, these books will be an easier reading level to appeal to middle school students and solve the problem of existing books having too complicated of animal subjects. Books will meet reader abilities with differentiated levels (lower, middle, and higher levels). Hardcover books are preferred for durability and amount of usage. The audiovisuals need to be updated to fill in the gaps where weeding was done with an increase in DVDs to support the science curriculum, instead of videocassettes. **Average spent per item was estimated using the higher range of the two variables.

5. % Proficient or Better on Science MSA38
83.3 *
Af. Am -
100
Asian 86
81.8
Hispanic
91.3
96.9
White 71
Two +
53.8
80.0
FARMs
66.7
SPED
LEP
85.4
95.3
ALL
In order to maintain a 95.3% proficiency on the Science MSA (MD State Test), the library collection must maintain a quality animal collection for continual use to support the needs of our students and teachers. Many of the proposed books have food web content support that is specifically addressed on the Science MSA each year.
Science MSA data applies to Grade 8 only. For this reason, many of our student groups are too small to be included. The starred data is then calculated in house.

6. Libraries make a difference!
“We must understand the fundamental contributions school libraries make to learning outcomes. First, when school librarians collaborate with classroom teachers to enrich curriculum content, they help create more authentic learning experiences. Second, school library collections inform, educate, entertain, and enrich students at all levels…When students are able to…explore information that is meaningful to them, they not only learn faster but their literacy skills grow rapidly; they learn how to learn.”
“As important as it is for school libraries to have larger print collections, the currency of the materials in those collections is also important.”
I leave you with this quote to understand the importance of the school library program and having a relevant collection for our students. Keith Curry Lance, Director of Library Research Service at Colorado State Library, published additional findings to the well-known Colorado study (1993) in “The Importance of School Libraries” where he states that “when school libraries have higher levels of professional and total staffing, larger collections of print and electronic resources, and more funding, students tend to earn higher scores on state reading tests.” We owe it to our children to give them the best education with the best possible resources available. Is a 17-year-old book the best we can give to our children? Our library collection is the same median age of when the school opened in I need your help to uphold the high standards your children deserve. Thank you for your time.
Lance, Keith Curry, Marcia J. Rodney, and Christine Hamilton-Pennell.
Powerful Libraries Make Powerful Learners: The Illinois Study
C. Beth Fitzsimmons, Ph.D., Chairman, NCLIS.
Excerpted from a letter to President George W. Bush, February 13, 2006, introducing School Libraries Work!

7. Works Cited
American Association of School Librarians. Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs. Chicago: ALA, Print. American Association of School Librarians. Standards for the 21st-century learner. Chicago: ALA, Print. Ann Albright, Mary. "Tag-Along audio books." Columbian, The (Vancouver, WA) 20 Aug. 2007: Newspaper Source. Web. 19 Nov Bishop, Kay. The Collection Program in Schools: Concepts and Practices. 5th ed. Santa Barbara: Libraries Unlimited, Print. Library and Information Science Text Ser. Dickinson, Gail. Empty, Pockets, Full Plates: Effective Budget Administration for Library Media Specialists. Worthington, OH: Linworth, pp Chapter 6 titled "Adding Dollars to the Budget Picture." Lance, Keith Curry. "The Importance of School Libraries." Montgomery County Public Schools. MCPS, n.d. Web. 29 Aug < Milliot, Jim. "Report: E-Book Prices Fell In 2011; Boomers Don't Buy The Most Books." Publishers Weekly (2012): 6. Academic Search Complete. Web. 19 Nov Montgomery County Public Schools. "John Poole Middle School School Improvement Plan." Table. John Poole Middle School. Montgomery County Public Schools, Web. 19 Nov < 14%20(2).pdf> " Parent Engagement Survey - Parent Results." Table. Montgomery County Public Schools. Montgomery County Public Schools, Web. 19 Nov < Scholastic, comp. School Libraries Work! New York City: Scholastic Library Publishing, Scholastic. Web. 19 Nov < Standards for School Library Media Programs in Maryland. Baltimore: Maryland State Department of Education, Print.