FRANCIS W.

PARKER SCHOOL
K-12 SCHOOL
AVERAGE OF 18 STUDENTS PER CLASS
AVERAGE OF 50 PER GRADE

LIBRARIANS
AT PARKER

2 LIBRARIANS

JK - 5TH GRADE
LOWER SCHOOL LIBRARIAN

FIRST YEAR
LIBRARIAN AT
PARKER
PREVIOUS LIBRARIAN
AT PRIVATE SCHOOL
IN VIRGINIA
GRADUATED FROM
DOMINICAN
UNIVERSITY
DIDNT DO THE MEDIA
SCHOOL PROGRAM
(SOME PRIVATE
SCHOOLS DONT
REQUIRE THIS

6TH - 12TH GRADE

LOWER SCHOOL LIBRARIAN

FIRST YEAR
LIBRARIAN AT
PARKER
WORKED AS A
MIDDLE SCHOOL
IN NORTHBROOK
GRADUATED
FROM U OF I (K12
LIBRARIANSHIP)

CONVERSATIONS WITH
LIBRARIANS

Many challenges as a new librarian

New Spaces

New Students

New Collection

New Staff

TALKS ABOUT GROUPS IN THE

LIBRARY

Friends of the Library Program: Parents have a book sale to

raise funds for the library

Other faculty members in charge of implementing technology

throughout the school

Book clubs already in the process

Help needed to organize a student committee with different

responsibilities

Previous library space was unwelcoming

STUDENT ADVISORY
COMMITTEE

A library advisory committee provides a way to design library goals that

can be developed together.

The library belongs to everyone

Build an atmosphere of support, service and collective ownership.

Different people can be part of this committee (different viewpoints)

Staff members

Faculty members

Students

STUDENT ONLY COMMITTEE

To give students back a space

they never had.

Frequent students familiar to staff

should be asked personally to
consider joining the group.

Diversity: different kinds of people

working on this committee.

Every institution is different,

different steps for every place

EXAMPLE OF ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL COMMITTEE

Other student committees

might make suggestions

Kids in Action committee

lobbied for updated nature
and recycling books

Hard for elementary

schools to have a library
committee because there
are more grades

EXAMPLE OF MIDDLE SCHOOL

COMMITTEE
Smith Middle School Library

Students fill out a Google Form

Tasks go beyond book selection

Recommendations on ideas to research:

Makerspaces

Learning Commons

Inquiry-based learning

Creativity and Curiosity

Meet once a week during lunch

Willing to conduct surveys to other

students

EXAMPLE OF HIGH SCHOOL

COMMITTEE

Many of the advisory boards were

non-student groups

If they did have a group, they had little

information on the site

Teen Advisory Groups are more

popular in the public library compared
to high schools.

High schools without libraries also

partner with public libraries to create a
Teen Advisory Group.

MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE

JK5th:18 students per class, 54 per grade

6th8th: 18 students per class, 68 per grade

9th12th: 18 students per class, 80 per grade

5 Students from each group

4th-6th grades

7th-9th grades

10th-12th grades
What Students

Students who are avid readers and not so into reading

Diversity in ages and opinions

SOME POSSIBLE
RESPONSIBILITIES

Suggest new books to buy

Collaboratively decide suggesting any changes to the library

Decide if certain books should remain on the shelf or get

weeded

Suggest any services that can be added to the library (items

on reserve for example)

Communicating goals to district, school, and students

PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR

THIS PROJECT

Librarians & Aides should be responsible for

supervising the meetings

Two options for supervising

Direct involvement in the meeting

Present in the sidelines

TIMEFRAME REQUIRED TO
ACCOMPLISH THE OBJECTIVES

Ongoing group for the whole school year

Have group articulate short and long term goals for the library

Each student might stay on longer than other students

Group might even meet summers when theyre not in school

As long as theres students willing to meet, a group can be

created in a week

FUNDING REQUIRED TO
ACCOMPLISH THE OBJECTIVES

No actual funding is needed

Food at meetings if possible

Local restaurant can possible donate something

Snacks for a low price

Ask for funding from administrators

Pay for food from library fund (it doesnt have to be expensive)

Once or twice a year show them you appreciate them by throwing

a small party or organize a field trip

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS OR OBSTACLES

THAT MIGHT PREVENT ACCOMPLISHMENT
OF THE OBJECTIVES

Different ages

Different opinions

All agreeing on something (in groups and as a

whole)

Not having enough diversity

Enough students to join/stay

BIBLIOGRAPHY

"Library Advisory Committee - Smith Middle School Library." Library Advisory Committee - Smith
Middle School Library. Smith Middle School Library, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.
<https://sites.google.com/a/chccs.k12.nc.us/smithmedia/library-advisory-committee>.

"Howard County Public School System." Howard County Public School System Library Media
Comments. Howard County Public School System, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.hcpss.org/academics/library-media/>.

"Douglas Elementary School Earns 'green' Honor." MLive.com. The Grand Rapids Press, n.d.
Web. 01 Dec. 2014.
<http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/04/douglas_elementary_school_earn.html>.

"Teen Advisory Groups." Library. New Mexico State Library, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.nmstatelibrary.org/services-for-nm-libraries/programs-services/youth-services/teenadvisory-groups>.

Pickett, Janie. "First Steps with a Library Advisory Committee." Knowledge Quest 42.1 (2013):
n. pag. Web. 1 Dec. 2014.