RJHS Library Strategic Plan

RJHS Library Strategic Plan

By Lisa Denton
December, 1999

Foreword

While working as the school library media specialist at Russell Junior High School, I have been struck by how little anyone really knows about what goes on behind the scenes. Parents, teachers, students, and administrators all seem to have a different view of how the library is and should be run. The only thing that is agreed upon is that it has books in it and those books leave and, more times than not, come back.

I have been mulling over the idea of creating a really cohesive program that could be easily communicated to its stakeholders. I wanted the program to be holistic, in that it spread beyond its doors. I also wanted the program to be organic, changing and interactive in nature.

It seems that the school library is very much an outward representation of the media specialist who runs it. I have seen some great library media centers run by dynamic librarians, and I have seen some ineffectual programs. The overriding variable in the equation was the librarian. Libraries with strong planning and policy documentation are more likely to have a strong librarian. This plan is a way to devise a program that transcends the whims of its librarian or supervisors. It is the strategic plan for the library media center which can meet the needs of its users and promote the instruction of information literacy.

Glossary of Key Terms

Collaboration: The ideal model of instruction in the library media center where the librarian and teacher co-plan, co-teach and co-evaluate library media center based lessons.

Curriculum: The organized program of study which describes the content of instruction in the library media center.

Fixed Scheduling: The practice where classes are scheduled to visit at set times throughout the teaching semester. It usually means library skills are taught in isolation, or out of instructional context, by the librarian alone. Its alternative is flexible scheduling.

Flexible Scheduling: The practice whereby teachers and librarians arrange for library visits which coordinate with instructional units on an at-need basis. It also allows for students to use library facilities to pursue individual interests. Its opposite is fixed scheduling.

Information Literacy: Those skills and standards that, when mastered, will lead a student toward mastery of effective and efficient use of ideas and information.

Instruction: The process in which master teaching skills are applied to deliver the curriculum content to the student.

Instructional Consultant: Library media specialist provides advice, information and modelling of advanced instructional skills, methods and methodologies.

Instructional Design: The process of creating curriculum delivery systems for a program of study which marries the best of instructional processes with information technology.

Library Media Center: The central unit of access to information and information systems and instruction in information literacy in the school.

Library Media Specialist: The professional practitioner of information instruction and library facilities in the school.

Operational Plan: The instructions that describe the implementation of the strategic plan.

Virginia Standards of Learning: The educational learning objectives which are required to be mastered by Virginia students at specific intervals in their scholastic life.

Background
What is a school library?

A k-12 school’s library, or library media center (LMC), is part library/part instructional center. The public school LMC is subject to the requirements of the Principal, school board, and state board of education. Managed improperly, it is a mere warehouse of books and materials. The ideal model for the school LMC is an information resource center which is equally an instructional unit where collaborative teaching and learning take place (Loertscher, 1988).

What is a Library Media Specialist?

The LMC is run by a library media specialist who is both a professionally qualified teacher and a professionally qualified librarian. The media specialist is an instructional designer, instructional consultant, master teacher, and librarian (Cleaver, 1993). The library media specialist differs from other librarians in that they spend as much of their time teaching students and staff information literacy skills as they do managing and organizing the library and circulating its materials.

What is a strategic plan?

A strategic plan is a projected design for the library program over a period of time. It draws a comprehensive picture of the library’s focus and activities. It is goal-oriented and identifies ideology and objectives as well as the actions and schedule needed to move the strategic plan forward. The strategic plan is a model for decision-making and development. It sets an overall direction for the library’s identity in a changing environment (Anthony, 1985).

Introduction
When creating a library’s strategic plan, it is important to explore and assess the environment in which it exists. The LMC environment is the school, community, division, state, nation and world. In order to form a comprehensive plan for the immediate LMC, it is important to look to the outside trends and influences which will impact it. This also provides an opportunity to identify stakeholders, whose support and input is vital to the success of the overall strategic plan (Zimmerman, 1997).

The School

James Solomon Russell Junior High School (RJHS) is a grade 7-9 school in Lawrenceville, Virginia. It was founded in 1950 when it served as the high school for black students in Brunswick County. In 1969, the county’s schools were integrated and the school changed to its present status as an integrated junior high school. The enrolment is currently 600 students. The student body is 48% female and 52% male. The ethnic composition is 90% African-American students and 10% Caucasian. 90% of the students are on free or reduced price school lunches. There are four students who have English as a second language. There are seven special education classes, two are completely self-contained. The other classes provide special instruction for students otherwise integrated into mainstream classes. There are fifty-two teachers on staff and ten paraprofessional staff members.

The Library Media Center

RJHS library has undergone a shift from the library/warehouse of the past to its present form as instructional design center. The LMC program boasts flexible scheduling, where teachers and students utilize the library on an at-need arrangement with the librarian. Individual students may choose to visit the library independently before, after school, or during class with permission. Classroom teachers are encouraged to develop collaborative lesson plans with the librarian. In collaborative lessons, the librarian is responsible for the information literacy instruction, and the teacher for subject instruction. The LMC is the hub for many school-wide programs, including Accelerated Reader™ computerized reading management system. The library is responsible for the dissemination of learning resources and equipment to teachers in the school. Currently, there is one professionally qualified librarian and one paraprofessional library clerk.

The Community

Lawrenceville, Virginia is a small town of 1200, situated in the southern part of the state. Lawrenceville is the county seat for Brunswick County. It relies mainly on agriculture (tobacco, cotton soybeans, and peanuts) for its economy. There are two prisons in this small town which provide jobs to the community. The adult population has a low 40% literacy rate.

Library Vision Statement

The vision statement is an educated projection of how the library will appear in the next 3-5 years. It is based on a realistic portrait, but aims toward an ideal. The philosophy of the LMC should be inherent in the statement and it should be broadly applicable. The vision statement provides inspiration for the formulation of the strategic plan (Jacob, 1990).

The library media center program at JS Russell Junior High School provides students and staff with diverse information programs and skills to access, use and apply information in authentic student learning tasks designed to help users develop critical thinking skills, creative information processing and ethical use of ideas and information.

Mission Statement
The mission statement expresses the motivation of the library media center program. All goals, objectives, strategies and policies hinge on a library's mission. The mission should be strong enough to support them, and flexible enough to allow for creative growth. It should contribute meaning and legitimacy to the organization of the library. The mission expresses the essential substance of the library: its raison d'être(Riggs, 1984).

The mission of the RJHS library media center program is to ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and information (AASL, AECT, 1998).

Goals and Objectives

Goals and objectives add structure to the strategic plan. They are described as the doable elements. The goals are broad statements of intent and are derived by comparing vision and mission statements. Goals provide a picture for the main thrust for the commitment of resources and human energy (Anthony, 1985). The objectives provide a tangible framework for the plan's eventual implementation. Objectives exemplify the operational plan and are the pragmatic in nature. Objectives are quantifiable courses of action or activities that will lead the library to accomplish its goals (Le Baron, 1991).

In order to achieve its stated vision and mission, the library media center program aims to achieve the following goals.

The library media center program will promote:

Literature Appreciation: Students and staff will develop an appreciation for reading and literature.

Student and Staff Achievement: Students and staff will learn information literacy skills that support classroom instruction to encourage users to become skilled creators of ideas and information.

Lifelong Learning: Students and staff will participate in a variety of learning experiences including electronic resources which provide access to primary source material and opportunities for real world connections.

Collection Development: The acquisition of quality materials and resources that represent a variety of interests and viewpoints to encourage scholarship and responsible citizenship in a democratic society.

Quality Management: The coordination of efficient systems to enhance the use of information and flexible and equitable access to the library and its resources.

Instructional Leadership: Leadership in instruction and in information literacy will encourage essential skills in information literacy.

Goal #1 Literature Appreciation: Students and staff will develop an appreciation for reading and literature.

Objectives:

To enlarge the fiction collection of the library by 25% by the year 2001.

To weed 15% of the fiction titles by 2001.

To increase subscriptions by 10% by 2002.

To display imaginative and thought-provoking posters, bulletin boards and other promotional devices.

To start a reading club by end 2000.

To present a balance of opinions and viewpoints to encourage critical analysis and investigation.

Actions:

Devote a larger part of the budget to fiction development. Search for and use selection tools which mirror current Young Adult trends and interests.

Investigate literature for weeding techniques. Perform regular weeding and refreshing of the collection.

Use selection tools that reflect the interests of teens and promote investigative thought and insight into issues.

Involve the art classes into creating exciting visual displays in the library. Link with the Museum to get artifacts or thematic works of art for display in the library.

Research similar activities. Contact stakeholders to involve as many as possible in the process.

Develop the collection with the goal of presenting many viewpoints. Start with one section of the library and work on from there. Take feedback and start again.

Goal #2 Student and Staff Achievement: Students and staff will learn information literacy skills that support classroom instruction to encourage users to become skilled creators of ideas and information.

Objectives:

100% of LMC based lessons teach an information literacy related skill by the end 1999

Implement computer-quickie classes to teachers after school on Thursdays by 2000

Collect and circulate materials that encourage professional development in the area of information literacy

Increase the number of computers, scanners and other peripherals as well as laser disk players, VCRs and other audiovisual equipment by the year 2004

Develop an information literacy curriculum for the LMC by 2001.

Actions:

Include the relevant information literacy goal on each lesson plan taught and inform students of the information skill they are learning.

Survey teachers to find out their areas of interest. Advertise the classes to be held in the library and make appropriate arrangements for equipment, resources and presentations.

Research literature to identify similar projects. Draw up an evaluation method and present it to the principal for prior approval

Conduct an evaluation of the use, population, and number of technological devices currently used. Conduct literature research on current standards. Present the current picture compared with the future vision to the principal, superintendent and school board.

Set up a vertical file, and compile a virtual bibliography and advertise these for staff and student access.

Conduct literature scan on information literacy curricula in use in library media programs. Draw up a prototype and involve stakeholders in revising and refining.

Goal #3: Lifelong Learning: Students and staff will participate in a variety of learning experiences including electronic resources which provide access to primary source material and opportunities for real world connections.

Objectives:

Design and publish a library web page by the end of the year 2000.
Evaluate educational resources that include primary source material and provide links to 20 of them on the library's web page.
Forge links with museums, exhibits, businesses, resource people and libraries in a 100 mile radius.
Inform staff of links to primary source material.
Create a virtual file of primary documents and artifacts.
Update and utilize career materials regularly.

Actions:

Analyze examples of web pages online and choose aspects of interest. Put together a home page and submit to the webmaster for inclusion.

Select a web evaluation tool for students, staff, parents and librarian to use. Include those web pages which have been most highly rated and include primary source material.

Make a file of contacts for primary source material and make it available for teachers to use.

Research the possible sources of artifacts and exhibits and contact them.

Collect a range of primary source materials and organize them in a vertical file.

Promote the career library resources among staff and students.

Goal #4: Collection Development: The acquisition of quality materials and resources that represent a variety of interests and viewpoints to encourage scholarship and responsible citizenship in a democratic society.

Objectives:

To assess the collection annually using the collection mapping technique (Loertscher).

To weed the collection annually by 5% according to the collection assessment results.

To communicate the use of the consideration file as a means for user input into the development of the collection.

To align 75% of the collection with the VA SOLs by 2002.

To increase the library budget spent on curriculum-related materials by 20%.

To increase the turnover rate of materials to 5 average circulations per year by the year 2003.

Actions:

Make the available circulation mapping forms and set a date to conduct the evaluation.
Read current literature about correct weeding technique.
Place an article about the consideration file in the library newsletter and place highly visible informational posters conspicuously in the library.
Plan and implement a presentation on the strategic thrust of the library and the budgetary needs. Present the presentation to the principal, superintendent, school board and board of supervisors with the intent of increasing the budget for collection development.

Analyze the collection according to the Virginia SOLs http://www.pen.k12.va.us/SOL.htm using the curriculum map and earmark those titles to promote for active circulation.

Research collection development tools and purchase a subscription to one in 2000.

Goal #5: Quality Management: The coordination of efficient systems to enhance the use of information and flexible and equitable access to the library and its resources.

Objectives:

Insert a MARC tag with the SOL reference and Accelerated Reader™ on each material record by end 2001.

Purchase a new automation system that has a web interface.

Inform students and staff of appropriate use of the library.

Evaluate the overall effectiveness of the library media center program.

Write an operations manual for use by staff and substitutes.

Design a library curriculum guide.

Align library curriculum and collection with school curriculum.

Actions:

Search for a new automation system which would include the facility to insert the corresponding MARC tag.

Create a guide to the library and distribute it. Place a copy on the library web page.

Research and choose a method of evaluating the library media program which would assess it in terms of its mission and goals.

Perform the evaluation, publish the results, and reassess the operational plan.

Determine the daily operations of the library, outline them and publish them in hard copy and electronic format .

Research similar curriculum designs, make adjustments to reflect RJHS mission and goals. Submit a copy to the Library Supervisor for approval.

Goal #6: Instructional Leadership: Leadership in instruction and in information literacy will encourage essential skills in information literacy.

Objectives:

Adopt the Big Six™ model of research and information problem-solving.
Instruct staff and students in effective questioning skills to streamline searching and information-seeking.
To adopt the collaborative model as the only method of delivering library instruction.
To provide in-service professional development to staff and librarians.
To serve and contribute to a variety of school-related committees.
To pursue individual professional training and development for personal professional growth and experience.

Goals:

Design an essential skills framework that can be incorporated easily into the research process and in its instruction.
Create a search help guide to post on the library web page. Add questioning strategies to information literacy instruction. Make a regular column devoted to questioning.
Require collaborative lesson plans from all teachers wishing to visit the library. Model master teaching during all lessons taught.
Write a proposal for an in-service training session for teachers and submit it to the Principal for approval. Submit a proposal to state and national library associations for presentations.
Target the committees where the library could have the most impact and ask to be added to the committee.
Take part in professional library training and display diplomas, certificates and awards in the library.

Operational Plan: Goal #1, Literature Appreciation: Students and staff will develop an appreciation for reading and literature.

Objective	Action	Time
To enlarge the fiction collection of the library by 25% by the year 2001.	Increase budget for fiction development. Search for selection tools which address teen needs.	January, 2001
To weed 15% of the fiction titles by 2001.	Research weeding technique. Perform weeding.	June, 2001
To increase subscriptions by 10% by 2002.	Use selection tools for teens that promote investigative thought and insight into issues.	September, 2002
To display imaginative and thought-provoking posters, bulletin boards and other promotional devices.	Ask art classes to create a visual display in the library. Link with the Museum to get artifacts or thematic works of art for display in the library.	January, 2000
To start a reading club by end 2000.	Research similar activities. Contact stakeholders to involve as many as possible in the process.	April, 2000
To present a balance of opinions and viewpoints to encourage critical analysis and investigation.	Develop the collection with the goal of presenting many viewpoints. Start with one section of the library and work on from there. Take feedback and start again.	June, 2001

An Organic Process: Feedback and Evaluation Cycle

Though beyond the scope of this particular project, it is nevertheless important to mention the critical role played by evaluation in the planning process. A strategic plan will allow formative evaluation to take place so that the planner can reassess, regroup and tweak the plan if the need arises.

With vision, mission, objectives and action plans in place, the strategic plan is launched and implemented. It is important to keep in mind that the process is creative and should include the facility for taking feedback and performing evaluations along the way (Feinman, 1999).

The evaluation may be planned in advance to be included at intervals or at critical placements. Benchmarking, which ties measurements to specific goals or objectives can best assess the effectiveness of the library's activities (Hernon and McClure, 1990).

Curzon (1989) calls for the evaluation method to suit the objective or problem being evaluated. A lesson might best be evaluated by direct observation, whereas a web site may be best evaluated over time or by a pre-determined pro-forma. Ongoing self-evaluation may be one of the most effective ways to keep up the momentum of the ongoing, integrated strategic plan where problem areas can be analyzed and modes of improvement discussed, cogitated and proposed (Everhart, 1998).

The implementation of the plan (operational plan) should occur in a step-by-step manner which meanders along a critical path that highlights those objectives which must be achieved (Anthony, 1985). The implementation of the strategic plan should occur within a time frame, with a list of complementary, consecutive actions. This will create flow, motivation and impetus for the successful completion of the plan.

Evaluation

The evaluation phase has yet to be worked out, but will have the following objectives and approach.

Purpose:

Evaluation of the RJHS library media center strategic plan will be undertaken to assess the overall effectiveness of the plan. In short, it will answer the question, "Is it efficient?" This will take the shape of determining whether objectives have been met at the allotted time. Evaluation will also be qualitative in that it will measure the impact of the plan on the library environment. This type of evaluation will answer the question, "Is it effective?" The evaluation methods will assess changes in the environment and user perceptions.

Objective: To assess the efficiency of the strategic plan.

Method: Identify objectives, actions and time frames. Determine if they have been implemented.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of the strategic plan.

Method: Choose a completed action. Gather data to evaluate its value and productivity. Analyze data. Draw conclusions. Publish results.

Formative Evaluation: When an objective has been evaluated, it needs to be analyzed to determine the next natural step in its development. If it requires further action, alterations can be made to bring about its ultimate completion, or to take it to another level.

For example, if the library web page is not found to be used, then the action step to launch a homework help page on it will hardly be successful. Further action will have to be implemented to make the page more popular/successful.

Conclusion

The strategic plan of the RJHS library media center will provide an overall forward approach to planning. It is an innovation which will be carefully executed to yield the best results. It provides the best in what is expected from a quality library media center program in the 21^st century, with a comprehensive set of strategies for actualizing the vision and mission of the library.

References

Anthony, William P. Practical Strategic Planning. Westport, CT: Quorum Books. 1985.

AASL and AECT. Information Power II. Chicago, IL: ALA. 1998.

Crowley, John D. Developing a Vision: Strategic Planning and the Library Media Specialist. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. 1994.

Curzon, Susan C. Managing Change. NY, NY: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc. 1989.

Eisenberg, Michael B. Curriculum Initiative: An Agenda and Strategy for Library Media Programs. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing. 1988.

Everhart, Nancy. Evaluating the School Library Media Center. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited. 1998.

Feinman, Valerie Jackson. Five Steps Toward Planning Today for Tomorrow's Needs. Computers in Libraries. (Jan., 1999), 19:1 (18-21).

Hernon, Peter and Charles R. McClure. Evaluation and Library Decision-Making. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing. 1990.

Jacob, M.E.L. Strategic Planning: A How To Do It Manual for Libraries. NY, NY: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc. 1990.

Loertscher, David. Taxonomies of the School Library Media Program. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited. 1988.

LeBaron, John and Carolyn Markuson. Planning: A Necessary Anchor for the School Library Media Program. Wilson Library Bulletin. (Dec. 1991), 66:4 (42).

Morris, Betty J., ed. School Library Media Annual, vol. 13. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited. 1995.

Riggs, Donald E. Strategic Planning for Library Managers. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press. 1984.

Zimmerman, Michael C. Your Library's Strategic Plan: Plan the writing before you write the plan. Information Outlook. (Dec., 1997), 1:12 (40).

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