home

= = =*GO TO THE PAGE 2010-2100 BUDGET MEETINGS TO SIGN UP FOR THE COMMUNITY MEETINGS ON THE WHAT WILL BE CUT FROM THE BUDGET NEXT YEAR. LET'S MAKE SURE IT ISN'T LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS.=

**__School Board Meeting 4/7/09__**  Three M.E.D.I.A. members spoke at the last school board meeting. Lucretia Miller focused on the impact a quality library media program has on students, teachers, curriculum, and test scores. Colleen Hartnett addressed the 1.5 day allocation and the literacy crisis in our schools/city. Harriet Moulton emphasized the effect of media budget cuts on students. Thank you to the library media specialists who attended to show support for our cause ( & the nervous speakers).  To continue to highlight our library media concerns to our school board members, it would be helpful if other media specialists would speak at the next school board meeting on Tuesday, May 5. Comments could include the many "hats" we wear, parent & student concerns/advocates, value of collections, asset management, etc. Please consider giving an hour or so of your time. If we don't speak up, no one else will. If Lucretia, Harriet, and Colleen can do it, so can each of you.  The following is a script of Colleen's comments -- speakers are alloted 3 minutes -- it's best to speak quickly and passionately!  I wanted to share with you my concern about the funding for media specialists in our district’s 2009 – 2010 budget. I know this is a budget crisis, yet I cannot understand why media specialists are funded only 1.5 days by the district – no matter what the school size! My school has nearly 1300 students, yet we receive the same 1.5 funding as a school with 300 - 400 hundred students. At the elementary level in particular, this leaves most principals little or no choice in staffing their media centers with qualified personnel. To me, this sends the message to principals, teachers, media specialists, parents, and students, that our professional expertise, as well as the school library media centers themselves, are valued much less than other services received by our students. Very simply, the point I would like to make is this: Literacy for students and adults is one of the top problem areas in our county. According to the Times-Union (3/1/09), in Jacksonville, one in five adults can barely read while nearly 85 % of juvenile offenders struggle to read. The emphasis on literacy in our schools not only provides our students with reading skills, but also develops life-long users of information. In the media center, students become critical thinkers and problem solvers, with access to a wide variety of resources. When library media specialists and their programs are reduced, access and opportunities for our students are also reduced. How can we expect all students, K-12, to meet the 25 book standard, when access to a quality media program is limited? Reading coaches, subject area teachers, classroom teachers, all design student learning experiences with non-fiction material, essential for success in testing situations. They too are dependent on a quality media program, staffed with library media professionals. How can we expect to improve literacy while taking away the very heart of the matter, the school library media center? I speak not only for myself, but on behalf of all media specialists of Duval County. I have included additional points of information generated by our M.E.D.I.A. group.

__ Points to support a full-time library media specialist __ = = =Lucretia posted her letter to TU under discussion. Thanks.= Great meeting last night at La Villa. Thanks for hosting Harriet and thanks to Colleen for taking the lead and facilitating discussion. The next meeting, where we will continue to work on advocacy for librarians in the schools, especially at the elementary levels, will be on March 19th. Location will be announced. Let's look for opportunities to increase our visibility and show how many hats we wear. We are planning to attend the next board meeting, I think it is April 7th, and speak about the importance of library media specialist to the educational mission of a school. Edna was talking to me about the need to have a visual impact as well as out core content message and I have been thinking about this. Perhaps we could wear a variety of name badges, ID tags, that identify our various roles. Curriculum Consultant Technology Specialist Materials Manager Resource Purchasing Teacher Facilities Manager Literacy Specialist Librarian I'm sure there are others I haven't addressed. Please give me your ideas. Cindy Polkey mentioned these in one of her discussion postings: STC, Textbook manager, live TV morning news director, photographer for the school, Enrichment teacher, Leadership team member, and director of science night...did I mention that I check-out books too? It would look pretty good of we showed up with multiple lanyards with our job descriptions and duties on each one so they had a visual related to how much we are responsible for at our schools.
 * All students are affected directly by reduced or removed hours of a professional library media specialist
 * In every study conducted in the last 20 years, it was proved that schools with fully staffed library media centers, as opposed to conceived “revised delivery” media centers, have delivered capable students into the workforce all across the nation.
 * The cost of illiteracy is astronomical and, if not resolved in elementary school, becomes more and more expensive as an individual matures beyond elementary school. Community colleges are funded by the state to teach much of what was not taught in public schools. And the cost-totals grow further when the costs of corrections are included since a large percentage of those incarcerated are functionally illiterate and cannot take care of themselves.
 * The least-cost and most efficient use of tax dollars is to start children off on the right foot. Elementary library media specialists are trained to meet the needs of administrations, parents, teachers, and students while they manage their centers and collections and programs.
 * Budget shortfalls are real and other methods of promoting literacy can be found. Unfortunately, none of them will succeed unless they contain the core value, the heart of literacy, the one trained to collaborate, coordinate, and help all stakeholders succeed: the library media specialist.
 * Library media specialists serve all education literacy stakeholders. Few others do likewise.
 * The management, care and nurture of the media center are also important. A university-trained media specialist knows what to do with the center. Others do not. If surgery is needed, does one expect a receptionist to perform the surgery successfully or do the job of reception? If flying across the country, does one expect a baggage attendant to fly the plane safely or attend to the bags? If education is needed, does one expect someone untrained to know how to lead forth [from the Latin //ex ducare,// the root of the word educate] in a multimedia high-spirited manner?
 * Consider risk management. Library media center collections are valued from $100k to over $500k. Who is accountable when there is no trained professional. And who professionally previews new materials on the market and the orders them? And who can teach students to become fluent users of digital information?
 * Lastly, public education was created to serve the needs of business, to provide a workforce that enables American business to compete on a world scale. Just last week the state of Florida announced that tourism was inadequate and business had to be attracted to the state… immediately, because Florida needs the business. To attract business, a suitable, competent workforce must be available. Such is not created or invented overnight. It starts in elementary schools all across the state. Libraries are the heart and center of workforce development. If Florida wants to compete, libraries are essential.

= = =Budget Cuts 2009- Go to new page from the navigation bar on the left for latest reports.= = = =Redelivery of Media Services:= [|ALA Website in the Economic Stimulus Package] Public Library Talking Points from ALA

Here is something you might also want to take a look at. [|50th No More.]

The impending cuts for 2009-2010 may include reduction of personnel in school libraries, art, music and p.e. teachers. We would like generate letters to the Times Union advocating the important role school librarians play and making sure the public understands that "media" means their child's school library and librarian. Please join our discussion by helping to develop talking points for these letters. Click the discussion tab at the top of the page to read and contribute. See also Lucretia's letter below.

= = =Letter from Lucretia Miller: 1/28/09= Hey, all! I wasn't sure if MEDIA was meeting this month, but wanted to update you all on a few things: 1. CONGRATS to Kathryn Hudson (Bank of America Learning Academy) and Kathleen Maida (J Allen Axson) for the honor of Teacher of the Year at their respective schools! Woohoo! Keep up the wonderful work you all are doing! 2. I have written a letter to the editor about educating the public that "media" means our school libraries in the language "revised delivery method for art, music, PE, media, and guidance..." in the possible budget proposals. Hopefully they will print it soon. I also have written Ed and school board members about the research that shows the effect of quality library media programs fully staffed with a certificated library media specialist on student achievement. Don't know what difference it will make, but just know that I am being an advocate while I have a voice this year! 3. I spoke with the children's and youth librarians of JPL and they REALLY, REALLY want to collaborate with us. It just makes sense to combine our knowledge and skill sets for the benefit of our kids and the community. They are feeling frustrated because their efforts at collaboration have sometimes been met with resistance. Please remember it is not a "their side/our side" type of thing. You know how frustrated you feel when you try and try to collaborate with teachers, and some are responsive and some could care less? Well... Some ideas that I told them that wold be helpful, at least in the elementary level, would be coming to schools to booktalk to the kids. I know I'm so busy teaching during the year, that I wait until summer to catch up on review journals and read what came out during the year. If they took on more of the "literature" part of my job, it would be a HUGE help. So that is just one idea of collaboration... Think of what you don't have time for, and see if they can help! I have invited them also to come to our monthly MEDIA meetings. This can only help our kids and community! Have a great day everyone! XXOO Lucretia Miller 2008 Duval County Teacher of the Year SLMS Chaffee Trail Elementary #142 904-693-7510 904-695-7932(fax) millerl7@duvalschools.org

You can now view the outline of our meeting discussion that took place on October 16th at Love Grove Elementary. Thanks Patty for hosting. I have put them on new pages. One will be minutes, and the discussion will be under MEDIA Events page. Please join the wiki and add to the discussion. Look under the Documents page for materials referred to in the discussion, specifically the FASM Rubric and the Scope and Sequence documents.
 * Minutes and Discussion from October Meeting Now Available. **


 * Next Meeting October 16. **

[|Federal Skills Act]
 * Legislation FYI **


 * Survey for Training Opportunities **


 * Please take a second to respond to this brief 3 question survey. We will use it to decide upcoming training opportunities. You can also RSVP for the Mumford BBQ. Please respond by Friday morning.**


 * http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=5dHyPMvAcwfS_2fiqB1DeNFA_3d_3d"**


 * Thanks.**


 * M.E.D.I.A. PLANS FOR 2008-2009 **


 * Hi Everyone,**


 * Hope you had a great summer. It went too fast for me.**


 * I've emailed to have MEDIA on the welcom back agenda on the 13th, please send me anything you think I should address in opening comments.**


 * I've submitted the paper work to have opportunity for points for MEDIA meeting/instructional sessions this year. 24 points for 6 meetings. Must attend 5. 4:30-6:oopm with 2.5 hours of homework. Meetings will be on the 3rd thursday of each month.**


 * August 21 Collection Development )Followed by the Mumford BarBQ**
 * Sep 18th Destiny Database Upgrades**
 * Oct 16 Flexible Scheduling**
 * Nov 20 Digital Storytelling**
 * Jan 15 Multimedia Contest Entries-Jim Harbin**
 * Feb 19th Innovative Library Programming**


 * I am working on getting presenters.**


 * We will still need to discuss the holiday potluck, the 3rd Thursday Dec 18th is a weather day, but we could still do it then, might be fun? (need planning chair)**


 * Also I am going to need lots of help in planning for the The Jim Harbin Awards for Duval County "Oscar Celebration" which will hopefully take place third week in May. We will have 3rd weeks of March and April for planning meeting for this event. (need planning chair)**


 * So, that is what is coming up for this year. I know it is late notice, but will there be anytime to meet before the 13th. Or do you think we can do a lot of this electronically. I am going to post this on a wikispace where we can do some discussion. The address is:**
 * duvalmedia.wikispaces.com**


 * Nancy**


 * 2007-2008 MEDIA RECAP **

8/30/07 Opened year with annual meeting and barbeque at Mumford Books. Sharon Williams turned over MEDIA treasury duties to Cyndi Ashley. 10/25/07 Blogging workshop with Cyndi Ashly @ Mandarin High School. 12/6/07 MEDIA Holiday pot-luck and charitable giving party @ La Villa Middle School. This year’s charitable donation was given to Daniel Inc. It was a very targeted donation in which we selected teenage foster children living in a residential cottage setting. We prepared libraries of high interest materials featuring the Bluford series and donated a library to each of the 7 cottages Daniel, Inc. operates. 3/27/08 Flexible Scheduling @ Chaffee Trail ES with Lucretia Miller. Sponsored by Follett Library Resources. 5/22/08 End of Year Dinner and Salute to Retirees and Teacher Of the Year (TOY) winners. A great year for library media specialist with Chaffee Trail’s Lucretia Miller walking away with the Duval TOY award! Next year: Harriet Moulton turns over MEDIA president duties to Nancy (ME) Murrey. Colleen Hartnett will be the new MEDIA secretary. Cyndi Ashley will continue as treasurer. Donna White will continue as vice president.

Communication Tools:

Duval-media.blogspot.com Duvalmedia.wikispaces.com

May 22nd @ Carrabba's We cant' wait to see you for the end of the year Media dinner. We will meet at 5:30 at the Regency Carrabba's. You will be ordering off the menu and we are allowed separate checks. The menu is available at [|http://www.carrabbas.com/menu/pdf/M51.pdf]

Retirements If you are retiring or know someone who is retiring, please let us know so that you can be duly honored at the end of year dinner on May 22nd at Carrabba's!

Honors Speaking of honors, we will be celebrating the accomplishments of the media specialists who were chosen as Teacher of the Year at their respective schools, as well as the wonderful accomplishment of Lucretia Miller who was chosen to represent the county as Duval Teacher of the year. It will be a great way to end the year!

Call for Nominations: Election 2008 Slate for next years MEDIA officers is being developed. Current openings are for President and Secretary. Nancy Murrey is currently on the slate for president and Colleen Hartnett has been nominated for Secretary. If you would like to run or to nominate a candidate who is willing to accept a nomination, please let us know before May 22 at which time we will have a vote if necessary.

Outgoing officer. A shout out to Harriet Moulton (La Villa) for her service to MEDIA. She has served the past two years as President!