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Wednesday, June 15, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
LIBRARIES: Volunteers
are needed for next
school year
Continued from page 3
affective side of education
— developmentally, kids this
age are trying to decide who
they are. We’ve tried to make
the school library a home
away from home, a place
where they can discuss ideas,
a safe place.”
The volunteers not only
make sure the books are
checked in and checked
out appropriately, they
also restock shelves, work
directly with students to help
them find books that ignite
their interest in reading, help
teachers find books that are
in the area of study their class
is working on, offer lunch
space on Fridays, music and
games throughout the week,
and a monthly art project
where the students can create
drawings or paintings to be
displayed at the library.
“They have created a
space that truly is the heart
of our school,” said fifth-
grade teacher Tiffany Tisdel.
“Kids want to hang out at the
library because of the life
that they bring to the space.”
“They take their own time
and volunteer,” said fifth-
grader Ashlynn Moffat. “It’s
really big and has a good sys-
tem — and they have activi-
ties that draw people.”
While it would be ideal
to have at least a half-time
librarian at each of the
schools, paid for by the
Sisters School District, that
hasn’t been the case. No
budget has been set aside
for the library over the past
three years. The volunteers
believe they have saved the
district thousands of dollars
based on their accounting of
the books that were being
checked out and not returned
as well as lost teaching time,
when teachers were com-
ing to the library to prepare
for a lesson. With the lack of
staff in the library, teachers
were coordinating checking
out books and maintaining
many novel sets in their own
classroom.
These are all things the
volunteers monitor now.
“Without a librarian, the
students had less access to
books and resources,” said
Tisdel. “The Deschutes
Public Library is great, but
not all students have the
opportunity to use their facil-
ity or the access to it. Having
the library as a functional
place within the school is
critical to student success.”
Over the past few years
the middle school library
was painted, and the volun-
teers spent countless hours
going through old copies of
books — weeding out copies
that needed to be retired —
and added over 1,000 books.
Throughout this process they
have more than tripled the
number of checkouts.
At the elementary school
the library sat stagnant with
little use from students and
teachers since the shared
media specialist’s depar-
ture three years ago. Last
November, Jennith Hoyt, a
relatively new member of
the Sisters Country commu-
nity, stepped in to help. Her
degree in education coupled
with her background in the
military and computer sys-
tems gave her the dedication
and drive to get the library
back to a vibrant place.
“I coordinate with the
middle school for shared
books, work with the kin-
dergartners, and help prepare
books for teachers and stu-
dents,” said Hoyt. “The kids
are excited and the teachers
are appreciative.”
Having volunteers at the
elementary school has helped
give time back to the teach-
ers. Where they would nor-
mally be pulling books and
information, now the volun-
teers have the information
ready for the teachers and
students when they arrive at
the library, allowing students
to get right to work.
“There is something about
helping a student find a book
that excites them,” said Hoyt.
“When they find a book and
‘click’ they think reading is
cool.”
Both libraries received
a small grant through the
Sisters Schools Foundation
this spring to support a new
Follett check-in/check-out
system. This grant came with
a volunteer training period
and allows both the Sisters
Elementary School and
Sisters Middle School librar-
ies to share books.
In addition to the Schools
Foundation support this
spring, private donors along
with a small contribution
from the school district have
helped to fund bringing in
computer search programs.
The Lexile Reading Levels
program allows volunteers
and teachers to sort books
based on reading level and
is available at both schools.
Webpath Express, only
funded at the elementary
level, helps to filter Internet
searches to teacher-approved
photo by erin borla
ann alisa duerden, Mary Kay ferwalt, and Sherri Kissinger are full-time
volunteer “Library Staffistas.”
websites for student research
and to supplement classroom
materials.
Both the Sisters
Elementary School and
Sisters Middle School librar-
ies are seeking volunteers
for the next school year.
Volunteers will do more than
sit at the desk and help check
in and check out books.
They get to work directly
with students, offer reading
advisory, catalog books and
assist with special program-
ing. Ideal volunteers would
be able to commit two hours
a week on a consistent basis.
All interested volunteers
should be pre-screened by
the District and contact the
libraries directly at checkout.
sms@sisters.k12.or.us for the
middle school or checkout.
ses@sisters.k12.or.us for the
elementary school.
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