Personnel, Staffing & Licensure

By: Samantha Gibson, Teresa Sain & Gretchen Dunlap

“The staff is the foundation of a dynamic and effective school library media center and the mainstay of a school library media program.”

-Betty J. Morris

Goals for today’s professional development session:

• Media Coordinator Certification

• National Board Certification• North Carolina Certification

and Licensure• Roles & Responsibilities of

media center staff members• How Policy & Procedures

Manuals help in managing media center staff

• Evaluation

Media Coordinator Certification

Why do you have to have a Masters Degree to be a Media Coordinator?

All professional employees of North Carolina public schools must hold a license for the subject area in which they teach.

The NC requirements for School Media Coordinator licensure are as follows:

•A valid NC A-level teacher’s certificate (or equivalent) •A Master’s degree in library science with Specialized courses in school library-related topics plus •Fieldwork (i.e., internship) in a school library media center under supervision of a licensed and experienced library media coordinator •A satisfactory score (610) on the Media Coordinator (#0310) PRAXIS/NTE (National Teacher’s Exam) specialty area.

So, the state requirements are the reason that you have to have a Masters degree, to be a media coordinator. Sometimes, under special circumstances, you can be granted a provisional license if you have an A level teacher license or a bachelors degree in Media services.

Also, North Carolina has reciprocity agreements (you could transfer to a different state, but you still must meet the receiving state's certification requirements) with the following states:

Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, District of Columbia, and Guam.

National Board Certification

Teachers who have participated in National Board Certification have overwhelmingly stated it is the most powerful professional development experience of their careers. They say the experience changes them as professionals and that through the process they deepen their content knowledge and develop, master, and reflect on new approaches to working with their students. -NC DPI

Library Media/Early Childhood through Young Adulthood

This certificate is appropriate for Library Media specialists who teach students ages 3-18+ and know the range of information literacy, instructional collaboration and the integration of technology.

Support from North Carolina• Paid assessment fee - $2500

• Paid entirely from state funds• Completed three years of teaching in

NC• Clear teaching license• Engage in instruction 70% of the

time during the year• Teach at least one year following

National Board Certification

• Three days paid release time• Certificate renewal credit• 12% pay raise for 10 years

Assessment Process

• Two major components• Portfolio of classroom practices

– samples of student work– videotapes of teacher instruction

• Assessment of content knowledge– at a computer-based testing center

• Takes the better part of a school year

• Involves 200 – 400 hours outside the classroom

North Carolina Certification and Licensure

To receive certification for school library media specialist you must complete a masters of library science. This is an entry level requirement for North Carolina. School library media specialists must also be licensed as teachers.

The following are some of the standards of school library media specialists in NC:

a. Collaboration with teachers and other staff members in planning. b. Being a leader in the school and demonstrating professional behavior.c. Providing access to information and ideas for all students.d. Management of all resources and alignment of the program with the school educational goals.

Guidelines that NC follows for school library programs and services and formedia center staffing:

a. IMPACT: Guidelines for NC Media and Technology Programsb. Suggested Guidelines for the Reconsideration of Instructional Materials in the NC Public Schoolsc. IMPACT: Guidelines for NC Media and Technology Programs-Program Evaluation Rubrics

General information:

There are no funding requirements for school library programs in NC. It is mandated by the NC General Assembly that schools must function under a site-based management, meaning that principals have flexibility in allocating funds and positions. This is why media and technology have recommended guidelines, not enforced standards.

How does NC compare to other states?

In your groups, you will look up one of the states listed below and compare the licensure requirements and state standards. Be prepared to write the information you have found on a chart and compare it to NC.

South Carolina Tennessee Georgia Virginia

Go to: www.Library-staffing.wikispaces.com

Click on: “Certification & Licensure”

Then: “Comparison to other states”

How does NC compare to other states?

Share what you have found.

Roles & Responsibilities

The primary responsibility of the staff is to ensure that the media program is an integral part of the instructional program of the school.

-Betty J. Morris

Each staff member serves a dual role:

• Individually as a specialist

• Collaboratively as a member of the media program team

Three Levels of Media Center Personnel

• Professional– Educated and certified

• Paraprofessional– Qualified in a specific area,

but no Bachelor’s degree

• Nonprofessional– May be salaried or a

volunteer– Training by experience

Roles & Responsibilities Activity• Decide who on the media

center staff would mainly be responsible for the roles your group received

• Stick your roles on the walls for the appropriate staff member

• Share with the class where you thought each role belonged

Professional (Media Coordinator)• Determine educational goals and objectives of

media center policies• Plan programs, center operations and

maintenance of media center• Extend library media center roles into the

curriculum• Form a library media advisory committee to

provide feedback and guidance for policies and procedures

• Oversee the library budget• Plan for upgrading equipment and technology• Provide an accessible and current material

collection• Establish circulation procedure policies• Assume disciplinary decisions

Professional (Media Coordinator) cont.

• Work collaboratively with teachers and faculty• Provide staff development• Plan community public relations activities• Train media center support staff• Work collaboratively with faculty to integrate

information literacy skills curriculum into the instructional program

• Perform general reference services• Train teachers and students in the use of

newer technology• Design the school media facility based on

program needs• Compile bibliographies

Paraprofessionals (Clerk or Secretary)• Develop innovative ways to use materials and equipment

• Create program evaluation forms• Work with teachers to determine needed technology

or equipment purchases• Assist teachers and students in locating, using and

selecting materials and equipment• Assist teachers with utilizing fair use copyright

laws• Instruct teachers and students in material

production techniques• Assist students and staff with basic reference

needs• Maintain inventory records and help with inventory

Nonprofessionals (Students or Volunteers)• Administer interlibrary loan services

• Design publicity materials in a variety of formats• Create library displays• Develop a variety of forms for operation of the media center• Maintain files for library media equipment and materials• Perform routine desktop publishing activities• Handle clerical and secretarial work of

correspondence• Transact clerical business operations• Maintain library media center records and

statistics• Sort and place materials on shelves• Generate circulation and overdue reports• Post receipts for dues and fees

What if you, the media coordinator, are the only staff member in your library?

How could you complete all of these duties?

Brainstorm at your table ways that you could get some of these things accomplished and still be an effective educator rather than simply a library clerk.

Policy & Procedure Manual’s Role

Why do you need a policy & procedures manual?

Policy is described as “a deliberate plan of action to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes.”[1] Procedures are described as “a set of rules for an organization, about how and why things are done.”[2]

[1] Merriam Webster dictionary[2] Guide to Writing Policy and Procedure Documents, 1994.

Every organization needs a set of Policy and Procedures, it helps everyone know how things are run, so when employees or the administration change from year to year, you can have the manual to refer to about how things should be done. In very large organizations each department should have a standard set of procedures, and then the whole organization should compile all the different department sets to make a procedure manual for the whole company. Changes should not be made unless there has been a dramatic shift in the community or within in the company and a consensus is made on what should be changed and how to implement the changes.

Resources:http://sils.unc.edu/programs/continuing_ed/slmc/licensure.html

http://www.uky.edu/Education/TEP/usacert.html

Guide to Writing Policy and Procedure Documents, 1994.

http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/researchandstatistics/doeslms/default.cfm

http://www.ncwiseowl.org/Impact/

Morris, Betty J., Administering the School Library Media Center. Libraries Unlimited. Westport. 2004

Stephens, Claire & Patricia Franklin. Library 101: A HandbookFor the School Library Media Specialist. Libraries Unlimited. Westport.2007.

Evaluation