1. Stephenson Middle School Media Center Facility Plan Juanita Douglas Spring 2010 Submitted to Dr. Melissa Allen of Georgia Southern University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for FRIT 3132 Administration of the Instructional Media Program

2. Arial View of SMS

3. You Just Can't Hide That Jaguar Pride!*** STEPHENSON MIDDLE SCHOOL 922 Stephenson Road Stone Mountain, GA 30087

4.  Stephenson Middle School Data  Introduction of the Media Center  Current Media Center Floor Plan  Photo Tour and Site Description  Facility Policies  Survey Results  Revised Floor Plan  Improvements Table of Contents

5. Stephenson Middle School Data  Stephenson Middle School opened its doors in the fall of 1996 to approximately 1,100 students.  Today, SMS serves a population of approximately 1,400 sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students.  "School Mascot: The Jaguar

6. SMS Mission Statement The Mission in the Stephenson Middle School Community is "Every Student Will Achieve" to ensure that the success of every child is maximized in a dynamic, nurturing, learning environment.

7. Our Beliefs "We firmly believe that:  Students learn best in a positive learning environment.  All students can learn.  It is pivotal for parents, students, and the community to create responsible learners.  High expectations promotes high achievement.  Students have different learning styles which necessitate the implementation of various teaching strategies.  Learning is a life-long process.

8. Entrance Security Desk – The school has two campus supervisors and one school resource officer.

9. Main Office The foyer where parents wait to be seen by the principal.

10. The Cafeteria The cafeteria which also functions as the auditorium is located next to the media center. Noise from this venue however does not disturb library patrons.

11. Display Area The library’s main display case is located in the front of the media center

12. Location of Media Center The media center is located in the main hall. To the left of the media center is the cafeteria.

13. Current Media Center Floor Plan

14. Welcome to Stephenson Middle School Library Library Hours: 8:20 A.M. to 4:20 P.M. "Open a book, open a mind."

15. Library Tour – Catalogue Carrel The Catalogue carrel is immediately to the right when you enter the library. It is online and accommodates four users at one time. It is accessible to students with disabilities..

16. Library Tour-The Circulation Desk At the entrance of the library is the circulation desk. It is equipped with one computer, so only one person may check out at a time. There is a drop box, for students returning books.

17. Library Tour – Media Work Room The Media work room is located behind the circulation desk. It also houses the restroom for library staff. This restroom is accessible to students with disabilities.

18. Library Tour - Offices Office 1 Office 2

19. Library Tour – Media Production Teachers use this room to make copies or cut out letters for their classrooms.

20. Library Tour – Conference Rooms Conference Room 1 Conference Room 2

21. Library Tour – Magazine Storage Located next to the conference rooms is the magazine storage room. This room is under utilized since the library does not subscribe to many periodicals.

22. Library Tour – AV Storage

23. Work stations Computers are available for students’ use. The location and arrangement of these computers limit the librarians ability to monitor student’s activities.

24. Media Center Tour View from the Front View from the back

25. Library Tour - Periodicals The library does not subscribe to many periodicals, and since magazines and newspapers are not taken out of the library they are seldom even used.

26. Library Tour - Shelves A close up view of a typical shelf. They require no climbing or stretching to get to books. Quite accessible to students with disabilities.

27. Library Tour – Reading Area This area is located in front of the circulation desk. Students use this area to relax and read.

28. Library Tour – Reading Area To the left of the circulation desk are three tables set up for students use. Students are often distracted by teaches taking and Laptop carts. A table displaying new titles is also shown in the photograph.

29. Library Tour – The Main Exit The main exit is equipped with a security device to sound an alarm is students are exiting without checking our books.

30. Library Snapshot as of 3/5/2010 Materials Patrons Titles: 13,209 Copies: 18,268 Titles without copies: 7 Total o Active:1447 o Restricted: 0 o Inactive:143

31. Library Statistics Snapshot Circulation s Modern Technology Checked out: 705 Lost:754 Overdue:754 21 computers for students use 10 laptops 3 working LCD projectors 1 promethium board 3 working digital cameras

32. Media Center Policy The Media Center is open Monday through Friday at 8:20 a.m. A pass signed by a teacher is required in order for a student to enter and use the Media Center during the school day, for periods 1-7. Parents may send a note with their student requesting that the student be allowed time in the Media Center before or after school. These will be accommodated based on media specialist’s availability.

33. Media Center Policy Teachers may send two students at a time to use the media center during their Enrichment Learning time. (ELT) Teachers may also reserve the media center for their whole classes on a first come first served basis.

34. Media Center Policy Books may be checked out for a two week period There is rarely a set limit to the number of books you may check out. Books may be renewed once for a two week period. Parents may also check out books under their child's ID number.

35. Reference Materials Magazines are to remain in the Media Center and should be returned to their shelf after their use. Reference books may be checked out over night with the approval of the Media Staff. Encyclopedias cannot be checked out.

36. Internet Use To use the Internet, a student must have an Internet Acceptable Use Agreement signed as a part of the Student Code of Conduct brochure. On-line use of the Internet is for school related research purposes only.

37. Printing Printing from Internet sites is possible. Ten ($.10) cents per page for black & white printing Color printing, is ($.25)cents per page

38. Checking Out Procedure  Students should present their ID cards at the circulation desk.  If student does not have an ID card he should write his name with his last name first on a slip of paper provided at the circulation desk.  A date due card will be placed in the book to remind you when to return the book.

39. Survey Results - Faculty Positive Negative The Media Specialists were always willing to locate materials for teachers. Regular updates were sent to emails about new materials. Students could print their saved work in the media center. The library was well organized. The library was equipped with modern technology. The media center and workroom are closed after school hours. The media center is closed during testing periods and for district meetings. The media center lacked modern videos. There is a need for more LCD projectors. There is no cubicle for isolated reading.

40. Survey Results - Students Positive Negative: Students did not like that There are many computers available for students’ use. Students can check their accounts from their computers at home. Their fines were transferred from their elementary schools. That they could not borrow books if they had outstanding fines. Only two students could go to the media center at one time during ELT periods. The computers were only using word 97. They could not get in the media center in the mornings before classes.

41. Improvements to the Media Center. Because of our economic situation, and the fact that Stephenson Middle School Library is only 13 years old, I have tried to limit my revisions to changes that can bring maximum benefits. Moreover, SMS Library has been getting recent technology such as computers, wireless connection and promethium board, and LCD projectors, which are critical to the effective functioning of a modern media center. There are however changes which can be made to some of its policies and use of space that will make this current library more effective.

42. Revision To Policies The opening hours must be changed. It should be opened one hour before school begins and one hour after school dismisses. This will accommodate both teachers and students whose needs could not be met during the regular school day. Fines: Students should be allowed to borrow books, if they have returned all their books and have attempted to pay their fines, but the media center had no change for their money. Students should be allowed to work off fines for overdue books, as long as there is signed parental consent.

43. Revision To Policies Students should be allowed to use their electronic devices for school related work in the media center as long as they use head phones. (School rule prohibits use of electronic devices during school hours.) Volunteering. To increase volunteer help for the media center should be a top priority for the media center. At present, there is no media clerk, and help is needed to check out and shelve books. Media specialists should conduct staff developments to update staff with new technology that can improve their instruction in the classroom.

44. Revision of Floor Plan The shape of the library and the allocation of the use of the available rooms are appropriate. The use of the space in the media can however be maximized. Some of the changes to improve the effectiveness of the media center will be portrayed in the following slides.

45. Revised Floor Plan

46. Revised Media Center Adjustable lighting. Often the students cannot see the board because the light is too bright. A motorized blind will adjust blinds to the needs of the gathering area/ Rearrange the gathering area. Remove shelf from wall closest to exit and use this wall for the promethium board Insert a movable partition the space from general space in the media center. Often presentations are loud, or students distract listeners in the presentations. Remove catalogue carrel. Use this area as a sitting area of the meeting area for students in the book club after school.

47. Adjustable Lighting for Gathering Area. Solar light is used in the media center. The windows are very high making adjusting the shades for presentation impossible. Motorized window shades will allow this through the use of r emotes. For total blackout, side channels and enclosures ensure zero light even on the sides and top of the shades. Popular media rooms, the dual shade option changes the scene of a room dramatically. Motorized blackout shades are convenient in bedrooms and media rooms. http://www.automatedshading.com/

48. Lounge Area The lounge area would benefit from a face lift with these comfortable Lounge Chair tablet Arm 13" Diameter Maple Wood Species. http://www.kpetersen.com/loungechairs3photospage. htm

49. Lounge Area Backless lounge chairs will be placed against the wall where the magazine rack was. Lounge area will be where present catalogue carrel is. http://www.kpetersen.com/loun gechairs1photospage.htm

50. Lounge Area The Lounge Area will be enhanced with a large flat screen television on the wall which will stream videos and documentaries for student enrichment.

51. Conference Rooms Flat screen televisions to show videos in the conference rooms. There should also be a promethium board for instruction.

52. Periodical Area The Periodical area is utilized because students do not use the media center for free reading. In addition, because of budgetary constraints, there has been a decrease in subscription. The revolving wooden magazine rack would also utilize less space and accommodate more books. The are available in many stores.

53. Work stations Computers are available for students’ use. The location and arrangement of these computers limit the librarians ability to monitor student’s activities. The shelf will be moved to the place where the encyclopedias are, and the new workstations will replace this one shown below.

54. Division of Space Removable partition would be used to separate the gathering area from the reading area. New Floor plan will remove stack of books from the right wall and place promethium board there. Partition will add privacy, and limit library closure to students. Removable partition TecnoSpace TECNOLINE

55. Display Case Instead of using a large table to display books, the media center will have a book case to display new items.

56. Dual Purposed Desks In the gathering room, participants often use laptops. Outlets to recharge laptops are found in the center of the table. These desks are adjustable and allow easy access for patrons in wheelchairs.

57. Study Panels Study panels will be placed along the wall of the offices. This will give students their privacy to study, and allow the media specialists to monitor their progress.