Program Description:
Spotsylvania County Schools Library Media Centers support and enrich classroom instruction of the Standards of Learning and promote reading for pleasure and personal enrichment. Library media specialists, both formally and informally, work closely with teachers to integrate information literacy competencies throughout the teaching and learning process. They also provide a program that develops and expands the recreational reading needs of students. Library media specialists strive to provide access to and instruction on information in all its formats. Each library program supports the missions and goals of its school and of the Spotsylvania County School division.
All of the libraries in Spotsylvania County Schools are fully automated in both circulation of materials and electronic card catalogs. The Library Media Centers have online resources available to provide students and staff with access to a wide variety of research tools. The library media specialist in each building selects resources to support the school’s curriculum and to meet the diverse learning needs of students. In this process, the library media specialist follows the selection guidelines established by the Spotsylvania County School Board and solicits information from faculty and students regarding current needs. Each library receives local funding to support its program, and a fund is maintained by the library coordinator to cover the expenses of networkable library software. This software budget covers subscriptions to online resources including an online encyclopedia and the annual support agreement for the library automation software.
Progress and Achievement:
Spotsylvania County School library media specialists participate in division level staff development, both as instructors and participants. Library media specialists in Spotsylvania County Schools are active members and hold offices in regional and state library organizations. Many of the library media specialists serve as their school’s Educational Technology Contact with the Office of Technology and are leaders in the implementation of technology on the building level. Several library media specialists served on the division’s technology plan committee.