Increasing the Percentage of Latino Resources Available in the School Media Center in K-12 Schools A...

Increasing the Percentage of Latino Resources Available in the

School Media Center in K-12 Schools

A Leadership & Policy Report for LIS 600: Foundations of Library/Information Studies

Dr. Clara ChuFall 2014

Carly Bowman, Mary Old, Stephanie Powell, Jena Roberts, Madison Snow

Preface: Leadership & Policy Report Goals

Goal 1: Identify a significant issue in the field of library and information studies or in a specific context/institution and develop a

policy and advocate for change, innovation, or a creative extension of a given service.

Goal 2: Demonstrate leadership in the form of articulation by

suggesting ways to implement innovations or improvements to existing or non-existing practices or services, as well as identifying the persons involved in and affected by the suggested solutions,

taking into consideration the role in which professional organizations, institutions, or the government might play in realizing the advocated

changes.

Preface: Focus and Issue of Report

Focus: School Library Media

Issue: There are not enough resources written by or about people of color in K-12 school media centers in order to diversify the collection and serve all students, their families, and the staff of the specific school to promote learning.

● Specific attention on the current resources available for Latino students and increasing the percentage of resources available to them in the school library

Preface: Outline of Report

1. Executive Summary2. Statement of Issue and its Importance3. Evidence and Extent of Issue in Social Context

a. Major changes or conditions in the world or specific location that make it important now

b. The effect it is having on LIS professionals and/or usersc. How the issue is already being addressed, if at all, and the

shortcomings4. Policy Recommendation5. Professional Solution/New Opportunity for Service6. Evaluation7. Appendixes

The Latino/Hispanic population has increased six-fold since 1970.

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Latinos have a strong interest in

and need for library services.

There has been a decline in the

number of children’s books

written by and for people of color.

Latino literature is not an integral part

of library collections.

Executive SummaryThere is currently a lack of Latino resources in U.S. school libraries. Whether the problem is the lack of funding or awareness, research shows that there has been a decline in the number of children’s book published for Latinos. Several case studies will be presented that offer direct evidence of these issues. Evidence will be in the form of the comparisons of libraries, responses from surveys and an interview of a school librarian. Additional evidence, and support for reform, will be presented in the discussion of current regulations and legislation that address the ineffectiveness of Latino education in today’s public schools. The lack of Latino literature does not correspond with the culture’s needs or interests. Our mission is to recommend a policy that creates successful strategies for meeting the informational, cultural, recreational and literacy needs of Latino children, and subsequently, their parents. Opportunities for reform can start at the school media center, with the library staff itself. Yet, government policy is needed to hold libraries accountable and make these changes sustainable. Our national policy will promote the addition of Latino literature in K-12 school media centers, corresponding to the number of Latinos enrolled. Additional solutions will be offered at the state and school-wide level.

Statement of Issue and its Importance

The number of Latino books in school media centers needs to be increased in order to raise the awareness of the Latino culture and its history, celebrate its diversity, and provide resources to those who are proven to be in need.● Children need access to books by and about their culture.● Providing services in native languages fosters an appreciation for

their culture, builds self-esteem and includes parents in the service delivery

● The Latino’s alternative history and culture are not being taught in school.

● Latinos need help dealing with possible experiences of racism that may be a byproduct of this ignorance by having a positive view of their own culture.

Evidence/Extent of Issue in Social Context

Major changes/conditions in the world/specific location that make it important now:

● In 2013, Latinos were ranked as the largest United States minority population at 17.1%.o ~ 316,128, 839 persons in the U.S. in 2013, 17.1% of the total population calculates to approximately

54,058,032 Latino individuals

● Our nation has witnessed an influx of 7,158,032 Latinos in 5 years (2008-2013)

● Addition of 78,741,960 more Latinos in 36 years (by year 2050)

● Of the 5,000 children’s books that were published in the U.S in 2013, 1.14% were written about people of color, meaning that 4,943 books (98.86%) were written using Caucasian characters


The effect it is having on LIS professionals and/or users:

● A lack of Latino resources is detrimental to the school population. Children of all backgrounds need:o Access to books about their cultureo Role models to be aspiring authors

● Multicultural books tear down stereotypes within the school system and create a divide between the majority and minorities of race



How is the school library benefitting and supporting the Latino students and their culture by harboring a collection that is mostly

written by and about Caucasians?

● 1993: a questionnaire survey was mailed to 355 schools with a large Latino population. o 9 schools had less than 1% of book collection in Spanisho In 38 schools, less than 10% of their collection in was Spanish or

tailored to the Spanish-speaking students.o One elementary school surveyed had 333 out of 605 Spanish-

speaking students, yet only 5% of the library’s collection was in Spanish



● July 2, 2013: comparison was made between two libraries in Chicago serving roughly the same number of people, but using different resources. o The library uptown had $177.29 to spend per patron and 2,644,232

books in circulationo The library downtown had $20.97 to spend per patron and 256,285

books in circulation.o Poor communities, who have an increasingly larger Latino population,

do not generate as much property tax. This is an issue, for 90% of suburban Chicago’s library funding

comes from local property tax dollars



● At South Graham Elementary School in Graham, North Carolina, there are a total of 16,706 books in the school library. o With a total student population of 616 students, there are 264 Latino students. o There are only 256 books for students whose primary language is not English. o Although 43% of the school population is Latino, less than 2% of the books in

the library are made specifically for their needs and wants.

What is a school librarian to do? First, look at budget.



BUDGET: Is there enough money in the budget to allocate funds to purchase resources for Latino students?

● 2002 to 2010: the Improving Literacy through School Libraries program was the primary source of federal funding for school libraries.o President and U.S. Congress have consolidated or zero-funded this program

● 2012: President and U.S. Congress redirected money to the U.S. Department of Education to create the Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) program. o With Improving Literacy through School Libraries being defunded, IAL has taken

over as the primary source of federal funding for school libraries. Focusing on low income schools, these funds help many schools bring their school libraries up to standards.



School librarians must also consider how much money they receive from their school and county.

Elementary and middle schools tend to get more money from counties and less from schools.

High schools tend to get less money from county and more from schools.


How the issue is already being addressed, if at all, and the shortcomings:

With 37% of the U.S. population being people of color, the children's book publishing companies have not kept up,

with only 10% of children's books being about and/or written by people of color.



Lee & Low Books: independent publisher of multicultural literature for young readers, argues that a lack of

awareness of multicultural children’s books is a major source of the issue for the lack of these resources in

school libraries.


How the issue is already being addressed, if at all, and the shortcomings:Lee & Low Books asked academics, authors, librarians, educators, and reviewers if they could think of a reason why the percentage has not increased. Based on their responses, we can reason that the major shortcomings are:

● Cuts in funding that lead to libraries buying books from bookstores such as Barnes & Noble (the buyers at Barnes & Noble believe that "multicultural books don't sell")

● Few people of color represented in publishing companies● Authors of color do not produce manuscripts that fit an expected demographic (tend to write about poor,

single-parent families and not about middle-class, two-parent households)● Many publishing companies believe that only people of color will buy a book written by/about people of color● Lack of knowledge about current multicultural children's books by parents and teachers (Where do I begin?

What books are available?)● The main efforts for equality are separate (African Americans support equality for African Americans, women

support equality for women, etc)



REFORMA: The National Association to Promote Library & Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking.

● Established in 1971 as an affiliate for the American Library Association (ALA). ● Serves to bring attention to books written by and for Latinos● Supports the recruitment of bilingual, multicultural library personnel, promotes the public awareness of

libraries and librarianship among Latinos● Advocates on behalf of the information needs of the Latino community● Serves as a liaison to other professional organizations.

REFORMA also created the Pura Belpré Award (co-sponsored with the Association of Library Service to Children) in 1996 for Latino Writers and Illustrators. However, the Carolina Chapter of REFORMA is currently inactive.



The National Latino Children’s Literature Conference● Created in 2008● Share successful strategies for meeting the informational, cultural, recreational and traditional

literacy needs of Latino children and adults.

Ethic Library Associations such as the Black Caucus, Asian Pacific American, American Indian, and more have been created, where librarians of any background are encouraged to become active members.



The need for an increased percentage of Latino resources in K-12 school libraries is still a local, state, and national issue. The lack of resources for this demographic affects their academic achievement, perceived self-worth, and

the spread of diversity within the school population.

The Latino population has lower educational achievements than other groups. If school libraries wish to bridge the ever-apparent diversity gap, action must be taken on both a national, state, and local level. Awareness

must be raised for this issue to be shot down.

Policy Recommendation

We believe that there is a need for an increase of Latino resources in libraries of elementary, middle, and high schools at national, state, and local levels.

Why is it vital to increase Latino resources in school libraries?● continue education in English and Spanish● allows Latino students and their families to teach and diversify

the knowledge of others throughout their school and surrounding community about their culture


The majority of school libraries currently have a scarce amount of Latino resources available for

student use.

To increase the percentage of Latino resources in K-12 school libraries and diversify the knowledge of both the school population and surrounding community, we have adopted a policy that will allow the school library collection to be more of a reflection of its school population, instead of only representing one student demographic.


If the percentage of Latino students in a school population is over 5%, at least 5% of the book revenue that is given to

school librarians should be allocated towards the purchase of Latino resources.

We recommend this policy in order to raise awareness of the diverse cultures that exist within both a school population and community, as well as to better serve the needs and wants of the Latino students at a school. School libraries should have a significant amount of resources to serve all cultures represented in their school population.In order to increase the percentage of Latino resources in K-12 school libraries, there must also be an increase in overall proper funding so a set amount can be allocated for these resources.

Professional Solution

Why do we need Latino and Spanish-language materials?

1. These resources help teach students about their heritage, cultures, and customs.

2. Spanish-language materials exercise crucial second or dual-language skills.

Unfortunately, there is not enough funding in the majority of areas to expand these collections within K-12 school libraries.


We propose a tri-level solution to provide funding to school libraries

to help purchase Latino and Spanish-language resources.


Local Level: Book Fairs

Book fairs generate extra revenue for schools and they allow librarians to gauge the interests of their students. In schools with >5% Latino student population, 5% or more of the revenue will go to Latino and Spanish-language resources.

Librarians should become active members of ethnic

library associations (such as the Black Caucus, Asian Pacific

American, American Indian) and take professional

development courses about working with underserved

communities.


State Level: Ethnic/Minority Education Associations

We recommend that states require joining an ethnic/minority education association as a qualification for teacher and school media specialist recertification.In states with large Latino populations, joining REFORMA would provide education and resources to librarians as they build their Latino and Spanish-language collections.


National Level: Online Fundraising Campaign

We propose a national online fundraising campaign be started to draw attention and funding to this issue. Funds could be donated to the campaign as a whole or to a specific school district. Neighboring school districts could then compete to generate the most funds.

Evaluation

To evaluate the effectiveness of our proposed tri-level recommendations, we will collect data through several sources. Evaluation of our tri-level recommendations will allow us to analyze the effectiveness of using such solutions to increase awareness and resources for the Latino population among K-12 school libraries.

Evaluation● Local Level

o Using book fairs to acquire funding Evaluated through observation and analysis of the amount of

revenue generated from book fairs● State Level

o Recommendation for librarians to join an ethnic/minority education association Evaluated through the analysis of interview questions given

to librarians ● National Level

o Online campaign to gain funding Evaluated through observation and analysis of funding

generated from online contributions Conducting a feedback survey with funding contributors

EvaluationSurvey Sample Interview

QuestionsAdvocacy to Increase Cultural Awareness and Resources in K-12 Libraries

To be informed and to better meet the needs of minority patrons (particularly Latino patrons), we are asking your support to help us gather information by answering the following questions. Your support and feedback is greatly appreciated.

1. What resources do you feel are needed in your library to support your patrons? Why?

2. What is the demographic makeup of your patron population?

3. Do you feel you have the resources to meet the diverse cultural needs of your patrons? Explain why you feel this way.

4. When joining professional library/education associations, do you feel it is important to join an ethnic/minority association? Why?

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