Librarian Position Eliminated

After five years of working as the teacher-librarian, Sharon Talmadge will not be returning next year due to partial budgetary reasons and district opinion. Unfortunately, unlike most retirements during these current economic difficulties, the decision was not her own. Rather, it was the choice that the San Dieguito Union High School District’s (SDUHSD) Educational Services Department made for all high schools in our district.

“If we cut her job, we cut our grades and success rates and with that, we can kiss any kind of scholastic grants goodbye. Then we lose more funding. It’s a cycle, and were being sucked in,” Aly Rosenberg, junior, said.

The reasons for the librarians’ dismissal are still unclear and Rick Schmitt, Associate Superintendent Educational Services of SDHUSD, did not respond to requests for an interview. This leaves room for much speculation but a leading factor in this decision is the money. The budgetary cuts have hit education hard in California and it was deemed necessary to eliminate some costs. According to salary.com the average yearly income of a librarian is $55,610 a year, compared to the district budget, which is roughly $79 million for the 2010-11 year, a relatively low amount.

“It is important for the public to understand that Rick Schmitt is not the villain, he had some tough decisions to make as to where to cut costs.  Now, that doesn’t mean everyone will agree that he made the correct decision,” Matt Cunningham, ELD and AP English teacher, said.

Many teachers and students have formed opinions about the budget cuts affecting the library, and in most cases, they seem to mirror each other. To most students, the budget cuts are something they hear about often.

“The education budget cuts are ridiculous. I fully understand that we have a budget crisis, but education is the wrong place to take funding from. How can we afford to fund over $10 billion for overcrowded prisons when we can’t fund the education of the future adults of America?” Jonathan Barsky, junior, said.

The librarian at Canyon Crest Academy is already gone, since the district no longer feels it is necessary for them to be around. Instead of qualified librarians running the library, “library technicians” will take over. One would think that these individuals will have the same training as a librarian, however, these “technicians” will not be required to have teaching credentials or any experience. The technicians are not even required to have attended college.

“They probably won’t be able to help students around the library as much as a librarian could,” Talmadge said. “Also, they probably wouldn’t have read very many books in the library. When I order new books, I tend to read a lot of them first.”

Talmadge’s duties include teaching information about finding data and literacy skills, book talks, ordering new books, updating catalog, planning other programs/fundraisers, freshmen library orientation and organizing the computer lab schedules and book fair. She exceeds her job description by ensuring that most of the books are not only appealing to our student body but that they also have “appropriate” content by reading them before putting them on the shelves.

She also gives reviews on any book that a student might want to check out and guarantees it is within grade level. For all the students that can either not afford a book or just don’t want to purchase one, there is a wish list in the library and once purchased the book is dedicated to the person that suggested it. Talmadge constantly multitasks to help as many students as possible when it comes to technical computer problems, copy machine problems, identification cards, and simply locating a book.

“She is a remarkable person and an asset to the learning experience of students,” Cunningham said, “She’s as important to the English department as any English teacher.”

Next year will mark Talmadge’s forty-first year of teaching and her fifteenth year as a librarian. Previously, she has taught 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grades, and in a museum. She has a Masters in Library and Information Science, and a Library/Media Services Credential, as well as a regular teaching credential. Though “library technicians” are trained in some library skills, they have not been trained to act in place of a librarian. In addition, if the hired technician is absent, the library will be closed for the duration of their absence. As a result of the technicians’ limited duties, students and English teachers will be burdened with more tasks than they already have.

“She showed me where everything is located,” Courtney Caldwell, senior, said. “She showed me how to set up my account on the computer. Also, I’ve had discussions with her about books and she really inspires me to read more. It’s going to be hard for everyone to lose her.”

This decision, will affect all the students on campus, especially low income students. Most students stay after school in the library to do homework and many of them to have the choice to use the internet. Next year with no librarian, students will lack the support that she provides in navigating online resources, finding books, and aiding research.

“I don’t know the exact amount of money saved, but in my view, it is not worth it given the dramatic negative impact on student learning, student achievement, and developing a culture of academic inquiry and exploration,” Suzi Van Steenbergen, English teacher, said.

As for a reaction against this, teachers are not sure what their next steps will be, but there is talk that the English department is trying to put a presentation together to warrant reconsideration. Van Steenbergen created a Google document where students and teachers can add experiences in which Talmadge has assisted them. This document is full of praises and positive comments on Talmadge’s attitude and work ethic. It also expresses a need that our school has for an experienced librarian. If anyone is interested in adding to this Google Document they contact Suzi Van Steenbergen.

“The library is the literal and figurative center of our school–our school, which is supposed to be an institution of learning. It is the heart of our campus, and Ms. Talmadge is the life-blood. Without her, the library would just be a room with books,” English teacher, Erika Wanczuk, said.