Catholic schools without libraries

[Anonymous]

Our K-8 in D.C. has a library and our HS in Maryland has a library. Our Catholic schools have also done a better job of teaching reading and writing than the public schools where our DCs were previously enrolled.

[Anonymous]

Where are you actually looking, OP? Is it a very poor area and maybe the school can't fund a library?

[Anonymous]

Attended K-12 in Catholic schools in 3 states. They all had libraries but all the classrooms had age appropriate books in shelves right in the classrooms also.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where are you actually looking, OP? Is it a very poor area and maybe the school can't fund a library?

We are in a well off but not uniformly wealthy area in a Michigan suburb. But all the towns’ school buildings are old. The public schools have iPads, Chromebooks, and extra staff, but don’t have cafeterias or kitchens.

[Anonymous]

I attended a Catholic school in a poor state in the Southwest and even we had a library.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Attended K-12 in Catholic schools in 3 states. They all had libraries but all the classrooms had age appropriate books in shelves right in the classrooms also.

Did they have librarians or teachers staffing the libraries? Or was it a clipboard system? I can't think of any parish schools near me with actual librarians.

[Anonymous]

I have taught at four different K-8 Catholic schools. Two had full time librarians on staff, one had a volunteer librarian 3 days per week, and my current school has a library but each teacher takes their own students down to check out books. Each school also had robust classroom libraries too.

[Anonymous]

Stone Ridge has libraries for each of their school divisions. Lower School has a library, Middle School has their own library, and Upper School has their own library.

[Anonymous]

It's expensive to start a library. They may not have enough funds to do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's expensive to start a library. They may not have enough funds to do so.

Maybe, but at least one of the school seems pretty well off and has a long history so I don't think it's lack of funds or opportunity. We are continuing to tour schools and finding more of the same. Another religious classical K-8 near us has a library, but I don't think they have a full time librarian. Is this a regional thing? Midwestern religious schools don't prioritize libraries? I had just never hear of a school without a library except in very poor public schools before moving to MI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's expensive to start a library. They may not have enough funds to do so.

Why is it expensive? Serious question. Books can be bought cheaply in like new condition in bulk. You'd have to spend time to cover them with library plastic if you want, and it would be time consuming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's expensive to start a library. They may not have enough funds to do so.

Maybe, but at least one of the school seems pretty well off and has a long history so I don't think it's lack of funds or opportunity. We are continuing to tour schools and finding more of the same. Another religious classical K-8 near us has a library, but I don't think they have a full time librarian. Is this a regional thing? Midwestern religious schools don't prioritize libraries? I had just never hear of a school without a library except in very poor public schools before moving to MI.

I'm from the midwest and our Catholic schools had libraries and librarians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this common? We are touring Catholic schools in different towns and I was surprised to see the K-8 and preK-8 I looked at so far do not have libraries. One does have a large room for lounging that has lots of books and work tables, but no librarian. The other doesn’t have a library but there are classroom libraries and each elementary classroom has lots of lots of different books available for kids to read. One school seems to be struggling but the other seems to be doing fine financially and fills its seats with wealthy parish members’ kids. But neither school has a real library with librarian! Is this typical?

As a teacher, this is a red flag for me. No library = no thank you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our K-8 in D.C. has a library and our HS in Maryland has a library. Our Catholic schools have also done a better job of teaching reading and writing than the public schools where our DCs were previously enrolled.

BS

[Anonymous]

I have not heard of a Catholic school without a library, although the library can be a combined space, like a media center for technology classes or a meeting room.

Kind of a "swing space".