As
I grew up and had my little bit of allowance, I would only buy
something if I was going to receive change back. If it took all my
money, I wasn't interested. I was also one of those small children
who felt if their money was in all ones, it was definitely worth
more. I was raised by two very frugal people and that molded me into
who I am as a parent, mother, wife and librarian.
My
first year as librarian, I had no idea how to spend the money in my
budget. Did I spend it all so that it “seemed” like I needed
every penny and please don't lessen the amount? Did I not spend it
all so they would see I'm a great steward of what they gave me?
Well, I did the latter and I learned my lesson the hard way for
sure. I had my budget cut that first year by 75% in February and I
freaked out. I called the head librarian and after a few
conversations with the superintendent, claiming ignorance, I had some
of my money back. Woo, that was close.
So
the next year, with the lesson learned, I wrote PO's like the “hare”
instead of like the “tortoise.” I agree with Jacquie Henry in her
blog post titled “Book Budgets – Hanging on to What Is Yours”
when she said “encumber those funds right away.” I wrote PO's
for things I wasn't buying until 3 months down the road. I was so
paranoid that my money would disappear again. It was completely
against my nature to spend so freely but it is what I needed to do to
be the best librarian for my patrons.
So
with that in mind, I rely heavily on the head librarian to get her
advice and guidance. On our annual report we always list what we
desire as our budget totals and remind them of what the state
standard is per pupil. Karen
Jerolamon's "Library Budget as Line Item" says that there
are some very different ideas out there about library budgets for
school districts. She stated some information to take into
consideration when proposing a budget. Taking the state standard
per pupil and comparing it to what we are asking for, is a good
strategy. At my school, the comparison translates to the school
board is getting the best bang for their buck.
I
am totally convinced and even inspired to form my budget request with
goals and objectives. Doug Johnson in is Blue Skunk Blog says to
“get out your spreadsheets and show decision makers how much your
program requires if it is to be successful.” I feel my goals are
pretty broad when it comes to budget requests and I need to be more
specific in the future.
Our
text “Empowering Learners” also states that budget practices need
to be outcome-based. The need to compliment and support school wide
curriculum should be the over arching objective of the library goals.
Details need to be presented on how the library will do that. If
you are asking for an increase in your budget, it is usually the only
way it will happen. A well thought out budget with goals and
objectives is definitely the best approach.
One
eye opening and almost jaw dropping reality was brought to my
attention from our text “The School Library Media Manager.” I
have a large cost accountability in my library. The example given in
the text -paraphrased- blew my mind. Let's say there are 20,000
books in my library and average replacement cost is $24. I oversee
$480,000 worth of inventory for our school. If 200 books were
circulated in a week and multiply that by 9 weeks (one quarter) then
students would have borrowed $43,200 worth of books. Wow! That is a
unique position for the media specialist to be in compared to other
certified staff in the building.
So,
overall, what I feel is important when it comes to libraries and
budgets, I need to make sure and have a well thought out plan when I
begin spending money. I need to support my budget requests with
objectives that relate to the school curriculum. If I don't have a
vision for my library, I should definitely should a different
profession.
