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The library has new hours from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. due to budget cuts, leading to the loss of a librarian paraprofessional.
Former computer lab assistant Rodney Culver, who was in charge of the library computer lab in room 99 for the past several years, is one of two technology paraprofessionals the school released. The other was Language Lab coordinator Vladimer Talian.
With Culver’s absence, there are just two full-time librarians left to oversee students, forcing the library to reduce one and a half hours from the previous 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule. “The reason we have new hours is to minimize the time that there is only person in charge of the library,” librarian Alison Shepard said. “Librarian Linda Guitron comes in at 7:30 a.m. and stays until 3 p.m., and I come in at 8:30 and stay until 4 p.m.. Mr. Culver used to be here from 7:30 to 4 p.m..”
The school had to eliminate positions such as Culver’s because of a budget reduction last year. “The School Site Council decided this in the spring,” Shepard said. “The school was hurt by cuts in Advanced Placement money, so they had to make big cuts.”
Shepard explained the difficulties of having only two people running the library, especially when one of the librarians has to teach a class about library skills or serve on a school committee. “Teaching classes is really difficult if only one adult is in the library, so we have to overlap our hours more,” Shepard said. “If I had meetings afterschool, Mr. Culver would cover the library until 5 p.m., but now I can’t attend those meetings.”
However, Shepard said that one way the library is dealing with fewer staff members is through volunteers. “We’re trying to get parent volunteers to help cover some time in the computer lab,” Shepard said. “When one of us goes to lunch, there is only one adult here, so we have volunteers covering the middle of the day certain days of the week.”
The new library hours are also creating difficulties for many students. “For the past three years it has been open until 5 p.m.,” senior Renita Ng said. “A lot of people who don’t have computer or Internet access at home are stressing out about turning in papers.”
Some students complain about the early closing because of insufficient time to use the library during school hours. “It isn’t really useful since it’s only half an hour after school for people with full schedules,” sophomore Jenny Cheung said.
For some students, later morning hours are causing problems. “Having the library open later really messes a lot of students up,” sophomore Tracy Lee said. “I’m guilty of printing stuff out before Mods 1-2 for that very class, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.”
Shepard agrees that the new library hours give students less time to utilize an important resource. “The new hours are really difficult; students are used to the library being open until 5 p.m.,” Shepard said. “From 4 to 5 p.m. this place was packed. It’s a hardship for students.”
Shepard says that the new library hours are especially problematic for students without computer access. “After school time is really important, especially for students without Internet access,” she said.
For some, the new library hours make little or no impact. “I never used the library outside of school hours, so it won’t affect me as much as it will the students who use the library in the morning,” senior Jason Alafgani said.
Some students have had to find new places to do homework after school. “I really wish I could go to the library after school because now I have to do my homework outside my locker, which just happens to be by the entrance to the girls’ bathroom, and security guards yell at me because it’s a fire hazard,” sophomore Freda Hawver Pachter said.
In addition to individuals, groups for class projects are having difficulties. “For my AP Euro Renaissance artist project my group needed to work on our poster, but because the library closed at 4 p.m. we had to find another area,” sophomore Olivia Pollak said.
Shepard hopes that there will be ways to improve the library hours for the future. “We’re brainstorming about ways to expand the program again and stay open later at least some days a week,” she said.
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