History of the Library Media Program
The Menomonie School District has 3 certified media specialists, and 5 library media secretaries who perform the duties of aides. Increased enrollments and decreased resources have forged a partnership and has increased flexibility and cooperation between the library media department and the non-instructional staff of the district technology services department.
Six of the seven school library media centers (LMC) in the School District of the Menomonie Area have had their facilities updated within the past 10 years. Other innovations in the past 10 years have included the addition of an automated union catalog among our library media centers, security systems in the middle and high school, online resources available at all sites, and our web-based union catalog in 2006. All buildings have a fully developed webpage with extensive resources and links.
All of our LMCs have added networked computers and electronic resources to the list of media materials available to staff and students at all sites. Flexible schedules at all levels have been used and collaboration among specialists and teachers is the norm and not the exception. The LM specialist staff has been at this level for over 10 years. There has been a 1.0 FTE reduction in the LM Specialist time and a 1.0 FTE reduction in the cataloger position as well as numerous hours reduced from the LM secretarial staff due to budget shortfalls over the last few years. All three full time library media specialists retired in 2010 and the department made a commitment in difficult financial circumstances to fill all three positions.
It is the purpose of the library media department to support teachers and students by providing time and resources to support the district's and state's curriculum, support student learning experiences and to help realize our district's goal to make every student a life long learner, a responsible citizen and a caring individual. The library media department strives to attain these goals.
Menomonie Area Schools began working with instructional technology in administration, library media and instruction contexts in the 1980's with the infusion of personal computers. The district was one of the first in the region to install an automated union library catalog system, first to infuse technology in instruction including to teach programming and logic in mathematics, information processing in business education, etc. This forward-looking vision by the Board of Education has resulted in the current infrastructure and commitment to hardware and software to support information management and instructional computing. This is the district's fourth long-term information and technology plan, which is the blueprint for the future direction of instructional, informational, and administrative technology success in the district.
Library Media Specialist Staffing
Downsville & Knapp Elementary/High School-shared 1.0 LM Specialist
Oaklawn & Middle School-shared 1.0 LM Specialist
River Heights & Wakanda Elementary-shared 1.0 LM Specialist
Library Media Secretary Staffing
Downsville & Knapp Elementary-shared 20 hr. LM Secretary
High School/Middle School-shared 40 hr. LM Secretary
River Heights Elementary/Middle School-shared 30 hr. LM Secretary
Oaklawn Elementary/Middle School-shared 30 hr. LM Secretary
Wakanda Elementary/Middle School-shared 30 hr. LM Secretary