Managing the Successful School Library (PDF)

To ensure their libraries survive and thrive, school library managers need to be both responsive and proactive. Looking past the day-to-day operations of a school library, Farmer's book serves as a reality check: school libraries must align with school mission statements and policies, while simultaneously negotiating for proper budgets and resources alongside other departments. It's a daunting prospect, but Farmer demonstrates how it can be done with the proper attention and systematic planning. Taking a deeper, more professional look at management that applies theories and principles to real-world situations, this book introduces the concept of school library programs and provides an overview of school library program management; examines professional and legislated standards for school libraries, and discusses the part a manager plays in meeting them; links management with leadership, differentiating the two, and showing how the school librarian can carry out both roles; helps readers assess their own skills, knowledge, and dispositions in order to set short-term and long-term goals; explains how to manage resources and learning environments to meet the needs of teachers, administrators, parents, and other stakeholders; offers guidance for developing and working with budgets, obtaining additional funding, and using collaboration to support the school library program; provides concrete advice on hiring, training, supervising, assessment, and recognizing library workers and other library team members; and includes tools for communicating effectively and getting the message across. More than just a compendium of management theories, this book provides much food for thought that will help readers gain important insights into their own roles as school library managers and leaders.