Community+Volunteers

=Community Volunteers in School libraries =

This section focuses on the use of community volunteers within the school library. As a collective group, adult volunteers bring life experiences and are a great resource to the teacher –librarian and ultimately the school library program. Who may comprise adult volunteers? This group can consist of current and past parents of the school, retirees, past teachers and school library enthusiasts. Persons who fit the mold of adult volunteer may individually make themselves available or the teacher-librarian may have to engage in recruitment activities. In any case, adults who volunteer may do so for their own reasons. In the 2006, publication of Illinois Libraries, two volunteers presented testimonials titled “why I volunteer”. Essentially, they both had varied reasons but the comments that stood out were “I gain immense personal satisfaction from my time spent in the library” (p.11) and “I like the feeling that I’m making a positive contribution to our community, our school, our teachers, and our students” (p.12). “A healthy volunteer program can be a great asset to any school library” (McGown, 2007). Thus, the inclusion of adults as volunteers can be mutually beneficial. One, it allows the volunteer to be meaningfully engaged; also it allows the teacher-librarian to create some much needed time to work with both students and teacher because the volunteer can work on routine tasks that usually occupy the T-L (McGown, 2007). Essentially, adult volunteers are “an extra pair of hands” (McGown, 2007). Another mutual benefit is fostering community partnership, networking, and advocacy to name a few. The ultimate decision to use adult volunteers lies with the teacher-librarian. Additionally, their level of participation in the school library is largely dependent on how the teacher-librarian perceives their overall role throughout the school library program.


 * A few take away ideas:**
 * The use of volunteers are an untapped human resource
 * Make use of a volunteer coordinator to assist you in managing the volunteer program
 * Remember volunteers are unpaid workers, show appreciation through special events if need be
 * Have a system in place for screening volunteers once you have decided to implement such a program
 * Volunteers should add to the teacher-librarian's role NOT replace it

The entire text is devoted to the topic of managing volunteers in libraries. There are eleven (11) chapters of which ten are informative and useful. Some topics of interest are orientation and training and types of volunteer programs.
 * Some resources which provide general information about the use of volunteers in libraries**
 * Bonnie,F.McCune.,& Nelson,T.Charlezine .(1995). //Recruiting and managing volunteers in libraries//.NY: Neal-Schuman.

This text has six (6) chapters devoted to the topic of volunteers in libraries. Some chapters of interest are volunteer rules and regulations, volunteer recruitment, and awards and recognition.
 * Diggers,Preston.,& Dumas,Eileen.(2002). //Managing library volunteers: A practical toolkit//.Chicago: American Library Association.

This text contains five chapters which provides information on various issues involved in the use of volunteers within a library program. Some topics are - where to find volunteers; prons and cons of using volunteers and dealing with different volunteer types from the difficult to the know it all personality. Only pages 125-127 in chapter 8 and pages 154- 156 in chapter 9 provide information on managing personnel within the library. Nonetheless, the information presented provides an overview of how to recruit and manage volunteers as well as describe how the relationship between volunteers and permanent staff should be structured.
 * Reed,G.Sally. (1994) //Library volunteers-worth the effort! A program manager's guide//.NC:McFarland and Company.
 * Toor, Ruth.,& Weisburg,K.Hilda.(2007). Advocacy and you. In //A school library media specialist's guide to success//(pp.125-128). Chicago: American Library Association.

//These resources can be found in Rutherford Library at the University of Alberta//

Armstrong, K. (2006). Why I volunteer. //Illinois libraries,// 86(3). Retrieved February 26, 2011 from [|http://www.sos.state.il.us/publications/librarypub.html#libraries] McGown, Sue W. (2007). Valuable volunteers: how to find, use, and keep them. //Library Media Connection//, 26(2). Retrieved February 26, 2011 from academic search complete database Mills, D. (2006). Why I volunteer. Illinois libraries, 86(3). Retrieved February 26, 2011 from [|http://www.sos.state.il.us/publications/librarypub.html#libraries]
 * References**