AUSSIE

Blog entry posted June 5th, 2009 by Shonah Flynn

In March of 2005 I was working on my third year at P.S. 164 in Borough Park, Brooklyn, as an AUSSIE consultant, when the Principal, Ann Marie Gillen, was approached by the Superintendent to see if she would like to prepare an application for a Robin Hood Foundation Library.  In order for schools to be eligible they need to be recommended to the Robin Hood Foundation by the Superintendent.  

The Robin Hood Foundation financially supports a staff member to complete a Master’s Program in Librarianship. It also completely stocks the library for a number of years with books, magazines, and periodicals, puts in a technology laboratory, completely furnishes and provides ongoing advice and support for the school and librarian.

The Principal at that time was preparing for her retirement and asked the AP, Margaret Choy Shan, if she would like to complete the application. Ms Choy Shan, who was to take over as the Principal the following year, rang me at home late one night and asked would I assist her in completing this. I, of course, happily obliged.

To lighten the work load we decided to ask our school Literacy lab. site person to join the writing crew. Initially, we decided it would be easiest to each take one criteria and write about it. However, when we put each piece together, although they addressed the individual criteria well, the language used was inconsistent. I took it upon myself to write the fourth missing section and revise and edit the final document. Lois Frankel, who wrote submissions for our District Office at the time felt very positive about the proposal so the submission was sent to the Superintendent for approval and submitted to the Robin Hood Foundation.

Late in 2005 we received word that our submission had been accepted, and that we had a number of expectations, such as room size, that needed to be met in order for work to proceed. The current library and the adjacent classroom were plenty spacious enough to accommodate the renovations.

The completed library was finally opened on March 27th, 2009.  Melissa Israel from the DOE central library in Manhattan was the guest speaker, while the three writers Margaret Coy Shan, Carrie Giglio, and myself, together with Lois Frankel, cut the ribbon to signify that the library was officially open for business.

The library has been a great addition to an already thriving school community.

Have you had an experience like this that you want to share? Post a comment on this blog - I look forward to reading your response!