Revere Librarian Sparks Student Involvement

The library at Paul Revere Charter Middle School is, surprisingly, the newest hangout for students. Cindi Murphy, who taught eighth grade English last year, transferred into the librarian’s position this fall, bringing energy and ideas that have resonated with students. Although the library was renovated two years ago, it lacked programs for the students and, according to Murphy, ‘was a mausoleum. Kids were afraid to come in.’ Over the summer, she orchestrated a group of parent and student volunteers who cleaned and moved furniture. The result is a large room made cozy with three ‘read and relax’ lounge areas, an instructional area and a media center. ‘We’re in the middle of a collection development project because we don’t have enough reading materials for our kids,’ Murphy said. LAUSD recommends that a middle school library have 18 books per student; Revere’s library has six books per child, and about a third of the collection is outdated, especially the science books. ‘We don’t have enough of the popular fiction series and culturally relevant material,’ Murphy said. ‘Our theory is that when a student is comfortable with pleasure reading, they learn to like to read and then they feel more comfortable cracking a textbook.’ In order to gain a ‘so-so’ collection, it will cost $35,000 a year for five years and $75,000 a year to build a premium collection. Unfortunately, Murphy’s entire budget is only $8,000 a year. Seeking funding is difficult because Revere’s academic performance index is over 800 (one of the few middle schools in LAUSD to achieve that goal). ‘It’s hard to get grants because our scores are too high,’ Murphy said. ‘We don’t get Title 1 money (federal) and many of the grants have restrictions based on the number students in the free lunch program.’ Most of Revere’s budget from LAUSD goes towards academic programs, with art, music, physical education and the library rarely receiving adequate funding. Murphy hopes to start a fundraising campaign in January to acquire more texts. Money donations are preferred, she said, because the incoming books need to be library ready, with a bar code and catalogue record. Since September, Murphy has launched three new programs, and established a 40-member student advisory board that meets every day, working on technology, student and community outreach, public relations, as well as an information flyer and a monthly newsletter. Every other Wednesday, Murphy invites professionals to give career talks in the library during lunch hour. ‘We videotape it and it will be part of a podcast series when the library Web site is up and running,’ she said. A parent group is currently working on the Web site. Murphy invited illustrators Max Espinosa and Rubin Gerard to speak to students in the library and make themselves available to different classes at the school on a monthly basis. She has also started a monthly visiting author series that has included Victoria Foyt, who wrote ‘The Virtual Life of Lexi Diamond.’ In the works is a college-talk series that would highlight a different college every month. ‘We want kids to start thinking about college, now,’ Murphy said. Given the welcoming environment, student-organized clubs have begun meeting in the library during the lunch hour. The clubs include origami, band and Manga, a group interested in comics published in Japan. ‘We’re trying to reach at-risk groups by offering a variety of options’the clubs, the visiting speakers–to get students into the library,’ Murphy said. When she’s not starting innovative programs at Revere, Murphy is working on her master’s degree in library science. She received a B.A. in English from UCLA and already has a library/media credential. In her spare time she loves to read, of course, but also enjoys cooking and gardening. Her husband of 16 years, Scott, is also a middle school teacher, at John Burroughs near Hollywood. ‘We live together and we play together, but we don’t have to work together,’ Murphy said, laughing. The couple, who have no children, love to visit Manhattan where they catch plays, enjoy the different restaurants and walk all over the city. But right now the library is Cindi’s total focus. ‘There’s a lot to do here,’ she said.