The document provides details about the media center at Ben Hill County Elementary School. It describes the current layout, furnishings, book sections, technology access, and policies. Several issues are identified, such as limited soft seating and computer access. Suggested improvements include adding murals, cushions, and laptop carts. The circulation desk has limited visibility, so installing security cameras is proposed. Window tinting is suggested to address glare from skylights. Updating and consolidating media center policies into a handbook is also recommended.

1. BEN HILL COUNTY
ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL MEDIA
FACILITY PLAN
Presented By: Christy Jacobs
Administration of the Instructional
Media Program Fall 2012
Instructor: Dr. Jones

2. BHES PROFILE “AN INSIDE LOOK”
Constructed in 2012
Title 1 School
74 Staff Members
59 Certified
15 Classified
3rd-5th Grades

3. BHES PROFILE CONTINUED
 706 Students
 44 % White
 52 % Black
 4 % Hispanic
 Distinguished School Silver
Award
 One Full Time Media
Specialist
 One Full Time Media
Paraprofessional
 AR (Accelerated Reader)
Incentive Program

4. MEDIA CENTER LOCATION
Media Center is to the left of
the main entrance.
Media Center is easily
accessible to all students and
staff as it is centrally located
within the school.

5. ORIGINAL MEDIA CENTER FLOOR
PLAN
Conference
Room
Seating
Area
Easy Books
Easy Books
Fiction
Fiction
Reference Center
Aisle/Fiction on Back
Computer Station
Computer Station
Reading Loft
Book Closet
Teacher
Workroom
A/V Room
Nonfiction
Nonfiction
Reference Center
Aisle/Biography on Back
Circulation
Desk
Office with
Restroom
& Closet

6. PROS AND CONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL
CLIMATE
Positive Attributes Negative Attributes
Furnishings are well kept and in
good condition
Fixed schedule does not allow for
collaboration efforts or multiple class
use
Media Clerk is a certified teacher Shelf space is not being utilized
Large areas for students to sit
comfortably and read
Shelf space is not easily accessed by
handicapped students
Cannot visibly see all students in media
center from circulation desk
No daily scheduled time for reading for
pleasure during the day to ensure all
students the opportunity to come to the
media center
Sky lights prohibit students from reading
and working at certain times during the
day.

7. MEDIA SPECIALIST OFFICE AND
CIRCULATION DESK
Circulation Desk
Front View
SLMS Office with restroom,
closet and view of main
school entrance

8. FURNISHINGS
Work “stations” or tables available for student use and
collaborative lessons.
32 Chairs
8 Tables
Neutral color scheme throughout entire facility. All available
seating and tales adhere to this bland “theme.”
Minimal Soft seating available for reading.
No posters, themes, nor inviting decorations on walls or
ceilings.

9. READING NOOK WITHIN LIBRARY
• Students read
here after
checking out their
books during their
activity time.
• There are not
enough soft floor
seats for an entire
class.
• SLMS delivers
book lessons in
this area.

10. SEATING AREAS
Reading Area with
magazines and
periodicals
View from main entrance. Student work
stations and Promethean Board for lessons.
Student work
table

11. COMPUTER STATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
• Two computer stations available
for students with 5 computers
each.
• No computers available for
checkout and use in classrooms.
• One portable Promethean board
is available for lessons in the MC
or elsewhere.

12. TEACHER ACCESS AND STORAGE AREAS
• Teacher work room is equipped with a
fax machine, scanner, and laminator.
Resources are not organized for quick
access.
• A/V room is located in a separate
storage area.
• Each teacher has their own laptop,
printer, and 5 available computers in
their classroom.

13. STUDENT AND TEACHER ACCESS
 Students can only check out books that are on their reading
level (indicated by a Star Reading Test).
 Students do not have school e-mail addresses to access
certain programs online.
 Access is not available to hardware for checkout and use in
classrooms (i.e.- laptops, I-pods, ear bunds/headphones,
etc.)

14. BOOK SECTIONS: REFERENCE
• Reference books line the
inside aisle of bookshelves
to the right and left when
entering the media center.
• All reference books are
available for in library use
only.
• Only teachers are allowed
to check out reference
materials.
• Circulation: 10 per yr.
• Collection: 402

15. BOOK SECTIONS: EASY & FICTION
• Easy and Fiction books take up the entire left
side of the media center when entering.
• Books are arranged by section and authors last
name: E for Easy or F for Fiction
• These sections make up the largest in the library.
• Circulation Easy: 2,862 per year
• Collection Easy: 2,403
• Circulation Fiction: 3,766 per year 4,206

16. BOOK SECTIONS: NONFICTION
• The Non-Fiction
section is located on
the right side of the
library behind
reference and
biography books.
• Circulation:
Dependent upon
Dewey Decimal
Number
• 500’s largest
with 2,218 per
year

17. BOOK SECTIONS: BIOGRAPHY
• The Biography
section is located
on the back of the
reference books
on the right side
of the media
center.
• Circulation: 848
per year
• Collection: 904

18. CONFERENCE ROOM
• Used for
parent/teacher
conferences
• Leadership Meetings
• Contains 8 chairs for
comfortable soft
seating

19. SURVEY QUESTIONS
96 INDIVIDUALS SURVEYED AND
RESPONDED
Question Data Received
1. Is it easy to move around the library to find
books?
Yes- 84.7%
No- 19.4%
2. Are the bookshelves arranged so that all
students can access all books? Are there
any changes needed to the bookshelves?
Open ended
response.
3. Do you like that students can check out
two books? Do you feel this should be
different?
Open ended
response.
4. What would you like to see added to the
media center?
Open ended
response.

20. SURVEY QUESTIONS CONTINUED
Question Response
5. Does the media center provide access for
all students to books for pleasure (fun)
reading?
Yes- 93.9 %
No- 1%
6. Does the media center provide access to
resources that are for informational purposes
(ex: projects, papers, essays teaching)?
Yes- 85.7%
No- 20.4%
7. Does the media center provide enough
technology access for students and
teachers?
Yes- 83.7%
No- 17.3%
8. What changes or additions would you like
to see to the media center and how it is
operated?
Open ended
response.

21. POSITIVE SURVEY RESULTS
Responses Responses
“We got lots of books now we got
two tables of computers we got the
shelves line up different ways and
we got bean bags behind the board
and everybody like how it is
operated.”
“No changes, this library is
awesome.”

22. NEGATIVE SURVEY RESULTS
Responses Responses
“The bookshelves need to be bigger, with
more space between the books.”
“A bathroom.”
“It is very hard to find books.” “Window curtains.”
“More books so we don’t have to wait so long
for a book we want to come in.”
“Decorations on the wall and a
big sign that says “Welcome to
the Library.””
“More computers and computers you can
read stories on.”
“Labels that tell what books are
about.”
“I would like for the media centers workers to
check the books in so that the children could
have a quicker visit to the library. Also it
would be great if more than two per class
could visit the library at a time.”
“Laptops for students to do their
work on.”

23. REVISED MEDIA CENTER FLOOR PLAN
 All modifications
were to current
layout were made
in red.
 Additional
improvements were
made to the sky
lights by adding
window tint.
3 Technology Carts w/ 30
mini PC’s
Mural by local artist
3 Video Surveillance
Monitors
Mural by local artist Soft floor
seating
Mural by
local artist
Soft floor seating
Space widened between
all shelves

24. IMPROVED ENVIRONMENTAL
ELEMENTS
 Murals by local artist added to the walls.
 Graphics added to the Dewey decimal system for
easier understanding and quicker access.
 Larger collections in the DD system will be labeled on
shelf by category. For example the 796’s will be
labeled by sport so students can gain quicker access.
 Addition of three laptop carts.
 Each cart will hold 30 laptops available for teacher
checkout and classroom use.

25. MODIFICATIONS AND CHANGES
 Hire local artist “Jennifer Newell” to paint murals on the walls to
add color designs that correlate with literature and technology
standards.
 Examples of her work are shown below.

26. IMPROVED FURNISHINGS
 Cocoon Cushions
 Washable cushions add
soft seating to reading
spots in your school or
library.
 $65.99 - $519.99
Problem: Limited number of bean bags and soft floor seating for students.
Suggestions for improvement: add cushions from one of the following
venders to allows soft floor students for an entire classroom of students.
Children's Floor Furniture
Turn any space into a cozy
reading zone!
$25.99 - $81.99

27. TECHNOLOGY
 Bretford® High-capacity
Laptop Storage Carts
 Hold and power up to 30
laptop computers with this
storage cart.
 $1964.99 - $2499.99
Problem: Students and teachers do not have access to computers for
checkout and use in the classroom.
Acer - 10.1" Aspire One
Netbook - 1 GB Memory - 320
GB Hard Drive
Model: AOD270-26Drr
SKU: 5421419
1024 x 600 WSVGA Display - 1
GB RAM - 320 GB HDD - Intel
Graphics Card - Webcam -
Genuine Windows 7 Starter -
HDMI
Suggestion for Improvement: Add three laptop carts fully stocked with 30 mini
PC’s available for checkout and classroom use.

28. ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS AND
SOLUTIONS
 Frosted Square 4.4 cm
Translucent embossed squares of polyester
film. 4.4 cm x 4.4 cm frosted squares
separated by 1 cm clear lines. Semi-
obscuring direct visibility and ideal for office,
conference room, bathroom and bedroom.
An design with wide range of applications.
Our price: $2.75
Problem: The skylights interfere
with students reading, working on
computers, and completing tasks
at certain times within the day.
Suggestion for Improvement:
Add professional window tint to
keep light in but to reduce the
glare.

29. ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS AND
SOLUTIONS
 IP Video Surveillance Systems - Pricing
 Our IP Video Surveillance software is priced based on the
number of cameras on an individual server.
 All of our software includes one year of SUP (Software Upgrade
Program. SUP provides 1 year of all product upgrades.
Problem: Several areas are blocked from view at the
circulation desk. A mirror already exists but is not clearly
seen.
Suggestion for Improvement: Install a camera system

30. MEDIA CENTER POLICIES
 “The Media Center will be open each school day from 7:00 to 3:30 for
students to check out books and to do research assignments. “
 The media center does not adhere to the time guidelines listed in the staff
handbook. Students are not aware of these checkout/resource times either.
Therefore, the policy needs to be updated to the times the media center is
available for checkout and reference use. (Ben Hill Co. Elementary Staff Handbook
pg. 59)
 “Reference books may not be checked out for use during the school
day. Reference materials also include books for overnight use at
home.”
 While the policy strictly states that reference materials cannot be checkout out after
the school day, the students need to have access to reference sources and
databases online. The policy needs to be updated to include the URL’s for these
sources as they are vital to students success if media resources cannot be
checked out. ( Ben Hill Co. Elementary Staff Handbook pg. 59)

31. MEDIA CENTER POLICIES
 Internet Safety Policy
 a. To provide educational excellence for the advancement and promotion of learning and
teaching by facilitating resource sharing, innovation, and communication within our own
community, the state, nationally and globally.
 b. To support research and education in and among academic institutions in the world by
providing access to unique resources supplemental to the Media Center resources, and
provide the opportunity for collaborative work.
 The internet safety policy provides students with limited access while logged
onto any computer within the district. The policy in place is well maintained---
each student has to have parent permission per signature before the school
year in order to use the internet. It is well filtered and can be altered per
teachers request. However, because the filter is re-set every year then
websites have to constantly be reopened every year. The policy and the
filtering system need to be updated to maintain a current list of websites that
are no longer blocked so that parents can see this list as well. (Ben Hill Co.
website: http://benhillcounty.schoolinsites.com/)

32. MEDIA CENTER POLICIES
 Circulation Policy
 All student may check out two books at a time and keep the books for a period of two
weeks. Students may not check out reference materials. Students must pay for
damaged or lost books before they will be able to check out further books.
 The policy is in place in order to determine student usage and access to all types of
books within the media center. Students enjoy being able to check out two books at a
time and have not taken advantage of the current circulation policy. The policy in place
works well with the age of students at the Elementary School and is currently up to date
with the new facility. (Ben Hill County Elementary Library Brochure)
 At this time there is no written policy and procedure handbook at the Elementary
School. In order to better operate so all patrons are aware of the policies and
procedures a handbook needs to be created for the media center to include all faucets
of operating, maintaining, accessing, and being a participatory patron of the facility.