Vision & Policies

Vision & Mission Statement

The Millbrook Magnet High School Media Center offers learning services, books and resources that empowers students, staff and community members to engage consciously and critically with information in all formats and media.

The library staff support the use of and provide access to print and digital books, databases and other digital tools both on and off campus. The library collection is a reflection of the student population and is intended to support students recreational and academic needs.

It has been demonstrated that, when librarians and teachers work together, students achieve higher levels of literacy, reading, learning, problem-solving and information and communication technology skills.

It is our belief that school library services must be provided equally to all members of the school community, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, nationality, language, professional or social status. Specific services and materials must be provided for those who are unable to use mainstream library services and materials.

The media center staff aims to achieve the mission and vision in the following ways:

  • Provide resources to enrich the lives of students and staff members, as well as those resources which support the curriculum

  • Provide instruction in accessing, evaluating, and using current and reliable information rich in real-world applicability

  • Guide students in striving for independence and knowledge of available resources in various formats and varying reading levels to suit all needs and interests

  • Collaborate with faculty to develop resource-based curricular assignments, project-based learning scaffolding activities, and effective lessons/units

  • Provide professional development opportunities in innovative technologies and current education practices and trends

  • Teach the importance of ethical conduct in the use of all resources and academic work

  • Make available the most current technologies for students and staff via continued professional development seeking/delivery, grant writing, and collaborating with district and state-level colleagues in the fields of education and library science

Circulation

  • Checkout time & renewal

  • Overdue Fines

  • Lost Books

  • Teacher Checkout

Library Use

Students

General Library Use

    • Students may visit the library individually between the hours of 7 a.m. and 3:20 p.m.

    • Teacher permission and a pass is needed during class times between 7:25am and 2:20pm.

    • All students must sign in when using the media center during class hours and at lunch.

    • With teacher permission and pass, students may use the library for circulation, study, make-up tests or small-group meetings.

    • Up to five students from a single class can visit the library at the same time.

Printing

    • Students can print using either desktop or laptop computers in the library. At this time, classroom computers and personal devices are not networked to the media center printers and cannot print from media center printers.

    • Printing costs 10 cents per page. Students may pay in cash or have the balance applied to their media center account on Destiny.

    • At this time, color printing is not available to students through the media center.

Lunch

Year long Lunch Passes

      • Students can obtain (or replace) a year long lunch pass from library staff before or after school. The pass is to be signed by the student and retained for the duration of the school year.

      • Passes are non-transferrable and cannot be used by anyone other than the student whose name is on the pass.

Food & Drink

      • Students may bring their food and drink into the library for consumption.

      • Students may not have food or drink while using library laptops or desktops.

      • Students are provided with two large trash cans to dispose of all personal trash and food waste.

      • Library staff reserve the right to stop food and drink from entering the library at any time.


Staff

The library operates on a flexible schedule. Teachers are encouraged to plan class lessons which include research and reference materials and to schedule time for classes to meet in the library.

To reserve time and space in the library, please email Shannon Kraus and CC Tara Gold and Rachell Genesky. In your request, please include the date(s), class period(s) and space desired. All efforts will be made to accommodate your requests. Please note that the library may be closed for special events or testing before, during or after school.

Staff may send up to five students to the library with a pass at any given time.

Circulation

Borrowing

    • Books may be checked out for 3 weeks.

Renewing

    • Books may be renewed up to 2 times.

Fines & Fees

    • Students will be notified by email that that books and materials are overdue and/or missing on a weekly basis.

    • Parents/guardians will be notified by email that their student(s) has overdue and/or missing books and materials on a quarterly basis.

    • MHS does not charge late fees/overdue fines for books and materials* returned after the due date. *As of January 2020, policy is not retroactive.

    • If a book is lost or damaged, you are responsible for the replacement cost.

    • Fees must be paid online through OSP.

American Library Association Bill of Rights upholds that all students have access to all circulating materials in libraries. The Librarian has a professional obligation to provide equal access to all library resources for all library users. Parents - and only parents - have the right and responsibility to restrict the access of their children - and only their children - to library resources. As a parent or guardian, if you desire to limit your child's access to certain library services, materials or facilities, discuss it with your child. We encourage you to share with us your thoughts, questions and suggestions about your child's use of the library.

Honor Code and Intellectual Property

Student Honor Code

    • Academic honesty is a critical component of the IB Learner Profile and the WCPSS Honor Code. The Millbrook Media Center supports the development of principled learners who act with integrity and honesty.

    • Media center staff actively work to support students in upholding the Honor code through prevention, intervention, and reporting.

      • Prevention: Proactively addressing academic dishonesty through education and lessons on intellectual property, citations, and ethical research practices.

      • Intervention: reeducating the student(s) by reinforce best practices for academic honesty at the point of need.

      • Reporting: Communicating observed academic dishonesty to the student's classroom teacher and/or administrator.

Intellectual Property: Copyright and Fair Use

    • All faculty are responsible for understanding the application of copyright law to their work and for complying with all legal requirements surrounding copyrighted works. Faculty are also responsible for ensure that students are informed of copyright laws.

    • The library media specialists are responsible for educating school staff, faculty, and students on intellectual property, copyright, and fair use.

    • The the library media staff has a professional obligation to inform staff, faculty, and students of potential legal or ethical infringements related to intellectual property. It is not the responsibility of media staff to physically prevent copyright infringement from occurring, but, rather, to inform and educate.

    • The library media staff may communicate to administration any failures to comply with copyright law.