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District librarian: elementary students check out far more books than older students; collections and budgets lag national averages
Summary
The district lead librarian presented 10 years of checkout and collection data showing strong elementary circulation, declining secondary print use and aging collections. She urged more staffing, training, and study of links between circulation and literacy outcomes.
Joy Newkirk, the district lead librarian, told the board Tuesday that elementary students in Alpine read substantially more library books than secondary students but that many school collections are aging and budgets are below national averages.
Newkirk reported that elementary students checked out an average of about 31 books per student last year and that the district’s elementary collections average about 14 books owned per student; she noted a national-comparison figure of 20 books per student. Newkirk said the average age of school collections is older than recommended: she reported an average collection age tied to…
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