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Mountain View librarian credits collection overhaul as student checkouts jump; principal highlights supports for multilingual learners
Summary
At the Quincy School District meeting, Mountain View librarian Megan Higgins described a library overhaul that boosted circulation from 2,800 to 5,077; principal Jose Ramos reported on PBIS, interventions, student demographics and upcoming family engagement events.
Megan Higgins, a librarian at Mountain View Elementary, told the Quincy School District board that changes to the school library and community support have significantly increased student use.
"The total circulation for the 300 students we have was 2,800, and last year, it was 5,077," Higgins said during public comment, adding that she removed roughly 2,600 underused books, reorganized shelving by genre, and secured nearly $4,500 in local donations to expand the collection. Higgins also described a recent literacy week in which 32 community readers showed up and read to students across grade bands.
Principal Jose Ramos credited Higgins and staff with helping create a culture of belonging and described school-level data and targeted supports. He said Mountain View serves about 300 students, roughly 91% Latino, with about 84% eligible for free or reduced-price meals, about 50% multilingual learners and about 13% students with disabilities. Ramos outlined school strategies including PBIS, restorative practices, intervention/acceleration blocks, structured recess zones and targeted "lunch-bunch" counseling groups for students who receive referrals.
Ramos said academic monitoring uses STAR data and PLC cycles to guide instruction and interventions. On math, he reported a recent increase in students showing typical to high growth and said the school is focused on narrowing low-growth groups. Ramos also highlighted family-engagement events, including a literacy STEAM night and a May family festival.
Meeting actions: earlier in the session the board adopted the consent agenda by voice vote; the transcript records the motion and Chair'led voice vote but does not include a roll-call tally.
Next steps: Higgins and school staff asked the board to consider the library's role in student engagement during budget deliberations; school leaders said updates on progress and upcoming events will continue to be shared with the board.
