BraunJ Policy

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Jada Braun

Safety in Media Center Policy

September 16, 2011


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Every school library media specialist wants to provide students with an

environment that is conducive for learning. By implementing a safety policy, you are

ensuring that students are effective users of ideas and information and becoming critical

thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers, and ethical users of information.

(A m e r i c a n A s s o ci a t i o n o f S c h o o l L i b r a r i a n s , 2 0 0 9 ) According to the

Library Leadership and Management Association ( " L i b r a r y s e c u r i t y

g u i d e l i n e s , " 2 0 1 0 ) , which is a division of the American Library Association,

security is defined as a common synonym for physical protection that includes fire

protection and emergency planning. ( " L i b r a r y s e c u r i t y g u i d e l i n e s , " 2 0 1 0 )

These elements are the major components of a media center safety policy.

What is the purpose of a safety policy? Safety policies should first and foremost

be put into practice to make certain that both library staff and students are protected from

any type of physical harm. Along with the safety of staff and students, a safety policy can

also include protection of the building, the contents of the building, and the surroundings

of the building. According to the Library Security Guidelines Document, which was

revised June 27, 2010, the media specialists safety and security responsibilities include,

but are not limited, to the development and integration of protection programs for

emergencies, as well as fire, floods, earthquakes, and other natural disasters. ( " L i b r a r y

s e c u r i t y g u i d e l i n e s , " 2 0 1 0 ) Safety policies should also include rules and

guidelines for staff and students to follow when they are in the media center.

According to the LLAMA there are several elements that are essential for

promoting safety and security in the media center. The first element to creating a safe


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learning environment for students is the ability to set rules for the media center. Including

a Code of Patron Conduct into the safety policy will make media center expectations

concrete. Establishing the rules early, and by being consistent with the rules, the media

center will be an environment where inappropriate behavior is not tolerated. Also, having

the rules posted in a location visible to all students will be a constant reminder of media

center expectations. An additional element essential to the development of a safety policy

is anticipating, and taking reasonable measures to prevent predictable losses such as

minor vandalism, injuries, theft of library materials or library user property, utility

interruptions, and the non-return of items borrowed from the collection ( " L i b r a r y

s e c u r i t y g u i d e l i n e s , " 2 0 1 0 ) . According to a 2002 article written by Media &

Methods entitled Security issues in your library, surveys taken by school libraries with a

collection of 5,000 items or more indicate that schools can loose a minimum of 3% of

their collection in one year. If you assume that the average price of an item in a collection

is $25, in one year a school can loose $3,750 in materials. Efforts are being made to

prevent students from leaving the library with items that have not been properly checked

out. An effective way to ensure that students are not leaving with items that they did not

properly check out is to position the circulation desk at the main entrance area of the

media center to better monitor students. Besides monitoring the students as they enter and

exit the media center, many media centers are implementing a collection security system,

which includes a radio frequency security system that sets off an alarm while exiting the

library unless the security tag is disarmed by checking out the book. Although library

collection security is a major safety issue in media centers, which is the, today there are

more destructive breaches of security. Todays media specialist has to consider the safety


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of electronic media, computer files, and technology equipment. Software security can be

used in the media center to allow restricted software access to individuals. These

securities can discourage students from accessing confidential records and also

safeguarding software. Equipment security devices allow for technology equipment to be

secured to furniture in the media center. These new advancements in security allow the

media specialist to try to prevent loss of library materials and properties. Also, making

sure that doors and windows are locked when the media center is unattended is essential.

Another element to the safety policy includes preparing and keeping current a library fire

evacuation plan and an emergency disaster plan for each library with specific staff

instructions and directions. Sufficient exits and exiting guidelines should be incorporated

into the emergency plans. Weekly libraries are affected by damaging storms and other

disasters. School media specialist need to plan for disaster relief in the event of

destructive weather or events. Beyond Words, the Dollar General school library relief

fund, was created to help librarians construct a plan for these types of emergencies. The

American Library Association, the American Association of School Librarians, and the

National Education Association have compiled resources to assist in developing a library

disaster plan. Having a plan in place that can be put into action through the safety policy

will allow the media center to be well prepared in case of an emergency. Including all of

these elements in the safety policy will make certain that you have created a safe and

secure learning environment.

A major issue surrounding the security and safety of the school media center is

the lack of funding available for school districts in todays economy. The securities

needed to keep staff and students safe from the many dangers in the 21st century library


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has a hefty price tag.

References

A m e r i c a n A s s o c ia t i o n o f S c h o o l L i b r a r i a n s . ( 2 0 0 9 ) .

E m p o w e r i n g l e a r n e r s : g u i d e l i n e s f o r s c h o o l l i b r a r y m e d i a

p r o g r a m s . A m e r i c a n L i b r a r y A s s o c i a t i o n .

G r e g o r y, G . M . ( 2 0 0 8 ) . C o v e r n o t e s . H o w s a f e a r e w e ? , 4 6 .

R e t r i e v e d f r o m E B S C O h o s t .

L i b r a r y L e a d e r s h i p a n d M a n a g e m e n t A s s o ci a t i o n , S a f e t y &

S e c u r i t y o f L i b r a r y B u i l d i n g s C o m m i t t e e . ( 2 0 1 0 ) . L i b r a r y

s e c u r i t y g u i d e l i n e s d o c u m e n t R e t r i e v e d f r o m

h t t p : / / w w w . a l a . o r g / a l a / m g r p s / d i v s / l l a m a / p u b l i c a t i o n s / L i b r

a r y S e c u r i t y G u i d e . p d f

R i g g s , F. ( 2 0 0 5 ) . L i b r a r y m e d i a c o n n e c t i o n . M e d i a m a n n e r s

m a t t e r ! , 3 4 . D O I : E B S C O h o s t

R o b e r t s o n , G . ( 2 0 0 4 ) . R i s k , r u l e s a n d e n f o r c e m e n t : e n h a n c i n g

c h i l d s a f e t y i n t h e l i b r a r y . ( 3 ) , 1 0 9 - 1 1 1 . D O I : E B S C O h o s t
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/llama/publications/LibrarySecurityGuide.pdfhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/llama/publications/LibrarySecurityGuide.pdfhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/llama/publications/LibrarySecurityGuide.pdfhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/llama/publications/LibrarySecurityGuide.pdf


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Security issues in your library. (2000). Media & Methods, 36(4), 14. Retrieved from

EBSCOhost.

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