Wednesday, December 16, 2015

How students reacted when their beloved school librarian was let go - The Washington Post

How students reacted when their beloved school librarian was let go - The Washington Post:

How students reacted when their beloved school librarian was let go



Students at a public school in Chicago were furious when they learned that their beloved librarian, Sara Sayigh, had to leave because her position was being cut by the school district because of budget problems. Not only was her library a safe place for academic and extra-curricular activities, they also knew that she was one of only three full-time librarians left in Chicago’s more than 45 majority-black high schools. So last week the students protested, sitting down in the hallway outside the library, refusing to go to class and instead, read books. Call it a “read-in.”












The library is located at the DuSable High School campus on Chicago’s South Side, which houses several high schools — and serves both the Daniel Hale Williams Prep and the Bronzeville Scholastic Institute. Sayigh has been heading the library for more than a dozen years, but she just learned that her position was being cut. Why? A school system spokesperson said that every year the district adjusts school funding levels at this time based on enrollment, and that the position was cut because of lower-than-expected enrollment. The district at the moment has a $1.1 billion structural deficit and a $500 million functional deficit for this school year. The spokesperson said in an e-mail:
“While we would love to see skilled librarians at every school, the simple fact of our massive budget crisis puts that goal out of reach – especially as we try to keep teachers in classrooms. CPS is facing a $1.1 billion budget crisis, and we’re working with our state leaders to end an unfair funding system that gives some of the poorest children in the state only $3 for every $4 children in other districts receive. In fact, Chicago students are 20 percent of the state’s enrollment, but receive only 15 percent of the state’s education funding. Until we fix that unfair system, we’ll do everything we can to protect our classrooms.”
It isn’t likely, though, that the students will get their librarian back though the How students reacted when their beloved school librarian was let go - The Washington Post:
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