Staff+Orientation

**Staff Orientation**
The library opens at 7:00 am all week. It is very important that the library assistant be on Opening the library each is the sole responsibility of the library assistant. Lunch times are 30 minutes and will stagger in order to provide adequate coverage of the library and computer labs. The library assistant will take lunch from 12:00 pm-12:30 pm, and then from 12:30 pm -1:30 pm, the library assistant will work off desk on projects, displays, checking work related email, story time preparation, weeding, etc. This off-desk time is important for the development of activities and is not considered break-time. **All staff** works the front desk and must be consistent with checkouts: 1.) Students must have a CDO I.D. 2.) Fines need to be paid before checkout or renewal. 3.) I.D. taken for textbooks and magazines. 4.) Please delete holds when putting books back on shelf.

What to do if you are going to be late or gone for the day due to illness or other unplanned event?
Please call Beth at 869-0925 and leave a message by 6 am that morning if you are opening. In addition, please leave a message with Rhonda at 696-5566. Librarians will leave a message at the front desk of the library, in addition to notifying Rhonda. If you are more than 5 minutes late, you must follow the same procedure above and make corrections to your timesheet.

Library Goals

 * 1) Literacy (Promoting Reading and Providing Materials Appropriate for Each Patron )
 * 2) Teaching Critical Thinking/Problem Solving Skills (Computer Skills and Research)
 * 3) Providing a Place (Friendly, Helpful, Controlled, Accepting)

Library Staff Goals
1. Work as a team to provide the best possible service to students, faculty, staff, and parents. (We all have tasks that we are primarily responsible for, but if you see something that needs to be done to better serve our community, please take the initiative to help out. In addition, we are a small staff. If you have issues with someone or a policy, please talk to that person directly or bring up the issue at our library meetings.) 2. Stay busy. (Public perception is everything. There is always something that needs to be done, just ask. Or if you have ideas that you would like to try, we’d love to hear them. While working the front desk, please greet students as they enter and avoid reading while on desk. A staff member with his/her head buried in a book is not inviting to students.

3. Meet two times per month to discuss issues. (Librarians will schedule and facilitate.)

4. Set individual goals at the beginning of each year.

Library Mission
See Collection Development Policy

Working with Patrons
==You will be working with students, teachers, staff, parents, and members of the community, but primarily students. Please treat students with the same respect you would give an adult. After all, they are the reason we’re here. CDO has a code of conduct for students. Please refer the student handbook for this information. When students decide to make bad choices regarding behavior, it is our job to help them find alternatives to their actions. Some issues may be handled with a verbal warning, some a written referral, and some may require a students being asked to leave or be physically removed by security. When possible, do not handle difficult situations alone. Librarians are available to assist or take over in these situations.== When several patrons are waiting, assure them that you’ll help them soon. Call for backup (Beth or David) as needed to shorten waiting lines. Don’t try to handle a busy desk alone when help is available. If you are on the phone when a patron approaches, indicate that you will soon be with him/her. Be sure the patron knows that you are aware of him/her. Putting the patron at ease facilitates good communication, especially when the question is confidential in nature. Maintain eye contact if the patron is comfortable with this behavior. Make attentive comments or nod. Speak in interested, helpful tones. Avoid using one’s own value system when judging a patron or their request. Every question is valid. Indicate by facial expression, body language, and verbal response that you are interested in the patron’s request. When you are upset by a patron encounter, get away from the desk, explain to coworkers what happened, ask to be relieved from the desk, and take a break. Covering for one another when needed is part of the concept of teamwork. If you remain on desk while still upset, bad feelings may result and may be passed on to the next patron. When a colleague has a difficult patron interaction, remain nearby. Don’t interrupt: just be available if needed. The librarian is available to step in if needed to handle angry patrons. One of the best ways to be good to ourselves on the job is to be good to those we are helping. Patrons almost always reflect back the respect and kindness they’re shown.
 * APPROACHABILITY: ** Be aware of what is going on at the front desk. If no patrons are at the desk, look around to see if anyone in another area needs help. Smile and extend greetings once eye contact is made. Be aware of how your facial expressions/body language appear to others. Look like someone who is comfortable for others to approach. Above all remember that students and teachers are our first priority. Staff conversations must wait.
 * INTEREST: ** Pay careful attention to what the patron is saying. Don’t interrupt. Although it may be difficult in a busy library, try to concentrate on the person you are helping. Provide an environment that is as free of distractions and interruptions as possible. Finishing the reference interview in the stacks may help. Accompany the patron to the stacks if appropriate and if others are not waiting. Encourage follow-up if further help is needed if information found is not sufficient.
 * DIFFICULT SITUATIONS: ** Be businesslike. If the patron is angry or hard to understand, ask a librarian to take over. Often a personnel change has a calming effect and may allow the patron to relax and rephrase the question more clearly. A colleague may hear or see something that you initially overlooked.
 * ACCURACY AND COMPLETE ANSWERS ** : Aim for accurate answers. Clarify a request by asking open-ended questions. Verify a request by paraphrasing the question asked. To find out if the patron is satisfied, ask a closed question, such as, "Does this completely answer your question?" Close interview tactfully.


 * Readers Advisory **
 * An Overview **


 * Readers Advisory ** - helps users educate themselves, become purposeful readers, extend their frontiers of knowledge, expand their powers of discrimination, appreciation, and judgment, and develop sound lasting reading habits. In general, the Readers Advisory service is more casual and informal than reference services. When patrons seek Readers Advice, there are several possible steps, which may be taken first, depending on what is asked for and the resources of the library. Reference librarians have a responsibility to have enough knowledge of the major novelists both American and world to appropriately advise a uniformed patron.

Although you may not be a fan of the "gothic" or "occult-horror" fiction, to function professionally, you should know who-wrote-what of these genres, and which are the most popular.

A simple definition - a way to help patrons find the materials they want, for whatever reason they want them.

** What makes a good Readers’ Advisor? **

//__ Staff commitment to a reader service program __//. Your attitude contributes to the patron’s perception of satisfaction. The request for a "good read" is no less than a request for the causes of the French Revolution. Each person should leave the library feeling that he/she was helped.

//__ Have a helping, nonjudgmental __//__ //attitude//. __ Just because you might not be a fan of murder mysteries, does not mean the patron you are helping does not consider them important and worthwhile reading.

//__ Wide book knowledge __//. Take a look at what is on the bestseller lists, be familiar with publishing trends. Know what the hot reads are on the talk show circuit.

//__ Have a familiarity with the book collection at your agency __//. Be what Lawrence Clark Powell refers to as a "walking librarian.” Take patrons to the stacks personally and help them make their selections. Don’t fall into the routine of just pointing in the direction of the mysteries when a patron asks for a book. This is your opportunity to interact with the patrons on a more personal level.

//__ Have a positive attitude __//. It doesn’t take a genius to see the benefits of a positive attitude. People tend to react nicer back to you when you are pleasant and positive in your interactions with them.


 * How Patrons Ask for Readers Advice **** . **

The usual way a patron will ask you to recommend a book, is by asking the simple question:

//"Can you recommend a good __(i.e. mystery, spy novel, romance), one that I will like?"__//

__ Assisting a reader who asks for a good read is at once simpler, in that you are not expected to know the work of a given author, and more difficult because of the need for a more exacting interview on past reading preferences, likes, dislikes, etc. __

__ The follow-up question to the patron’s inquiry should be: __

__ //"Could you tell me the name of a book that you recently read that you enjoyed?"// __

__ Here is where you find out whether the reader is an intellectual; a romance paperback addict needing a fix, or a hardcore horror buff. __

__ The other way patrons will ask for help is: __

__ //"Who writes just like// __//_?" (insert Danielle Steele, Stephan King, Dean Koontz, Tony Hillerman…..)//

These perpetual questions at the information desk are asked by perpetrators of all ages. Readers tend to want to remain with certain authors who specialize in a subject of interest, or who write a certain pace or invent dialogue with which they are comfortable. Librarians have to rely on their own knowledge, bibliographies, or staff-compiled information for clues to answering the who writes like my favorite author question.

** Some suggestions to help **

· Own personal knowledge - most of us read and enjoy reading fiction. Just tap into your own personal built-in software. Name associations is helpful, try to develop this skill. Become familiar with the collection at your branch. Take time to browse through the fiction collection. Take pride in filling the A-frame and keeping it filled.

· Bibliographic sources – //__What Do I Read Next__// has lists of suggested titles for bibliographic guidance. The single most helpful resource may be //__Novelist__//, a computer program from EBSCO which is easy to use for both patrons and librarians.

· In house bibliographies/finding tools - these can be helpful, but must be updated.

· Also look at the Readers Services Page on the PCPL Home Page ( http://www.library.pima.gov/books/)

Material is arranged by Dewey Decimal Classification System and Fiction is alphabetized.


 * Computer Skills You Will Use **

We have a cart of 30 wireless laptops plus 69 networked computers in our library, 4 black and white printers, 1 scanner, and 1 copy machine. There are free computer classes offered by the district throughout the entire school year and summer. Go to [] to register if you are interested. Classified staff can earn a little extra money each October for attending these classes.


 * Software **

Circulation (Follett)-Checking in/out books and processing. TEMS-Can check student schedules and pictures, students’ home phone numbers and addresses.


 * E-mail (Outlook)- ** Can check for new messages, open messages and read them. Can reply to messages and send messages observing CDO administrative directives, e-mail and Internet etiquette. Can send messages to others inside and outside the gateway, can delete messages.


 * Applications (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)- ** Can prepare, present and print information using one or more software applications.


 * Browsers (either Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox)- ** Can access and navigate the Internet with Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox. Can go directly to Internet addresses. Knows things to try when error messages occur. Can edit or correct a typed URL.Can advise patrons on printing information from the Web.

Periodical database (EBSCOhost) Windows and the World Wide Web. Understands searching techniques, keyword searching, browse searching.
 * Database Searching **

Encyclopedia Britannica (Online Encyclopedia)

Novelist (Reader’s Advisory Database)

Newspaper Database (Starnet) Can connect to Starnet Archives and Wire Services, Can design searches in strategies for Starnet's "Old" and "New" Archive, using Starnet with Internet Explorer.

Computerized Catalog or OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog) Can assist patrons: searching, limiting searches, viewing their own records, suggesting items the library should purchase.