Figley 1

Facility Plan: Hanes Magnet School

Introduction to Hanes Magnet School

Hanes Magnet School is a middle school. It serves students in sixth, seventh and eighth

grades. The focus is on science, math and technology. They offer Project Lead the Way, which is

a national pre-engineering program. As a magnet school, Hanes is open to all students in

Forsyth County, and busing is provided by the county. There is an emphasis on gifted education,

and Hanes has an HAG program. The media center also serves the students in Lowran Middle

School, a small, special needs school that shares the Hanes building. Hanes is currently focused

on using federal Magnet Schools Assistance Grant money to improve the technology in the

school. The media center serves 1100 students and 81 teachers.

Overall Space

North Carolina’s IMPACT guidelines recommend a school library have between four and six

square feet of space per student. For Hanes, with 1100 students, this would be between 4400

and 6600 square feet. The minimum size given by IMPACT is 3400 square feet for middle school

libraries, with an additional 1800 square feet for support space. The Hanes Magnet School

library is 4500 square feet, with an additional 565 square feet of support space. The library

space meets IMPACT guidelines, however, the support space is quite a bit smaller than the

recommended space (2005, 83).

The library is in a central location within the school, and is near both the main entrance and

the administration, per IMPACT guidelines. It is also on the ground floor, as IMPACT

Figley 2

recommends, and the entire library is on one level. These guidelines are designed to make the

library accessible, and the school library at Hanes Magnet School meets this goal of

accessibility. It is not, however, accessible independently of the school for use when the school

is not open (2005, 62).

The shelving in the library is in accordance with IMPACT guidelines. The shelving on the

perimeter is single-faced, while the freestanding shelves are double-faced (2005, 100). Because

the media center is one large room, shelves are low, so as not to interfere with the line of sight.

The double-faced shelving is all on wheels for ease of movement. This allows for flexibility in

the arrangement of the media center.

The signage in the Hanes Magnet School library is good. The library is clearly identified from

the outside, and shelves are clearly labeled. Major sections are labeled using large wooden

letters, which are painted by the art students in a different theme each year. Currently, they are

all red, white and blue.

Overall, the library confirms to IMPACT standards. It is an aesthetically pleasing environment

and is simply decorated. Currently, student dioramas are displayed on two of the shelves, and

there is a display for banned books week near the entrance. The ceilings are extremely high,

and the furniture is appropriately sized for middle school students (2005, 64). The library has a

separate thermostat, as IMPACT suggests, although it is controlled by the administration rather

than the library staff (2005, 65). As IMPACT recommends, there are separate lighting zones to

allow dimming in specific areas while others remain lighted, and the master control switch is

near the main entrance (2005, 65). While there are no blinds or other natural light controls for

the small, high windows, there are no issues with the amount of natural light (such as glare on

Figley 3

computer screens) that comes into the library, and there are blinds on the large, low windows.

The acoustics in the facility are also in accordance with IMPACT guidelines. The library is not

near the cafeteria, band room or other noisy areas, and though the ceilings are quite high,

there is no difficulty with noise inside the library (2005, 65).

Functional Areas

A good school library is designed with function in mind. The Hanes Magnet School library

has adequate space, and is nicely arranged for various activities. In alignment with IMPACT

guidelines, the library has areas for large group instruction, reference, informal reading,

booktalks, independent work, small group study, circulation, and computer use. All areas are

visible from wherever the librarian is working, as IMPACT repeatedly recommends.

The large group instruction area is large enough to accommodate an entire class and is

located near the reference area per IMPACT guidelines (2005, 85). The area seats 36 students.

It includes a 56" LCD TV, which is connected to a laptop and a document camera. It can also be

an active board when used with an electronic tablet. IMPACT recommends a teaching station

with a large screen for use with audiovisual and multimedia equipment (2005, 85). This large

group instruction space is the most used area in the Hanes Magnet School library.

The reference area is divided into two areas in the library. One reference section has space

for a small group, with seating for six, as well as a desk for individual study. The other reference

section has a grouping of computers and is located near the circulation area, as recommended

by IMPACT (2005, 86).

Figley 4

There is a booktalk area, and it is located near the informal reading area, as IMPACT

recommends (2005, 87). However, the librarian generally uses her large instructional area when

giving booktalks. The library has a collection for its special needs students, and the booktalk

podium is mainly used to checkout materials to these students because of its proximity to the

collection.

There are a number of areas for individual and small group study. The media center is set up

to accommodate many students, in groups of varying sizes. In addition to the large instructional

area, there are two smaller group areas. One seats 24 students, and the other can

accommodate 18 students. There is a table in the reference area that seats six students and a

small table for four in a corner of the non-fiction section. There are also two computer areas

that each seat eight students, and the online catalog, as well as online databases and internet

access, are available at each computer. There is also a desk for independent study. All together,

the various areas in the library can accommodate 111 students at any one time. These study

areas allow the library the flexibility to accommodate several different groups at once and to

function in a collaborative learning environment.

The circulation desk is located near the entrance and exit. It holds a computer and printer

and is small, as IMPACT recommends (2005, 93).

IMPACT recommends that the informal reading area have comfortable, informal seating and

complementary tables as well as magazine shelving. Hanes has a couch and two comfortable

chairs, a low coffee table, and shelves that display the newest issues of popular magazines.

There are three rooms in the support area of the Hanes Magnet School library. The first

room functions as an office for the librarian and the assistant, and holds their desks as well as

Figley 5

an extra desk that is used as a workspace. The office has a window, so that the librarian can see

the library while in the office. The librarian also keeps a jar of chocolates in the office for

teachers. She invites them in when they deserve chocolates for work well done or when they

need encouragement. She hopes this open door invitation to her office will draw teachers into

the library. The second support room holds the class sets, and is used for periodical storage.

This room has a corner that is designated as the professional space. The professional space is a

small folding table with two chairs and a shelf of professional materials. The third room houses

the Bogen system, which allows the school to show videos and TV channels in all classrooms at

the same time. The room also holds the library's collection of videos and DVDs. This room is

largely used for storage. All three support rooms are smaller than IMPACT recommends.

IMPACT recommends an office of 250 square feet for one school librarian and an assistant. The

office is 220 square feet, so it is only slightly smaller than the recommendation. However,

IMPACT recommends 1800 square feet for support space, and even using the minimum

recommendations for each area, the space at Hanes falls short (2005, 83). The total support

space for the Hanes library is 565 square feet.

Revised Facility Plan

The bulk of my revisions involve the support space. IMPACT designates 1800 square feet of

support space in a middle school media center. Meeting this guideline would require expanding

the library space, which would necessitate removing a wall to extend the library space.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to simply enlarge the area where the support space is currently,

because it is adjacent to administrative offices.

Figley 6

A less costly approach would be to keep the current spaces, but to reclaim them for library

use, and redesign them. Currently, the room used for library storage is full of other materials.

The rolls of paper for the school bulletin boards are stored here, for example. The PTA also uses

this room for storage. Meanwhile, boxes of class sets and other library materials are piled in

hallways and other corners of the library. If another area could be found to store non-library

materials, the existing space could be better utilized.

Floor to ceiling shelving could be installed along the walls of the storage room, in place of the

cabinetry that is currently wasting much of the space. Additional double-sided shelving will also

go in the center of the room. This will provide adequate space to house the collection of class

sets and periodicals in this room, as well as the video and DVD collection it currently holds.

The room that is currently housing portions the class sets and periodicals could then be set

up as a small conference room and professional space. The librarian acutely feels the need for a

quiet space for meetings, away from the noise of a library filled with teenagers, and this space

would fill this need if outfitted as a conference room. The current professional development

space consists of a card table and two chairs. A small collection of professional resources is

available, but as the space is, no one is using it. If the room were resigned as a comfortable

space, the librarian thinks that teachers would use it. IMPACT outlines a space with comfortable

furniture, recommending rolling, upholstered chairs for professional staff (2005, 102). The

purchase of a rug, conference tables and chairs will redesign the space. A coffee maker will be

added to draw teachers into the space. Two computers will be added for teachers to use. The

professional collection will be modestly updated. The space will be inviting to teachers. A

parent resource section will be added, and parents will be invited to use the space as well.

Figley 7

Another wall of shelving will be added to ensure that the maximum amount of storage is being

gotten from these small spaces.

Because the computers are located in two separate areas, the library needs to install

software to monitor the student computers from the librarian's computer and from the

circulation desk. This will allow for easy monitoring of computer usage.

The outlets in the library are something to keep an eye on. The current arrangement of

computers works well, but the computers cannot be easily rearranged because of the

placement of the outlets. At this time, this is not problematic; however, it is a situation that

should be reassessed frequently.

Budget

object to purchase price per item quantity total price

computer monitoring

software

$150.00/per year 1 $150.00

Professional space

conference table $624.99 $624.99

one wall of mobile

shelving

$924.99 3 $2,774.97

rug $269.99 1 $269.99

computers $1499.00 2 $2998

Keurig coffee maker $116 1 $116

chairs $124.99 6 $749.94

Figley 8

Collection development- adding to

professional resources and beginning parent

resources

$1000

Storage Room

Single-sided mobile

shelving for

periphery

879.99 6 $5,279.94

double-sided mobile

shelving for center

1179.99 4 $4719.96

Total $19,458.78

Prices from Demco, The Apple Store

References

American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Empowering Learners: guidelines for school

media programs. Chicago: American Library Association.

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Instructional Technology Division. (2005).

IMPACT: guidelines for North Carolina media and technology programs. Raleigh, NC.

Figley 9