Sparta Middle School is awarded a $200 check for winning the 2020 Library Card Drive. Pictured (left to right): Emily Morris, Sparta Middle School Librarian, Scott Villarreal, Outreach Manager, Nikki Lamberson, Outreach Specialist, Elizabeth Barns, Friends of the Library Board Member, Loretta Hermann, Friends of the Library Board Member
Which would you choose: more sports and recreation books, graphic novels, or reference and fact books? This tough decision is being made by the students that won the 2020 Library Card Drive.
During the month of October, the Christian County Library collaborates with the teachers and librarians in schools all across the county to host a library card drive. The goal is to remind parents, caregivers, and students that signing up for a library card is the first step towards academic achievement and lifelong learning. The hope is by the end of the drive we would have put a card in every student’s hand.
Flyers, posters, and library card applications were delivered to school teachers and librarians. The library’s Outreach Department then collected completed applications and returned freshly made library cards to those students all while carefully keeping tally. Having an accurate count of completed library card applications is an important part of the process. The school with the highest percentage of students registered for a library card is awarded a $200 check, sponsored by the Friends of the Library, to purchase new books and materials.
Which school had the highest percentage? Sparta Middle School! Thanks to the effort of all Sparta Middle School teachers and School Librarian Emily Morris, the Trojans now have an important decision, what kind of books should be purchased. Emily Morris is having the student body make that decision. Students are casting votes for either books about sports and recreation, graphic novels, or reference and facts. This process will allow each Sparta Middle School student to have a say in the materials that will be added to the collection.
Building on the excitement in Sparta, the Christian County Library is constructing a brand-new community library branch right off Highway 14. This new library branch has been in the works for 12 years and we are excited to uphold the mission of spreading literacy, building community, providing needed resources, and being a general help to the people in our county. Despite weather and COVID interruptions, the projected opening date for the new Sparta Community Library branch is March 2021. For pictures, videos, and more information about the construction process visit christiancountylibrary.org/expansion.
If you live, work, own property or attend school in Christian County you’re eligible for a free Christian County library card. Don’t miss out on all of the resources, services, materials, and opportunities the library offers for the entire family. Still don’t have your own library card? Stop by any community library branch today, it takes only a few minutes.