Georgia Librarians Defend School Collection Against Audit

Staff -- School Library Journal, 2/1/1999

A widely publicized audit of the DeKalb (GA) School District has left parents angry over the apparent disparity of library collections within the system. But librarians at Stephenson High School, the library deemed to have the system's poorest collection, say that the audit, which relied solely on book inventory figures to draw its conclusions, was unfair. The truth, they assert, is that while their library has few books, there's no deadwood. All the books are new.

Peggy Healey, assistant supervisor of educational media for the district, and DeKalb system librarians agree that the audit did not take several significant factors into account, such as the quality of collections and shifts in student population. If anything, says Kathi Vanderbilt, a library media specialist at Stephenson High School, Stephenson should be congratulated for building its collection so quickly.