Maryland Schools Request
More State Aid for Libraries
Maryland Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick announced October 24 she is asking the state school board for nearly three times the amount of funding currently spent on school libraries. The proposal, which seeks a total of $8.7 million, came in reaction to state educational statistics that show fewer than one in five school libraries meet Maryland standards for the minimum number of books and supplies.
The plan would provide money for a comprehensive survey of the condition of every school library in the state and would raise the allocation for books and materials from $3 million to $7 million annually, including $2.5 million earmarked for online database costs. Grasmick will also ask legislators to allow schools to use state funds for purchasing books for middle and high schools instead of limiting them to elementary schools.
“We want to work with the local systems to improve the ways that libraries can help student achievement,” Grasmick said in the October 25 Baltimore Sun. Gov. Parris N. Glendening’s office stated that education is a top priority in next year’s budget.
Posted October 30, 2000.
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