The $180,000 grant paid for new books and renovations for the school, which is working to improve reading scores.
By ELISABETH DYER
Published October 15, 2004
Robinson High School has a new student hangout - the library.
Thanks to a $180,000 grant, the school recently finished renovations to the school's media center and added new books, computer equipment and chic couches.
Teacher Maureen Brooks picked out many of the 1,600 titles over the summer at Borders and Amazon.com. She said she went after books about fresh topics and characters who have cell phones, not rotary ones.
"As a reading teacher, I could not be more excited," she said. "Last year I was frustrated because it was hard to find current titles. This year it's like Christmas every day."
The improvements are part of Robinson's efforts to improve reading scores. For the past two years, the school has received a D grade from the state.
School officials say they hope the new books and hip reading environment encourage students to spend more time curled up with a book. The school's marquee touts: Robinson Reads Knightly - a play on the school's mascot.
In the past, students complained books were old and mildewed. Book shelves had outdated orange laminate leftover from the library's last renovation in the 1970s.
"It's a whole new look," said media specialist Paula Marczynski, who came to Robinson in 1993. "The kids are checking out books like I've never seen here. We've already doubled the first quarter last year."
Last week, students in a college prep reading class piled in for a game called Book Pass that allots them three minutes to peruse a book. If they like it, they take it to read. If not, they pass it to their neighbor.
"I want a chick book," said Mike Newell, 14, whose book pile had On the Bright Side, I'm Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God by Louise Rennison.
Jasmin Garcia, 15, picked a vampire story Demon in My View by Amelia Atwater Rhodes. "I'm all into that goth," she said.
Elzie Culwell III, 14, chose The Stupid Crook Book about a guy who tried to rob a bank but locked his keys in his getaway car.
The media center grant came from the Public Education Network and the New York Life Foundation through the Hillsborough Education Foundation.
Robinson was a natural choice for the money. School officials wanted to improve FCAT reading scores and help ninth-graders acclimate to high school by making the library a gathering spot. The grant fit perfectly into their goals.
Robinson had a double misfortune of being an older school - it opened in 1959 - and the smallest high school in the county with about 1,200 students. New media centers receive setup money for laptops, interactive computers and books, but older schools must subsist on the standard annual budget allotment based on student population, currently $2.25 per student.
In addition to books and equipment, the grant also paid for two secretarys to expand the media center's hours from 6:45 a.m. to 5 p.m.
"I have kids waiting at the door every morning," said library secretary Jennie Parry.
One of those regulars, Amber Thompson, 16, says teachers and her best friend got her hooked on reading. "Last year, I wasn't a real big reader." she said. "Now, I'm a book maniac."
