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JANE MADDEN WELCHMore than 7,000 library books at Palm Harbor Elementary were lost due to mold infestation.
PALM HARBOR - There's a four-letter-word that librarians across the country find alarming: mold.
That four-letter-word has reduced Palm Harbor Elementary's library collection from nearly 12,000 books to fewer than 4,000.
"It's heartbreaking to lose that many books," said Lou Ann Jourdan, media center assistant.
The problem began in August 2003. As part of a statewide initiative, Palm Harbor Elementary was participating in the Sunlink project, whose aim is to interconnect all school libraries.
Pinellas County school district consultants came to help with the process and evaluate the condition of materials. "They immediately told us, "You've got a problem.' " said Jackie Guthrie, curriculum and media center specialist. They pointed out light-colored tiny spots on the books that were mold, Guthrie said.
The cause of the mold turned out to be a faulty humidity sensor in the air conditioning system. The media center operates on a separate unit, so other classrooms were not affected. Every book had to be checked, and the affected books were boxed up and sent to the district's textbook depository, where they were destroyed.
"You can't clean or repair the books," Guthrie said.
"The mold spreads rapidly, so even books with a tiny amount of mold have to be gotten rid of," Jourdan said. "They are live spores."
Last year Palm Harbor Elementary's library had 11,862 books. By the end of the school year, after checking through every volume, the collection had dwindled to less than 4,000.
"Some of the books we lost were very old and would have been replaced anyway," Guthrie said. "But when we started seeing mold on relatively new books, we realized we really did have a problem."
Mold is not an uncommon problem for libraries, but one that every librarian fears. Once the problem was discovered, Guthrie said district maintenance crews fixed the humidity sensor and installed new carpeting.
Palm Harbor Elementary was originally built in 1926 at a cost of $65,000. A fire destroyed the school in 1948 and it was rebuilt over the next decade. Eight more classrooms, the library and educational building were added by 1963. There are 441 students enrolled at the school.
"It's really interesting everything this school has been through," said PTA president Cathy Houck.
Last year Guthrie and Jourdan approached the PTA about their book dilemma.
"We were able to donate $5,000 last year and hope to raise another $8,000 this year for book purchases," Houck said. "That fits in with our theme this year, which is to get the kids enthusiastic about reading."
In addition to their regular fundraising projects, the PTA started a business sponsorship program to increase contributions, Houck said.
Book donations are welcome if they are appropriate and in good condition. However, many educational books are needed and the district has a core list of recommended books for each age group, Guthrie said.
"Everybody might be ready to get rid of their Cat in the Hat, but we don't need 25 of those in the media center," Houck said. "Our goal is to donate as much in funds as possible so they can go ahead and purchase what they need."
To demonstrate to parents and students how far they have to go, Guthrie and Jourdan set out a 3-foot metal book cart in the media center partially filled with books. An attached sign says the cart represents a typical book order of $5,000, about 343 books.
The average price of a book is about $15, Guthrie said. They order books that come already cataloged and ready to go on the shelves.
On Thursday, Mr. Stambaugh's third grade class was in the media center for their weekly visit. Nadia Dobie, 9, said she loves coming to the library. "My mom says it's a good thing to read."
Steffan Mold, 9, said he always heads straight for the dinosaur books. For Austin Hrin, 8, his favorite books are mysteries, especially the Harry Potter series. Austin said he reads three or four books a week.
Chelsi Archambeau, 8, pointed out the empty shelf space. "We lost some of my favorite books," she said.
Guthrie said when she first came to the school in 2000, "Every single shelf in the media center had books on it, all the way to the floor."
She said it will take at least five years to recoup from the loss. "I'm not discouraged though, we'll end up with a really nice, healthy collection," she said.