Students at the Carter G. Woodson charter school in Winston-Salem can use their band room and hands-on science lab any time, but their library comes only once a week.
The school has grown in the past 10 years, but it continues to rely on the bookmobile for reading materials -- something that school officials hope to change this fall.
But to transform its meager collection of children's books into a full library, the school will need the minimum of 4,500 books (10 books a student) that the N.C. Department of Public Instruction recommends for a school media center. Woodson, a publicly financed, privately owned school for grades K-12, has 450 students.
"We're pushing to have it here by the time (the students) get back," said Mashunda Stephenson, the school's administrative assistant. "We want to expand what our upperclassmen are able to access and able to read."
Having up-to-date books on a variety of subjects provides students with current and useful learning tools, said Gerry Solomon, a school-library media consultant with the DPI.
The school will raise $170,000 to pay for new books, library staff, furniture and technology, but donated books will ensure that the shelves are full when students return in the fall.
Hazel MacHilliard, Woodson's founder, said that the school delayed getting a library to focus on creating a strong curriculum for its students.
Some hope that in addition to educating students, the library can become a resource for parents and families.
Laura Dildine, a law student at Wake Forest University, has been gathering support for the book drive since late spring.
"The larger vision for this library is a community enrichment center," she said.
Dildine developed a relationship with the school through her work at the Community Law and Business Clinic as a public interest research fellow.
"They want this library to facilitate a love of reading," she said.
So far, Dildine has collected about 350 books at the downtown clinic.
Clarissa Martin, 17 and a rising senior at Woodson, said that a stable book collection would allow students to do research without having to visit public libraries or wait for the bookmobile.
■ Christian Kloc can be reached at 727-7270 or at ckloc@wsjournal.com.
■ Book donations can be made to the Community Law and Business Clinic (8 W. Third St., Suite 100, Winston-Salem, 336-631-1953) or to the Carter G. Woodson charter school (437 Gold Floss St., Winston-Salem). Donations at the downtown clinic are tax deductible.
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