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Abstract

TheCommunityAnalysisbelowservestocreateabenchmarkdescriptionoftheTownofSherman,CT.
Communitydemographics,surroundings,andcommunityorganizationswillaidincreatingan
understandingofthetownspeople,lifestyle,andneeds.Thesoleschool,theShermanSchoolis
analyzedbystudents,teachers,staff,administration,BoardofEducation,withafocusontheLibrary
MediaCenter.TheanalysisendswithaconclusionontheLMCsfutureprogramsandservicesneeds.

CommunityOverview

ThetownofShermanisthenorthernmosttowninFairfieldCountyborderingLitchfieldCounty
tothenorthandDutchessCounty,NewYork,tothewest.ItisapartoftheHousatonicValleyand
situatedonthenorthernendofCandlewoodLake.ShermanisaccessedbyConnecticutStateRoutes
37,39,and55whichwilldirectonetoNewFairfield,NewMilford,orWingdale,NewYork,
respectively.ThetownwasestablishedinOctober,1802,andhousesaruralcommunitywithin23.4
squaremiles[].Asof2010,thepopulationwas3,689[].TheShermanSchoolservesaPK8
communityinthecenterofShermanacrossthestreetfromthetownsprivatelyownedgasstation,local
IGA,firehouseandneighboringthetownlibrary.Thetownlibraryisprivatelyowned,butfunctionsas
apubliclibraryofferingpatronstypicalinterlibraryloanservices.Althoughtherearenoprivateschools
inSherman,severalarelocatedinthesurroundingtowns,includingCanterbury,TheGunnery,St.
Josephs,theSouthKentSchool,andacoupleofMontessorischoolsinWashington,Woodbridge,and
Danbury[].
ShermanwasratednumberfourinatoptentownlistingbyConnecticutMagazinein2012
basedoncriteriathatincludedSATscores,millrate,population,crimerate,medianhouseholdincome,
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librarypercapita,andvoterturnoutfortownswith3,500to6,500residents.Itisalsohometothe
NaromiyocknowhusunkatankshunkBrook,atwentynineletterNativeAmericannamethatthelocal
childrenenjoychallengingoutoftownerstopronounce.
SituatedaboutahalfmilenorthoftheschoolonRoute37,overlookingthetownsslopinghills
istheWhiteSiloFarmandWinery.TheWhiteSiloattractsvisitorsfromalloverbyhostingfestivewine
tastingsthatincludeseasonalcropfestivals,stillartexhibitions,aswellasperformingartsshows[].The
WhiteSiloservesasahighinterest,communityspacebecauseofitslocation,space,andbeautiful
views.ThetownisalsohosttotheShermanPlayhouse,housedinoneofthetownsmanyhistoric
buildingsaswellastheAmericanPieCompany,Bakery,andRestaurant,afavoriteamongstthelocals.
OutdoorrecreationalactivitiesareabundantinSherman.CandlewoodLakeoffersyearround,
summer,andweekendresidentswithboating,fishing,swimming,andonthewaterdining.Watertravel
toneighboringlaketownssuchas,Brookfield,NewFairfield,NewMilford,andDanburyisalso
possibleviaCandlewoodLake.Additionally,astatepark,SquantzPond,islocatedinbothSherman
andNewFairfield,offeringmoreaquaticactivities,includingkayaksforrentandchallenginghikingtrails.
Hikersalsohavemanyadditionalopportunitiestoheadoutdoors.TheAppalachianTrailrunsthrough
thetown,aswellasoversixtrailslocatedalongthestateroutes,theNaromiLandTrust,andby
WanzerHill[].Cyclistsandmotorcyclistsalikefrequentthescenicstateroutesthatrunthrough
Shermanandneighboringtowns.

TownDemographics

Accordingtothe2010Census,Shermanwashometo3,689residentswithover80%ofthat
populationbeingovertheageof16.Thereisevidencethatthestudentpopulationisonasteady
decline.Althoughthereare293studentsbetweentheagesof1014,thereareonly158undertheage
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offive[].Thisdeclineinenrollmenthasbeenfeltintheschooldistrict,causingreductionsinschoolstaff
overthepastcoupleofyears.
Beingasomewhatseasonaltown,the2010Censusshowsthatabout18%ofthehousingunits
areusedforseasonallyorrecreationally.Additionally,thetotalhouseholdsinthetownare1,434with
924ofthembeinghusbandwifehouseholds.CityData.comcitesthatShermansmedianhousehold
incomefor2012,was$93,243withanaveragehousevalueat$409,182.
ShermanSchoolOverview

ShermanSchoolservesastudentbodyof383ingradesPK8[].Sincethepublicationofthis
enrollment,ithasbeenreportedthatthecurrentenrollmentisunder300.Beingtheonlyschoolin
Sherman,itisverymuchaneighborhoodschoolwiththreeplaygroundsthatservetheneedsofPK2,
35,and68.Becausethereisnohighschool,studentsandfamilieshavethechoicetoattendNew
MilfordHighSchool,ShepaugValleyHighSchoolinWashington,NewFairfieldHighSchool,
BrookfieldHighSchool,HenryAbbottTechinDanbury,orNonnewaugHighSchoolinWoodbury.
Theadministrativeteamhasrecentlybeenrestructuredtomeettheneedsofthedeclining
enrollmentaswellasthedemandsofnewteacherevaluationsandCommonCoreStateStandard
curriculumneeds.Thereisone,parttimesuperintendentwhotakesontheresponsibilitiesofthe
schoolsbudgetneedsandregularlycommunicatesschooldatawiththeBoardofEducation.A
fulltimeprincipalissupportedbyaparttimeDeanofStudentsandaparttimeSpecialEducation
Director,aswellasaparttimeCurriculumSpecialist.Thesuperintendentisfairlynewtothedistrictas
wellastheSpecialEducationDirector.However,theDeanofStudents,principal,andcurriculum
specialist,allhavelongandwellestablishedteachingyearsattheschool.
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BoardofEducationmembersareamixofbothexperiencedboardmembersandnewcomers.
MajorconcernsamongsttheBoardofEducationinthepastyearincludethesciencecurriculum,
decliningenrollment,rigorouslessons,andtheworthinessofagiftedandtalentedprogram.Many
parentsinthecommunityareconcernedthatthepresentsciencecurriculumisnotpreparingSherman
studentsforscienceexpectationsinsurroundingareahighschoolsandthushasbecomeaconcernofthe
BoardofEducation.Theseconcernshavepromptedthereviewofthecurrentcurriculuminconjunction
withthecurriculumspecialist.Arecentsummersurveyalsodisplayedparentconcernsthatthechildren
intheschoolarenotbeingchallengedandthusarenotpreparedfortheeducationaldemandsof
surroundinghighschools.TheseconcernshavebeenexpressedtotheBoardofEducation,resultingin
aschoolwidegoaltochallengestudentsandcommunicatetoparentswhattheirchildrenarelearningvia
socialmediaandelectronicnewsletters.StaffingconcernshavealsobeenontheBoardofEducation's
radarduetodecliningstudentenrollment.Reductionsinbothteachingandteachersupportstaffhave
beenputinplaceoverthepastcoupleofyearsandwillcontinuetotakeplaceinthenearfutureaswell
asconcernstocontinuetheoptional,giftedandtalentedprogram.
SchoolDemographics
FollowingaretheShermanSchooldemographicsaccordingtothe20122013Connecticut
EducationDataandResearch,aswellasthe20122013StrategicSchoolProfile:

ItemizedData
Sherman
School
Percentage
Stateof
Connecticut
Percentage
EligibilityforFree/ReducedPricedMeals 7.0% 41.3%
StudentsNotFluentinEnglish 0.3% 8.1%
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StudentsIdentifiedasGiftedandTalented 9.1% 2.0%
StudentMinorityPopulation 6.3%
StaffMinorityPopulation 4.4%
unknown

TheLibrary,MediaandTechnologyDepartmentprovided42.8printvolumesperstudent
comparedtothestateaverageof29.7.Additionally,twentynineprintperiodicalsareavailableper
studentasopposedtotenstatewide.Computersaveragedinat2.3perstudentwith100%Internet
accessinShermanversusthestateaverageof2.7computersperstudentwith98.1%Internetaccess.
IntermsofLibraryMediainstructionalhoursperyear,Shermanrequirestwenty,whichmeetsthe
statesrequirements.
SchoolLayout
Toenterthemaindoorsofthebuilding,visitorsarerequiredtobebuzzedinbyofficestaff.The
frontentranceandmainofficehavebeenremodeledbasedonsecuritystudies,resultingfromtheSandy
HookElementaryshootingsin2012.Thedoorleadingtotheschoolislocked,forcingvisitorstoenter
throughthemainofficelocatedtotheright.Visitorsmustwearacomputerizedstickerthatisanimage
oftheirdriverslicenseandarefilmedviaasecuritycamera.
Hallwaysoftheschoolareuniformlypaintedinahueofyellowwithblueaccents,supportingthe
colorsoftheirschoolmascot,theShermanKnights.GradelevelsarebrokenupintoaPKKwing,a
12wing,a35wing,andgrades68arelocatedonthebottomfloor.Currentlythereisonemorning
sessionofpreschoolandoneafternoonsession.Therearetwofulldaykindergartenclasses,twofirst
grades,twosecondgrades,threethirdgrades,twofourth,fifth,sixth,andseventhgrades,andthree
eighthgradeclasses.
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SchoolInitiatives
TheShermanSchooldoesparticipateinthestatesPositiveBehavioralInterventionsand
Support(PBIS)initiatives.Thesymbolusedisashield,whichmakesbothavisualandintellectual
connectiontotheShermanKnights.Therearefourcorevaluesprintedinquadrantsontheshieldin
blueandyellowresponsibility,honesty,courage,andrespect.Studentsaregivenashieldwhen
caughtdisplayingoneofthecorevalues,whichareenteredintoclassroomorgradelevelprize
drawingsasdecidedbyteachers.Everyfewweeks,studentsnamesarepulledfromtheboxesand
childrenreceiveasmallprizeappropriateforeachgradelevel.Themissionstatementfortheschool
readsasfollows:
Wearededicatedtocreatinganeducationalenvironmentthatencouragesall
childrentoreachtheirpotentialasselfconfident,responsibleandcaringcitizens,
equippedtosucceedinarapidlychangingsociety[].
Generally,theparentalattitudestowardstheschoolanditsstaffaresupportive.Beingthatroughly90%
ofthehouseholdshaveoneparentthatstaysathome,thereisahighvolumeofparentinvolvementatthe
school.Thisposestobeapositiveaspectaswellasanegativeoneinvarioussituations.Several
parentsdoworkintheschoolasparaprofessionalsortutors,whichhasposedsomeconflictintermsof
professionalismandconfidentialityofstudentswithspecialneeds.Ontheflipside,themajorityof
parentsvolunteeragreatdealoftheirtimetohelpbothintheclassroomandinsupportofthe
classroom.
SchoolMediaCenter&CurrentPrograms

Forasmallschool,thelibraryisanimpressivespace.Vaultedceilingsprovideafeelingof
vastnessandawalltowallwindowprovidesample,naturallighting.Totheleftandrightofthemain
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doorsaretwobulletinboards,onefocusedonPBIS,decoratedpicturesofknightswithmirrorsas
faces,challengingstudentstoreflectuponwhotheyseeinthemirrorandthelatter,anewsbulletin
boardfeaturingtheschoolslatestShermanKnightlyNewsletter.Straightaheadisaninvitingcoffee
shoplikeseatingareaconsistingofasmallcoffeetableandthree,cushionedarmchairs.
TotheleftoftheseatingareaaretwelveAppledesktopsandtotherightisthecirculationdesk.
Thereisnosignageforeitherthecirculationdesknorthecomputers,howtosignupforthecomputers,
InternetSafety,etc.Behindtheseatingareaareaseriesoffivecountertophighbookshelvesthathouse
magazines,periodicals,andthereferencecollection.Thishalllikesetupopensuptoasecondareaof
fivelong,rectangulartableswithwoodenchairsandanotheropenedspacetotheleftthatlookslikea
laptoporanothercomputerstationbecauseofstrategicallylocatedoutletsandholesinthecounterto
stringwires,buttherearenolaptops/computersthere.Directlybehindthelargetablesisanother
bookshelfactingasadividertothebackareathatisusedforK3,sometimesgradefourinstruction.
Thissectionofthelibraryhasfoursmallcircletableswithchairsmadeforsmallerchildrenaswellasan
openfloorseatingarea.Thislocationhasthemostamountofnaturallightduetothefullwallof
windows.Underneaththewindowsisalong,woodenbench.Ateachersdeskisalsolocatedinthis
area.
Bookshelvesareorganizedinamakeshiftcirclearoundtheyoungerchildrensarea.Between
therectangletablesandK3sectionisacountertopbookshelfthatcontainseasynonfiction.Tothe
left,behindthepotentiallaptop/computerstationarefour,countertopsizedshelvesthatcontaineasy
fictionandanICanReadsectionthatismadeupofbothfictionandnonfiction.Onthebackwallto
theleftofthewalltowallwindowarethejuvenilenonfictionbooksfromthe300s500s.Charlie
BrownPeanutGallerypostersarenexttotheseshelvesidentifyingwhattypesofbooksarelocated
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thereintheDeweyDecimalClassificationsystem.Totherightofthewalltowallwindowistherestof
thenonfictionbooks,shelvedontwomorefloortoaboutsevenfootshelvesandaccompaniedby
CharlieBrowndescriptivecatalogingposters.Biographyhasitsownsection,asdoseriesbooks,
fiction,andyoungadult.
Belowarethecurrentcollectionandcirculationstatisticsbasedonacollectionanalysisfrom
Titlewave.Itisimportanttonotethattheeasynonfictionbookshavenotbeenrecordedasnonfiction,
butaseasybooks,whichskewssomeoftheresults.
Accordingtothereport,theShermanLMChas29.21titlesperstudent.Whenstudyingthe
analysis,itwasnotedthattheenrollmentislistedat425,whichisnolongerthecase.Theschools
currentenrollmentisjustunder300,thusimplyingtheschoolsdemographicsneedtobeupdatedanda
newer,moreaccurateanalysisneedstobeperformed.Belowisthebreakdownofthecollectionby
category:
TheHundredDivisions AverageAge Items %ofCollection
000Generalities 1995 45 .36%
100Philosophy&Psychology 1995 34 .27%
200Religion 1990 78 .63%
300SocialSciences 1992 785 6.32%
400Language 1987 59 .48%
500NaturalSciences/Mathematics 1995 644 5.19%
600Technology 1995 324 2.61%
700TheArts 1995 555 4.47%
800Literature&Rhetoric 1992 354 2.85%
900Geography&History 1993 982 7.91%
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HundredDivisionsTotals: 1993 3860 31.09%

AdditionalCategoryListings AverageAge Items %ofCollection

GeneralFiction 1998 3842 30.95%
Reference 1997 186 1.50%
Biography 1992 591 4.76%
Professional n/a 0 .00%
StoryCollection n/a 0 .00%
Paperback n/a 0 .00%
Easy 1995 2916 23.49%
A/V 1997 18 .14%
CollBio 1974 42 .34%
YoungAdult 1997 959 7.73%
AdditionalCategoryListings
Totals
1996 8554
68.91%
Totals 1995 12414

StudentsingradesK5attendalibrarymediainstructionalclasstwiceduringasixdayrotation.
StudentsinsixthgradeattendaninformationandtechnologyliteracyclassintheLMConceaweek.
Seventhandeighthgradestudentsdonotparticipateinaninstructional,librarymediaclass.TheLMS
worksonafixedschedulewithonescheduledlibraryclerkonMondaysandFridays.Currently,
preschooldoesnotparticipateintheLMCprogram.Thereisnowrittencurriculumforanyofthe
libraryorinformationandtechnologyclasses.
ImplicationsforFutureShermanSchoolLibraryMediaCenterProgrammingandServices

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InordertobringtheShermanSchoolLMCuptodatewithneighboringschoollibrarymedia
centers,futureprogrammingandservicesneedtobereviewedwiththeadministrationteam,teachers,
andtheBoardofEducation.TheschoolsstudentsandteacherswouldbenefitfromanLMCthatis
availableforuseaswellasuseoftheLMSforinclassneeds.willrequireWiththepresent,fixed
schedule,theLMSdoesnothaveadequatetimetoworkandcollaboratewithgradelevelteachersin
ordertofulfillthedemandsandexpectationsoftheCommonCoreStateStandards.Teacher
preparationperiodstakeplacewhenstudentsareintheLMCforinstruction,whichinhibitstheideaof
usingthattimetoworkwithteachersandstudentsintheclassroom.
Athoroughweedingofthelibraryneedstotakeplaceinordertocreateanaccuratebaselineof
whichcollectionsmayrequirenewmaterials.ItwouldbenefittheLMCtorethinkhowtheeasy
nonfictionbooksareaccountedforandcatalogedastheycurrentlyaskewtheinventoryandanalysisof
thetotalnonfictioncollection.
Lastly,thetechnologywithinthelibrarymediacenterneedstobeaddressedinconjunctionwith
thephysicallibraryspace.Theprintreferencecollectionislarge,bulky,old,takesupalotofvisual
spaceintheentrywayoftheLMC.Areviewofwhatsourcesarethereaswellasaconsiderationof
whatcouldgoandbeaccessedviatheInternetwouldhelptofreeupspaceformoretechnology,
perhapsaniPadbar,laptopbar,orevena3DprinterfortheschoolsCore21program.Thecurrent
desktopcomputersneedtobeupdatedtomakeuseofthemeasy.IncomparisontotheComputerLab
desktopcomputers,theLMCscomputersareslow,thusdeterringpotentialusersfromusingthem.It
isimportanttogetmoreoftheseventhandeighthgradestudentsintotheLMCorhavetheLMSget
intotheirclassrooms.Thepresentscheduleprohibitsthisfromtakingplace,resultinginmissed
opportunitiesforinteraction,collaborativelearning,andintellectualgrowth.

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http://72.10.97.25/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m
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