Page 12 | January 12, 2012
DIMASSIS continued from page 1
iPad that the county has issued to him. The iPad takes the place of a conventional laptop computer. It’s what running a library system is all about these days. DiMassis is taking it in stride. “We always hear the question, ‘W ho needs books? ’” DiMassis said. “We’ve gone through that discussion before. Remember when everyone was talking about the paperless office? BusinessWeek wrote a cover story in 1975, that within five years we’d be a paper-less society. But instead, paper output doubled. As technology increased, it encouraged us to produce more of it [paper]. “People always talk about the death of the library,” DiMassis said. “I’m not terribly worried about it. There is an idea that print and electronic media is in some sort of a battle when in fact print and electronic media
www.chaskaherald.com | Chaska Herald are just containers for delivering content. “If patrons want their information on paper, we have it. If they want it electronically, we’ll deliver. It’s the content that’s important. And I also like to say that a library is more than just a warehouse for books. It’s much more than that. “If we look at it [the public library] through the lens of it being a community gathering place of opportunities,” DeMassis said, “it will continue to be relevant.” As assistant director of the East Central Regional Library, DeMassis initiated “Your Library,” an overview of the library system and its important role in a community to civic groups. He spoke to Lions Clubs through the East Central Regional Library area. He feels that the mission of Lions Clubs are especially aligned with that of libraries — in addition to the Lions’ valuable work in promoting vision and providing glasses for those who need
them for sight and for reading, the Lions also promote literacy. DiMassis plans to continue similar outreach in Carver County. DiMassis is also enthusiastic in working with the Library Foundation of Carver County. “I’m looking forward to reaching out to the community and working on raising the visibility of the library foundation [Library Foundation of Carver County],” DiMassis said.
BOOK COLLECTOR Unlike many who enter the library profession, Di Massis wasn’t a big-time library user. He studied history for his underg raduate deg ree, and considered teaching, or going on to graduate school. As he was considering next steps, his wife suggested library science. That’s what her sister was doing, and besides, they were already surrounded by books anyway. Boxes and boxes. Stacks and stacks. DiMassis admits he’s not so much a reader as he is a collector.
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The program will have the same tuition, $3,600, as standard all-day kindergarten. It will also share the same hours and provided transportation as the all-day program. There is no fee for the first-grade classes.
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District officials will take ki nderga r ten applic ations through January. One requirement for being accepted is parents must attend one of the information meetings. If there are more than 50 kindergarten registrations by Feb. 1, a lottery would ensue to determine registration, with the excess added to a waiting list. It will also then take applications for first-grade students into La Academia, which would also be housed in the Kindergarten Center. The district’s cost to implement La Academia is low at this time. There are no construction costs because it will be housed in an existing building. Class sizes and the number of teachers and paraprofessionals are no different than a standard kindergarten class. The district expects most of
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“I was always interested in books, collecting and buying them even as a kid,” DiMassis said. “I’d go to estate sales for the books. I’d drive up to my friends’ houses and open up the hatchback of my car. ‘Look what I found!’ No one ever was as excited as I was. “I got my f i rst job as a shelver,” he said, “to make sure the environment fit my skills. And no, I didn’t find shelving boring. Except when I was in the children’s section. You have to be at an elite level because the kids are pulling books as fast as you’re shelving them. It’s kind of a Sisyphean experience. But you don’t get annoyed, it’s the opposite. You see that the kids are so excited about the books. I loved seeing the reaction of kids coming into the library.
BACK TO HIS BOOKS “I collect early American history,” DiMassis said. “I enjoyed reading them, and then collecting them. When we go on trips, it’s guaranteed we’ll be stopping in at least three
the registrations to come from students who would have attended standard kindergarten or first grade, so the overall teacher headcount would be no different than if there was no La Academia. “There is some additional investment for supplies because they need to be in Spanish,” said Gallagher.
ELEMENTARY REDESIGN La Academia’s creation is one part of the district’s INSPIRE program, an elementary education redesign similar to that it did at the secondary level. “One impor tant facet to come out of all our research and survey work with the INSPIRE program is students need to be prepared to work globally and be prepared for diversity, in terms of cultures and languages,” said Gallagher. District staff worked with the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) Institute at the University of Minnesota to determine best practices in the area of Spanish language instruction. As their research continued, the district began to focus on a dual language immersion program, said Gallagher. “It’s a real win-win for us,”
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she said. “We have number of students who come to us with Spanish as their fi rst language and the recent Decision Resources survey indicated we have a significant interest in an immersion program.” In that survey, 61 percent of parents asked stated they would like to see Spanish taught in the elementary schools. Their research with the CARLA Institute also focused on building cultural competence through the arts, specialists, and cross-curricular connections. “Building familiarity with various cultures fits with several other pieces of our INSPIRE work, such as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education and technolog y use,” said Ga llagher.
VISION While this first year will be for kindergarten and first grade only, the district is committed to growing La Academia through fi fth grade. And while kindergarten instruction will be in about 90 percent Spanish, that percentage will shift through the grades until both languages are taught half of the day. Gallagher said the classes will likely be held at the Kindergarten Center up to three
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years. “We’ve laid out our plan for three years there, after which, it will probably move to a new home,” she said. “But because we have committed to the program through fi fthgrade, we are asking parents to embrace the program, not the location.” Ga l l ag her a l so said t he district is looking at further options for language instruction. “We are looking at other creative options, such as classes both within and outside the school day, multiple languages and including cultural activities into the elementary engineering program,” she said. District 112 offers instruction i n severa l l a ng uages throughout its schools. There are Spanish, Chinese, French, German and American Sign Language courses at the high school level. Middle school offerings include Spanish and Chi nese, wit h one section of French at Chaska Middle School East. C om mu n it y E duc at ion classes exist for Spanish at the elementary level and a partnership with the Minnesota International Chinese School provides Chinese classes on Saturdays at Chanhassen High School.
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book stores along the way. I don’t collect for value or fi rst editions, nothing like that, but more content. “That’s probably why my wife suggested [becoming a librarian]. We’re surrounded by books. I remember when we moved some years ago. We filled more than 100 apple boxes and I donated a lot to a local festival at our parish. When they went on sale, I bought some back. Moving his books is one aspect of moving to Carver County. He and his family plan to buy a home here. “We want to be in Carver County,” DiMassis said. “To advocate and fund-raise, to do the things I want to accomplish, I need to live in the county.”
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Age: 46 Title: Manager, Carver County Library Services Residence: Isanti, Minn. Hometown: Minneapolis Family: Wife, Kris, and four children ages 5-15 Education: Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota, history; master’s degrees from Dominican University, River Forest, Ill., library and information science; and Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota in management. Most recently: Assistant Director, East Central Regional Library (ECRL) Assistant Director, East Central Regional Library (2006-2011), one of Minnesota’s 12 regional libraries. Professional profile/ experience, most recent: Prior experience: Minneapolis Public Library; Saint Mary’s University; and the Minnesota Historical Society. Recently served as Legislative Chair for the Minnesota Library Association (MLA).
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