The Southington High School library is lacking in books and appeal, according to the parent teacher organization, which is sponsoring a book drive to collect new and used books for the library.

The book drive, which is part of a “two-pronged approach” to renovate the library’s space, according to PTO Co-President John Moise, is taking place -Saturday, Dec. 4, from 9 a.m. to noon. Collecting books is the first and more immediate step to improving the library, Moise said, and the second step is the fundraising; the PTO hopes to raise at least $150,000.

“There’s minimal amount of money in there for periodicals and some tech upgrades,” Moise said. “But when you’re dealing with these difficult times in budget, it’s the first thing to go, they want to make sure there are teachers and students are getting appropriate education through that end, so whatever there is, it’s not enough to put a dent in what needs to be accomplished.”

Bonnie Sica, member of the PTO, said the library hasn’t been updated or changed since 1964. She said there are only two stacks of fictional titles which doesn’t leave enough for each student to take out one book each.

In the school’s recent accreditation back in May, one of the things the New England Association of Schools and Colleges cited was the school’s library, saying it was “outdated,” and lacking in resources.

“The school library does not have an adequate range of materials, technologies and services to support teaching and learning,” read the report. “The print collection consists of approximately 17,400 titles, many of these titles are old.”

The report cites budgetary constraints during the past several years as reason the collection has not been updated or developed. The report also said the non-print collection is under-funded and consists of two search engines.

“The size of the library allows room for more than the 32 computers that are often insufficient to accommodate two classes.

“If these were better times and they had the money and resources to do this, then they would,” Moise said.

Sica said the library should be more of a safe haven for students, a place to enjoy quiet time. But the setup at SHS is not exactly inviting and doesn’t give much comfort to kids, she said.

Moise said the PTO is doing everything it can, but all within cooperation with the school system. SHS Principal Dr. Martin Semmel said he is on board with the project, but a plan still needs to be developed.

“Our goal is to determine what specifically we want to do with that space,” Semmel said. “We have to decide what we want our students to be able to do while in that space. We’re at the very beginning stages of identifying layout and what kind of electronic needs we are going to have and these different pieces to the puzzle.”

“Every PTO tries to help out as best we can, but we don’t want to step on the Board of Education’s toes and their budget,” Moise said. “We don’t want to go in there and just do whatever we want.”

Moise, who co-chairs the PTO with Dina Degumbia, said that the budget for the library is small and has enough to buy a few new titles, but not enough to change the library’s current state.

Sica said the space of the room itself will not be re-designed, just how it is used. The rectangular shape will remain the same, but the PTO hopes to add more comfortable furniture and upgraded technology to make it a more suitable learning environment for students.

“Kids learn differently nowadays,” she said. “It’s not the same as it was back when this library was re-designed. Kids work in groups, they interact with each other, they move around, it’s not just sitting at a table and reading a book anymore.”

Semmel said the renovation also wasn’t just about beautification, but in fact creating a space that is a 21st-century learning environment.

Semmel said there is no set dollar amount, but there have been discussions about going after grants. Semmel said it was sometime in July when he had a meeting with PTO leadership and it had been brought to his attention that they wanted to revitalize the library.

“My first thoughts were the library was stuck in 1974,” Semmel said. “The furniture is outdated, falling apart, and then a number of book references are certainly old, so my first impression was this space needs some updating.”

The drop-off location for the Dec. 4 book drive is at the entrance to the Vocational Agriculture building by the tennis courts near the football field. New and used fiction, and non-fiction books are needed. Used books should be in good condition. The PTO will also be taking donations and gift cards to purchase books for the library.

For further information, contact Moise at (860) 628-5083 or Sica at (860) 621-9553.