Fairhill school getting a free library makeover

Book covers are worn and ripped. Shelves are half-empty. The linoleum floor is scuffed and scraped, and there's only one electrical outlet for the entire large room.

But Carlos Marrero has big dreams for the library at his school, Potter-Thomas Elementary, on Sixth Street in the Fairhill section of North Philadelphia.

"We should have rolling chairs and computers and a purple wall and a new bookshelf," said Carlos, 9. "And lots of books."

Come fall, Carlos' wish will be realized. On Thursday, officials from Target and the Heart of America Foundation visited the kindergarten-through-eighth-grade school to tell students and staff that their library has been chosen for a free makeover - new furniture, paint, floors, bookshelves, books, and computers.

"Look at all those shelves that are empty. They're all going to be filled!" Maria Kovar, an official with Heart of America, told children gathered in the library.

Officials said they did not yet know how much the project would cost. Potter-Thomas was one of 32 schools nationwide selected for new libraries and one of three Philadelphia finalists. Target was looking to help schools that primarily serve poor students and have an acute need for a new library. Other criteria included having a trained librarian and plans to use the library to benefit the community.

The district provided the foundation with the names of the schools that met the criteria, and the foundation selected the winners.

The two other finalists, Munoz-Marin and Mitchell Elementaries, will receive $1,000 each for new books.

Grouped around circular tables carved with scratches and scribbles, Potter-Thomas second and third graders used crayons and paper to draw their dream libraries. The Target designers will use the drawings to help guide the project, officials said.

Kathy Rosa knew just what to draw.

"Plants and computers and different colors of chairs," said Kathy, 8.

Classmate Kayla Diaz nodded.

"Books are important because when you get bigger, you need to know stuff," said Kayla, also 8.

The students used bright colors and dreamed big, drawing rows and rows of books, plasma TVs, beanbag chairs, and even a trampoline.

In letters to Target, students offered more specifics.

Diana Vazquez wrote that she would like "chapter books, and easier books for the little kids. I would also like new floors and painted walls so it can look pretty. Thank you for anything."

Though the typical Potter-Thomas book dates from the 1970s or '80s, the school does have a trained librarian, unlike most Philadelphia School District libraries. Some city schools have no libraries at all.

It's librarian Michael Reavey's first year at Potter-Thomas, and he's "done wonders" with the little he has, principal Dywonne Davis-Haris said.

No books have been bought at Potter-Thomas for a decade, Reavey said. And since the school used to go only to fourth grade, there's hardly anything that would interest students in the upper grades.

Potter-Thomas, where 95 percent of the roughly 500 children are economically disadvantaged, is among the district's lowest-performing schools - a so-called Renaissance school, slated to be turned over to charter or outside management in the fall.

But Davis-Harris was beaming as she watched her students drawing pictures of books.

"This lets the community know that positive things can happen, that change is here," said Davis-Harris, under whose leadership the school has begun to make progress. "I want the students to know they deserve this."