Librarian Advocacy in Action
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MacMeekin, Mia. “27 Things Your Teacher Librarian Does.” An Ethical Island, n.d. https://anethicalisland.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/27-things-your-teacher-librarian-does/?fbclid=IwAR1juoR1q6b2HmnE3Egs2uy3K_Mxdw8YcL470GV5IJCyBmR3dJLdC_XqWc0
Available in booklet format for printing as well as full-page format with internal bookmarks for desktop access, this 2018 project offers all stakeholders a visual guide to the multi-faceted skill set of certified school librarians. Please share widely!
School Libraries Support Student LearningThe American Association of School Librarians offers many advocacy resources for librarians, administrators and parents to use in the quest to improve local campus libraries.
AASL Overview AASL Advocacy Resources "School Libraries Transform Learning” (magazine). AASL.(Sept. 2014.) A special issue of the American Libraries Magazine devoted to school library advocacy. It is available as a downloadable PDF. |
ALA Speaks Out
Neal, Jim. "Fight for School Libraries: Student Success Depends on Them." American Libraries, 1 Mar. 2018. Immediate Past ALA President Jim Neal is on our team! BOOK
Being Indispensable: A School Librarian's Guide to Being an Invaluable Leader by Ruth Toor and Hilda Weisburg (Rev. Ed., ALA Editions, 2017) VIDEO
Rhode Island Library Assn. “Overdue: The Value of School Librarians, [an] Advocacy Film Project.] “The School Librarians of Rhode Island produced this short documentary style advocacy film to show the value of school librarians. Anyone is free to view and share the video to use for advocacy purposes.” Trailer (30 seconds; film (15:40 minutes). Bastia, Arden. “Documentary Makes Case For ‘Overdue’ Recognition of School Librarians’ Value.” Cranston Herald, 1 Sept 2021. “Using a new documentary, “Overdue: The Value of School Librarians,” librarians throughout the state are trying to dispel the myth of misconceptions of a school librarian.” VALUE
Clarke, Rachel Ivy et al. “Calculating the True Value of Library Labor | Peer to Peer Review.” 19 Aug 2021. “Looking at … examples [of value calculators], we noticed a trend—these economic measurements almost always exclusively focus on the materials offered by libraries. But what about all the intangible services that library workers provide, such as children’s story hour, makerspace trainings, ESOL, citizenship preparation, job search help, and on-demand reference consultations? How might we communicate the value of all of the other services libraries provide beyond materials?” Lewis, Melanie A. “Enabling School Librarians to Serve as Instructional Leaders of Multiple Literacies.” AASL School Library Research, Aug 2021. This case study was conducted to explore how school district leaders can foster the development of effective school libraries in which school librarians serve as instructional leaders of multiple literacies. How SNL Came to Be
Hand, Dorcas, and Debbie Hall. "Students NEED Libraries - in HISD and Every School District." Knowledge Quest, vol. 46, no. 3, Jan.-Feb. 2018, pp. 8-13. Learn how SNL came to be, and what it does. Why We Need School Libraries
Gaiman, Neil, and Chris Riddell. "Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell on why we need libraries – an essay in pictures." The Guardian, 6 Sept. 2018. Jones, Amanda. “Dear School Leaders: 5 Things You Need to Know about Your School Librarian.” KQ, 28 June 2021. “I was fortunate to present at the Louisiana Teacher Leader Summit to school, district, and state leaders on the importance of having full-time, certified school librarians at every school. I spoke to the fact that we are one of the only educators that actively teaches every student in the school, and showcased the types of programming school librarians are capable of when fully supported by administration.” Jones, Amanda; Courtney Pentland and K.C. Boyd. “Dear School Leaders: : Why Every School Deserves a Full-Time, Certified School Librarian.” webinar. 7 July 2021. Rike, Jennifer. “Advocacy Doesn’t Stop When Retirement Begins.” TASLTalks blog, TX Assn of School Librarians, 16 July 2021. “… My friend mentioned that in April all elementary principals had been told it would be “okay” to put all their librarians in rotation. My friend’s principal was going to follow that advice. Sadly, the elementary librarians in my former district had no advocate at the district level. My school district of 49 schools doesn’t have a library director. And the person who had suggested rotation? Their district level advocate. …” Shen, Jerry. "The Most Persuasive Word in the Dictionary: Give a Reason to Get Results." Medium, 25 Aug. 2018. Sheneman, Laura. “School Librarians are a #NecessityNotALuxury: with Beth Raff.” Librarian Influencers podcast, 16 Aug 2021. “The Librarian Influencer of the Week is New Jersey librarian, Beth Raff! She credits her mentors for helping her get involved nationally at an early point in her library career.” Tetreault, Steve. “Education’s Silver Bullet? School Libraries: A Panacea That’s Not Snake Oil.” KQ Blog, 4 Oct 2021. “I’ve heard school librarians called the super-heroes of education, since they have so many skills to draw on and serve their entire school populace. School libraries are often called the Swiss army knives of education, since they can fill so many roles. So perhaps we should call school librarians and their spaces what they are: education’s silver bullet.” Tetreault, Steve. “What If We Were “Just Book Slingers”?” KQ, 13 July 2021. “Okay – WE all know that school librarians are the “Swiss Army knives of education.” (Thanks for that phrase, guest on School Librarians United!) But too many people are confused about the many diverse aspects of being a school librarian in a school setting. Too often, people believe school librarians’ central, and perhaps only, function is to check books in and out. School librarians know that’s not even close to the truth. But imagine for a moment that it was. Even if the only thing school librarians focused on was the physical collection, school librarians would STILL provide some of the best return-on-investment a school could buy.” Wilkey, Erin. "10 Reasons School Librarians Are More Important than Ever." eSchool News, 30 May 2019. LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY
ALA. “How to Conduct an In-Person Library Tour.” July 2021. The resource walks advocates through the best practices and steps needed for requesting and scheduling the library tour for your federal, state and local elected officials, things to consider when developing the content and points of interest, and how to publicize the tour to relevant audiences on social media. EveryLibrary.orgExamples of EveryLibrary work - we can ask them for help for HISD if we have a specific ask at some point. Currently, neither Board not administration can be receptive in the face of the many other more immediate solutions needed.
EveryLibrary. “School Libraries are the Only Thing that Matters.” 2 June 2021. “A longitudinal literacy study completed by Dr. Stephen Krashen, an international linguistics scholar, and his colleagues Christy Lao, Sy-ying Lee, and Jeff McQuillan, looked at literacy levels in children.” EveryLibrary. "Save Chicago School Librarians." SaveSchoolLibrarians, EveryLibrary, 2018. EveryLibrary. "Stop The Destruction of School Libraries in the US." SaveSchoolLibrarians, EveryLibrary, 30 Jan. 2018. |