To help school librarians develop learners' abilities to contribute to teams that can capitalize on a diversity of thinking and perspective, AASL tasked a 2024 ALA Emerging Leaders team with creating a guide for school librarians based on the Collaborate Shared Foundation in the "National School Library Standards." Working effectively in…

In spring 2024, the Multicounty Multitype Library Systems, supported by State Library Services, conducted a census of K-12 public and charter schools in Minnesota to learn about the status of school libraries. A total of 1,528 out of 1,777 eligible schools completed the census. The findings can help legislators, school staff, librarians, and…

In many locales--in many states--early conceptions of the school librarian's job have not evolved over the years even as the duties have expanded exponentially. The fact that in some districts outdated evaluation tools, such as Georgia's 1990 system, are still used to rate 21st-century school librarians is an obvious sign of the misconceptions…

Twenty scholarly papers and fifteen abstracts comprise the content of the sixteenth annual Brick and Click Libraries Conference, held annually at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of librarianship. The…

It seems that fear of Web 2.0 is in full force. There are two concerns that resulted in a national panic concerning Internet Web 2.0 tools: pedophiles luring children via the Internet and corruption of youths through exposure to hard-core pornography or other vile material. Administrators, no doubt, are thinking in terms of saving themselves from…

Circulation data from the Virginia Tech Libraries were analyzed to determine the extent of continuity or change between the author's study of the use of subject collections in 1982 and the present. Book circulation has declined, largely due to much less use by undergraduates. The overall profile of subject use has changed in ways traceable to…

It is common belief that most people can distinguish between right and wrong actions and usually make decisions to do the right thing. As educators, library media specialists are called upon to make decisions every day. Those decisions chart the course for that particular day and the future, for themselves and for those they work with. In this…

In truth, many resources are removed from the collection because one parent complained, or in some cases, because it was feared that a parent would complain. It is, therefore, helpful when questions are raised about a resource to clarify the circumstances. In this article, the author discusses on what to do when resources are being questioned or…

In many professional roles, long-term vision may help guide short-term decisions. This is especially true for school library professionals as library media programs are constantly evolving. This author suggests strategies to assist library media specialists to nurture their vision and provides reviews of several sources and experts in the field…

This article discusses the importance of setting and implementing goals that can help change and improve a library media program over time--goals that go beyond merely keeping the library media center running. Suggestions for developing an action plan and strategies for effective time management are also presented.

A library media specialist describes the way in which she and her assistant re-evaluated the library media center program so that they could help students in finding books of their choice, easily. Library media center orientation includes remainders for students that there are often variations in library arrangements and formal and informal…

"When you start your new job as a school librarian, one of the first steps you must take is to ask to see the district's book selection policy. If there isn't one, write one. Right away. It protects you, the teachers, and the district." That advice was part of the author's school library administration course at the School of Library and…

A library media specialist should be involved in understanding the curriculum and the content area standards in the school, school district and the state, which would help the library media specialists to assist in planning, collaboratively teaching and co-evaluating with the classroom teachers. The library media program can become an integral…

This booklet provides a detailed description of the computerization of the library of MMI Preparatory School, a private, non-sectarian college preparatory school in Pennsylvania for students in grades 7 through 12. Each of the following functions is investigated: (1) catalog card production; (2) online reference services; (3) circulation; (4) word…

This manual of microcomputer operations for the media center is intended to serve as a guide for students, faculty and staff of West Orange High School, Florida. The philosophy behind the media center is that students and teachers benefit from library services, and that all related equipment, schedules, procedures, and materials should be…