Posted on by hildaweisburg

Leadership Doesn’t Happen In Isolation

School librarians often work independently. We collaborate with teachers, support students, and participate in school initiatives, but we may be the only person in the building (maybe even the district!) who fully understands the responsibilities and challenges of our position. That can make leadership a lonely undertaking.

Who do you turn to when you have a question, face a difficult decision, or need a fresh idea? If you’re the only school librarian in your building, the answer may not be someone down the hall. Because effective leadership doesn’t happen in isolation, we need colleagues who understand our work.

On October 28, the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) announced its commendation of School Librarians United, a podcast that provides school librarians with opportunities to learn, connect, and share professional experiences. In recognizing the podcast, AASL emphasized the importance of accessible professional learning and collaboration. Steve Tetreault, AASL Chapter Assembly Chair, noted that one of the profession’s greatest strengths is the ability to learn from and support one another.

This recognition highlights something every school librarian should remember: Professional connections aren’t simply nice to have. They’re essential to our effectiveness as educators and leaders. A professional learning network (PLN) gives us access to experiences beyond our own schools allowing us to discover solutions to challenges others have already faced, learn about emerging practices, and stay connected to developments in our profession.

Just as importantly, a strong network provides encouragement when the work becomes difficult. Sometimes knowing that others are facing similar challenges is enough to help us approach a problem with renewed confidence.

How can you build and strengthen your professional network?

  • Look beyond your building. Connect with school librarians in your district, region, or state. If there aren’t regular opportunities to meet, consider organizing an informal gathering or virtual conversation. Sharing experiences doesn’t require an elaborate program.
  • Participate in professional organizations. State and national library associations provide opportunities for professional development, advocacy, and collaboration. Attend meetings, join committees, and take advantage of the resources they offer. Your involvement strengthens both your knowledge and the profession.
  • Use online communities thoughtfully. Podcasts like School Librarians United and professional discussion groups make it possible to learn from colleagues regardless of location. Don’t limit yourself to listening or reading. You can also join over 18,000 professionals on the School Librarians Workshop Facebook group. Ask questions, share ideas, contribute your own experiences and get quick help from your peers.
  • Seek different perspectives. Connect with educators outside librarianship as well. Classroom teachers, technology specialists, administrators, and public librarians can introduce approaches you might not have considered. These relationships can lead to valuable collaborations.
  • Give as well as receive. A professional network is a community, not simply a source of answers. Share a successful lesson, recommend a useful resource, or offer encouragement to someone facing a challenge. Your experience may be exactly what another librarian needs.

Yes, building these connections takes time, and time is something none of us have in abundance. But professional networking doesn’t have to mean adding another major commitment to your schedule. One meaningful conversation or shared resource can make a difference.

Think about the people who have helped you become the librarian and leader you are today. What did you learn from them? How have those relationships influenced your work? Now consider whose professional journey you might help shape. Leadership grows through connection. Who is part of your network, and how are you helping one another become stronger leaders?

Posted on by hildaweisburg

The Power of One

You know you’re an essential part of your school. But did you know you might also be the solution to some of its biggest challenges?

How many times have you heard that your school is introducing a new program, adopting another technology platform, or implementing a different instructional approach? And how often does that announcement come without additional time, staff, or resources to make it happen?

We’ve seen it over and over. Schools are continually being asked to do more with less. Teachers are overwhelmed by competing priorities, and administrators are searching for ways to improve student achievement while managing limited budgets.

But what if part of the solution to these challenges is already in the building? YOU!

In their recent eSchool News article, “The Power of One: How the School Librarian Can Help Schools Do More With Less,” Dr. Jessica Thompson and Dr. Laura Sheneman suggest that one of the most underutilized resources in schools is the certified school librarian.

Their point is an important one. School librarians bring expertise in instruction, information literacy, technology integration, and professional development. Yet too often, that knowledge isn’t fully applied when schools are making decisions about curriculum, technology, and student learning.

Thompson and Sheneman remind us that improving schools doesn’t always require adding something new. Sometimes it requires recognizing and using the expertise that is already available.

Take a look at your school’s current priorities. Where could your knowledge and skills help address an existing challenge? Who needs to know you can help?

Consider the technology your school already has. Are teachers struggling to incorporate it effectively? Are they spending time searching for resources that are available through the library? Could collaboration help them accomplish their instructional goals without creating additional work?

These are opportunities for school librarians to make a difference. But waiting for someone to ask for help may mean those opportunities are missed.

What can you do?

  • Identify the need. Listen to what teachers and administrators are saying. What challenges keep coming up? Where are teachers spending time unnecessarily? Look for one area where your expertise could provide a practical solution.
  • Offer a partnership. Rather than simply telling teachers what resources are available, ask what they’re trying to accomplish. Could you help plan a lesson, locate materials, or develop an inquiry-based activity? Show them how collaboration can strengthen instruction while reducing duplication of effort.
  • Make better use of existing resources. Before recommending another tool or program, consider what your school already owns. Could a database, digital resource, or technology platform meet the need? Helping teachers use available resources effectively saves time and money.
  • Share your expertise. You don’t need to organize a full professional development day. Offer a brief demonstration at a faculty meeting, share a useful strategy, or provide individual support when a teacher needs it. Small, timely assistance can make a significant difference.
  • Communicate the results. When a collaboration succeeds, share what happened. Focus on how students benefited or how a teacher was able to accomplish a goal more effectively. These examples help administrators understand the value of having a certified school librarian as an instructional partner.

There is an important distinction here. Being an underutilized resource doesn’t mean you should take on every new responsibility that comes along. Your time and energy are limited, too. Leadership means recognizing where your skills can have the greatest impact and making thoughtful decisions about where to invest them. The power of one isn’t about doing everything yourself. It’s about using what you know to help your entire school accomplish more.

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Who Will Follow In Your Footsteps

Think back to when you first became a school librarian. Who helped you find your way? Was there a mentor who answered your questions, a colleague who shared their resources, or someone who encouraged you to take on a leadership role before you believed you were ready?

Most of us can remember someone who made a difference in our professional journey. Now consider another question. Who are you helping along that same path?

Recently, the American Library Association (ALA) and the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) endorsed the Quality Educator Partnership Act. The proposed legislation addresses educator shortages by supporting recruitment, preparation, mentoring, and professional development. Importantly, it specifically includes school librarians and library media specialists as essential educators.

While legislation can help create pathways into our profession, we have a responsibility to help people succeed once they begin that journey. We also need to encourage others to consider becoming school librarians in the first place. Leadership isn’t only about what we accomplish ourselves. It’s also about developing others who will carry our profession forward.

How can you be a part of encouraging and supporting future leaders?

Look for potential. You probably know teachers who love reading, enjoy research, or have a talent for connecting students with information. Have you ever suggested they consider school librarianship? Sometimes people don’t recognize possibilities until someone else points them out. Share what you love about your work and the opportunities the profession offers. You may plant a seed that grows into a new career.

Be a mentor. Think about what you wish you had known when you started. Could you share that knowledge with a new librarian? Mentoring doesn’t require a formal program. Invite a colleague to observe a lesson, offer to review a project, or make yourself available when questions arise. And remember that mentoring is a two-way relationship. New librarians bring fresh perspectives and ideas that can help us grow as well.

Encourage leadership. Not everyone sees themselves as a leader. You know how strongly Hilda believes that leadership is not dependent on having a title. When you recognize leadership potential in a colleague, tell them. Encourage them to join a committee, present at a conference, or become involved in their state library association. Offer support as they take those first steps. Your encouragement may give them the confidence to try something new.

Share your knowledge. Over the years, you’ve developed strategies, resources, and relationships that make your work more effective. Don’t keep them to yourself. Participate in your PLN, contribute to professional discussions, and share what you’ve learned from both your successes and your mistakes. Your experience can save someone else time and help them avoid unnecessary frustration.

Developing future leaders also requires us to give others room to grow. That means allowing them to try new approaches, make decisions, and sometimes make mistakes. We can’t expect people to become confident leaders if we never give them opportunities to practice leadership.

The future of school libraries depends on more than funding, legislation, and professional standards. It depends on people who understand the importance of our work and are prepared to continue it.

This week, think about someone who could benefit from your experience or encouragement. Reach out. Share an idea. Offer your support. Someone helped you become the librarian and leader you are today. Who will follow in your footsteps?

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Are You Creating Possibilities?

What makes a school library a place where students want to learn, explore, and discover? Is it the books? The technology? The programs? All of these are important, but the answer goes beyond what we provide. It’s about the possibilities we create for our students.

Last week, the South Dakota State Library named Claire Nehring, librarian at St. Joseph’s Indian School, the first recipient of its School Achievement Through Libraries (SATL) Distinguished School Librarian Award. According to the announcement, Nehring was recognized for creating a library program that combines culture, creativity, collaboration, and student engagement.

A great example of the possibilities she created is the Flight Path program, which brings together science, math, art, English Language Arts, and Lakota language and culture. Students study birds and then apply what they’ve learned by working to protect bird populations on their school campus. Rather than simply learning about a subject, students have the opportunity to use that knowledge to make a difference.

Creating possibilities is something every school librarian can do, regardless of the size of their library, their budget or time constraints.

Start with curiosity. What are your students interested in? What questions are they asking and which ones have you heard multiple times? Sometimes we become so focused on delivering curriculum and meeting standards that we overlook opportunities to encourage exploration. Pay attention to what excites your students. Ask them what they want to learn more about. Consider how you might connect those interests to the resources and learning opportunities available through your library. A student’s interest in sports, music, animals, or gaming could become the starting point for research, collaboration, or creative expression.

Look for connections. One of the strengths of school librarians is our ability to work across subject areas and grade levels. We see opportunities for connections that others may miss. Nehring’s Flight Path program demonstrates what can happen when learning moves beyond traditional subject boundaries. What connections could you help make? Talk with teachers about upcoming units. Look for ways to bring together subjects that aren’t usually taught together. Consider community organizations or local experts who could contribute to a learning experience. You don’t have to create an elaborate program. Sometimes one new connection opens the door to something much larger.

Give students ownership. Creating possibilities also means allowing students to help shape their learning. Are students involved in decisions about library programs, displays, or resources? Do they have opportunities to pursue their own questions and share what they discover? When students have a voice in what happens in the library, they become more invested in the experience. They also develop confidence in their ability to make decisions, solve problems, and contribute to their community.

As leaders, we need to look at what our libraries offer and then look to what they could become. (Remember to check your Vision here.) That doesn’t mean adding more to an already demanding schedule. It means being intentional about the opportunities we create and recognizing that even small changes can have a meaningful impact.

Take a few minutes this week to look at your library from your students’ perspective. What opportunities are available to them? What might be missing? What is one possibility you could create that would encourage them to explore something new?

Your library is more than a collection of resources. It’s a place where curiosity can grow, connections can be made, and students can discover abilities and interests they didn’t know they had. What possibilities will you create?

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Leading In the Age of AI

Guest Poster: Rona Gofstein

You can’t get away from it. Artificial Intelligence is everywhere both assistive and generative. Whether you are excited by its possibilities, concerned about its implications, or wishing it would simply go away, AI is changing how we find, evaluate, create, and use information. And that means it is changing our schools and our libraries.

As school librarians, what do we do about it? We lead.

That doesn’t mean you need to become an AI expert. It doesn’t mean embracing every new tool that comes along or even support it. Leadership doesn’t require you have all the answers. But it does require being willing to learn, ask questions, and participate in conversations that affect our students and our schools. And AI is definitely one of those conversations.

AASL has been providing resources to help school librarians navigate this changing landscape. In Leveraging AI in School Libraries: From Basics to Best Practices, AI in education is described as both transformative and disorienting. I suspect many of us can relate to that. But AASL also sees opportunities for school librarians to use AI to support teaching and learning and improve library services. Before you can lead others, however, you need to learn.

Explore. If you haven’t used an AI tool, try one. Ask it a question. Ask it to summarize something you already know well and see what it gets right—and wrong. Learn what terms such as “hallucination” mean in connection with AI. You don’t have to become an expert. You do need to understand the basics.

Ask questions. What AI tools are already being used in your district? Does your district have an AI or anti-AI policy? Are teachers using it? What about students? What privacy issues need to be considered? ALA’s current guidance on AI reminds libraries to consider not only usefulness, but privacy, equity, ethics, accuracy, and the continued importance of human judgment.

Connect it to what you already know. Librarians have been helping students navigate changing information environments for decades. We taught them how to search databases. Then came the internet, Google, Wikipedia, social media, and increasing concerns about misinformation.

Get into the conversation. If your school or district is discussing how AI will be used, school librarians belong at that table. We understand information literacy. We understand copyright, attribution, privacy, research, and source evaluation. We work across grade levels and subject areas. That gives us a perspective few others in the building have.

Last week, you were asked, “Do they know what you do?” Here’s another way to show them. You don’t need to walk into the room with all the answers. Walk in with good questions. Bring what you already know about information, learners, and your school community. Be willing to listen and learn.

AI will continue to change. The tools we’re discussing today may be replaced by something entirely different tomorrow. That’s why this isn’t really about mastering a particular technology. It’s about leadership. Leaders don’t wait until they know everything before they engage with change. They learn. They ask questions. They consider the risks as well as the opportunities. And then they help others find a thoughtful way forward.

Through all the technological changes, our fundamental responsibility remains the same: helping students become thoughtful, ethical, informed users and creators of information. AI doesn’t eliminate that responsibility. It makes it more important.  AI is here. Make sure school librarians are part of what comes next.

Posted on by hildaweisburg · 1 Comment

Do They Know What You Do

Guest Poster: Rona Gofstein

It’s always nice to be appreciated. Hopefully you hear from students, teachers and your administrators how important your work is. ALA knows, too. In a recent American Libraries Magazine article, “Thank You, School Librarians,” ALA Executive Director Dan Montgomery celebrates the work school librarians do every day. He recognizes our role in providing equitable access, personalized learning opportunities, technology, digital and print materials, and programming that helps students become lifelong readers and informed citizens.

He also notes a troubling statistic. He states: Too many schools have underfunded and understaffed libraries, even though research shows a positive correlation between high-quality school library programs, with a certified school librarian at the helm, and higher student achievement and stronger literacy outcomes. In 2019, the most recent year for which ALA has data, the US had roughly 90,400 K–12 public and private schools. Of those, 91% had school libraries, but only 61% had full-time librarians.

We know school libraries—and school librarians—matter. ALA knows it. Research supports it. But here’s the question: Do the people in your school know what you do?

Not what they think you do.

What you actually do.

Does your administrator know about the teacher you helped find resources for a new unit? Do they know about the student who finally found a book that made them want to read? Does your school community know you are teaching students how to evaluate information rather than simply find it? Do they know about the technology support you provide, the collaborations you initiate, and all the ways you make the library a safe and welcoming place?

If they don’t (or if you’re not sure), you need to look for ways to change that. I have written about advocacy many times because it is an essential part of leadership. Advocacy is not bragging. It is making people aware of the value of the library program so they understand why it is essential to student success.

And you don’t need a major advocacy campaign to do it. Start small.

Share what’s happening. Use your newsletter, website, social media, faculty meetings, or whatever communication channels are available to you. A photo with a sentence or two about what students were learning can say more than a lengthy report.

Make a connection. What are your administrator’s priorities for the year? Look at your school’s Mission and Vision. Where does the library support them? When you talk about your program, make that connection visible. Reach out and show your administrator what you have to support them.

Invite people in. Is there something happening in your library that your principal or teachers or parents should see? Invite them. Better yet, give them a reason to participate. The more they experience what happens in the library, the better they understand its value.

And make sure you’re connecting with the teachers in your school(s). They can become some of your strongest advocates, especially if they’ve experienced firsthand what collaborating with you brings to their students.

Montgomery describes the school library as the “hub and heart of the school.” It’s a perfect image. But being the heart of the school doesn’t happen simply because the library is there. It happens because of what you bring to it. You know how much you do. You know the many hats you wear and the difference you make.

This week, choose one person who may not know. And show them.

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Words Matter

When you were a kid and someone teased you or called you a mean name, you might have been taught to respond with the ditty: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” The fact that you chose to say that reveals a deeper truth. Wounds heal. Words are powerful. And very lasting.

Words can tear you down, and words can build you up. They tell a story, convey emotion, tell someone what we believe, what we think is important. We know our job as a school librarian matters, but what words are you hearing about them?

Unnecessary. Ancillary. Not as important as… Those are just some of the words and phrases used to put our work down. Oddly enough, we may be the one responsible for some of the negative talk. In her Knowledge Quest article (see more about KQ at the end of this blog), “Knowing Your Worth – Even When Others Don’t See It,” Amanda Galliton calls attention to how we minimize what we do and how we need to advocate for ourselves.

As school librarians we have six roles:

  • Information Specialist: Assisting students and staff in locating and utilizing information resources effectively, fostering research skills and critical thinking.
  • Educator: Teaching information and related technology literacy, helping students understand how to evaluate sources and use information responsibly.
  • Curriculum Partner: Collaborating with teachers to integrate library resources into the curriculum goals, enhancing learning experiences across subjects.
  • Collection Manager: Curating and maintaining the library’s collection, ensuring it meets the diverse needs of the school community and reflects current trends in education.
  • Technology Integrator: Leveraging technology to enhance learning, providing access to digital resources and teaching students how to use various tools effectively. Staying up to date on the most recent technological trends and advances.
  • Advocate for Literacy: Promoting reading and literacy initiatives, encouraging a love for reading among students and offering support their overall academic growth. Doing what we can to offer a range of options to promote connection and understanding.

With all this, why aren’t we seen as vital? Part of the reason is so much of this happens unseen or behind the scenes. Compounding this, Galliton points out, displays of false modesty makes us lessen the importance of what we do each day.

Listen to how many times you use the word, “just’’ as in “I just helped a student find a book,” or “I’m just supporting this lesson.” These are the ones Galliton identifies. How often do you use that phrase or say, “I’m only helping …” “Just” and “Only” minimize what you are doing—and in turn this minimizes your contributions in the minds of teachers and administrators.

We need more of us being conscious advocates for the vital need for our presence in the school. In a world where school librarians are being branded as pedophiles and groomers because of the selections in our collections, we must show our school and local community how important our roles are for the future of our students.

Some ways to do this:

  • Displaying student successes. Email parents about their child’s achievement. Even better, write a monthly column in the local freebie newsletter or town website.
  • Send the principal a quick message about a great learning project with a teacher in which you praise the teacher and acknowledge what you did to support her.
  • Invite a local business leader to visit the library and speak of the skills needed to handle their job. While they are in the library, show off student work so they can become advocates. Also be sure your principal (and superintend) are aware of the visit and are asked to join.

Once you start thinking of how to let your communities know the value of school libraries, I hope you will come up with others. When you do, take a step towards announcing your success by sharing them on the School Librarian’s Workshop Facebook page.

I think this is the first Knowledge Quest article I have used as a basis for this blog. So here’s a quick plug for them. According to their webpage, KQ is published bimonthly September through June by the American Association of School Librarians,. Knowledge Quest is devoted to offering substantive information to assist building-level school librarians, supervisors, library educators, and other decision makers concerned with the development of school libraries and school library services. Articles address the integration of theory and practice in school librarianship and new developments in education, learning theory, and relevant disciplines

What does this mean? Another way to share your success could be to submit an article to KQ. Leaders have visibility. Make yourself visible – and use words to show how valuable you are.

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Make Your Library Invaluable

Do you see your teachers as colleagues or customers? What about students? Did those questions have you considering something you haven’t?

Whether or not you see them that way, teachers and students play dual roles in your library and in its success because teachers are both colleagues and customers and students are both patrons and customers. they are your customers as well as your colleagues and students.

Recognizing this duality may how you approach them and help them see your library seen as the invaluable resource it is. When you are dealing with customers, you want to give them the best service possible, meet their needs, and ensure they keep coming back. And you want them to give you great reviews to others who are interested in coming by.

In her SmartBrief article, The leadership blind spot that’s quietly killing revenue, Jeannie Walters states that “Many leaders think customer experience is someone else’s job.” It’s not – it’s ours. And unlike customer relations, it is proactive. It is what you think about before there is a problem, not what you do after there’s an issue.

She recommends businesses make three shifts to movie to a customer service approach. I’ve revised them to show how we can adapt this for our work.

  1. They define what success looks like for the customer, not just the organization – There are numerous data points which you and the teachers you support are expected to reach, but teaching is more than that. Before you start collaborating, think about the different results the teacher looking for from this learning experience. Is it only the grade that will make the student feel successful? Or is there something to be learned from the process. Also, is this a project special to the teacher or connected to state mandated benchmark. Knowing this, having a good relationship with the teacher, will help you support them. Listen carefully and ask questions so that you can shape the project and bring them the satisfaction of having attained their goals.
  2. They make the customer’s voice a leadership-level input – What the teacher or student tells you will reveal what they most need and where you can help. Even if you think you know a lot about the topic or lesson, try not to talk so much. (A tough one for me.) We need to hear what our “customers” are looking for. Ask questions from the teacher before going into action. Have a class discussion to elicit where students are with the assignment. Do they hate it before it starts? How can you shift it? Where can it be connected to students life experiences? And show them (teachers and students) that there answers are important by following through and incorporating what they tell you.
  3. They treat consistency as a competitive advantage – One good project followed by poor or mediocre ones doesn’t build a good relationship. You want to create a situation where good is repeated or improved on. At the end of the project, consider doing a mini survey. This will give you an opportunity to learn what your customers like best about the project, what did they wished had gone better, and where they might have struggled or felt successful during the project. Go a step further and score yourself, keeping track of the feedback, good and bad.

Before you put this into action, be proactive yourself. What could you learn from this approach? How could it help you grow as a leader? As Ranganathan says in his fifth law of library sciences, “Libraries are growing organisms.” So are leaders. Grow a little each day and your “customers” will not only come back for more—they’ll tell everyone (including administrators!) about what you bring to the school.

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Presenting… You!

School is out for the summer, but school librarians (and teachers) don’t just work ten months of the year. Summer is time for rejuvenating, updating lessons, and other plans to prepare yourself for the start of school in the fall. In addition to those projects, whether you are an experienced librarian, new on the job, or starting in a new school or grade level, this is a good time to look for ways to use the time to address how your community sees you.

We develop opinions about others based on the behaviors others exhibit. While you are making these assessments, your colleagues, students, and administrators are doing the same thing for you. In her SmartBrielf article, Hidden behaviors that shape how colleagues and managers see you, Anne-Maartje Oud addresses seven ways we are unknowingly sending a message about who we are and what we care about. Here are her seven, along with my usual comments on how these play out in our education world.

  1. Are you present? – Whether it’s a professional development session or a faculty meeting, have you already decided it’s really meant just for the teachers? If you are tuned out, your colleagues (and principal) are likely to notice. Even if you are correct as to the intended audience, listen for upcoming changes being planned. Learn what is important to the faculty and consider ways to support them. This is how you get ahead of what teachers will need and what your principal is looking for.
  2. What is your body language? Do you fidget? Check your watch to see how much longer this meeting/conversation/presentation will last? You are telling others you aren’t interested in what is being said. This can have an especially negative impact in a one-on-one discussion. Rather than show impatience, if you are pressed for time, tell them, and ask to speak with them as soon as possible in the future. Oud says to maintain a “steady eye contact and …pause without filling the silence.” Also, “small signals, like nodding while someone explains something, encourages people to keep sharing their thoughts.”
  3. How do you treat others? – Gossip is, unfortunately, a major form of communication in schools. Don’t engage in it. Mostly, it’s biased and especially damaging toward the administration. When a negative comment about a teacher is repeated, not only can it alienate the teacher, but if you are found to be the one saying it, it will also show you aren’t trustworthy. You have heard the expression, “Little pitchers, big ears.” Students are also listening. You don’t want them repeating what you said about a teacher, student or administrator. –Always assume someone is listening.
  4. Are you all about work? – And only about work? You need to diversify your time. Yes, you are very busy. On the other hand, we are about relationship building. Do you eat lunch with teachers? You might not be able to do it every day but try to do it occasionally. It creates a bond. (But remember #3 – no gossiping when you do.)
  5. Are you consistent? – Do you keep your word? When you tell someone you will send them a copy of a document you got at a conference or forward them resource links to help them with a project, do you get it to them quickly or do they need to ask for it? Unfortunately, they probably won’t, and they will lose trust in what you say. A relationship building opportunity hays been lost.
  6. Do you ask questions? – To ask meaningful questions, you need to be listening. We know how important this is when we work with students. It’s just as important when dealing with our colleagues. Showing you are focused on what they are saying builds connections and strengthens the relationship. And you may learn something you missed or discover a new place where you can offer support..
  7. How do you deal with feedback? – Sure we want the positive feedback. Negative feedback is hard to hear, but we aren’t going to improve without it. I always liked asking teachers what I could have done better. You probably did well, but we all need to grow. Remember Ranganathan’s quote, “The library is a growing organism.” If we are not growing, we are dying.

You probably do some of these behaviors better than others. Summer is the perfect time to work on where you feel weaker by practicing with friends and family. And consider where and when, come the fall, you want to be able to be stronger at presenting yourself to your colleagues, students and administrators. Present yourself as the leader you are!

Posted on by hildaweisburg

Advocacy Can Happen Anywhere

I’m getting ready to leave for the ALA Conference in Chicago this Thursday. I love going to conferences for many reasons. It’s a place where I get to share what I know and learn more from current and upcoming leaders, and it’s an opportunity to see so many of my colleagues and friends. Like me, they are strong library advocates.

As advocates and leaders, they have proved themselves valuable to their professional community, their students, teachers and administrators, and they continually integrate themselves into their community at large. All this is exemplary. It helps make the library visible, vital, and worthy of ongoing support.

There is, however, more that can be done, and the good news is, it takes almost no extra effort.

The more people are aware of school libraries and how they contribute to the success of students, the more advocates we have. Have you ever considered being an advocate in places outside your school? With people other than the most obvious community?

During the course of the day, we frequently interact with people we don’t know or don’t usually see. It could be in while waiting in a line. It might be with a bank clerk. Each of these encounters can become a unique opportunity to talk about libraries and school libraries in particular.

Here’s an example: I was reading in my e-reader while waiting for my number to be called at the deli. Someone noticed and commented that it must be a good book, and my advocacy began. I replied that I’m a librarian and so am a lifelong reader and learner. From there I might ask anything from what they like to read or if they remember their school library.

I’m always so pleased when their feelings are positive. If they mention “shushing,” I share about how much school libraries have changed. From here I can go almost anywhere. Graphic novels, maker spaces, internet awareness. Sometimes I ask about their favorite childhood book. I can usually join in as I probably read it. From there it isn’t long before we’re talking about the challenges of libraries today and the increase in book banning.

And even if they aren’t sure about this, even they are concerned about the availability of inappropriate books, I have the opportunity to tell them that parents can let the librarian know what they don’t want their kids reading, and the librarian will support that decision. I don’t try to dissuade them from their opinion. Instead, I remind them that some parents might approve of their kids reading “those” books so they should not be banned. I always end by saying that libraries need to be safe and welcoming spaces for everybody.

Sometimes their comments give me an opportunity to talk about how many schools don’t have librarians or libraries. Then there is no one to support either the students or the concerns of parents. And sometimes… we just talk about the magic of a good book, which is wonderful, too.

Libraries need everyone’s awareness. If you look, you’ll find openings all around where you can use to advocate for school libraries and librarians. Once you get started, it’s easy, and the ripple effects may be more impactful than you can imagine. Think of birds unknowingly dropping seeds into the grass. Some might grow; some might not. You never know how many of the seeds you dropped will bear fruit.

And if you’re going to Chicago for ALA, I hope our paths cross. If you see me, please introduce yourself to me or send me a message through Facebook so we can look for one another!