Advocacy. What Is Advocacy?
Definitions developed by the AASL Advocacy Committee. Events Information on AASL sponsored events including Banned Websites Awareness Day and School Library Month. Intellectual Freedom AASL-created resources and contact information in the event of a material challenge. Legislation Information on school library specific legislation and the ongoing legislative efforts of the ALA Washington Office. Resources.
Advocacy Library. American Association of School Librarians National School Library Standards AASL’s new integrated standards are designed to empower leaders to transform teaching and learning.
The new National School Library Standards for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries reflect an evolution of AASL Standards, building on philosophical foundations and familiar elements of previous standards while featuring the new streamlined AASL Standards Integrated Framework for learners, school librarians, and school libraries. Three previously separate publications—AASL Standards for the 21st-Century Learner, Standards in Action, and Empowering Learners—are now framed within a single text, emphasizing the importance of all three standards sets while ensuring that standards-related activities are mutually reinforcing.
*Pitching the Library: the Elevator Speech. Presented by Michelle Luhtala, Library Department Chair, New Canaan High School, CT; and Susan Ballard, Program Developer and Instructor USNH Sponsored by Mackin Educational Resources If you attended the live session, you’ll be emailed a CE certificate within 24 hours of the edWebinar.
If you view the recording and would like a CE certificate, join the Emerging Tech community and go to the edWebinar Archives folder to take the CE quiz. When administrators are faced with challenging budget cuts, they frequently cut from library programs—often because they don’t understand how strong library programs serve the learning community. *ElevatorSpeech.docx. KachelMarketingMessaging. Advocacy, Legislation & Issues. An elevator speech a message intended to spur decision makers to action.
An elevator speech must be short, specific, and memorable. It is important to have your elevator speech rehearsed and ready because you never know when you'll have an opportunity to use it! Who is the audience for my elevator speech? For school librarians, decision-makers can be school principals, parent organizations, district administrators, elected officials, community partners and more. It's good to have a few elevator speeches ready--or a few versions of the same speech--so that you can quickly shift to address the audience in front of you. Crafting the elevator speech. LIBM 6035 - Antioch University Seattle School Library Certification Program - LibGuides at Antioch University Seattle - LIS. School Administrators and the Power of School Librarians. “Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes.
Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”― Lao Tzu (n.d.) I love our profession. Look around and listen to other school librarians’ comments about the pandemic in the AASL town halls, on social media, and on the Knowledge Quest website. As we struggle with the unknown and difficult days ahead, I want to focus on the impression you leave with those outside the school library profession who support us, give our ideas wings, and champion the actions built around the ideals we hold dear: school administrators. What 2020 Has Taught Me about Advocacy. 2020 has been a roller coaster of emotions for so many of us.
It has caused us stress and worry about so many things, from the health and safety of loved ones during the pandemic to the election to the multiple natural disasters. All of these events have us carrying a weight we may not have felt before in our lifetimes. Add to it the additional concerns about how school librarians fit, or don’t fit, into schools’ plans for the future. How to Market For A School Library. Now is the time for librarians to lead, and leadership takes strategy and courage, according to Shannon McClintock Miller, District Teacher Librarian and Innovation Director, Van Meter Community School District in Iowa.
In her presentation “Sharing Your Story...Creating A Brand and Advocating For Your Library” during the recent NYC DOE “Beyond Access” virtual forum, Miller shared advocacy and branding ideas and strategies designed to empower librarians and media specialists to share their own library stories, goals, and visions, especially during the challenges of a pandemic. “I feel overwhelmed every day, but I have to step back and think about the things that are most important,” Miller said. “Our kids are in school now, so I think about how I am serving them first. Are the things that I’m creating around our marketing plan helping them, if it’s books, or it’s literacy, or if it’s something else from the library.” Watch the full session: View the presentation slide deck here. *Deb Kachel's Terrific Advocacy LibGuide for Antioch U. Celebrating Our Library Culture. Culture is an aged word, but one with staying power.
And culture describes just about everything: work, school, family, ethnicity, country, fandom, and on and on. People want to know what defines a culture, how to create and promote it, and how to keep it going. Why? Because culture defines and influences our social behavior. It explains us to ourselves and one another. Organizations love culture. *The Hidden Figure: Your School Librarian (KC Boyd) Marketing and Branding Your School Library Program (KC Boyd) Extend Your Digital Outreach (KC Boyd) What Students and Parents Lose When School Libraries and Librarians are Cut (Deb Kachel)
Supporting School Librarians through COVID and Beyond. Pennsylvania State Representative Malcolm Kenyatta speaks at January’s Rally to Save School Librarians in Philadelphia.
As the start of school approaches (or is already here in some states), the Covid-19 crisis rages on, leaving many educators around the country very concerned about health and safety issues regarding if or when they and their students will return to the classroom or library. The reentry plans for many school districts are still in flux due to frequently shifting circumstances and guidelines. The disruptions and numerous uncertainties surrounding the pandemic have made an already challenging era for school librarians and other educators that much tougher. Pivoting for Impactful Advocacy. “When people look slowly, they make discoveries.”
–Austin Kleon, Keep Going: 10 Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad (2019) The “School Librarian Role in Pandemic Learning Conditions” document focuses on the five important roles of a school librarian–instructional partner, teacher, leader, information specialist, and program administrator–during remote, hybrid, and in-person education. The 9-page resource guide and chart were created to help school librarians who were looking for suggestions and guidance on how to engage with learners and educators in all three learning environments. As Courtney Lewis highlighted in the previous post, themes emerged from the feedback from the AASL Town Halls during the spring.
The three of us, along with AASL Executive Director Sylvia Knight Norton, sought to identify a useful way to present the information in the town halls to school librarians as they prepared to go back to school—in whatever form that took. Effective Strategies for Communication (Elissa Malespina) *How to speak administrator (School Library Journal) *Training - EveryLibrary Institute. Advocacy Planning - AASL Presentation on Planning for Your Library - Lee High School Library at Robert E. Lee High School (FCPS)
*Advocate This, Not That! Illustration by James Yang “A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a library,” wrote the historian and novelist Shelby Foote. Consider a corollary to this quote—a school is just a group of buildings gathered around a library—and whether it aptly describes how important your school library is to the overall function of your institution. Too often, school libraries are seen as peripheral, not central, to teaching and learning. We can speak to parents, teachers, and principals about the value of our programs and services, but the decisions about how to best allocate funds are often made at the district level.
When money gets tight, those programs with the greatest impact on the highest priorities are valued the most. In my role as lead coordinator of library media services at the San Diego County Office of Education, I regularly work with schools and districts to improve their services. Our Library and Makerspace To-Go Marketing Materials & Promotional Plan. Every year, as we go back to school, I create a fun new library marketing plan around our resources in the library and online.
I use it in the library, throughout the school, online, at the public library and to send home with our students and families. It is the best way to kick off the year and get everyone connected from the very start. This year as we return to learn, I wanted to create a marketing plan that would work in meaningful, fun and exciting ways if we were in person or virtual. State by State Certifications.
Locating the information for certification related to school libraries in each state is difficult. There are links to the various state departments of education websites, but these sites are not always user friendly. *Reimagining Advocacy for School Libraries, American Libraries, Oct. 2014 (pp. 5-13) ESSA Elevator Speech Examples. Advocacy - Something for Everyone! I want all school librarians to be advocates for school libraries. It’s not just during budget season, and it’s not just when your job is on the line.
That’s too little, too late. It’s not “just one more thing” to add to your already-full plate. It’s not optional. Advocacy is something that we should share, something we can each carry a small part of, collectively. But how do you start building your own personal advocacy toolkit? Start Small: Growing Your Advocacy Practice. Iste advocacy toolkit elevator pitch template. How to create an effective elevator speech. How-To: Not Good With Elevator Speeches? Try 'Taxi Chats' Everybody talks about the work they do. It’s a staple topic of conversation over meals, at meetings, during sporting events, in hallways, on airplanes, between classes, and yes, sometimes in elevators.
Most librarians realize that they should have an “elevator speech” about their work, but few actually do. The origin of that phrase is simple: When you’re in an elevator with someone, and you’re riding together for a few floors, what can you say to make an impression in that brief time? Ideally, you should have a few well-crafted sentences to share; a practiced way to answer a question such as “So, what’s going on in the library?” *Easy as 1, 2, 3: Practical Tactics to Advocate for Your Library Today. School Librarian's Role in Reading Toolkit. School Library Research - PA School Library Project - LibGuides at PSLA.
*School Librarian: Your Ultimate Digital Resource (Doug Johnson EdLeadership) What is an "elevator speech"? An elevator speech is a clear, brief message or “commercial” about you. *Purchasing - NYC School Librarian Guidebook (as an example) Achieving Social Media Success for Your Library – The Digital Librarian. *Advocacy - NYC School Librarian. Your School Library Media Specialist – Your School’s Utility Player – NJPSA and FEA. As you start the school year, consider the ways that you can maximize the use of your school librarian. * AASL One-Pagers for Stakeholders. The Time for Advocacy Is Now: Why Telling Your Story Is So Important. Students Need School Libraries – Is your child's school library all that it can and should be? Everyday Advocacy. You’re in an elevator with the Board president. Or the Mayor. EveryLibrary - Any Library Initiative Anywhere for Every Library Everywhere.
Webinars on Demand - EveryLibrary Institute. Advocacy/Leadership Archives. The District Library Newsletter: An Advocacy Tool. As you plan your advocacy efforts for 2019, don’t forget about your district-level administrators. The decisions they make can have a huge impact on your library and on your district’s library program. Even if they’ve always been supportive of libraries, don’t assume they know what goes on in your space. *School Libraries & ESSA (Get a seat at this table!) Using School Library Newsletters to Communicate. Everyday advocacy – Changing the Narrative about Literacy Education. AASLToolkitforPromotingSLP 082715. Nikki Robertson Infographic. Advocating for the Library You Want to Become. Three years ago I enrolled in the University of Toronto’s Library Advocacy Unshushed MOOC. The online course description was a simple premise or perhaps a call to arms of “How can we strengthen libraries and librarians in the advancement of knowledge, creativity, and literacy in the 21st century?
Personal Branding to Promote School Librarians. But My Principal Won't Let Me! Leadership, Advocacy, & Some Rebel Yell from the Library. Fight4SchoolLibraries18. Free CV and Resume Templates for 2019. School Libraries & Education. The Importance of Library Media Programs - My School My Voice. AASL MessageBox 2017. Advocacy, Legislation & Issues. Outreach Strategies for Promoting School Libraries. 3.0 Where School Is Cool! Frontline Advocacy for School Libraries Toolkit.
The Advocate's Toolbox. No Money for Books? Start a Birthday Book Club! 12 Insta Easy Instagram Library & Literacy Promotion Ideas. Using Newsletters to Advocate. The Advocate's Toolbox. The accountant’s hat (Barbara Braxton) OpenEBooks. First Book. Professional Librarian Hi res. Social Media in the LMC. Pam Moran - Transforming Libraries. Disaster Relief Resources for Librarians, Teachers and Parents. Disaster Recovery for School Libraries.
“Liz the Librarian:” Liz Phipps Soeiro, 2017 Hero of Family Outreach. YA Books and More: Five Ways to Step Up your Advocacy Game. Using the Right Terms Creates the WOW Moment! Transforming Library Spaces for Community Engagement. No Money for Books? Start a Birthday Book Club! * The accountant’s hat (Barbara Braxton) How to Tell a Library Story. Igniting the Flame. Principals Know: School Librarians are the Heart of the School. School Libraries & ESSA. DonorsChoose.org: Support a classroom. Build a future. School Library Story. Does Your School Have a Teacher Librarian? A CSLA Film. School Libraries Matter: The Changing Role of the School Librarian. Read-a-thon Fundraiser - Raise More Money Than Ever Before. Fundraising Ideas for Schools. Grants for Librarians. TITLEWISH. Toner and Inkjet Cartridge Recycling. Laura Bush Foundation For America's Libraries. AdoptAClassroom.org. New Online Storefront, Gift Cards Make Shopping Follett Book Fairs Easy for Everyone.