From
the Editor
( conitued from cover )
It is so easy to lose ourselves in our libraries, isn’t it?
The daily chores of checking books in and out, giving out overdue
notices, maintaining the computers, selecting quality materials
with paltry funding (my Dad used to call that “champagne taste
with a beer wallet”), and the myriad others can keep us pretty
chained in. However, we are a vital link in the chain of creating
student success and we certainly don’t want to be the weakest
link.
We are in a place in our history that calls for leadership and proactive
collaboration more than ever. This is a time for political involvement.
This is a time when we need to step up and stake our claim to the
dwindling resources provided to public schools. True to the old
Chinese curse, we are living in “interesting times.”
With the public’s perception of the Internet as a library
replacement and Google just an online encyclopedia, we have got
to assert our expertise in accessing, evaluating, and utilizing
the growing mounds of available information. If we sit back and
expect people to come to us because we’re librarians we will
go the way of the Beta tape – a superior format that quickly
became obsolete because the manufacturers never figured out how
to market it.
Collaborate with your teachers, your administrators, and your fellow
Teacher Librarians. Make yourself an indispensable part of your
school by involving yourself as much as possible. I am personally
involved with my school’s SACS planning and I saw just one
other Teacher-Librarian at one of the SACS training sessions. Are
the rest of you involved in this process? Make your library a place
of welcome and discovery and positive energy. Get your community
involved in making your library beautiful and a hub of activity.
Can you stay open late for homework help? Can you open early for
last minute project completions? Do your students’ parents
know what you are doing to help their children succeed? Of course
I’m going to also say you need to join GLMA…in the near
future this newsletter will only be available to members. Don’t
wait until you can no longer access the quality information you
get here!
Enjoy the rest of your school year but do take some time to reflect
on your place and how you plan to make it as important to your school
as it is to you. The success of your program is in your hands –
build something beautiful.