Statewide Efforts
Philadelphia teacher sets sights on Rebuilding School Libraries through Library Build
Oct 19th
The library at Rowen Elementary School in North Philadelphia is musty and outdated – a locked room used for storage and occasional meetings, a repository of yellowing, untouched books.
But Callie Hammond has big dreams for the room, whose leather-bound encyclopedias were printed in 1986, the year she was born.
Hammond sees the West Oak Lane public school as a launching pad for Library Build, a nonprofit group she recently started to renovate and staff school libraries with fellows in the Teach for America model.
The plan is to start in city elementary schools with no library. Library Build would recruit and pay library science graduates in exchange for a two-year service commitment to city schools.
“Libraries do amazing things,” said Hammond, who was a Philadelphia School District middle school teacher until she was laid off in June.
Research shows that library access matters. Students who have a library at school tend to perform better on assessments than those who do not. Libraries can encourage children to love reading and think of it not just as a chore to be handled in the classroom.
When Hammond was laid off from teaching social studies and science to nonnative English speakers at Wilson Middle School at the end of last school year, she figured it was time to work on Library Build full time.
These days, she divides her time between working on grant applications – Library Build received its first award, $10,000 from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation – and organizing the collection at Rowen. She is also studying for her master’s degree in public administration at the University of Pennsylvania.
More on this inspirational young woman from the Philadelphia Inquirer.
BHAG 3.0 What’s Next?! Sustained Library Advocacy
Sep 26th
Library advocacy is not a one-time deal. Keep a good thing going: http://goo.gl/xn1NI
Save Jeffco Libraries (CO) Community Meetings Start July 6, 2011
Jul 1st
Colorado– Jefferson County Public Libraries may face closure due to potentially severe budget constraints. Save Jeffco Libraries is holding a series of community meetings to discuss the origin of the problems and how a library district will solve the problems. Visit www.savejeffcolibraries.org for dates and locations. Click under Latest News.
In the News: BHAG Public Library Advocacy
Jun 3rd
A great advocacy article from (my thoroughly awesome boss) Jamie LaRue: Keeping Our Message Simple | American Libraries Magazine.
Hug The Library – NYPL Schwarzman Building
Jun 1st
This was originally posted on The Desk Set: http://thedeskset.org/?p=4426
“Show the love people. Urban Librarians Unite will be staging a mass hug of the Schwarzman Building (that is the dreamy one with the lions) on June 4th at 2PM. NYPL are fully in our corner and love the event. Our old pals at BPL and Queens are on board as well of course and it is going to be incredible activism for all three libraries in the city.
We will form a continuous human chain around the building. You can imagine us giving it a big squeeze. We LOVE the damn library people, let’s give it a snuggle. Some of our more militant members are also likening the image to a human shield kinda thing, throwing ourselves in front of the building to protect it. Make of it what you will but you gotta come out.
No, seriously, you GOTTA come out. It is going to take hundreds of people to reach all the way around. This is a great chance to do some organizing on your own. Tell your colleagues, proselytize to your friends, plan to make a day of it. When you come, drag some people along with you, make it a date, plan on drinks afterward. Bring in people from outside the library world and let them be a part of this as well.
Do NOT be late. The crowd meets critical mass on Saturday June 4th, 2PM come rain or shine. This is us literally rallying around the library, to embrace it, to interpose our bodies between it and a harsh world. There are no rainchecks and fashionably late will be yesterday’s news.
If you have never done something like this it is incredibly exhilarating and a lot of fun. It really does feel like you are part of something larger and the mood is going to be light. If you’ve never been to a rally the hug will be a great start and if you have been to this kinda thing before then you already know this one is going to be a blast.
Now is the time to show what you believe in. This is quite literally your chance to put it on the line. Stand up. Stand proud. Show the world your courage and determination. Show up on time & show the politicians and media that libraries are a force to be reckoned with.”
***400 people are needed to make this event a huge success — check out the Facebook event: http://tinyurl.com/4xu8not and RSVP for you are in the NYC-area!***
BHAG 2.0: advocating for school libraries
May 17th
The Colorado Association of Libraries has formed an Advocacy Task Force, and is focusing on school library advocacy in 2011. The project includes a toolkit for school library lovers and advocates.
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