What a difference a year makes!
Last year around this time, the Library Service to Underserved Children and Their Caregivers committee had the opportunity to re-envision how the committee could better serve ALSC. We were knee-deep in the pandemic and struggled with how we could deliver no-cost content that was both timely and useful to our colleagues. Looking back on the past year, we hope we’ve achieved that goal. And we hope to continue providing this service.
We rolled out five toolkit pages this year, beginning in August with resources devoted to Autism & Sensory Processing Disorders. We concluded this work in April with resources devoted to Children with Print Disabilities. Along the way, we received marvelous feedback from readers of the ALSC blog with further recommendations and excitement for the work we were accomplishing. We were encouraged by this engagement, and are in the process of developing a schedule for revisiting, revising, and updating current toolkit pages to ensure they are relevant.
In the coming year, we have a unique and exciting collaboration on the horizon. I won’t spoil the surprise here; it’s still in the zygote stages! The committee will continue to develop five new toolkit pages, too. Topics that have been suggested include: System-Involved Youth, Refugees, Migrant Families, Homeschoolers, and Children with Incarcerated Family Members. If you have recommendations or suggestions, please do not hesitate to contact the committee. We very much want our toolkits to reflect the needs of fellow children’s librarians.
On a more personal note: I’ve served on this committee for three years, and I leave with a heavy heart. How I’ve enjoyed my time working with the committee this year and in years past. To fellow members of ALSC: if you want a challenging experience that is richly rewarding, look no further than the Library Service to Underserved Children and Their Caregivers. I hope you will one day be able to be a part of this committee’s legacy.
Look for great things to come from LSUCTC in 2021-2022!
Joe Prince is the Curriculum and Outreach Educator at Bowling Green State University and soon-to-be former co-chair of LSUCTC. He would like to thank Emily Aguiló-Pérez, Jaime Eastman, Marika Jeffrey, Rebecca King, Melody Leung, and Mariel Matthews for their hard work, dedication, and kindness this past year. It’s been an honor to serve with all of you. Truly.