National Library week may be over, but the Advocacy and Legislation Committee wants to help you keep the party going at your library. Picture books set in the library highlight the joy and importance of reading. For young children these books guide conversations about familiar experiences and reinforce the relevance of a library in their lives. In short, these books advocate for the library. Below is a limited selection of picture books celebrating the library. Create a display or book talk these titles and let your families inspire their own advocacy for libraries at home! What are some of your favorite picture books that celebrate all things library? Comment below and help our list grow! A Library Book for Bear by Bonny Becker. Illus by Kady McDonald Candlewick Press, 2014 A curmudgeonly bear does not want to go to the library. After all, he as seven perfectly good books at…
Tag: advocacy
Everyday Advocacy Member Content Editor Needed
The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) seeks a member content editor for its Everyday Advocacy website and “Everyday Advocacy Matters” newsletter. The mission of Everyday Advocacy is to educate youth services librarians on the importance of advocacy and to provide them with tools to assist in articulating their own value within the library profession and community. Applications for this position are due February 4, 2019. The EA member content editor prepares, solicits and curates material for the EA website and provides complete copy for four quarterly issues of the “EA Matters” newsletter. Full details, including duties, qualifications and compensation are available online at the Everyday Advocacy website. ALSC membership is required for the position. Candidates should send a cover letter, resume that includes management, writing and web publishing experiences, and two writing samples. Familiarity with web publishing and web content management is required. Applications are due February 4…
Words Matter: Owning and Learning from Our Mistakes
By Jamie Campbell Naidoo, 2018-2019 ALSC President with Elisa Gall, ALSC Board Member The ALSC Institute this past weekend was filled with excitement, passion, and lots of energy generated by just over 400 children’s librarians, youth services educators, children’s book creators, children’s literature researchers, and other professionals working to promote children’s literacy. The new ALSC logo was also unveiled at the Institute; check it out on the ALSC Facebook page.The conference materials for the Institute described the meeting as an intensive learning experience for attendees. With the theme of All Aboard!: Embracing Advocacy & Inclusion, many of the Big Ideas sessions, keynotes, and individual breakouts addressed equity, diversity, and inclusion work that is ongoing and needed in the field and within ALSC. Check out the ALSC Blog for #ALSC18 entries that highlight some of this exciting work. Speakers also prompted attendees to think critically about ways that they can become…
Advocacy Resources: Helping You Tell Your Library’s Story
Midterm elections are right around the corner. For many of us, that means library advocacy is at the forefront of our minds. The ALSC Advocacy and Legislation Committee wants to make sure that you feel empowered and informed so you can advocate for yourself, your library, and the children and families you serve. Yes, it can seem daunting. But advocacy is something we library folk already excel at: sharing information and building relationships. Advocacy is all about helping your patrons and elected officials better understand your library’s role and value to community. But how do you start organizing all of that information? How do you tell your library’s story in a clear, engaging way? There are so many wonderful resources available to help you get started. However, it can feel overwhelming to slog through everything to find what you need. ALA’s Everyday Advocacy focuses specifically on library services to youth…
Is Access to Information ever Complex?
People might believe that access to information is a right for most U.S. citizens, with the exception of incarcerated persons. For some people, especially in urban areas with easy access to public libraries, personal computers, internet access, and educational institutions, access to information is a matter of every day practice. However, is access to information ever a complex issue? Access to Information In theory, the public’s understanding of access to information is correct as expressed in the American Library Association’s mission, which states the role of libraries is “to provide leadership for the development, promotion, and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.” Nonetheless, what happens in communities in rural areas where transportation is scarce and people lack access to computers, the internet, books, and a public library? Then, access to information becomes problematic….
Get ready for National Library Legislative Day 2018
Hello, Friends! It’s time once again to make plans for National Library Legislative Day (NLDD). This year’s two-day event will be held on May 7th and 8th in Washington, DC. For those unfamiliar, NLLD brings together librarians, trustees, and other library supporters to advocate for library funding and support for library issues. Attendees attend a day-long advocacy training and briefing on the legislative issues, then put their skills to work the following day on Capitol Hill. Registration for the in-person event has closed; however, you can still participate virtually from your home or office. Register to participate at home and you’ll receive all the information and tips to get in on the action. This year, the Advocacy and Legislation Committee is asking librarians and other library supporters to participate virtually by creating your own Libraries Transform ‘Because statement’ and sharing your statement and a photo on social media to extend…
An Advocate at the Kid’s Desk
As a relatively new librarian who is also new to ALSC’s Advocacy and Legislation Committee, I am still learning the role of a librarian advocate. I’ll be honest, it often feels overwhelming. I’ll add that this feeling may never dissipate. There is a lot to think about. From local to state and federal stakeholders, I often feel my perch at the kid’s desk isn’t the place where real advocacy happens. How can I rally support for libraries at all levels? It’s not just a question I ask myself as a member of this committee. I am sure it’s a question we all pose to ourselves. So today, I’ll keep it simple. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that we advocate library services every day and we do it from our desks in the kid’s area. Let’s keep it up and consider being more intentional in our everyday advocacy. ALA provides a…
Why is Net Neutrality so important to kids, libraries, consumers?
Per the ALA web site Network Neutrality (or net neutrality) is the concept of online non-discrimination. It is the principle that consumers/citizens should be free to get access to—or to provide—the Internet content and services they wish, and that consumer access should not be regulated based on the nature or source of that content or service. Information providers—which may be websites, online services, etc., and who may be affiliated with traditional commercial enterprises but who also may be individual citizens, libraries, schools, or nonprofit entities—should have essentially the same quality of access to distribute their offerings.” The current roiling controversy around Net Neutrality began with the new administration’s appointment of Ajit Pai as head of the FFC in April and his almost immediate call to make significant, deep changes to existing Net Neutrality regulations. Pai insisted that the internet (and access to it, should be no longer considered a public utility…