Working through the Pandemic has forced all of us to reevaluate, alter, and adjust to new ways of working. With so many uncertainties, and lack of information, it has also stagnated some of the decisions in how to move forward. As many states have closed schools for the remainder of the school year, both school and public libraries need to strategize ways they can best serve displaced students. Cultivating and deepening partnerships between the two is essential, now so more than ever. As many vital teacher librarian jobs have been reduced and deprioritized in systems all across the country over the last few years, public library staff need to recognize the vulnerable positions that teacher librarians are in, and the potential of one’s teacher librarian job outsourced is upsetting. Public libraries need to find ways to support school libraries and staff, and to share resources, so that we can all…
Tag: Schools
Library Partnerships in a Time of Crisis
Every month the ALSC Building Partnerships committee is responsible for writing a blog post, normally it highlights a successful program or event that was made possible through a partnership with an outside organization. In light of recent COVID-19 related events, in which many of the libraries across the country have been forced to cancel programs and close our doors to the public for the foreseeable future, I thought it might be timely to follow up on Cecilia McGowan’s earlier post about how we are responding in our communities— specifically as it relates to some of our partner organizations and institutions. As youth librarians, our most important partners are our schools and educators— which these days also includes many parents who have been thrown into homeschooling for the first time. In my library system, our youth services staff have already been busily trying to figure out ways that we can help…
A Partnership Every Kid Can Rely On: Schools and Public Libraries!
It’s been a tough time to be a school-aged kid. School libraries are losing their librarians at an astounding rate, and schools with libraries don’t always have the time to utilize their resources. Public librarians can support kids and school libraries by stepping in to help: class visits and outreach into the schools lets kids and teachers know we are here and available, and by working with teachers and school librarians, we can offer kids an expanded selection of books and topics. A lot of time is spent trying to find the right person to talk to in each school. If the school doesn’t have a dedicated librarian, look for other partners. Some schools have a community coordinator or a parent coordinator to work on relationships between the community at large and the school community. Some schools have class trip organizers for each grade. Once you find a person or…
No Summer Break When Planning School Partnerships
It may be tempting to focus on partnerships with the school system just during the traditional school year; however, planning partnerships year round can help ensure planning is collaborative and programs are maximized. For Cumberland County Public Library and Information Center in North Carolina, we have several projects in the planning stages that will serve as opportunities for collaboration between the school system and the public library during the next year. Cumberland County Coding Camps Cumberland County Public Library & Information Center partnered with Cumberland County Schools and Workforce Development Board to provide free coding camps to underserved youth in the community to strengthen skills in digital literacy. These week long summer day camps are housed in low income neighborhoods in community recreation centers. Participants gain skills through daily coding sessions on topics of interest to them. Youth gain insight from area speakers sharing details of their military and technology…