Random Acts of Writing

Live from "Partnership for 21st Century Skills" program @ AASL

Rumor has it Mark Twain said something to the effect of "don't let your schooling get in the way of education"

Are our students:

-       critical thinkers

-       problem solvers

-       good communicators

-       good collaborators

-       information & technology literate

-       flexible & adaptable

-       innovative & creative

-       globally competent

-       financially literate

For more info see: http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/

AASL is Imminent!

The American Association of School Librarians 14th National Conference is on!  This coming weekend thousands of librarians will descend upon the sleepy hamlet of Charlotte, North Carolina. Once there, the hordes will meet and talk and learn and hobnob and recharge and get overwhelmed and reflect.

I have the honor and pleasure of participating in providing several conference activities.  I'll be wing-woman to ISS chair Cheryl Steele, who is hosting the Independent School Section's Social on Thursday 11/5.  Over 100 people have registered for this event!  On Saturday 11/7 I'll participate in two programs, the first with Patt Moser and David Loertscher:

Learning Commons, Information Commons, Library Media Center - What's in a Name? 

What is an Information Commons? A Learning Commons? And is there any difference between these and the Library Media Center?  What library models currently used in Higher Education are applicable to the K-12 world? What does all this have to do with Information literacy? Join your colleagues for a spirited discussion about the evolution and possibilities of "The Library" in our schools.  

And the second with a whole bunch of folks, led by Dorcas Hand, our fearless editor:

INDEPENDENCE: Leadership to Learning, Information, and Access in Independent School Libraries 

Program to feature ten chapter authors for a forthcoming Libraries Unlimited book on Independent School Libraries, topics include Library 2.0, accreditation issues, advocacy in a broader context, library communities of support, bridging library skills between levels, and programs beyond the curriculum. Author/speakers are all practicing librarians in independent schools nationwide who will offer a breadth of experience to support their insights in to best practices as we look  further into the 21st century.

Let the learning continue!

Why Barnes & Noble is great for latte but sucks for research

Let me say at the start that I like B&N. I like that in any city I find myself in, chances are good a familiar and predictable Barnes & Noble bookstore will be there. It's a great place to spend some time, to browse bestsellers, and use the now-free wifi whilst sipping an extra hot decaf mocha (my personal favorite). But B&N is not, I repeat NOT a place for book related research (unless you are interested in observing people, how people move through & B&N bookstore, and/or in what manner they utilize the cafe space.)

I know better. I'm a librarian by profession and inclination. Though some libraries are considering a more bookstore-based display system, I'm a big fan of keeping the current classification systems. Dewey Decimal, Library of Congress and an online catalog make locating a particular book easy peasy.  Really.  I just spent the past hour in B&N trying to locate several children's picture book for an MFA project. In a good public library it would take maybe 5 minutes, 10 tops to locate the 3 titles I eventually found here at B&N. But that's okay. I came for the coffee, the no-direct-cost-to-me internet access and thought I might find a few more books for my MFA project.  It's good reminder...independent booksellers, chain bookstores and libraries all have their purpose and place.

And now, back to my latte (which costs me less than one at a stand alone Starbucks thanks to my B&N member card.)             - aae

I'm on the ALA 2010 Ballot

I received word this week that The American Library Association's Nominating Committee has selected me as a candidate for Councilor-at-Large in the 2010 election.   Yay!  I am a policy geek, and ALA Council is all about policy. This will be my second time on the ballot as Councilor-at-Large. A few years ago I did not receive quite enough votes to prevail, but was encouraged by a seasoned councilor to throw my hat in the ring again, as I had not lost by that much.  (I don't recall the numbers.)

One of my coworkers asked very sensibly "What does a Councilor-at-Large do?" after assuring me the question was not facetious.  This prodded me to find the official job description for council members, which begins with:

"The ALA Council is the governing body of ALA.  It delegates authority to the divisions of the Association to plan and carry out programs and activities in accordance with policy established by Council.  Council determines all policies of the Association and its decisions are binding unless set aside by the membership."

It's involves going to a lot of meetings.  Also from the job description:

"The ALA Council normally meets four times during the Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference [three Council sessions and a Council/Executive Board/Membership Information Session].  All Councilors are expected to attend each of the scheduled meetings.  In addition, Councilors are expected to attend two Membership Meetings at the Annual Conference.  While it is not mandatory, many Councilors choose to attend Council Forum meetings held at both the Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference.  New Councilors will be asked to attend orientation sessions at the Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting
following their election."

Connect to the document on the ALA website by clicking here.

Suffice it to say, only folks who are really interested in and committed to the American Library Association need apply.  Which I am. Interested in and committed to. 

Here's my Statement of Professional Concern which will appear on the ballot:

"I initially became a librarian because of commitment to life-long learning. I believe whether we serve as a children’s librarian providing fabulous pre-school story times, a community college librarian helping a non-native speaker locate resources, or a regional library administrator advocating for the best possible services for all constituents, we are a part of a community committed to education and access.   Early on in my library work I connected with the mission of bridging the gap between the information “haves and have nots.” I also experienced the professional benefits of multi-type library collaboration and witnessed positive outcomes for end user constituents from cooperative efforts. One of my strengths as a librarian, and a potential ALA Council member is my experience creating policy grounded in library principles, and providing library services guided by these policies.  I work with big picture strategic vision, as well as the hands-on, day-to-day realities of library work. I look forward to the opportunity to represent varied library constituents by serving on ALA’s Council.  Thank you for your consideration."

Polls open March 16, 2010. 

Back at Boarding School

Not that I have a flock of readers who desperately missed my entries about the library world or fresh produce, but I'm back to blogging. The tsunami that is the beginning of the private boarding high school year, welcoming back and settling in 640 students, has swept through this campus and my life. The students are mostly New Englanders but plenty come from around the U.S. and the wider world.  In my advisee group, which meets once a week, I have kids from China, Switzerland, as well as Vermont, New Jersey, Connecticut and cosmopolitan Greenfield, Massachusetts (no disrespect to this fair city.) The past 4 weeks have been nonstop immersion - all teens all the time. Not to mention the abrupt transition those who work the academic year face, no time for summer vacation withdrawal when one slams back-to-school.

Boarding school life is an odd little subculture of the private school universe, which is itself tiny.  Something like 1% of students in this nation (U.S.) attend a private school.  I will wait for my retirement from working at this lovely and complex New England boarding school before writing (thinking out loud) about the experience in general and this institution in particular. But for the moment I will reflect on a rather lovely experience I had last evening, a unique boarding school high school moment.

I had ASA duty. Assisting with Student Activities. Translation: helping to chaperone weekend non-academic things for the young people.  All faculty at my school are expected to participate. The ASA duty I was assigned to was helping monitor an "after hours" dodge ball tournament pitting dorms (divided along gender lines) against each other. I was dreading it. It started at 10 p.m. on a Friday night, which is when I usually hope to be in bed with a good book. But I showed up in the gymnasium as scheduled, along with 6 other faculty colleagues. The students had not arrived yet, so a couple folks started shooting baskets, and I ended up bashing a volleyball around with a few others.  This was the sight that met the students as they sauntered in, us grownups playing.   

One side of the gym was for the boys' dorm matches, the other for the girls'. Brackets drawn on giant post-it notes helped organize the chaos of adolescent warriors. Spectators crowded the sidelines as dodge balls hurled through space. I found my self jumping up, yelling and pointing whenever a caught ball sent another kid to the sidelines. Students not involved in the games or the spectating shot hoops and threw other spherical objects at each other.

In short, it was fun. I had fun. Spending an hour on a Friday night with a gym full of teenagers who were playing, talking, laughing, posing, running, sitting, shouting, watching, participating.   It was an exquisite way to be with 100+ young people. 

Image from: http://ccumc.net/407482.ihtml

School Library Journal Article About Autism

A day or two before facilitating the Serving Students Along the Autism Spectrum program at ALA 09 in Chicago, I received a call from SLJ reporter Debra Lau Whelan. She was working on a piece about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and got wind of the ISS/AASL program.  I was very glad to talk with Deb, and to put her in touch with Bernadette Nowakowski, director of children’s and young adult services at the Chicago Public Library, who is doing great work with the TAP program training librarians in the CPL system.

Check out the School Library Journal Article: The Equal Opportunity Disorder by Debra Lau Whelan, in the August 1, 2009 online issue.

The stars are aligning, or more accurately, interested librarians all over the US are doing the footwork necessary to develop and provide responsive services to individuals and families impacted by the Autism Disorder Spectrum.

Battle on!

Massachusetts Library Leadership Institute: 2009

July. Muggy hot. Wheaton College. Flip charts. 4 days.

37 participants (chosen via a competitive process), 2 facilitators, a shifting number of Regional Administrators and 10 mentors (of which I was one) made up the 2009 Massachusetts Library Leadership Institute, which would be MLLI, or MALLI, but for some reason, it's Library Leadership Massachusetts . Oh librarians and their acronyms. Have you looked at the alphabet soup of ALA abbreviations? Mind boggling!

Facilitators Becky Schreiber and John Shannon (not to be confused with my  former NMH colleague, the visionary Jon Shannon) of Schreiber Shannon Associates led the charge through four, full, semi-grueling days of leadership building exercises and self-reflection.  My role? Mentor. Witness. Observer. Coach. Cheerleader. Feedbacker.

There are now 37 (more) Massachusetts librarians in the early years of their careers poised to lead in their work places as well as taking on roles in state and regional library organizations.  Battle on!

 

Graphic from: http://www.llma.org/

Village Harmony Teen Ensemble Rocks the RAC

Take 20+ teens ages 13 - 19, bring them together for a week of singing, eating, singing, more singing, clogging, and some sleeping, then take them on a concert tour through New England.  That's what Larry Gordon, founder of Village Harmony does, along with other energetic musical adult leaders. The result, lucky for me, was a wonderful wall of sound at the Northfield Mount Hermon's Rhodes Arts Center this evening.  Exuberant voices sang songs from South Africa, England and Bulgaria, as well American shape-note music and Appalachian ballads.  Several of the young folks were instrumentalists as well: fiddlers, a saxophonist, and one guy of 14 who rocked wailed on the harmonica and trumpet.

It was an unexpectedly marvelous evening. I went knowing it would be good, but was blown away. I apologize for using that somewhat trite phrase...but it's pretty darn accurate.

If Village Harmony is coming to a church or community center in your area, go!  I implore you! For a listing of New England concerts this summer click here.

Picture from: http://www.villageharmony.org/images/summercamps/09brochure/JumpingoversignLG.jpg

Book Update: recent reads

More Cooking Brilliance with the Bounty of Western Massachusetts

Oh so simple. 

A bunch of freshly grow garlic (with garden soil still dusting the cloves) sat patiently next to the stove.

Quarter-chopped local zucchini steamed in a pan.

A flash of inspiration: One clove of the newly harvested garlic sliced thin with a serrated knife (crushing whilst cutting) strewn on top of the steaming zuke.

Result: Simple heaven in vegetable form.

Not quite haiku, but something akin.

- aae