School library advocates nationwide urged to oppose elimination of teacher-librarian positions

Contact: Melissa B. Jones 
AASL Communications Specialist
(312)280-4381
mjones@ala.org

For Immediate Release,
April 21, 2008

School library advocates nationwide urged to oppose elimination of teacher-librarian positions

CHICAGO –Mesa, Ariz., public schools' has announced the decision to remove teacher-librarians from 87 schools. School library media specialists and advocates of school libraries across the country are joining together to decry the elimination of every teacher-librarian over a three-year period. The Mesa public school system is the largest in the state, with almost 74,000 students.

The position were eliminated primarily because of a deficit of more than $20 million—caused by declining student enrollment and a state budget deficit of $1.2 billion. American Association of School Librarians (AASL) president Sara Kelly Johns said, "It's very sad that the students of Mesa will be left behind the rest of the country in their literacy, research and critical-thinking skills through the elimination of certified school librarians. In a time of tight dollars for school districts, school library media specialists are truly a bargain. Twenty state studies have shown that there is a connection between certified school librarians and student achievement, certainly a concern in Mesa as well as all school districts."

Currently, each school is staffed with a full-time certified teacher-librarian and a full-time aide. Based on school size, the cuts would staff the school libraries with a full-time resource center specialist and a classified media aide. Smaller schools will be equipped with only a resource center specialist. All certified teacher-librarians will be moved into full-time teaching positions.

School library media specialists are trained in 21^st-century literacy and technology skills that prepare students to learn, work and live in an increasingly information-based society. Because the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) does not address the direct correlation between school library media specialists and academic achievement, school library budgets that are not protected on the state level are being cut increasingly to meet local budget constraints.

In this new information age, often referred to as the Google Generation, research strongly suggests that school library media specialists have a central role in the wise use of information and technology to promote learning. The elimination of teacher-librarians seems to be a trend in states where school budget cuts force drastic measures, such as staff reduction and the elimination of critical programming. AASL urges school library media specialists, parents, administrators and friends of school libraries to advocate for school library media programs in a student's achievement and learning process.

"School librarians are technology and literacy coaches, select the best books to entice students to read and to support the curriculum and empower their students to be critical thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers and ethical users of information. The decision by the Mesa Governing Board to 'save money' by eliminating school library positions needs to be reconsidered," Johns said.

Advocates for school library media programs in the public school system are encouraged to show their support of school library media specialists and their support staff to the Mesa Public Schools Governing Board by e-mailing them. The e-mail addresses of the governing board members can be found at http://www.mpsaz.org/main2/govboard/contacts.html.

The American Association of School Librarians, www.aasl.org, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), promotes the improvement and extension of library media services in elementary and secondary schools as a means of strengthening the total education program. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change and develop leaders in the school library media field.