AASL announces members of first Induction Program cohort

For Immediate Release
Fri, 03/16/2018

Contact:

Jennifer Habley

Manager, Web Communications

American Association of School Librarians (AASL)

312-280-4383

jhabley@ala.org

CHICAGO – Ten members of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) have been selected to participate in the organization’s inaugural Induction Program cohort. Announced at the AASL national conference in Phoenix, the goal of the Induction Program is to assist future school library leaders in recognizing and developing their leadership abilities.

“The AASL Board sees the Induction Program as a sustainable approach to build capacity in our members to be tomorrow's leaders in ALA as well as in P-12 education,” said AASL President Steven Yates. "The generosity of our 65th anniversary campaign donors made this program possible."

School librarians participating in the inaugural cohort are:

  • Kelsey Barker, Longfellow Middle School, Oklahoma
  • Lisa Beal, West Liberty Elementary, Iowa
  • Sharon Frank, Cane Run Elementary School, Kentucky
  • Wendy Garland, Avery Elementary School, Massachusetts
  • Jen Gilbert, Eminence Independent Schools, Kentucky
  • Gretchen Hazlin, Kilmer Middle School, Virginia
  • Katie LaFever, North Tonawanda City School District, New York
  • Peter Langella, Champlain Valley Union High School, Vermont
  • Emily Ratica, Arroyo Valley High School, California
  • Suzanne Sannwald, West Hills High School, California

The cohort will be taken through twelve online coursework modules developed by leaders in the school library field covering topics such as leadership theory, community collaboration, and mentoring. Upon completion of the course, members of the cohort will volunteer for AASL in a capacity of their choice (i.e. as a member of a committee, Knowledge Quest blogger, etc).

"The induction implementation task force is excited to begin its work with the first cohort group," said Robyn Young, task force chair. "More than eighty applicants applied, and ten future leaders in our profession have been chosen to build their leadership skills and develop their own leadership style in a year-long course. The culminating activity will be to meet in person at AASL 2019 in Louisville. We are looking forward to getting to know this group of excellent school librarians."

“The program task force has done phenomenal work to create a robust curriculum that will culminate in attendance at our next national conference in Louisville," continued Yates. "Thank you to the volunteers who have made this program possible and congratulations to our inaugural cohort of what I hope will be a vibrant and supportive pipeline for future leaders.”

Applications for the second cohort will open at the conclusion of AASL national conference in Louisville.

The American Association of School Librarians www.aasl.org, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), empowers leaders to transform teaching and learning.