Disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline

CHICAGO — The school-to-prison pipeline impacts communities across the country; often, this system and the families impacted by it remain invisible. But librarians, educators, and others who work with youth know first-hand that libraries and reading can be life-altering for youth impacted by incarceration. Written by Carrie Scott Banks and Jill Anderson, both librarians who have supported youth before, during, and after incarceration, “Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline: An Action Guide for Libraries” draws from their own experiences while showcasing insights from other library workers, researchers, educators, people who work in the juvenile justice fields, and mental health professionals. Designed to empower libraries and their staff to provide children and teens with information, visibility, knowledge and skills, recreation, and role models, inside this comprehensive book published by ALA Editions readers will discover:

• a concise explanation of the school-to-prison pipeline, including statistics on how and why it disproportionately impacts LGBTQ+, BIPOC, and disabled youth;
• concrete, proven strategies for disrupting youth incarceration pathways by giving young people the tools and support they need to avoid incarceration, including steps for bolstering youth engagement during out of school time;
• guidance on how to align disciplinary approaches with trauma-informed practices when dealing with rowdy youth and other disruptive behavior;
• an overview of what libraries are doing to provide programs and services inside a youth facility, including literacy support, high school equivalency/GED programs, and televisiting;
• strategies for combatting the isolation of children of incarcerated parents by creating inclusive and welcoming library environments;
• information about the complex and difficult process of reentry for incarcerated youth, with adaptable ideas and lessons from the work being done in libraries for reentering adults; and
• an inspiring vision, extrapolating from work in adjacent fields, of what libraries can do to overcome barriers to bringing more youth into the library.

Banks has overseen Brooklyn Public Library’s Inclusive Services since 1997 and taught the course Including Youth with Disabilities at Pratt Institute from 2013 to 2015. In 2012 she was named a Library Journal Mover & Shaker. Active in ALA, ASGCLA, and ALSC since 2000, she was the 2020 President of ASGCLA and served on the Ad Hoc Committee to Revise Correctional Library Standards in 2024. In 2014, she substantially revised “Including Families of Children with Special Needs: A How to Do It Manual for Librarians.” Her book “Libraries and Garden: Growing Together” (written with Cynthia Mediavilla) was published in 2019.

Anderson is the Assistant Director of Jail, Prison, Reentry, and Youth Justice at Queens Public Library. She is interested in outreach, the public library as a community space, and conversations surrounding non-monogamy and queerness

ALA Store purchases fund advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library and information professionals worldwide. ALA Editions publishes resources used by library and information professionals, scholars, students, and educators to improve programs and services, build on best practices, enhance pedagogy, share research, develop leadership, and promote advocacy. ALA authors and developers are leaders in their fields, and their content is published in a variety of print and electronic formats. Contact ALA Editions at editionsmarketing@ala.org.