James Patterson named SLMM spokesperson
Contact: Melissa Jacobsen
AASL Communications Specialist
(312) 280-4381
NEWS
For Immediate Release
March 17, 2009
CHICAGO – The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) has announced that James Patterson will be the spokesperson for School Library Media Month (SLMM). SLMM is AASL's annual celebration of school library media specialists and their programs and is celebrated the entire month of April. More information can be found at
http://www.ala.org/aasl/slmm.
"AASL is extremely pleased to have James Patterson as our spokesperson for School Library Media Month," said AASL President Ann M. Martin. "Lending his talents and support to this very special month acknowledges that school library media specialists are a vital component of the educational system."
James Patterson has been the number-one-selling author in America for the past three years and is the author of the critically acclaimed Maximum Ride series, an American Library Association (ALA) 2005 Teens Top Ten pick. Dubbed "the man who can't miss" by Time magazine, Patterson has brought his sure-fire success to children by focusing on getting them to love reading. His new Web site, ReadKiddoRead.com, is designed to help parents, teachers and librarians find books that will appeal to kids at all reading and interest levels. Patterson will present a special author session, "Turbocharge Your Day with James Patterson!—Read Kiddo Read! Parents and Librarians Band Together to Make Kids Lifelong Readers," at AASL's 14th National Conference & Exhibition this November in Charlotte, N.C.
As a salute to those being celebrated in April, James Patterson said, “To school library media specialists everywhere: thank you for your dedication to picking the right books for the right kids. Your expertise is critical – you are the front line. Your passion is my passion, and I salute the work you do to get more and more kids loving books and reading.”
School Library Media Month, begun in 1985, is celebrated in conjunction with National Library Week (April 12-18). This year's theme for both events is "Worlds connect @ your library." School library media specialists should visit the SLMM Web pages to find activities for celebrating school library media programs and PSAs recorded by James Patterson for public use. In celebration of SLMM, every Wednesday starting April 8, AASL will offer webinars for school library media specialists to learn more about the implementation of AASL's Standards for the 21st-Century Learner.
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.
