Bookmark
January 2019
President's Message: Advocacy in Action
My fellow NJASL members,
NJASL works hard to combat the job losses across the state. Parents and library professionals approach NJASL to alert us of library positions that are in decline. (Pictured left: Springfield parent, Bonnie Lafazen, speaks at Springfield Board of Education meeting on January 7, 2019.) Currently, NJASL is supporting advocacy efforts in Springfield, Union Township, Mahwah, and Freehold.
With this in mind, NJASL has developed a reporting tool to collect data on schools lacking a certified school library media specialist. Do you know of a school who lost a certified media specialist, use a parent volunteer to cover the school library, or lost a school librarian due to a retirement?
PLEASE REPORT: NJASL needs your help! If you know of a New Jersey school system lacking a certified School Library Media Specialist or a librarian that is planning to retire in the near future, please fill out this form.
Not sure what constitutes a "certified" school librarian? click here
Christina Cucci
President of NJASL 2018-2019
Important News and Information
January 2, 2019- State Board of Education Testimony
On Wednesday, January 2nd, the New Jersey State Board of Education held an open meeting where the public was invited to speak on any educational topic. Several school librarians as well as Pat Tumulty, Director of NJLA, spoke on behalf of school librarians and the importance of having a school library staffed by a certified school librarian. Debra Gottsleben and Anne Piascik of Morristown High School also stressed the connection between libraries and social and emotional learning (SEL).
Robin Canetti in Room LRC spoke about the need for open access to school library materials (referencing the situation in Mahwah where students are limited in their opportunity for book checkout).
Debra Gottsleben in Room A spoke about her school's participation in Library Snapshot Day at Morristown HS and the students comments about their library.
Anne Piascik in Room LRC shared her students' heartfelt comments about their school library at Morristown HS as part of the library's participation in Library Snapshot Day.
Patricia Tumulty spoke about the need for an Information Literacy Curriculum.
Comments can be found at: https://www.state.nj.us/education/sboe/meetings/pubtest.shtml
NJASL Fall Conference Information
PLEASE DO SO ASAP
so NJASL can receive payment!
If you have any questions, please contact registration@njasl.org
IMPORTANT: Attention ALL MEMBERS
Members-
NJASL's mailing address has changed. Please send our new address to your business office so that your purchase orders for membership and conference are sent to the correct location.
The Value of NJASL Membership (created by Betsy Quinn!)
Follow us on Instagram!
Mentors Needed
Have you been in your position for at least four years? Would you like to share what you know with a novice SLMS? Think back to those first days on the job with all your new responsibilities. A new SLMS could easily become overwhelmed by all that is expected of them.
You could make a difference for someone by serving as a mentor. Most of the contact can be virtual. The mentor contract suggests three on-site meetings over the course of the year, so that the mentor and mentee can observe each other in action.
If you are willing to share what you know, please complete the mentor application form linked here. If you have any questions, please contact me: mentoring@njasl.org
~Michelle McGrievey
NJASL Legislative Consultant
- Mary Moyer Stubbs
Legislative Highlights -
January 2019 Bookmark
NJASL Advocacy Efforts
Mahwah School District Update
Continuing to monitor the district book checkout policy. Will assist as needed with the parents of this district.
Freehold Regional High School District - Continuing
This district with six high schools and over 10,000 has only one full-time school library media specialist. NJASL is looking to develop a cohort of parents and community members to attend school board meetings and advocate for school libraries in this district. Please email advocacy@njasl.org if you live or work in this district and interested in assisting with this advocacy effort.
Union Township School District Update
The school has posted two school library media specialist positions due to the joint efforts of NJASL, NJLA, ALA, AASL, AECT, NJEA and the local education association.
Springfield Township Public Schools - Newest School District Effort
Springfield Township is the newest school district to ask for assistance. A group of parents as well as NJASL members (many of whom live in the district) attended the January 7 school board meeting and presented testimony on the value of adding school library media specialists to the elementary and middle school. Letters were presented from ALA/AASL, NJEA, NJASL and AECT. This parent group plans to attend the February school board meeting. Photos from this event: https://photos.app.goo.gl/mcuquPnC7VCygKQEA.
Please email advocacy@njasl.org if you live or work in this district and are interested in assisting with this advocacy effort. Please note - advocacy does not necessarily mean speaking at the school board meeting. Simply attending is helpful as well as speaking to neighbors and other community members to share what students are missing by not having a school library media specialist.
Eliminated Positions - Other Districts
NJASL will be creating a google form to post on the NJASL website to enable members to post information on schools where districts will be eliminating positions. NJASL hopes to become more proactive in their advocacy efforts before positions are eliminated.
Legislative Updates
Senator Shirley Turner is a new co-sponsor of S2394 (requires a certain ratio of SLMS to students). Senator Turner is also the Vice Chair of the Senate Education Committee
District 15 - (Hunterdon and Mercer) East Amwell, Ewing, Hopewell Borough (Mercer), Hopewell Township (Mercer), Lambertville, Lawrence (Mercer), Pennington,Trenton, West Amwell, West Windsor
If you live or work in these communities, please reach out to thank her for her sponsorship of this bill.
How can you support library legislative bills, (A132/S2933) and (A1995 / S2394)
TO DO:
Email, call, write, tweet your legislators in the district that you work in as well as the district where you live.
The flyer with supporting details for A132 / S2933 Flyer with supporting details for A1995/S2394
- Additional information on these bills: https://njasl.org/Library-Legislation
- To find your legislators where you live / work: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/legsearch.asp
- Email, call, write, tweet members of the Education Committee
2018-2020 NJ Legislature: Education Committee Members
* New to committee
Assembly Education Committee
Assemblywoman Pamela R. Lampitt (D-6) — Chair*
District 6 - (Burlington and Camden) Berlin Township, Cherry Hill, Collingswood,Gibbsboro, Haddon, Haddonfield, Hi-Nella, Maple Shade, Merchantville, Oaklyn,Pennsauken, Somerdale, Stratford, Tavistock, Voorhees
Assemblywoman Mila M. Jasey (D-27) — Vice Chair (Sponsor A132)
District 27 - (Essex and Morris) Caldwell, Chatham Township, East Hanover, Essex Fells, Florham Park, Hanover, Harding, Livingston, Madison, Maplewood, Millburn,Roseland, South Orange, West Orange
Assemblyman Ralph R. Caputo (D-28) (Co-Sponsor A1995)
District 28 - (Essex) Bloomfield, Glen Ridge, Irvington, Newark, Nutley
Assemblyman Joe Danielsen (D-17)*
District 17 - (Middlesex and Somerset) Franklin (Somerset), Milltown, New Brunswick, North Brunswick, Piscataway
Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso (R-13)*
District 13 - (Monmouth) Aberdeen, Atlantic Highlands, Fair Haven, Hazlet,Highlands, Holmdel, Keansburg, Keyport, Little Silver, Marlboro, Middletown,Monmouth Beach, Oceanport, Rumson, Sea Bright, Union Beach
Assemblyman Gary S. Schaer (D-36)*
District 36 - (Bergen and Passaic) Carlstadt, Cliffside Park, East Rutherford, Little Ferry, Lyndhurst, Moonachie, North Arlington, Passaic, Ridgefield, Ridgefield Park,Rutherford, South Hackensack, Teterboro, Wallington, Wood-Ridge
Assemblywoman Holly Schepisi (R-39)*
District 39 - (Bergen and Passaic) Bloomingdale, Closter, Demarest, Dumont,Emerson, Harrington Park, Haworth, Hillsdale, Mahwah, Montvale, Norwood, Oakland,Old Tappan, Park Ridge, Ramsey, Ringwood, River Vale, Saddle River, Upper Saddle River, Wanaque, Washington (Bergen), Westwood, Woodcliff Lake
Assemblyman Edward H. Thomson (R-30)*
District 30 - (Monmouth and Ocean) Avon-by-the-Sea, Belmar, Bradley Beach,Brielle, Farmingdale, Howell, Lake Como, Lakewood, Manasquan, Point Pleasant, Sea Girt, Spring Lake, Spring Lake Heights, Wall
Assemblywoman Britnee N. Timberlake (D-34)*
District 34 - (Essex and Passaic) Clifton, East Orange, Montclair, Orange
Assemblyman David W. Wolfe (R10)
District 10 - (Ocean) Bay Head, Brick, Island Heights, Lakehurst, Lavallette,Manchester, Mantoloking, Point Pleasant Beach, Seaside Heights, Toms River
Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker (D16)*
District 16 - (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset) Branchburg, Delaware,Flemington, Hillsborough, Manville, Millstone (Somerset), Montgomery, Princeton,Raritan (Hunterdon), Readington, Rocky Hill, Somerville, South Brunswick, Stockton
Senate Education Committee
Ruiz, M. Teresa - Chair (D29) District 29 - (Essex) Belleville, Newark
Turner, Shirley K. - Vice-Chair (D15)
District 15 - (Hunterdon and Mercer) East Amwell, Ewing, Hopewell Borough (Mercer), Hopewell Township (Mercer), Lambertville, Lawrence (Mercer), Pennington,Trenton, West Amwell, West Windsor
Beach, James (D6) (Sponsor S2394)
District 6 - (Burlington and Camden) Berlin Township, Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Gibbsboro, Haddon, Haddonfield, Hi-Nella, Maple Shade, Merchantville, Oaklyn, Pennsauken, Somerdale, Stratford, Tavistock, Voorhees
Doherty, Michael J. (R23)
District 23 - (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren) Alexandria, Alpha, Bedminster,Bethlehem, Bloomsbury, Bound Brook, Bridgewater, Califon, Clinton, Clinton Township,Franklin (Hunterdon), Franklin (Warren), Frenchtown, Glen Gardner, Greenwich (Warren), Hackettstown, Hampton (Hunterdon), Harmony, High Bridge, Holland,Kingwood, Lebanon Borough, Lebanon Township, Lopatcong, Mansfield (Warren),Milford, Peapack-Gladstone, Phillipsburg, Pohatcong, Raritan (Somerset), South Bound Brook, Tewksbury, Union (Hunterdon), Washington Borough (Warren),Washington Township (Warren)
Gordon, Robert M. (D38) *
District 38 - (Bergen and Passaic) Bergenfield, Fair Lawn, Glen Rock, Hasbrouck Heights, Hawthorne, Lodi, Maywood, New Milford, Oradell, Paramus, River Edge,Rochelle Park, Saddle Brook
Thompson, Samuel D. (R12)*
District 12 - (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean) Allentown,Chesterfield, Englishtown, Jackson, Manalapan, Matawan, Millstone (Monmouth), New Hanover, North Hanover, Old Bridge, Plumsted, Roosevelt, Upper Freehold,Wrightstown
Other Legislative Updates
Bills signed by Governor Murphy
S-869 allows colleges to establish a 3+1 degree program granting students the ability to earn baccalaureate degree after spending three years at county college and one year at a senior university.
S-870 sets up a commission to study the dual enrollment programs in the state. These programs enable high schools to partner with an institution of higher education to offer coursework that can be applied toward both high school and postsecondary degrees.
A-4345 requires permanent and substitute school bus drivers and aides to participate in safety education programs twice a year.
S-2848 requires school bus drivers to submit a medical report and requires drivers over age 70 to submit proof of physical fitness every year, and those over age 75 to submit this proof every six months.
S-2850 requires that when a school bus driver has had their bus driver license suspended or revoked, the board of education or bus contractor must verify to Department of Education that driver in question no longer operates a bus for them.
A-4339 requires school bus operations in New Jersey to comply with federal regulations concerning safety, noise emissions, insurance, and drug testing.
S-2000), requires students in grades 6-8 to receive instruction in budgeting, savings, credit, insurance and investment. This bill is in addition to the basic financial literacy that students are required to receive in high school. Full article
Other Articles of Interest
Health Advantages for Lifelong Readers
Creating students who are lifelong readers has lifelong health advantages!
A study (University of Michigan) of 3,635 older adults found that book readers had a 23-month survival advantage and a 20 percent lower mortality risk compared to nonreaders. Reading was protective regardless of gender, education or health. Study and Final version of the article
SURVEY FINDS PERSISTENT BULLYING OF LGBTQ STUDENTS IN NJ HIGH SCHOOLS
Many students find their school library a "safe place." This article provides another strong reason for why school libraries are needed for students. Information is found in one of the recommendations from the survey that could be used as justification for materials purchases for the school library. Full article Survey
Recommendation from the survey:
Increasing student access to appropriate and accurate information regarding LGBTQ people, history, and events through inclusive curricula, and library and internet resources;
Federal funds for preschool education
New Jersey will get $10.6 million in federal funding for a new initiative from the Murphy administration, the NJ Preschool Development Collaboration. Article
Reading =Hope x Change (What's your equation)
Jacqueline Woodson’s Reading Initiative, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.
Resources can be found at:http://everychildareader.net/readinghopechange/about-rhc/
Report on Educational Opportunities for Non-College Bound Students
Report from Task Force by the New Jersey School Board Association on non-college bound students with the goal of identifying strategies to better equip those students with needed skills for the job market. View report.
Some information / recommendations that might be of interest:
see Page 12 of Introduction Deals with soft (middle skills)
See #44,45 Recommendations Deals with STEM and Makerspaces certification
Call for Curriculum
In this time of budget cuts and school funding challenges, having a board-approved curriculum can mean the difference between school positions that are considered vital and those that are not. A board-approved curriculum elevates the school library program status to that of other content areas in the building, creating an equal playing field for partnership. School library media specialists often find their positions threatened and lack the evidence of a curriculum as the framework needed to safeguard their jobs. When an information literacy or library curriculum is in place, there is a demonstrated need for a qualified professional to teach it.
With this in mind, the Ad Hoc Curriculum Committee has been established to gather best practice examples of library or information literacy curricula. The aim is to provide these examples to our members to assist them in advocating for and developing their own. Several members have shared curricula with us in the past, but now we need only those that reflect our new AASL standards. See below if you can help us with this critical work.
This collection may also serve to support and inform the state in developing a new Information Literacy curriculum, which is currently known as bill HB A132 / S2933. NJASL consultant Mary Moyers has been working with legislators to pass this bill, which would require instruction on information literacy in grades K-12. Information literacy, as described in this bill, includes digital, visual, media, textual, and technological literacy, and the language of the bill specifically includes mention of certified school library media specialists. Look for a push in December when we will ask NJASL members to reach out to legislators in support of this bill.
Do you have a board-approved curriculum that has been updated to reflect the new AASL Standards that you can share with us? Submit it here to share it with your fellow librarians.
Questions or comments? Email membersatlarge@njasl.org
Kim Zito and Amy Gazaleh
Apply for the 2019 Miss Rumphius Award!
The New Jersey Center for the Book is seeking nominations for its 2019 Miss Rumphius Award.
Based on the title character of Barbara Cooney’s book, Miss Rumphius, winner of the National Book Award in 1983, this Award honors public librarians, school media specialists, and educators who are stellar in spreading ideas about literacy.
The deadline for submitting nominations is Friday, February 15, 2019. The nominee must be employed in New Jersey as a professional librarian, library staff member, certified educator, or teacher assistant, and must have developed creative activities to enhance learning and literacy. The activity should be collaborative, innovative, and able to be replicated by other librarians and educators. The nominee must be willing to help produce her or his program for other classrooms and/or libraries. A monetary amount of $200.00 and a NJCFB Miss Rumphius Award certificate will be presented to the recipient in 2019.
The nomination shall include the full name of the nominee and the place of employment; shall describe the activity or program in complete detail; shall describe the setting in which it takes place; shall indicate the collaborative aspects; shall indicate the innovative aspects of the program or activity and indicate how it can be replicated; shall include the full name and title of the nominator with address, email, phone number and fax number; shall include a letter of support from an administrator, from a former or current student, from a client or patron, or from a member of the staff.
Please submit your nomination (self-nominations are accepted) for the Miss Rumphius Award to Carol Phillips (carolphillipslibrarian@gmail.com).
If you have any questions, contact Carol Phillips, (carolphillipslibrarian@gmail.com) or visit the NJCFB website: njcenterforthebook.org.
NJASL Nomination Committee
Volunteers are needed to be part of this year's NJASL Nomination Committee. The committee will be tasked with finding candidate for next year's NJASL officers. The positions that will need to be voted on in the Spring of 2019 are Secretary, Member at Large and Vice President. This committee will meet online, so the commitment time is minimal!
If you are interested in joining the committee, please email Lisa Bakanas at Pastpres@njasl.org.
If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for one of the positions, please email! I hope to hear from you soon!
NJDOE’s New Middle School Financial Literacy Mandate: A Golden Opportunity for School Library Media Specialists
The New Jersey Department of Education, in a move endorsed by the NJEA, recently signed off on a bill that requires middle schools to teach 6th - 8th graders financial literacy. Districts have until the start of the 2019-2020 school year to begin administering financial literacy lessons. This move is in response to the large amounts of debt, specifically student loan debt, that NJ students incur. Financial literacy is currently taught in high schools thanks to a law that was passed before the 2010-2011 school year and under this new law topics that will be covered include: “budgeting, savings, credit, insurance and investment” (Reitmeyer, NJSpotlight).
My initial reaction was frustration that financial literacy has taken priority over information literacy, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that financial literacy is a form of literacy and SLMSs have been at the forefront of all forms of literacy instruction, both traditional, such as reading, and contemporary, such as computer literacy. Let’s take this opportunity to be proactive in our building’s planning and position ourselves to be a vital resource in this new curriculum.
As of now we don't really know what the financial literacy component is going to look like, but this is an chance for us to approach our administrators to say we want to be part of the conversation and we can help. Hopefully the requirements aren't overwhelming and do not require a separate class. Based on my school’s current building curricula, my guess is that it will be carried out in the math classes. Until Hour of Code, our math department (with the exception of one teacher) never saw the value of bringing classes to the library. Last year was the first year we were able to get all 6th grade math classes in for a coding activity. The teachers loved it so much they jumped right on board again this year. Last year one even shared how impressive it was with an 8th grade math teacher and he asked to come in later in the year. How great would it be to develop real-world PBL financial literacy activities for each grade that take place in the library? How happy would the administrators and teachers be if we can help take on the brunt of yet "one more thing to do"? Yes, it will be a lot of work for us on the front end, but we can form our own group here to share our expertise, ideas, and resources. This is what librarians do. If we want to remain relevant and essential in the eyes of our administration we are going to have to do the work.
Let's request to meet with our administrators. The first step is to say we know financial literacy is coming to our schools next year (this also shows them how on top of education policy librarians are) and we want to be a part of the planning. That we can create PBL activities by curating a collection of differentiated and authoritative resources. That we can teach students how to access, use, synthesize, and evaluate these resources and create a real-world authentic end product. That members of our state organization have been discussing this and we can work together to make this a meaningful experience for our students.
Hopefully since the new AASL standards were released our districts are giving us the opportunity to update our curriculum. We are in the middle of doing ours. This is an auspicious time to add this new component. For those of us who have a difficult time getting our districts to approve our curriculum updates, this is the moment to say "By the way, we have new national standards and this is the perfect time to update since we are working on this new initiative."
If any other middle school librarians are interested in being a part of their building's efforts, let me know. You can email me directly (vp@njasl.org or bibliobeth@gmail.com) and I can start to make a list. Once things get rolling we can start a discussion about possible next steps.
Beth Thomas
Vice President, NJASL SLMS, Lawton C. Johnson Summit Middle School
Professional Practice & Development
The Power of Social Media to Advocate for School Librarian Positions
On an electronic discussion list (LM_Net) a poster from Connecticut lamented, “Lately, I have found myself having to justify my time without students to classroom teachers.” The first response came from a Missouri school librarian said she uses a “ is taken from my evaluation under NEE (Network for Educator Effectiveness),” which is an evaluation tool adopted for Missouri teachers.
This post listed:
LMS Element 1 - Collaborates with teachers and other educators;
LMS Element 2 - Promotes student reading;
LMS Element 3 - Provides instruction that addresses multiple literacies;
LMS Element 4 - Designs instruction to teach inquiry and the information search process;
LMS Element 5 - Addresses diversity, equity, and inclusiveness in literacy lessons and programs; LMS Element 6 - Conducts strategic planning, program evaluation, and program reporting;
LMS Element 7 - Manages collection and information access;
LMS Element 8 - Manages staff and budget;
LMS Element 9 - Manages learning space and technology access;
LMS Element 10 - Engages in outreach and advocacy; and
LMS Element 11 - Demonstrates leadership.
Then another Connecticut school librarian posted (reposted) resources original credited to librarians in Texas: “This wonderful link was previously posted on LM_NET. I've found it to be incredibly useful: https://sites.google.com/a/springisd.org/transforming-libraries/home/unseen-tasks-librarians-do and Here is the link to the spreadsheet of duties:https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12U_3I5aBWxaRrrM7z6EgWtNQvrF_XRx7xSzDR4QgrFM/edit?usp=sharing.THAT’s what got me thinking!
That spreadsheet really made me reflect again about my "official" job description and one I proposed this past July but has not yet been reviewed. (My "official" job description doesn't have the words 'collaboration' or 'technology' anywhere in it!) So, I used the spreadsheet linked from the prior message and modified it to match my situation (high school librarian).
I ended up with 84 responsibilities and 11 roles, and I also quantified who should/could see what I do.
Three charts summarize this: *Feel free to share and modify my list and charts to suit your advocacy needs.
1. Roles of the High School Librarian by Subcategories
2. Primary Roles of the High School Librarian
3. Percent of Roles Seen by Stakeholders
After I posted my take on a school librarian’s responsibilities, Dr. Judi Moreillon from Arizona then commented that some of the “unseen” responsibilities on the original Connecticut poster’s list could also be made to be “seen.”
Yours in service, Arlen Kimmelman, Ed. M., M. A.
School Librarian & Techbrarian
National Board Certified Teacher
Past President, New Jersey Association of School Librarians
Google for Education Certified Trainer #05584
The Connected Library Consortium
The NJ/PA Ebook Consortium has a new name - The Connected Library Consortium. This change came about because the consortium offers ebooks and audiobooks to school libraries in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey and the chairs for this consortium, wanted to give a name that is neither a New Jersey or Pennsylvania name.
You may be wondering what exactly is the consortium, and how does it work. The consortium actually started in 2015 in Pennsylvania and in 2016 in New Jersey. It was started by school librarians as a way to provide electronic books to school libraries at the lowest rate possible. After much research, the librarians who started the consortium decided to use Mackin Educational resources as the supplier. This is because Mackin allows educators to use their program MackinVIA free of charge, and Mackin works with any type of circulation system. Many of the vendors that were considered required that educators make an additional purchase.
So how does the consortium work? Below are some of the important points of the consortium:
Any school library in New Jersey or Pennsylvania may join.
Schools must fill out a letter of intent in order to join and they will be billed by the company HSLC in August
Schools pay for each level of resources (elementary, middle, or high school)
Schools also pay for their student population - For example, if a school is elementary they will be charged for that collection based on their student population.
The list of costs by student population can be found on the Connected Library Consortium Website
All resources that are purchased on the year you join the consortium are yours to keep, even if you decide not to join the following year
There are catch up collections available, in case you wish to purchase for a previous year you did not join
Each school that joins will be able to set up their own MackinVIA portal. Mackin’s educational consultant, Jessica Gottlieb can help you set this up.
The PD Committee recently hosted a webinar with Anastasia Hanneken and Jessica Gottlieb to give the basics of using MackinVIA and joining the consortium. You can find a recording of the webinar here.
For more information on the consortium please email Anastasia Hanneken at pd@njasl.org
By Anastasia Hanneken
Professional Development Chair
Girls Who Code Provides Free Books for 3-5 Grade Book Clubs
Girls Who Code, a national non-profit with the mission to close the gender gap in technology, is providing free books for our new 3-5 grade book Clubs. Students read and discuss our nonfiction book, Learn to Code and Change the World. We provide five free books per Club and grant funding! Clubs can be run entirely offline, and we offer an optional online component if you wish to use it. No computer science experience necessary! To claim your free books, free curriculum and support, just submit our online Club application at www.girlswhocode.com.
For more information, contact Eve Balick at eve.balick@girlswhocode.com.
GIRLS WHO CODE CLUBS IN NEW JERSEY PARTNERS WITH NEW JERSEY MAKERS DAY
Girls Who Code Clubs in New Jersey would love to share the work that our 230+ Clubs are doing with our local communities. New Jersey Makers Day celebrates maker culture at 300+ sites around our state on March 22 and 23, 2019. If your location is a NJ Makers Day site and also hosts a Girls Who Code Club, we would love to spotlight and celebrate your work! We are looking for NJ Girls Who Code Clubs who would like to share their work with their local communities at their NJ Makers Day site. Join us to spotlight your Club, share your Girls Who Code project, and recruit new Club members or Facilitators!
If you are interested in getting involved to spotlight your Club, please contact Eve Balick at eve.balick@girlswhocode.com and Doug Baldwin at dbaldwin@njmakersday.org. Please let us know about your potential interest and we will follow up with you directly.
If you are an NJ Makers Day site interested in starting a free Girls Who Code Club, please visit our website to submit an online application or contact our NJ representative Eve Balick with any questions. If you are a Girls Who Code Club interested in becoming an NJ Makers Day site, contact Doug Baldwin.
Library News from YOU!
Great Ryerson Read
by Christine Halstater
Ryerson Elementary School in Wayne has embarked on a year long journey highlighting their favorite books. Mirrored after The Great American Read on PBS, Ryerson students will be selecting their favorite books.
This fall, they begin by choosing one book per month from each class. The school's goal is to highlight 100 books by the month of May, culminating with a school wide field trip.
The Great Ryerson Read incentive hopes to inspire students to pick up favorites from other classes, ultimately leading to a love of reading by everyone involved.
Fifth grade students run monthly school wide assemblies with the guidance of Reading Specialist , Kathy Grillo and Media Specialist, Christine Halstater, the team behind The Great Ryerson Read. Students in each class promoted their selected favorites, encouraging others to pick up the book to read. Students also created a wall display that will eventually become a giant mural of 100 book favorites. To continue reading, please click here!
NJASL Continues to Advocate for Lost SLMS Positions: #anecessitynotaluxury
Hawthorne High School Library Teams with GSA Club
The Hawthorne High School Library teamed with the Gay Straight Alliance club to organize events surrounding the National Human Trafficking Awareness Day on January 11. As a registered participating school, Hawthorne received, from the NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking, 300 magnets that were used to slam lockers with important awareness messages such as “Abolish Modern-Day Slavery,” “People Should Not Be For Sale” and “Slavery Still Exists.” Students, staff and administrators wore black to raise awareness of the issue, a video was shown in the library during lunch periods, morning announcements, flyers, books and resources also helped spread the word during the week leading up to this important national event. This program highlights our library’s efforts to be the hub of information for school, local, national and world events!
Theresa DiGeronimo
HHS Library Media Specialist
ONE BOOK ONE SCHOOL: SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES
Any chance you attended the One Book One School (OBOS) presentation at the NJASL conference? It provided titles and activities used by Reynolds School in Upper Saddle River, NJ. In addition to the presenters' resources, many attendees contributed their own OBOS experiences. There was so much knowledge and enthusiasm for the program, it was clear NJASL could offer an amazing resource if its members had a forum for show and share.
So, we are working to provide that forum. We just need your help.
If you have facilitated, or been part of, a One Book One School event, please consider sharing some of the titles you’ve used, activities you’ve planned, and/or ideas that you’ve brainstormed.
The google link here will allow us to compile the information and display it on the NJASL website as a resource (thank you, NJASL Board!).
Questions, comments, or have an interest in getting more involved with our OBOS endeavor?
Please contact us at:
Mary Beth Sieminski, Buena Regional High School, TriCSL member: mbsieminski@gmail.com
Theresa Wordelmann, Jeffrey Clark School, TriCSL member: wordelmannt@eastgreenwich.k12.nj.us
NJASL Affiliate News
BPASL Advocacy
Members of BPASL met on January 16th to learn more about the importance of advocating for libraries. David DiGregorio opened up his beautiful Tenafly library for the workshop. BPASL members Tara Cooper Weiss, Julie Goldberg, Erin Hummel and Lisa Straubinger delivered the presentation. A lively discussion took place as members were provided with ideas and resources to create a 30-60-90 plan to activate their advocacy. The membership also shared a variety of impressive and practical ideas that could be put into motion right away. The highlight of the event was the resource website created by Tara Cooper Weiss. It is filled with information and links for everyone to use to get started on or build upon their advocacy efforts. Check it out here: https://sites.google.com/wayneschools.com/njasl-advocacy/home
Please take a moment to go to the link for the "Toolkit."Scroll down and add your advocacy ideas to the Google form. Then click on the link to the left to view your response as well as the other ideas shared. Our collective ideas will help to build the toolkit. Just like the theme for the 2019 Fall Conference, we are BETTER TOGETHER!
Help Advocate for LibraryLinkNJ
With the help of Abigail Bacon from BELS Consortium as the tester, Arlen Kimmelman was able to create an editable template to create a customized infographic for school librarians to use to advocate for LibraryLinkNJ inter-library loan services with cost sharing.
The template includes the Slides to make the flyer, the link to customize a chart, and the ability in Slides to print or download the Slides as a .pdf. We hope having a compelling and accurate visual message will encourage school districts to accept the value and importance of contributing to the cost-sharing model of inter-library loan services for our students and staff.
Contributed by
Mrs. Arlen Kimmelman, Ed. M., M. A.
School Librarian & Techbrarian
National Board Certified Teacher
Past President, New Jersey Association of School Librarians
Google for Education Certified Trainer #05584
AASL in Partnership
Smart organizations know they can’t succeed on their own. That is the core to understanding advocacy. When I first joined ALA, AASL seemed almost separate from ALA, and ALA seemed an extension of PLA. The change began in the mid-1980 and has been rapidly accelerating over the past few years. The Libraries Transform website, an ALA initiative, uses that message for ALL types of libraries. The clever slogans are general and specific with new ones added regularly.
I serve on two ALA Committees, the Committee on Professional Ethics, and the Intellectual Freedom Committee. I bring the school librarians’ perspective to whatever we are working on, and, in so doing, make it more universal to the whole library world. Together we are stronger.
AASL partners with various groups and organizations. We get their message out, and they do the same for us. I expect us to continue to expand these collaborations and partnerships.
Within AASL, there is Affiliate Assembly, meeting at Midwinter and Annual. This links the school library association in almost all the states, allowing us to share information easily. It is also the vehicle for getting our concerns as individual associations and/or regions in front of this body and, if the others see the value/importance it gets sent to AASL’s Board of Directors for action.
Through AASL Connect, I learned that Keith Curry Lance is doing a study on loss of library positions. NJASL has now joined the study. He is including all types of libraries in this, which triggered the idea of NJASL reaching out to the New Jersey Association of College and Research Librarians (NJACRL). Just as we have a representative from NJEA on our board, we are going to exchange representatives with NJACRL. Together it will make our advocacy stronger.
Reminder: Registration is now open for ALA Annual. It’s being held in Washington, D.C., June 20-25, 2019. It’s easy to get to by car or train and late enough that most of you will be out of school. The exhibits are huge, and the programming is varied and interesting. Make it the beginning of your vacation and see the sites in Washington.
If you have any questions about AASL, please contact me at hildakw@gmail.com. I would be glad to answer or find the answers for you.
Exciting Partnership!
As of January 15, 2019 it became official (through a Press Release) that AECT has formed a partnership with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) – Allied Command Transformation (ACT)!
Commissioned on June 19, 2003, NATO ACT regards “cutting edge technologies for digital learning as innovative and powerful methods of teaching and learning.” NATO-ACT leads NATO’s Education and Training. They have strong educational mission that provides a catalog of 120 courses that are mainly delivered online.
This partnership will provide NATO ACT, headquartered in Norfolk, VA, with access to AECT’s vast catalog of videos and publications as well as AECT’s members will have access to applied research, professional development opportunities and authentic design and development test cases and projects from NATO ACT.
The collaboration will be based on four domains that correlate with NATO ACT’s four functions: 1.Knowledge Exchange (AECT Research & Publications)
2. Experimentation (i.e. New Research)
3. Design and Development (with AECT members)
4. Dialogue and Conversation (i.e. Conventions, meetings, symposia)
Besides this partnership, NATO ACT has become a sponsor for AECT’s Design and Development Competition that provides graduate students the opportunity to work on teams with a faculty mentor to respond to fictitious real world business problems. For the next three years NATO ACT officials will be fully involved with this important competition as a coaching resource and a judge. This will be a unique opportunity for the graduate students who participate as they will have access to materials not otherwise available.
Thank you to AECT Executive Director Dr. Phillip Harris and AECT’s member and liaison for this partnership, Tonya Amankwatia for their background information for this article.
If you would like more information on items mentioned here or on AECT, please contact me!
Leslie Blatt
NJASL Liaison to AECT
Villy Gandhi Leadership Training Scholarship
All NJASL members are invited to apply for the Villy Gandhi Leadership Training Scholarship. Villy Gandhi scholars participate in the AECT Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 21 -25, 2019.
AECT- Association for Educational Communications and Technology- promotes scholarship and best practices in the creation, use, and management of technologies for effective teaching and learning. AECT is an International affiliate of NJASL. Learn more about AECT at AECT.org
To become a Villy Gandhi Scholar, you must be a certified library media specialist currently employed in a New Jersey school library media center and a member of NJASL. The applicant agrees to attend the AECT Fall Convention, attend NJASL Board of Trustees meetings and implement for NJASL at least one idea obtained at the AECT Convention. The scholarship provides up to $1,000 to help cover transportation, lodging and registration fee for attending the event. After attending the event, the person will write an article for Bookmark describing their experience, assist at the AECT Booth at the NJASL Fall Conference, participate on School Media Technology Division Board calls and prepare a webinar or similar form describing your experience at AECT.
To apply, provide the following: name, home and school address, home and school telephone number, grade level responsibility, number of years as a SLMS, resume, and a short biography. To this cover sheet, attach supporting evidence of qualifications for the award. These should include statements on experiences in educational media, volunteer experiences with NJASL and its affiliates and information on pertinent materials the applicant may have published or produced. There are 3 questions to answer and applicants should provide 2 letters of reference. It can be from administrators, and/or supervisor and one from a colleague can be a third one. SEE MORE INFORMATION ON THE NJASL.ORG WEBSITE – AWARDS!
The deadline for this application is March 15, 2019. The recipient will be notified by May 1 and the award will be presented jointly with the AECT President at the NJASL Fall Annual Conference in December, 2019.
Send the completed application by EMAIL (No Google Doc) to Leslie Blatt at MrsLes@aol.com
Opportunity to Present at AECT 2019
Are you Inspired? Would you like to present at an International Convention in October, 2019 in Las Vegas? The Call for Proposals is open for the AECT International Convention until February 18.
In keeping with this year’s theme of Inspired, NJASL requests that proposals on example topics listed keep the overall theme in mind in the submission:
The teaching of information literacy. There has been discussion of how information literacy is perceived in the K-12 environments. Where does technology fit in?
Changing role of Library Media Centers and Library Media Specialists in K-12 environments
Collaboration techniques between School Librarians and Teachers
Best Practices - information literacy and/or instructional technology, Digital Storytelling, coding, etc.
Could Library Media Specialists or Technology Teachers be considered Instructional Designers?
Other topics of your choosing are also welcome!
Also, submissions that are interactive to encourage audience participation will be of great value.
For more information on submitting proposals go to AECT.org. If any other questions, please contact me!
Leslie Blatt NJASL Liaison to AECT libreader@gmail.com
ISTE Affiliate News
~ Renee Rogers (iste@njasl.org)
How do you use student learning data?
ISTE has partnered with Project Unicorn to better understand how student learning data and privacy issues impact educators in their daily practice. They are surveying educators across the globe to identify issues and best practices. Let’s include librarian voices in their data. Please take a moment to fill out this brief survey https://info.iste.org/project-unicorn-and-iste. You will be entered to win one of five awesome prize packages, including free registration for you and a colleague to attend ISTE19!
Speaking of ISTE19…
Did you know that the ISTE19 conference will be held nearby in Philadelphia, PA this year? Are you planning on attending? Mark your calendar for early bird registration, starting December 4, 2018. NJASL members have attended and presented at past ISTE conferences, and this one is sure to be the biggest and best yet! Keep an eye out for a call for proposals and signups to present at the Librarians Playground, and get your feet wet presenting at this international conference by engaging with other knowledgeable, curious, and innovative school librarians in the smaller “playground” setting! Stop by the ISTE booth at the NJASL Fall Conference for more information about ISTE, the ISTE Standards, and ISTE19 conference registration!
Want to learn more about ISTE?
ISTE has a very active online network of librarians. Even if you aren’t (yet!) an ISTE member, you can engage with ISTE Librarians Network leaders through the website http://librariansnetwork.weebly.com/, and by following @istelib and #istelib on Twitter. Watch for advocacy opportunities, and announcements of webinars, appearances, and new publications from this highly respected group of librarians and ed tech leaders.
Check out all of the free and members-only resources for librarians through ISTE at https://www.iste.org/learn/librarians, including the free crosswalk of the ISTE Standards for Educators and Future Ready Librarians Framework (https://www.iste.org/docs/isteu-docs/iste-standards-e_frl-crosswalk_6-2018_v7-2.pdf). The ISTE Standards for Students and Educators have also been crosswalked with the AASL National School Library Standards (https://standards.aasl.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/180828-aasl-standards-crosswalk-iste.pdf).
Use these crosswalks with teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders to highlight your critical role in teaching, learning, and leading with educational technology in your building and your district.
HCLA's Winter Workshop
You must register for event- more information included on the agenda.
Contact:
Stephanie Singer
President, Hunterdon County Librarians Association
Thursday, Feb 21, 2019, 09:00 AM
Hunterdon County Library, New Jersey 12, Flemington, NJ, USA
MCSMA Upcoming Events
March 14 – Library Lessons for All Subjects
Wondering how to engage more learners in the library? Looking for new ways to collaborate with different teachers? Have you already had success and want to share it? MCSMA is hosting a poster board session focusing on bringing more subjects into the library. If you’d like to present, please contact us at mcsmaweb@gmail.com.
Looking forward to seeing you soon! Check out the flyer for more information.
UMASL Meeting Alert
The Union Middlesex Association of School librarians will be hosting their winter meeting on Tuesday, February 26, 2019 at Metuchen High School. The meeting will begin at 4 p.m. with a brief board meeting. After that we will have Chrissy George, Middlesex Public Library’s Children’s Librarian and Webmaster will talk about “Today’s Best of Books in Children’s and YA Literature. Chrissy has been working at Middlesex Public Library since 2010. She is in charge of their collection development, managing and implementing programs for children and teens. She also has created collaborative programs for the staff of Middlesex Borough Schools.
Tuesday, Feb 26, 2019, 04:00 PM
Metuchen High School, Grove Avenue, Metuchen, NJ, USA
THANK YOU! Looking for submissions...
Don't forget that we are always looking for entries from ALL membership. Deadlines for the year are on the 15th of every month. Check out more information about our deadlines here. Please share articles with me at the bookmark@njasl.org email address by sharing a Google Document or PDF.
Check out more information about deadlines and submissions on the Smore linked below!!
NJASL
Email: bookmark@njasl.org
Website: njasl.org
Location: LibraryLinkNJ, Stelton Road, Piscataway Township, NJ, United States
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NJASL/
Twitter: @njasl