Determines the role of elementary and secondary library media specialists in (1) promoting reading growth; (2) assisting classroom teachers; and (3) teaching reading skills and strategies. Compares actual and ideal responsibilities of school library media specialists. (RS)

Reviews the accomplishments of Ernestine Rose, a pioneer in providing library services to Blacks in Harlem from 1920 to 1942. Her activities included involving community leaders in library governance; establishing a separate collection of Negro materials; work with the Negroes Round Table of the American Library Association; and the Harlem…

Surveys teachers and librarians. Offers eight tips on the library and media services which help promote exemplary reading programs. (SR)

Discusses the value of partnerships between libraries and other organizations, based on successful experiences at the Chicago Public Library. Topics include perceptions of public libraries; extending outreach programs; staff member potential; library mission statement; partner motivation; providing services to respond to community needs; and…

Discussion of the role of academic libraries focuses on a study that proposed and tested a model to explore the use of academic libraries. Investigated service quality factors, resources, and user characteristics, and concludes that use is influenced most by a user's perceived familiarity with the library and its resources. (Author/LRW)

Public interest in domestic violence waxes and wanes with the headlines. This article describes how libraries can play an important--and even lifesaving--role in empowering abused women, providing useful resources for shelters and other agencies, and enlightening students and the general public about domestic violence.

Public library music provision, as a less traditional role for public libraries, has always caused contention: a vital source of cultural materials within the community though never confirmed to be a core part of library services by the Government. This article concerns itself with a detailed consideration of the decline of music services over the…

As students file into the library media center for orientation during the hectic first weeks of school, Mrs. Greene, a veteran media specialist with fifteen years experience, wonders how she can make a difference in an environment governed by No Child Left Behind and state-mandated tests. Some students are disadvantaged because they are struggling…

In the most effective schools, the potential for positive impact of the school library media center and the library media specialist is recognized, and teachers and media specialists work together routinely to support teaching and learning. This "Informed Educator" examines both the elements of an effective school library media center and the…

During the summer, thousands of soon-to-be college students will read books as part of campus-wide "shared reading" programs (also referred as to common reader programs, one book programs, etc.). Such programs are designed to provide incoming students with a common experience and invite exploration of particular themes (e.g., diversity, etc.),…

Professionally, school librarians are faced with an explosion of choices--search engines, online catalogs, media types, subscription databases, and Web tools--all requiring scrutiny, evaluation, and selection. In turn, this support "stuff" forms a basis for making additional choices about how and what they teach and what they assess. Whereas once…

"When you start your new job as a school librarian, one of the first steps you must take is to ask to see the district's book selection policy. If there isn't one, write one. Right away. It protects you, the teachers, and the district." That advice was part of the author's school library administration course at the School of Library and…

This booklet is intended to help spread the word about the library and the librarian's role. It discusses the three interwoven roles of the school library media specialist--the role of information specialists (the "traditional" role); the role of library-media teachers in which they advance the goals of the school's literacy and general…

With fiber optic networks that can deliver library materials directly to the user from computerized data banks, is there any need for the library function? For the short term, public libraries will survive. The answer for the medium and long-term is much less certain. Libraries will survive if librarians see themselves as active providers of…

Different views on the future of research libraries are presented in this collection of papers from persons affiliated with the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany. Joseph Z. Nitecki (library director) discusses the effect of social change on library missions, operations, and procedures. Warren F. Ilchman (vice president for research and…