School Librarians Under Pressure | Publishers Weekly

Courtesy of: Library Link of the Day
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By Shannon Maughan | Jun 10, 2022

Adjusting to being back in school has obviously been a huge focus of this school year, but it’s not the only challenge librarians have been dealing with.

“The greatest concern I have about school librarianship today is the misconceptions surrounding the work we do, which have led to incredibly detrimental decisions for libraries and librarians at the cost of our students,” says Andrea Trudeau, library information specialist at Alan B. Shepard Middle School in Deerfield, Ill.

Trudeau has observed a steady stream of librarian jobs being cut back or eliminated, including in her own district, where the library assistants in all six local schools were reduced to half-time without any input from the library information specialists. “This has seriously impacted the critical work I do in my library and the immense support I work to provide my school community,” she says.

“And it steals so many powerful learning opportunities—both academically and socially/emotionally—from our students in a time when they need these supports and offerings more than ever.”

Source: School Librarians Under Pressure