Category: OPINIONS!
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This Little Light of Mine
Not too long ago there was a discussion in the Storytime Underground Facebook group about whether or not to read the book This Little Light of Mine in storytime. This post isn’t about that, though; the discussion was civil, people made their cases, people made decisions based on their best judgment and what worked for them.…
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Every Action Has an Equal, Opposite Reaction
In my post Where Do The Teens Go? I posited a Youth Services Department which is formed around a core staff of four two-person teams. Ideally they would all be full time, but that might vary depending on the size of your community and the number of schools you serve. Certainly some of the positions…
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Private Lives
Or, Private Eyes Are Watching You. Everyone (paid or unpaid) who provides governance, administration or service in libraries has a responsibility to maintain an environment respectful and protective of the privacy of all users. Users have the responsibility to respect each others’ privacy. – http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/privacy I’ve noticed a disturbing trend in public facebook groups dedicated…
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The Librarian Dating Game
I started writing this post in October 2015; finally published August 2016. Once upon a time some librarian colleagues and I presented a program at our state conference talking about how public, school, and academic libraries can and should work together. We formatted it as a game show–The Dating Game, obviously–and had different librarians ask…
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egotism vs self worth
In January 2013 I wrote a post that touched a raw, exposed nerve for many in the library world. One year later, I’m still amazed at the outpouring of reactions to that piece, and the variety of reactions it provoked. I’m also very proud of some of the projects that it inspired, including the very…
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George Carlin, MLIS
Within the context of ALA policy and the professional practices of librarianship, critical examination of beliefs and viewpoints does not, by itself, constitute hostile conduct or harassment. Similarly, use of sexual imagery or language in the context of a professional discussion might not constitute hostile conduct or harassment. http://alamw14.ala.org/statement-of-appropriate-conduct When Carlin rattled off the seven…
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Accentuate the Positive
You’ve got to accentuate the positive Eliminate the negative And latch on to the affirmative Don’t mess with Mister In-Between You’ve got to spread joy up to the maximum Bring gloom down to the minimum Have faith or pandemonium’s Liable to walk upon the scene Johnny Mercer I like being nice. It’s true. There’s nothing…
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Reproductive Suspect
There was a specific article that inspired this post, but Jebus help me, I can’t remember where I saw it or find it again. Essentially the author wrote about how the community/society at large has a responsibility to help parents. Which is something I agree with (and psychology agrees with) but, in my personal experience,…
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common core presentation at the Illinois Library Association 2013
Hello Illinois Library friends! Some of you were interested in our Common Core slide show, so here it is: Commoncoreinferno
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Making Common Core Commonplace: On the Front Lines 2013
Hi OTFL friends! Thank you so much for attending my presentation, and for the great conversation. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me if you want to talk more– I’d love to help. Just a note–this post will be living organism over the next few weeks, so don’t fret– more information will be…
Hi, Miss Julie 