Chris Swerling is the School Library Media Coordinator K-12 for Newton Public Schools. She is the recipient of the 2017 MSLA Peggy Hallisey Lifetime Achievement Award.
In November 2017, I attended the 18th American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. As conferences always are, it was exhausting as well as exhilarating! From pre-conference workshops to general and individual sessions, the conference buzzed with talk about the new AASL National School Library Standards. Attending a pre-conference afternoon workshop, I anxiously (but enthusiastically!) delved into them. As I unpacked the standards with school librarians from all over the country, I repeatedly heard “Here’s how I teach that” and “This is what it looks like in action in my school library.” I emerged from the workshop – and the conference – with respect for the common beliefs upon which the standards are grounded and can be applied equally to all schools, all levels. The shared foundations are concrete and tangible in defining how students, school librarians, and the school library program should think, create, share, and grow. I tip my hat in admiration to the AASL Standards and Guidelines Editorial Board – and for everyone who had a voice in shaping our profession’s new standards. They build on the past and point us to the new horizon – and beyond.