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MSLA President Jen Varney is the Librarian at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. School in Cambridge, MA  This past December in the rush of holiday shopping, I spotted a magnet with the quote “Be joyful though you have considered all the facts. - Wendell Berry.” The words resonated with me and I bought it, brought it home, and slipped it into my own stocking (as you do).
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Luke Steere is the librarian at Wilson Middle School in Natick, MA Below is a screenshot of cold, hard, but fertile ground:  If you haven’t seen something like this yet, it’s ChatGPT’s submission interface. You sign up and ask questions which are generated by an artificial intelligence language bot. In addition to my editing duties, I am sitting on the Strategic Plan Committee and, in Natick where I work, I have been listening in on talk about the impact of ChatGPT.
Kendall Boninti is the Instructional Technology Specialist at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School in Cambridge, MA Do you teach copyright and fair use to your students? I’m ashamed to admit it, but until a few years ago, I avoided copyright altogether… in my lessons, in my conversations. It just seemed like such a downer. A bunch of negative rules that restrict students' ability to do fun innovative things with music, media, and art. That was until Alida Hanson, the Library Teacher at Weston High School, recommended that I read the book Copyright Clarity: How Fair Use Supports Digital Learning by Renee Hobbs. The book was published a while back, but the information is still relevant today. Hobbs' book opened my eyes to how big media companies intentionally mislead educators into being ultraconservative in the way they practice and teach fair use and copyright. Have you ever seen or used one of those copyright checklists that lays out the “rules” of fair use (i.e. you can only use a certain percentage of a song or video)? Those checklists were often born out of agreements between media companies and assorted educator groups to intentionally limit students’ rights. Not surprisingly these agreements are not based in actual law (Hobbs, 29).
Courtney Ahearn is the librarian at the Annie L. Sargent Elementary School in North Andover, MA
Working in a school library, especially one that serves students who are just learning to navigate the wide world of literature independently, can be difficult all on its own. Throw in the current national climate regarding book challenges and bans, and you’ve got a minefield of issues and potential problems.
The ALA reported in their 2021 State of America’s Libraries Special Report that 44% of the 729 challenges (affecting over 1,000 individual titles) were reported from school libraries (American Library Association, p9). At least a few of those challenges were against books housed in elementary school collections, such as Drama by Raina Telgemeier or Melissa by Alex Gino (Friedman, 2023). While Massachusetts has not seen the kind of widespread bans that other states have enacted, it is important that elementary librarians across our state be aware of what is at stake— and, more importantly, what can be done. Academic Column: Project S.L.I.D.E.: The School Librarian Investigation - Decline or Evolution?2/14/2023
Deeth Ellis is the Head Librarian at Boston Latin School in Boston, MA, and a Doctoral Student, School of Library Science, Simmons University
Project S.L.I.D.E. is a three-year national study led by researchers Deb Kachel, Antioch University, and Keith Curry Lance, Ph.D, RSL Research Group. The study is funded by the Institute of Museum & Library Services (IMLS), an independent federal agency that offers grants to museums and libraries for research and policy and program development. Lance and Kachel are examining the decrease in librarian positions across the United States by using school staffing data from 2010 to 2019 provided by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The data tracks libraries at district, state, and national levels. Project S.L.I.D.E.'s output, a document called “Perspectives”, only uses data to 2019, but 2020-2021 data has been added to the Project’s tools and is considered in recent reports.
Liza Halley is the Library Teacher at Plympton Elementary School in Waltham, MA I want to start off discussing some language I use when talking about the medium of comics. People often ask me: What’s the difference between a graphic novel and a comic? Here’s a simple boilerplate to explain:  Comics is a good catch-all term to use, graphic novels often just refers to a bunch of comics bound together.
Francesca Mellin is the Head Librarian at The Pike School in Andover, MA
On Monday, January 30, I - like many of you - was glued to the live stream of the American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards, cheering along with the live audience for many of my favorites. I was also putting the final touches on the library’s transformation into an election center for a new collaborative venture, Pike’s inaugural Mock Sibert Award.
During the course of this year, I’ve been excited to re-connect with teachers to support curriculum, especially because a new built-in meeting structure with teaching teams has created consistent co-planning time. Gillian Bartoo is the District Cataloger for Cambridge Public Schools in Cambridge, MA Let’s talk about classifying graphic books. Usually when somebody says to me that their graphics cataloging is a mess what they usually mean is the classifications, or call numbers, are a mess: some are classed as 741.5, some as FIC, and some with other Dewey numbers. Raina Telgemeier’s Smile is in FIC or 741.5 (“work of imagination, comic book”) but Sisters is at 306.8 (“family relationships”). Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales are in FIC, 741.5 and 973. El Deafo is cataloged as a biography. Maus I is at 741.5, because it is assigned as a classic text of comic book study, but Maus II is at 940.53 (“World War II”). Every Batman has a different cutter. Manga has an extended 741.5952 call number. Early reader graphics are split between Early Reader and Graphic collections and have both E and 741.5 call numbers. How does anyone get this stuff to sit together in a logical way?
Colleen Simpson is the Library Media Specialist at Lester J. Gates Middle School in Scituate, MA
I have a confession, I love research. I mean I really love discovering the answer to something, but, even more, I love the hunt. I love the process. I love finding an answer for myself and for other people. I even love the humbling feeling of learning that what I thought I knew was either incomplete or totally incorrect. And what I love most of all: there is always more to discover about any subject.
This may seem obvious. One typically assumes that librarians like research, but like most educators I think a lot about my own motivations when considering the student’s motivation. This balance is particularly challenging in middle school when there is less extrinsic motivation than high school. As a staff we are regularly talking about what drives a student, where their interests lie and how we can harness that motivation into the classroom. Tracey Newman is the Library Media Specialist/Librarian at Scituate High School  1. What's your name, title and school?
Tracey Newman, Library Media Specialist/Librarian at Scituate High School 2. How did you come to librarianship? The long way! It seems so cliche, but I’ve always been a book-lover, and enjoyed organizing my various collections, including books and comics. My undergrad degree is in English, and I worked a few English-related jobs, such as one of the founding editors of the indie paper now known as Dig Boston, and in educational publishing editorial at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Educators Publishing Service. JoAnne Vernacchio, my high school English teacher, gets credit for pushing me to become a teacher, when I saw her at a friend’s wedding in 2008. When the Ed Pub industry was consolidating and changing, I passed the licensure tests as a backup plan. After my second child arrived, our family moved to the South Shore, where I grew up–the commute to Cambridge really wore me down. I took a job as the secretary to the Coordinator of Technology and Library Media in Plymouth. Going to conferences and meetings with librarians and tech specialists gave me fresh direction; that’s when I applied to the Library Media K-12 program at Salem State. Switching gears to teach and work as a para for ELA and in the Library at Hingham High in 2015 was a fantastic experience, and they were wonderful people to work with. In January of 2021, I became a long-term substitute Librarian for grades 3-5 in Duxbury, and then got the position at Scituate High. I still feel like a new librarian, though! 3. How would you explain the importance of your role to a nonlibrarian? The other day I described weeding and curation to a new staff member, who admitted those were things they’d never considered. Most people don’t understand that libraries need curating, especially when the collection has books that are outdated or damaged. More books does not equal a great library. On the flip side, people are surprised we still have books, too. Librarians manage a whole space and everything in it: people, books, tech, events. Especially in high school, the library is a gathering place before, during, and after school. My job is as much teaching kids expected behavior in a shared space as it is teaching how to access online resources or find a book to read for pleasure. Dedicated, licensed Library Media Specialists and Librarians are crucial in elementary and middle school, too. We bridge the gap for reading and research in ways that most classroom teachers or digital literacy and reading specialists don’t have in their wheelhouses. Older students get their information from the internet and social media, and it’s important to keep up with those trends. Our information needs to stay current in so many ways. 4. What are you working on right now? A Lego and puzzle drive is currently running to revive a mini makerspace for some creative brain breaks. After not having a full-time librarian for a few years, there’s some catch-up, maintenance, and cleaning-up, plus future planning in the pipeline. The catalog in Destiny needs lots of love, along with weeding in the fiction section and 300s. When the library was remodeled a couple of years ago, all the furniture— including any shelf not attached to a wall— was thrown away. The two-fold work of updating the collection to fit on the shelves that are left plus planning how sections of books will eventually be configured is a fun challenge. 5. What is going well? Having a teacher in the library all day has a positive impact on students and staff, and re-establishing systems and routines was needed. Even though I don’t teach any dedicated classes, I see everybody, and I’m here to help, whether that’s lending out Chromebooks, finding a book, helping to print, citing text correctly, knowing where all the study halls are, or having lots of supplies for last-minute projects. I’m on pretty much all day. 6. What is the most challenging thing so far? Being on pretty much all day! But that’s a good challenge. Changing the culture from when teachers had to find workarounds or adapted to not having as much library support is challenging too— but that culture is slowly turning around. 7. What's the most unexpected thing about your new job? How much students want to be in the library, and the even balance of who wants to hang with their pals versus those who need a quiet spot. We have a learning media commons— basically one big room with different zones— that actually works. 8. What are you reading or watching? I’m savoring Paul Tremblay’s new book, The Pallbearer’s Club, and finally reading All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson. On Hulu, Reservation Dogs is amazing. I love the gorgeous new serial adaptation of Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire. 9. What do you hope the MA School Library Association can do for you? Connections, connections, connections! Learning from peers, at the conference and online, in such a specialized field, plus combining resources or finding local colleagues through MSLA is a huge benefit. Reba Tierney is the Library Teacher at Waltham High School Love is in the air! If you're reading this, Happy Valentine's Day! (Or Singles Awareness Day, if you prefer!) Scrolling through the archives, I have found the most timely piece of Forum history to share. From the January 2013 Forum, I'd like to take a moment and enjoy a throwback to Author Speed Dating. Much of the January 2013 Forum featured highlights from the upcoming 2013 MSLA Conference to be held that March. One highlight of the conference was the chance to participate in Author Speed Dating.
MSLA President Jen Varney is the Librarian at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. School in Cambridge, MA Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year! I have high hopes for the coming months. With one year of post-remote learning behind us, I won’t say that we can return to normal, because such a return is not possible, but I do think that routines and momentum will come a little easier.
It is good that our work with students may get easier, too, because there are other aspects of our work that are about to get more difficult. Already we have seen more visible book challenges in Massachusetts during the first six weeks of school than there have been in the last three years, they are appearing in the news, on the MSLA listserv, and in conversations. The challengers are well organized and intent on their mission.
Deeth Ellis is the Head Librarian at Boston Latin School in Boston, MA, and a Doctoral Student, School of Library Science, Simmons University
Early indications from the data collected during my study, Principals’ Perceptions of the Role of School Librarians, suggest principals rely heavily on their own school librarian to learn about school librarianship. While not a surprise to many school librarians, this over-reliance on school librarians may be one of the factors that impact staffing in schools and districts. According to Gordon & Cicchetti (2018), Massachusetts’ “school administrators were reported by participants [librarians] as the primary enablers of equitable access to the school library program (instruction, resources, access to the library)” (p.106). Without the principal's understanding, attention, and care, the role of the school librarian can diminish, become obsolete, and even be eliminated.
Francesca Mellin is the Head Librarian at The Pike School in Andover, MA.
In the ephemeral world of hashtags, #OwnVoices has been around for a long time. In 2015, author Corinne Duyvis first recommended it on Twitter as a possible way to recommend children’s literature about diverse characters written by authors from that same diverse group. Since then, its popularity has grown, and some have raised concerns about the term. In June 2021, We Need Diverse Books announced that it would no longer use the term, stating that the broader use of the hashtag by the publishing industry is problematic and potentially unsafe for authors with marginalized identities. More recently, Grace Lapoint offered a detailed critique of the term in a Book Riot post, voicing concern that it had been weaponized, especially by readers.
When I recommend books to faculty, I have started to use the term “authentic voice” instead of “own voice,” and have become much more diligent about researching what authors say about their works so I can speak as accurately as possible. These are some of my favorite recent picture books that have authenticity at their core. Gillian Bartoo is the District Cataloger for Cambridge Public Schools in Cambridge, MA I’ve had it with Dewey— well— let me explain. Over the last few years I’ve spent a lot of time in our elementary schools, trying to pay attention to what actually happens there as our librarians interact with our kids. And I’ve been really racking my brain trying to figure out how to make Dewey easier for them, managing collections, for helping teachers teach, and for teaching students how to be independent library users. One of the quickest and easiest ways I’ve seen that is a good compromise between these two very different and often oppositional tasks is binning by Dewey.
I do want to emphasize that this is not my idea. I’ve seen it popping up in several libraries these past few years in certain collections areas (sports, vehicles) and this summer helped turn a tired and traditionally shelved non-fiction collection into a really attractive and engaging children’s library. Liza Halley is the Library Teacher at Plympton Elementary School in Waltham, MA In this article I want to start off discussing some language I use when talking about the medium of comics. People often ask me: What’s the difference between a graphic novel and a comic? What do you mean by comics in the classroom? What classroom are you talking about? Which teachers are you referring to? Here’s a simple boilerplate to explain:  Secondary Column: Notes from the Middle: Helping relieve students from the paradox of choice10/18/2022
Colleen Simpson is the Library Media Specialist at Lester J. Gates Middle School in Scituate, MA
Picture it, it’s time for a whole grade level to pick out independent reading books. They come to your library in droves. As they arrive at the circulation desk some have already found the book they want, others just need a physical direction, and some just want to browse. And then there’s this student:
7th grader: I need a book? Me: Okay, did you have one in mind or are you looking for suggestions? 7th grader: I’m just looking for fiction books. Me (with a smile): Great, we have a lot of those. What have you read that you’ve liked in the past? 7th grader: I don’t like to read. Me: Okay, so what book was okay for you? Meaning you were able to get through it and it was kind of, sort of, not that bad? Was it fantasy or magical? Did it have some history to it? Do you like mystery? Sports stories? What about a story that feels like it could happen? 7th grader: I don’t know, just like fiction. And repeat. Sound familiar? There’s myriad reasons why students don’t know what they want and while it is our job to unpack it, this is not always an easy task. Valerie Diggs is a former President of MSLA and currently works as a Senior Visiting Instructor at Salem State University, where she also serves as the Graduate Program Coordinator of the MEd Library Media Studies program We did receive a wonderful question, but it was very close to our publishing deadline. Valerie has agreed to work on a reply, so we are saving this space for the column, so check back soon! We'll also post an update on social media when the column is ready.
Luke Steere is the librarian at Wilson Middle School in Natick, MA
Where has this topic come up with MSLA? Well, my experience began with a discussion of Bobbitt’s Controversial Books in K–12 Classrooms and Libraries: Challenged, Censored, and Banned. A group of readers discussed how complicit librarians are in gatekeeping that looks a lot like banning. Concord, MA librarians “refused to allow [The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn] on their shelves, calling it ‘not fit for the trash’” in 1885 (Bobbitt, 81). More recently, Melissa Adler’s revelatory Cruising the Library critiques the way the Library of Congress classified certain subjects as “paraphilias” and thereby reproduced the otherizing of homosexuality through cataloging. It’s important to acknowledge the ways librarians are complicit in censorship, even as we try to fight against it. MSLA President Jen Varney is the Librarian at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. School in Cambridge, MA Well, what a year, huh? As I sit down to write this column and reflect on the past year, I am almost at a loss for words. Welcoming students back into school buildings and into our libraries after 18 months of pandemic disruption would have been more than enough of a challenge. But of course, the universe thought that throwing relentless COVID surges at us would be an added bonus, and hey— how about some book challenges and ominous censorship news coming in from other parts of the country while we’re at it? Educators are feeling more burnt out than ever, and school librarians have every reason to feel this way.
Yet, I find it important as ever to celebrate important successes and strides. Shawnee Sloop is the Library Media Specialist at the Fletcher Maynard School in Cambridge, MA  1. What's your name, title and school?
Shawnee Sloop, Library Media Specialist, Fletcher Maynard School (Cambridge Public Schools) 2. How did you come to librarianship? I’ve always been an avid reader and have fond memories of childhood visits to the local library. I studied English at the University of Delaware, and when I graduated I worked for a handful of years in marketing and social media. My experience in those roles left me feeling unfulfilled and without joy. As I took some time to think through what I wanted to do with my life (the age old question) my sister suggested I think about librarianship. I did some research and learned about the LIS program at Simmon University. From there, things just fell into place and I began my career in school librarianship. 3. How would you explain the importance of your role to a nonlibrarian? The school library, and by extension the school library teacher plays an essential role in a child’s development and education. The library is much more than “the room with books.” In the library’s physical and digital spaces, students foster a love of literature, critical thinking skills, a growth mindset, and they are given the chance to enjoy their time in a safe space where all are welcome. 4. What are you working on right now? This is my first year at FMA and so I have spent the better part of the year getting to know my new collection! I’m in the process of finishing up a collection analysis of the 500’s and even doing some collection maintenance. 5. What is going well? Relationship building with students and staff is such an important part of this job. It is a service position after all! We serve the entire school community. I believe that my goal of taking time to connect with the school community is paying off. 6. What is the most challenging thing so far? Being new is challenging anywhere, and I would say that the most challenging thing so far is just taking in all the new information and getting my footing. I finally feel like I’m getting comfortable and getting into my routine. 7. What's the most unexpected thing about your new job? The most unexpected thing about my job is probably the number of times I hear my name repeated on a daily basis! It’s astounding how many questions students will direct at you. 8. What are you reading or watching? I just started watching a Hulu miniseries called “Under the Banner of Heaven” which is based on the Jon Krakauer book of the same name. Definitely for fans of true-crime. I am currently reading Outlawed by Anna North, which is an alt-history, feminist fiction novel set in the wild west. It’s great so far! 9. What do you hope the MA School Library Association can do for you? I feel so grateful for the MA School Library Association! It is such a wonderful community that I look to on a regular basis when I need to problem-solve, brainstorm ideas, or connect with MA school library peers. I hope that MSLA continues to be that resource for me throughout my career.
Liza Halley is the Library Teacher at Plympton Elementary School in Waltham, MA
Two Roads Converged In the Yellow Woods: Poetry and Comics
As a reader of my column, you know by now I am obsessed with reading graphic novels and finding ways to connect comics to the classroom. What you might not know is that I set my alarm extra early every morning so I have time to write and read poetry. I am a person who is moved by the power of language. Since middle school, I have been writing and reading poetry, attending workshops, teaching poetry in my children’s schools, and, as a teacher librarian, working to connect students to poetry all throughout the school year. As I write this article we are in the waning days of National Poetry Month and I want to turn your attention to the convergence of poetry and comics. Valerie Diggs is a former President of MSLA and currently works as a Senior Visiting Instructor at Salem State University, where she also serves as the Graduate Program Coordinator of the MEd Library Media Studies program Would you recommend starting a Friends of the Library program for a school library? Could you discuss some of the benefits as well as the drawbacks to creating a group like this? Does your school library need friends? I am not sure any of us could answer no to that question. Libraries of all types have struggled to garner support, recognition, and funding for resources, programs, and other needs to help our libraries run smoothly and efficiently. While parent organizations can be sources of funding and support, their focus is across the entire school. A “Friends” group is just for the library. We need that.
Luke Steere is the librarian at Wilson Middle School in Natick, MA
I. My Sixth Grade Guided Inquiry Class
At Wilson Middle School my Guided Inquiry Design (GID) class is focused on student’s self-schemas. Whatever topic they would like to research, they study. The challenge is squeezing it all into 16 sessions: the trimester special is split with a tech ed course. This is not a total bummer: one of the things the time restriction breeds is more focused topics. I encourage a lot of sharing within the inquiry community to see how seemingly disparate topics can connect to overarching themes. Cataloging Column: The black hole of Dewey literature classes: the 800s explained and simplified5/17/2022 Gillian Bartoo is the District Cataloger for Cambridge Public Schools in Cambridge, MA As I stated in my previous column Dewey, even “simplified” Dewey, tends to be far too academic and detailed for most K-8 libraries and, in some ranges, even at the high school level. The younger the patrons of the library, the more willing we need to be to go off Dewey without totally scrapping it. I cling to Dewey in general because I think there is real value in teaching students universally predictable systems of organization, particularly in a world that is increasingly organized with proprietary algorithms and taxonomies that are often complex. Using Dewey is one of the ways that we teach and model logic, pattern, and organizational principles. It makes the students independent users in any library that uses Dewey and prepares them for more complex book organizational systems like Library of Congress Classification.
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