The Philadelphia Alliance to Restore School Librarians (PARSL) and EveryLibrary Survey City Council and Mayor Candidates
Most candidates who responded have visited a school library in the past three years and described a person or experience that influenced their feelings about providing school libraries.
Volunteers from Philadelphia Alliance to Restore School Librarians (PARSL) conducted a survey to gauge the awareness of running for City Council and Mayor about the current state of school libraries in the Philadelphia School District. The survey aimed to measure candidates' support for school libraries staffed by certified school librarians. Currently, the district has only one full-time librarian for all of its 218 schools, a fact that many Philadelphians are unaware of.
Volunteers from Philadelphia Alliance to Restore School Librarians (PARSL) conducted a survey to gauge the awareness of running for City Council and Mayor about the current state of school libraries in the Philadelphia School District. The survey aimed to measure candidates' support for school libraries staffed by certified school librarians. Currently, the district has only one full-time librarian for all of its 218 schools, a fact that many Philadelphians are unaware of.
All of the candidates who responded strongly agreed that providing school libraries in every district school would improve student achievement and that all K-12 schools should have a trained, certified school librarian. Additionally, all candidates agreed that the lack of learning resources and certified school librarians is a social injustice that handicaps student learning.
The majority of candidates who responded have visited a school library in the past three years and described a person or experience that influenced their feelings about providing school libraries.
For respondents, the results showed overwhelming support for school libraries and librarians. All candidates agreed or strongly agreed that if elected, they would work to allocate funds to have certified school librarians and school libraries in each school, work with the School Board to prioritize the employment of certified school librarians, and support an equitable, phased-in program to add school librarians and libraries over several years to SDP schools.