News and Updates

School libraries are transforming, and the professionals who run them are also evolving. Today’s Library Media Specialists (LMSs) have moved beyond simply curating books to becoming certified educators who integrate technology and lead instructional strategies. However, the absence of this vital presence is becoming a prevalent problem across Minnesota. 

Each participating library will host a local event—indoors, on library grounds, or in nearby public spaces—creating a statewide show of appreciation,

In some ways, school libraries have changed very little since the late-1800s setting of Barbara Cooney’s picture book Miss Rumphius, in which the main character works in a library “dusting books and keeping them from getting mixed up, and helping people find the ones they wanted.” (Cooney, Barbara. Miss Rumphius, Viking Press, 1982.)

The compact, light-filled library at Oak Grove Elementary — a TK (transitional kindergarten)  through fifth-grade school of approximately 425 students in a small town in northern California — is tucked away by itself at the back of the campus.

Old television shows from the 1950s through the 1990s that featured kids in schools would inevitably set a scene or two in the library. Students would be sitting around large library tables, books open, whispering to each other. Should any of those whispers rise above a certain decibel, the stereotyped librarian’s harsh “SHHH!” would ring out over the room.