At the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, we have known for a long time that schools with certified school librarians help students succeed. With your help, we can ensure that every student in Pennsylvania can have a librarian in their academic life. Can you send an email to your member of the PA House of Representatives – especially if they are on the House Education Committee asking them to support and co-sponsor HB 740. It’s a smart solution to challenges facing education in our state.
Help us continue the fight for school librarians with a $10-25 donation today.
In 2010 the Pennsylvania State Board of Education and the Department of Education did an extensive study to measure, compare, and evaluate school library programs across the Commonwealth. This study found that in school districts with full-time librarians, students achieved better on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests. The study showed very clearly that school librarians are effective in closing the academic achievement gap. The biggest improvements were for students in disadvantaged populations. At the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, we know personally that our members make a difference in the lives of students in many places. We believe that every child in Pennsylvania deserves a certified school librarian in his or her academic life.
We need your help contacting members of the PA House Education Committee to ask them to co-sponsor and support HB 740, a bill pending in their committee this session that would ensure a school librarian in every PA school. Your member of the Pennsylvania House matters in moving this bill forward. It is critical that the bill is voted out of the House Education Committee so it can go to the PA House floor for a vote. The House Education Representatives care about K-12 education. They will support HB 740 if they hear from enough of their constituents. Please send an email using the form on this page. Then forward this page to all your friends, family, and co-workers.
Members of the Pennsylvania House Education Committee
Please note that the following Education Committee members have already signed on as co-Sponsors! If they are your Representative, please thank them!
Reps. Mark Longietti and Thomas Murt, prime sponsors, Reps. Stephen McCarter, Jared Solomon, Kim Patty, and Michael Schlossberg.