You matter and your vote makes a difference. The 2017 ALA/AASL Election is quickly approaching, and it will only take a few moments of your time in the days leading up to the election to get connected with the candidates. AASL is using this public forum as an opportunity to introduce the candidates running for office. Each candidate was given the opportunity to respond to this question: If elected, what will you do to advance AASL’s new position statement on effective school library programs?

Be involved. Be informed. Be a voter. Read the candidates responses over the next few days, and get out your vote beginning March 13. It is important for all members of AASL to exercise the right to vote in ALA’s Spring election process.

 Judy Deichman

If elected to the position of AASL Treasurer, I will utilize my background in education, my knowledge as a librarian, and my Accounting degree/experience to support and advance the AASL proposition that every school in the country will contain an effective school library program. As Treasurer, I will strive to promote, champion, and reinforce the following attributes that support that AASL position:

L – Leadership – give our members ample opportunities to lead

I – Instructional resources – give our members more content

B – Budget – budgetary support for librarian resources

R – Robust programming – for librarians to ramp up their game

A – Access – to resources for all facets of the library program

R – Reading initiatives – ideas, resources, and references for librarians

Y – You – get more people involved, AASL and you will be better!

I am honored to have been nominated for this position and would love the opportunity to serve as your Treasurer. I will be a dedicated, loyal supporter of the American Association of School Librarians and its mission.

Jennisen Lucas

Someone aspiring to be on the executive board of AASL should have an easy answer to this, but, honestly, “advancing AASL’s new position statement on effective school library programs” at the national level feels daunting. As my state faces massive budget cuts in education, I question whether I have been effective in increasing understanding of the power and effectiveness of school library programs through my communication with state and local decision makers.

I have agreed to run for Treasurer because I, like all of you, am passionate about my career. If we want our next generation to understand our past and have the skills necessary to create our future, they will need effective school library programs. For this to happen, decision makers must understand that information literacy is the foundation of the future and that effective school library programs, as outlined by AASL, are the way to build that foundation. Therefore, we must change the stereotypical misconceptions of our decision-making stakeholders. Most administrators do not seek out a new understanding of “effective programs,” especially if they already have a working definition, so I propose seeking opportunities to share this position statement directly with our administrators and legislative representatives in ways to which they will be receptive.

Whether or not I am chosen as the next Treasurer of AASL, I am working in my elementary schools, local district, and state to promote the importance of effective school library programs, the real “truth” of what and who school librarians teach, and what benefits our students will reap from having access.  If elected, I will join a team of passionate, caring and driven librarians, and by working together, we will empower each of you to advance the understanding of, and necessity for, effective school library programs in every school.

Meet the Other AASL Candidates:

• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – President-Elect
• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – Member-at-Large
• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – Region 4 Director
• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – Region 6 Director
• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – Region 8 Director
• 2017 ALA/AASL Election – Educators of School Librarians Section
• 2017 ALA/AASL Elections – Independent Schools Section
• 2017 ALA/AASL Elections – Supervisors Section

Author: Leslie Preddy, Leadership Development Committee Chair and 2016-2017 AASL Past President

Categories: Association News, News