Post 12 - Advocacy

I've been away since Thursday, so I'm just listening to the LIS 2000 lecture from last Wednesday. Dr. Tomer has been discussing library advertising and in a way advocacy and how libraries and librarians can get users to come in in the digital age when many choose to just Google search. As I've been listening, I've been thinking about how I, in a high school library, will advocate my services and sources to the school community, especially the teachers because they bring the students to the library. In previous courses, I've worked on communication and advocacy projects, and the key to promotion of the library is communication and openness to new ideas.

In my school library I have a MAC lab and a PC lab and a collection that was developed prior to my placement as librarian. I have a specific budget for technology, books, software, etc. These things are set, but how I use them and promote them are not. These are a few ideas I have for promoting (advertising) the school library, which I think would correlate to the public library well.

- Meet with teachers as departments, find out what they teach (the curriculum) and what resources they are comfortable using with the students (then show them others and encourage them to try new with collaborative help from me the librarian), then ask the teachers about where they think holes exist in the collection and allow them to also meet with jobbers and look through catalogues when purchasing new materials

- Send out weekly communication to teachers and students highlighting books, genres, software, web sites, etc. that they can use for pleasure or coursework

- Establish a recommended reading section in the library where students and teachers can recommend books (much like in Barnes and Noble); these recommendations, along with the communications, could be a part of the library website or Wiki for easier access

- Allow students to request materials for purchase; allow them to find reviews to support why a text should be purchased (this encourages ownership over the materials in the library)

- Have a weeding day, where faculty members can help determine the usefulness of current materials and where new purchases need to be made and where old materials should be removed

- Encourage "weeks" such as Teen Read Week, Banned Book Week, Tech Week, etc. Use students to develop displays around the library

- Display student work in the library for collaborative purposes (English, librarian, and art classes worked on graphic novels)

- Open the library to families during events at the school, encourage exploration through programming of the services provided

It seems to me that the school library is a great place to advertise and promote library use because it is involved in the education of the students, therefore almost mandates collaboration and promotion of the services.