Taking the Lead
School Library Monthly/Volume XXVIII, Number 1/September-October
An Inside Look at Everhart's Vision Tour
by Deborah Levitov
Deborah Levitov, Ph.D., spent twenty-seven years with Lincoln Public Schools working with Head Start/Home Base, then as a school librarian, and finally as coordinator for the district libraries before becoming managing editor of School Library Monthly. Email: dlevitov@abc-clio.com
Identifying, locating, and visiting thirty-four states is not an easy undertaking, but that is exactly what the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) president, Nancy Everhart, elected to do during her tenure. On April 27, 2011, Everhart rolled in to Lincoln, Nebraska, to pay a visit to Lincoln High School (LHS) library, a program nominated to be part of her Vision Tour of Outstanding Libraries.
Background
Lincoln High School (LHS), like other schools on the Vision Tour, was nominated by its AASL Affiliate Organization, the Nebraska Educational Media Association (NEMA). According to the AASL website, the schools selected are "dedicated to empowering every student with the skills needed to be a Learner4Life" (http://tinyurl.com/5r8zcv4). Through the tour, Everhart's goal was to bolster the image of school libraries by sharing how exemplary school libraries benefit students, the school, and the community. Through the tour she also hoped to identify supporters that will promote and advocate for school libraries.
LHS is the oldest high school in Lincoln, Nebraska. The first school was built in 1872 and then in 1915 a new facility was built at the current location. In 1976, the LHS library was created on top of the school's former swimming pool. It had lofts, columns, and offices that broke up the space in ways that were challenging to manage or make student- and class-friendly. The floors were covered in green indoor-outdoor carpeting for many years, and the library was plagued with a leaking roof that encouraged a moldy environment. Through it all, the library staff worked to provide excellent services for the LHS community. In the 1990s, with the support of the DeWitt Wallace Library Power Grant, the library underwent remodeling to update the space, replace the carpeting, and bring technology to the forefront.
Then, in 2007, the process was begun to completely renovate the space, transforming it into a state-of-the-art library learning commons that opened in 2009. All was accomplished through the leadership of the school librarians, school and district administrators, input from students and teachers, and support of the community.
The Library Program
Lincoln High's library is unique and has activity everywhere. There is collaboration with teachers for classroom projects, group instruction, and individual assignments. Children of the in-school daycare for student parents are regular visitors for literacy activities for both children and parents. Lincoln High is the only International Baccalaureate School in Lincoln, and the school librarians help to facilitate the needs of these learners with the University of Nebraska Lincoln’s Love Library and Nebraska Wesleyan University’s Cochrane Woods Library. They also collaborate with Lighthouse, a nonprofit community organization for teens, to keep the library open for after school use and tutoring. Part of the April celebration included a performance of an original rap by the LHS International Baccalaureate Theatre Group, working with teacher Patsy Koch Johns.
Although school librarian Paula McClung fretted a bit about the artistic license of the line "Mrs. McClung gets up and grabs their collar," it was clear that the students thoroughly appreciated the benefits of their school library.
"Check This Awesome Book Out!"
by the Lincoln High School IB Theatre Group
(Sung to the tune of Nancy Everhart’s "Check It Out" Vision Tour song)
Step up in the brary, just to find out what it meant
All these haters mad because I am so intelligent
They know that I read, yeah, I'm a super scholar
Haters can get paper cuts
In the fiction section, yeah, I am readin' a book
I am on a Kindle, she is on a Nook
Sometimes it's just me, and I'm readin' all alone
I am coming back next time
[Bridge]
I can't believe it, it's so amazin'
This li is heating, this brary's crazin'
I can't believe it, this book is bangin'
I can't believe it, I can't believe i-it
[Chorus]
Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out, Check it out
Yeah, yeah I'm reading it now
Check it out, Check it out, Check it out
Step up in the brary like my name was Mrs. G
All these book haters ain't got nothing to read
Honestly I gotta stay as fly as I can be
If you click and scroll, you'll be smart as IB
Mine is always Shakespeare 'cause I’m Fly, fly, fly
Dummies they can’t touch me 'cause I’m reading all night
I stay brary-rific, you don’t need to ask why
(pause) Try and read with your eyes
[Bridge and Chorus]
Check this awesome book out!
It got me in the book, in the book just reading like this
(pause for 2 beats)
Paul Bunyan
Yep, the bunion
Came up, 'cause we still in the dungeon
Harry Potter
Yep, in London
Competition, why yes I would love some
Why why they get mad 'cause they're legends
Glad 'cause I'm getting knowledge in abundance
Man I can’t even count all these volumes
Book bag every time I go to brary
Leave the rest that I just can't carry
I mean Harry
He's my nemesis
Exclamation…just for emphasis
I like to synthesize, 'cause it’s a simple quiz
I smile up at my teach with a dimple squeeze
Put the pencil the paper 'cause I'm a WHIZ!
(pause for 7 beats)
I'm just gunna kill it
This info is hotter than a skillet
We in the brary and people start to holler
Mrs. McClung gets up and grabs their collar
I'm a big reader
You’re a grade A scholar
Thinking at our level, you need to grow a little taller
I'm a shot caller
Won’t cost you a dollar
Research the Chihuahua
What's a baller?
[Bridge]
I can't believe it, it's so amazing
I can't believe it, this book is banging
I can't believe it, it's so amazing
I can't believe it, I can't believe i-it
[Chorus]
Time Will Tell
Time will tell how and if Everhart's Vision Tour goals have been accomplished, but the celebration at Lincoln High School certainly informed the community of the importance of school libraries in this setting, the elements in place in a exemplary program, and the key role that the school librarians and their staff provide for students and teachers. Guests (including students, staff, former teachers, and district administrators) spoke about the amazing services and resources available through the LHS library, the appreciation for the beautifully remodeled center, and the professionalism and helpful nature of the school librarians, Paula McClung and Pam Gannon. The celebration had media coverage and brought in a diverse group of guests to witness an inside look at an exemplary school library program.
The Vision Tour
Thirty-five is the number of libraries nominated for the Vision Tour as of June 2011, and Everhart hopes to visit them all (http://outstandingschoollibraries.org/). To learn more about the Vision Tour, check out the AASL link: http://tinyurl.com/5r8zcv4.
References:
AASL American Association of School Librarians: Vision Tour. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aboutaasl/aaslgovernance/aaslpres/visiontour.cfm (accessed June 22, 2011).