By Debra Lau Whelan -- School Library Journal, 9/12/2007 9:29:00 AM
The U.S. Senate last Friday adopted a resolution designating September as “Adopt a School Library Month.” And while the move was a nice gesture, the American Library Association (ALA) hopes it doesn’t detract from passage of the Strengthening Kids’ Interest in Learning and Libraries (SKILLs) Act.
The resolution, which doesn’t have a companion in the House, says the goal is to “raise public awareness about the important role school libraries play in the academic achievement of children” and calls of the federal government, states, local governments, schools, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and the public to “observe the month with appropriate ceremonies, programs, and other activities.”
Unlike a bill, a resolution is nonbinding and doesn’t carry any legal weight.
Emily Sheketoff, executive director of ALA’s Washington office calls the resolution purely symbolic. “It doesn’t do anything,” she says. “It just says, “Do it.” It’s kind of like telling someone to put up a flag on Flag Day.”
Sheketoff fears that lawmakers who backed the resolution will say, “Now I don’t have to vote for the SKILLs Act,” she says, adding that “I hope this doesn’t mean that [lawmakers] aren’t going to put any effort into passing the SKILLs Act, which would have a positive impact on school librarians.”
The SKILLs Act, which has backing from Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Representatives Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Vernon Ehlers (R-MI), would require a state-certified media specialist in every K-12 school building by 2010 and include school librarians in the “highly qualified” category of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The proposed legislation would be an amendment to the No Child Left Behind Act, which is up for renewal later this year.
