The White House Conference On School Libraries Proceedings

This is the most comprehensive textbook on school library administration available, now updated to include the latest standards and address new technologies. This reference text provides a complete instructional overview of the workings of the library media center—from the basics of administration, budgeting, facilities management, organization, selection of materials, and staffing to explanations on how to promote information literacy and the value of digital tools like blogs, wikis, and podcasting. Since the publication of the fourth edition of Administering the School Library Media Center in 2004, many changes have altered the landscape of school library administration: the implementation of NCLB legislation and the revision of AASL standards, just to mention two. The book is divided into 14 chapters, each devoted to a major topic in school library media management. This latest edition gives media specialists a roadmap for designing a school library that is functional and intellectually stimulating, while leading sources provide guidance for further research.

This report is the official record of an open forum on recommendations from the 1991 White House Conference on Library and Information Services sponsored by the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS), a federal agency charged with advising the President and the Congress on library and information policies and plans. The forum was planned to help participants and the NCLIS become familiar with the range of concerns and possibilities pursuant to the Conference and to assist NCLIS Commissioners in deciding priorities for future work. Twenty-seven representatives of libraries, information services, education, and public and human services spoke at the forum and another 32 submitted written statements. Most of the participants represented national organizations, and they commented on Conference recommendations of special interest to their organizations and what they intend to do regarding those recommendations. Access to information, libraries' participation in the National Research and Education Network, intellectual property law, preservation, education reform, and libraries as educational institutions received much attention at the forum. Other priorities included recommendations that address family literacy, the Literacy Initiative to Aid the Disadvantaged, meeting the needs of a diverse population, multicultural/multilingual programs, and the focus on children and youth through the Omnibus Children and Youth Initiative. This report contains press releases describing the conference; White House Conference Recommendations as reprinted from the Conference Summary Report; and an index of the 38 organizations whose comments are included. (KRN)