1st meeting of the semester!

Hey everybody!

Come on out for some pizza and discussion of your youth services experience
at SCILS! Don't let the name of our organization deceive you, we cater our
meetings to both school librarians and public librarians in youth services.
Get the inside scoop on job offerings and tips and tricks while networking
with your peers!

The meeting is on Thursday, January 29th at 5:30 PM. We look forward to
seeing you there!

November 6th meeting minutes

In case you missed our November meeting, here's what happened:

I. Welcome!
-Recap of collaboration panel (check out the collaboration post on the blog)
-Recap of Children's and Youth Services Forum
-Recap of Showcasing Information Literacies: New Dimensions 2008

II. Job Postings:
-Metuchen: Middle School Position (http://www.metuchenschools.org/metuchen/)
-Bloomfield Public Library: children's librarian (http://www.bccls.org/buckles/jobs.shtml)
-Clifton Public Library: Children's librarian (http://www.bccls.org/buckles/jobs.shtml)
-Tenafly Public Schools- Elementary (www.tenafly.k12.nj.us)
-Upper Freehold Regional- K-8 (www.ufrsd.net)

III. NJASL Conference
-Thursday, Nov. 13-Sat. Nov 15: early registration for this year's conference has passed.
-Hilton, East Brunswick
-On-site registration is $95 for students (all three days) or $90 for one day
-Review of Programs: Lots of great programs; check out the schedule here: http://www.njasl.org/Conferences.htm

Alicia, Kristie, and Jess will all be attending, so contact RASL if you are looking for some company at the conference!!!

IV. Spring Registration: began on Sunday November 9
-If you haven't done so already, meet with an adviser! Even if you already know what courses you are taking, this is a good idea because of the structure of the SLM program...make sure you're on track so that you can graduate on time! Carol Gordon will be happy to meet with you to discuss course registration. Her office is in SCILS room 332 and her email is cgordon1@rci.rutgers.edu
-We passed out our handy scheduling planning sheets.

V. Next meeting: Thursday, December 4 at 5pm
-Election of new co-president
-Holiday celebration/celebration of graduates

Education Sequence for School Library Certification

If you DO NOT have a degree in education, you will probably need to complete 3 courses in an education sequence for school library certification. These classes are all offered online, and generally 2 of of the 3 courses are offered per semester (summer, fall, spring).

To qualify for Associate School Library Media Specialist or School Library Media Specialist, in addition to your library studies courses you must meet one of the following requirements:
(1) Hold a standard New Jersey or out-of-State instructional certificate. A military science endorsement will not satisfy this requirement; or
(2) Complete a State-approved college teacher preparation program with or without student teaching; or
(3) Complete a coherent college program at a regionally accredited college or university that includes a minimum of nine semester-hour credits in educational theory, curriculum design and integration, teaching methodology, student/learning development, and behavior management.

Here is a listing of these courses:
Theory and Foundations of Education for the School Library Media Specialist
17:611:520 (3 credits)
An introduction to the historical foundations and major theories and philosophies in education. The focus is on the role of the school library media specialist as a teacher in the media center and the professional community of the school. Students will explore and apply learning and child development theories; develop strategies for communication with students, parents, faculty and staff, administration, and other professionals; and explore legal issues connected to the role of library media specialist. A major component of the class will be to support each student in developing a personal philosophy of education. Prerequisites: permission to enroll in this course will be granted to students who are seeking certification as a school library media specialist or associate school library media specialist, as evidenced by current or previous enrollment in appropriate coursework; experience using email and basic World Wide Web searching techniques, your own reliable Internet account, and the hardware and software required for an online course.
Planned to be offered in fall and summer.

Curriculum Design/Integration and Teaching Methodologies for the School Library Media Specialist
17:611:521 (3 credits)
This course is an introduction to teaching strategies and learning models used in the classroom and library media center. Students will focus on new trends in educational research and identify current trends in instruction. Emphasis will be placed on the planning and construction of lesson plans and units of study based on principles of curriculum design for the instruction and integration of New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards and Information Literacy Standards for Student Learning. Prerequisites: permission to enroll in this course will be granted to students who are seeking certification as a school library media specialist or associate school library media specialist, as evidenced by current or previous enrollment in appropriate coursework; experience using email and basic World Wide Web searching techniques, your own reliable Internet account, and the hardware and software required for an online course.
May require observations to be completed in a school setting. Planned to be offered in spring and summer.

Student Learning Development and Behavior Management for the School Library Media Specialist
17:611:522 (3 credits)
An introduction to the characteristics and learning styles of learners, techniques for classroom management, and rules and expectations in the school library and classroom. Prerequisites: permission to enroll in this course will be granted to students who are seeking certification as a school library media specialist or associate school library media specialist, as evidenced by current or previous enrollment in appropriate coursework; experience using email and basic World Wide Web searching techniques, your own reliable Internet account, and the hardware and software required for an online course.
May require observations to be completed in a school setting. Planned to be offered in fall and spring.

In order to register for these classes, you need to contact the office of Professional Development. They will then email you an application to complete and mail into their office. When they receive it, they will email you a special permission number to register for the course.

The PDS website's FAQ page is located here: http://tinyurl.com/64tbuj

If you have any questions, you can contact Melanie Andrich at: mandrich@rutgers.edu

Collaboration Panel, Thursday 10/16

The Rutgers Association of School Librarians (RASL) Presents a Collaboration Panel!

You hear a lot about collaboration in your classes, but what does it take to make it happen?

Join us for a panel discussion on the challenges & benefits and strategies for successful collaboration.

Participants on the panel include school and public librarians and teachers who work with students of all ages.

Bring your questions on how to make collaboration and quality communication a reality, or just come to listen.

Thursday, October 16th
SCILS Student Lounge
Refreshments at 6pm, Panel at 6:30pm

Hope to see you there!

Live blogging from the NJASL board meeting

Below are highlights from the meeting that may be of interest to RASL members.

10:30 AM 

• Meeting called to order.
  
• Budget revisions discussed.
• NJ Center for the Book Wednesday, October 22, 2008 -- conference (see link)
• Enthusiastic Reader competition beginning.  More details to follow.

10:45 AM

• NJEA collaboration panel discussed.
• Rolling Research library grant discussed. Issues: de-professionalizing school libraries and against current regulations
  
• Mentoring guidelines discussed.

11:00 AM

• Conference attendance and reimbursement now reflected in budget.  Available online for NJASL members.
• RASL collaboration panel discussed.  
• Website redesign slated to be launched by the conference. 
• NJASL conference -- infolink on Saturday; Jane Austin program; other preliminary programs.
• NJKI -- currently in a two of a three year contract; continuing until 2010.  Databases available to every library member (public AND school). 

11:15 AM

• Youth Services Forum October 15th -- student registration only $12.50!
• Performer's Showcase 
• Scholastic grant 
• ALSC contest 
• Novelist online training available.
• Scholastic grant mentioned.  More information to follow.
• JR Trader -- librarian discount 

11:30 AM

• Not everything for the conference is available through on-site registration (meals and the like).
• With new high school graduation requirements, we will ensure that students are ready for college or the job market.  

11:45 AM

• Bill discussed re: professional development and coursework reimbursement for current school librarians.
• CISSL -- NJASL/CISSL research: Transforming school libraries in New Jersey

12:00 PM

• Norma Blake scholarship 
• Professional development -- format needs to be changed.
• Next year's conference is two days -- Friday and Saturday (November 13-14)

12:30 PM

• Board member to speak to RASL in November about the conference.  
• Meeting adjourned.

9/11/08 meeting minutes

Greetings RASL members,
Welcome to our new RASL friends and thanks for attending (even if you only came for the pizza..). In case you couldn't make it this week, here's how we kicked off the semester:

I. Welcome to SCILS/RASL and Introductions all around

II. Informal discussion regarding scheduling and the "myth" of graduating in 3 semesters
-We have an official discussion regarding scheduling in November before registration for spring classes, so stay tuned!

III. schedule of events for the semester
-Wed. October 15: Youth Services Forum @Monmouth County Library, 9-3; $12.50 students; visit www.njla.org for more info
-Wed. October 22: Showcasing Information Literacies: New Dimensions 2008 @ Newark Public Library; 9-3:45; $55; visit www.njcenterforthebook.org
-Thurs. November 13-Sat. Nov. 15: NJASL Fall conference; Hilton East Brunswick; $60-95 for students; www.njasl.org

IV. RASL plans for the semester
-Collaboration panel to be held sometime in October; the focus will be both on collaborating with teachers in a school setting, as well as from a public library perspective. Collaboration is vital to the role of SLMS (and really, ALL librarians), so make sure to attend! (date TBA)
- Possible shadowing TBA...option to be placed in either a school or public library
- NJASL: possible guest speaker from the organization or from an MLIS student who has attended in the past to give tips on what to expect at conferences

V. Organizations
-introduction to some of the important organizations to be aware of
-ALA: American Library Association
-AASL: American Association of School Librarians; part of the ALA; focuses on policy; information literacy standards for the 21st century learner; Information Power; Guided Inquiry
-CISSL: Center for International Study of School Librarians; began at Rutgers: Carol Gordon, Ross Todd, Carol Kuhlthau
-only international organization of school librarians
- if you're interested in teaching/being a librarian abroad, check it out!
-offers scholarships
-NJASL: NJ Assoc. of School Librarians
-fall conference; job postings; scholarships and awards
-voluntary mentoring program for first year SLMS
-will be unveiling a new website in the near future
-current debate: a K-8 school in Millford, NJ was awarded a $10,000 grant for "rolling libraries" containing subject-specific reference books. These have been maintained by teachers and students, who have also done all of the cataloging of materials. NJASL is working to uphold the reputation of school librarians and demonstrate that students/teachers are not qualified to maintain and should not be in charge of cataloging library materials. NJASL has led the push for only certified school librarians from accredited universities to serve as school librarians.

VI. Carol Gordon dropped by
-Professor Gordon teaches MLIS courses, oversees the school library media program, and is a founder of CISSL
-she encouraged students to stop by for advising (Room 332 in SCILS); she also suggested that if you are "on the fence" regarding pursuing school library media, to stick with the school library track because it will be easier to switch careers later than to return to school to get your certification later.

VII. If you are interested in reviewing children's books (some with an economics spin) contact Yana Rogers at yrogers@rci.rutgers.edu for information. This is not a paying job, but you will be allowed to keep the books that you review.

Members in attendance:
Alicia Blowers
Kristi Revicki
Jess Emili
Steph Mikitish
Robert Thompson
Rachel Bavolar
Dawn Hoesterey
Ariel Franklin
Helen Prichett
Rosemary Sherry
Adriane Gash

First meeting of the fall semester!

RASL invites all MLIS students (school library and public library alike!) to our first meeting of the semester:

Date: Thursday, September 11
Time: 5pm
Location: SCILS Student Lounge
Topics: Welcome & Intro., Semester Events
Other: We'll have food, so don't worry about grabbing dinner between classes - it's on us! Also, don't worry if you can't be there for the start of the meeting, latecomers are always welcome!

Hope to see you there!