April Advocacy Hour: April is School Library Month! 

Thursday,  April 21, 2022 
10:00 - 11:00 AM

The Michigan Library Association supports the need for equitable access to school libraries staffed by certified school librarians in our schools. As our schools’ staff and students across the state are recovering from the pandemic and are also experiencing challenges affecting our students' right to read, it is even more important that all staff and students have access to the resources, services, and experiences provided by certified school librarians. School libraries are “more than books.” School librarians are teachers, literacy and reading experts, information specialists, program administrators, and leaders within their schools who positively impact student achievement.

Come join Kathy Lester and Dr. Kafi Kumasi at our April Advocacy Hour to learn more about school libraries and some current initiatives in our state. We will discuss how all MLA members can locally support this important issue.

Please note recordings of all MLA Advocacy Hours are available to watch for free and on-demand on our website at milibraries.org/mla-connect-archives

View Recording at
MLA Connect On Demand

Kathy Lester is the President-Elect of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a member of the ALA Committee for Library Advocacy, a member of the ALA Ecosystem Subcommittee, and a Councilor-at-Large on ALA Council. 

Kathy has been a school librarian for over 20 years. Her school library was the Library of Michigan SL21 Model Library during the 2018-2019 school year.

Dr. Kafi Kumasi is an associate professor of library and information science (LIS) at Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, where she teaches in the areas of school library media, urban librarianship, multicultural services, and resources and research methods.

Dr. Kumasi leads the experimental school library certification program and is the principal investigator for “Project RUSL: Restoring Urban School Libraries”, an IMLS Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program award.