Five Rules of Effective School Library Advocacy
Support for school libraries must come from outside the library. Therefore effective advocacy efforts are essential to strong, well-funded, secure programs. Learn simple, but effective strategies that will result in a good library program being important to not just you, but to your entire school and community.
Rules of Advocacy, Head for the Edge, LMC, March/April 2012Whose Voices Are Most Powerful?, Head for the Edge, November 2005
Doug's Five Rules of Effective School Library Advocacy
1st Rule of Advocacy: Use, but don’t depend on, national studies, statistics or publications.
2nd Rule of Advocacy: Build relationships so others will advocate for you.
3rd Rule of Advocacy: Never advocate for libraries or the librarian - advocate for library users.
4th Rule of Advocacy: Don’t depend on the library supervisor to make your case.
5th Rule of Advocacy: Advocacy must be on-going and continuous.
Reframe these requests from a benefit to the user POV:
- We need a bigger budget for fiction.
- I need the hours of my library para increased.
- I don't have time to be in charge of textbook inventories.
- We must limit the number of kids who can be in the library at one time.
- Please replace/upgrade the computer in the library's lab.
- Can I get a laptop instead of a desktop
- Can I get staff development funds to go to the TLA conference this spring?
- This media center needs air conditioning!
- I need a new laptop computer and a document camera.
- The library needs more wireless access points.
12 Point Library Checklist (make a copy on your device)