Leader

Good communication skills, while essential to any job, are especially important for school librarians. As you communicate with students, teachers, staff and other stakeholders, you are advertising and promoting you school library program, cementing it as an essential part of the community (Martin, 2016, p. 58). The more you communicate, the less nerves you will have, until eventually you become an expert!

One of the uncomfortable truths of librarianship is that you often have to fight to get the recognition and resources you need; much of society views libraries as stuffy, outdated institutions with no place in the modern world. That could not be more false, but the world will only know that if you let them know. Make yourself heard by speaking up at meetings, creating a social media presence, taking part in community events and establishing yourself as a respected, needed member of the school community.

While it may feel the most comfortable to have the school library be a separate entity from the school itself, this is actually detrimental to the program. By ingratiating yourself, your space and your collection into the essential workings of your school, you strengthen not just your school library program but your entire community as well.