J. Linda Williams was coordinator of school library services for Anne Arundel County Public Schools prior to her retirement. She served as AASL President 2005-2006 and is also a past president of the Maryland Association of School Librarians. Looking back on her 2005-2006 term as AASL President, Williams writes that she feels that particular year…

Every day in school libraries nationwide, students' privacy rights are under attack, but many principals, teachers, parents, and community members do not know much about these rights. Even though school librarians are among the strongest proponents of privacy, the subject is rarely discussed, probably because state and federal laws can be…

This timely special report from ALA Editions provides a succinct but comprehensive overview of the "privatization" of public libraries. It provides a history of the trend of local and state governments privatizing public services and assets, and then examines the history of public library privatization right up to the California…

This research is based on the Library Services for People with Disabilities Policy, which was approved by the American Library Association in 2001. The policy identified focus areas for libraries including library services, facilities, collections, and assistive technology. Library websites frequently convey this information to users. Our study…

Special and general educators rely on the school library for many reasons, such as the wealth of resources that are used to motivate students and individualize instruction and the fact that many students with disabilities enjoy spending time there (Smith-Canter, Voytecki, Zambone, and Jones 2009). In the June 2009 issue of "School Library…

Updated for the first time since 2005, this indispensable volume includes revised interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights along with key intellectual freedom guidelines and policies, including: (1) A new chapter, "Interactivity and the Internet," and other fresh material on intellectual freedom and privacy in online social…

Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates that programs and services be accessible to people with disabilities. While schools of library and information science (SLIS*) and university libraries should model accessible Web sites, this may not be the case. This article examines previous studies about the Web accessibility of…

Any successful library media center or program requires advanced planning. In this column, the author advocates the development of measurable goals for library media programs and describes several resources that can be used to help meet these goals and, at the same time, succeed in providing what the patrons most want out of the library media…

In addition to a literature review emphasizing definitions, statistics, and legislation concerning learning disabilities, this paper presents the results of a 1987 survey of academic libraries regarding their services for postsecondary learning disabled students. Responses (n=525) to the questionnaire indicated that, as a group, academic…

Over 5 million students aged 6 to 21 received services under the "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)" during the 2000-2001 school year. In partial response to this growing population of diverse learners, the relatively recent and highly controversial "No Child Left Behind (NCLB)" legislation has served as a…

Since the U.S.A. PATRIOT Act was signed into law in October, 2001, library administrators have become increasingly concerned that staff-especially student employees-continue to protect the confidentiality of patron records. Administrators have also become increasingly concerned that when law enforcement officials provide paperwork giving them…

Published in response to requests for a permanent record of California's CALTAC (California Association of Library Trustees and Commissioners) WILL (Workshops in Library Leadership) program, an ongoing program funded by an LSCA (Library Services and Construction Act) grant from the California State Library, this report is a compilation of the…

The materials in this manual are intended to provide the introductory information needed by new system advisory council members and staff of the Texas State Library on the history, role, governance, funding, services, and administration of library systems. Included in the handbook are discussions of: (1) the role of systems in public library…

This document provides guidelines on policymaking for public librarians and public library trustees in Vermont. Topics covered include: (1) the importance of policies in bringing order, logic, stability, and continuity to a library's operation; (2) the roles of trustees and librarians in adopting carrying out policies; (3) reasons why policies…

Nationwide interest in restoring excellence to education continued into 1984, but made no dent in the Reagan administration's determination to eliminate federal library programs. Congress is again resisting this third year of zero budgets, despite efforts to contain soaring federal deficits. Few issues pending in this second session of the 98th…