LASL September 2025 Newsletter

Happy September!

We hope that your school year has started well! My library has been busy (in a good way!) We started the year off with reminders about book care and checking out, and now there is a steady flow of books in my return bin daily. The kindergarten students just checked out for the first time, so the library rang out with cheers of joy! We had several days of indoor recess due to the heat, but now there is a hint of fall in the air....

This month's newsletter is full of information and OPPORTUNITIES! LASL has several volunteer opportunities for school librarians; the Louisiana Library Association has opened its call for proposals; and AASL will be in St. Louis next month for their conference.

In an effort to build community and get to know our school librarians better, you will also find a Membership Survey. We hope that you will take the time to fill this out, so that LASL can better serve you.

Because, as always, LASL is here for YOU. If you need support and/or have questions, please contact us at geauxlasl@gmail.com. We are looking forward to working with you and serving you this year.

We Need YOU!

Best,

Soline Holmes

LASL President

The mission of the Louisiana Association of School Librarians is to promote and to maintain high standards of school librarianship, to serve as a medium for the exchange of ideas, and to encourage a continuing and critical evaluation of school library service. To better do this, the LASL Executive Board wants to hear from you! What are your preferences? Your needs? How can LASL be here for YOU? Please fill out the survey below so that we can get to know our members! Remember, if you are a school librarian in Louisiana, YOU are a member of LASL!

LASL is looking for representatives from across the state to work with the LASL Board during the 2025-2026 school year. Want to be more involved in LASL? Want to be a part of the future of school libraries in Louisiana? Want a great role to add to your resume? Want to meet and hang out with other school librarians? If you answered "yes" to any (or all!) of these questions, please read on and fill out the LASL Volunteer Form.

There are several opportunities open including:

Parliamentarian: The Parliamentarian is an LASL Board appointed position. The Parliamentarian will become familiar with the LASL handbook, constitution, and bylaws. The Parliamentarian will work with the Executive Board regarding LASL procedure and transactions.

Regional Representatives: We are looking for a representative from each of the following areas:

A. North Louisiana

B. Central Louisiana

C. Acadiana

D. Florida Parishes

E. Greater New Orleans area

In an effort to encourage networking and participation from school librarians throughout the state, the Regional Representatives will serve as an extension of the Executive Board and will support the efforts and initiatives of LASL at a more local level.

LASL Committees: The committees will work closely with the Executive Board to help fulfill LASL's mission to promote and to maintain high standards of school librarianship, to serve as a medium for an exchange of ideas, and to encourage a continuing and critical evaluation of school library service. LASL is looking for members for the following committees:

• Conferences and Events
• Continuing Education
• LASL Policies and Procedures
• Legislative
• Membership and Publicity
• Standards

To learn more and to express your interest, please click here to complete the Volunteer Form.

The Louisiana Library Association will hold its Annual conference on March 5-7, 2026 at the Lake Charles Event Center. LASL is hoping to make Saturday, March 7 SCHOOL LIBRARY DAY at the conference so that school librarians can enjoy presentations/continuing education as well as a special lunch. So that we can ensure we have programming geared towards school librarians and educators, please submit a proposal for LLA! Program proposals are due by 11:59 p.m. CT on October 27, 2025. (Notification of accepted proposals will be sent by December 1, 2025).

We know that you are doing cool and amazing things in your libraries--this is your opportunity to share and collaborate with other school librarians from around the state! If you have any questions about program proposals for LLA, please reach out to geauxlasl@gmail.com.

To submit your proposal, click here!

The Louisiana Department of Education has finalized the Louisiana Library Program Rubric, and it is now available on the LEADS site. It is linked under:

Louisiana Educator Evaluation > Observation and Feedback

Thanks to all of the local educators who worked to develop the new Louisiana Library Programs Rubric:

Maureen Barclay

Erin Berry

Holly Bryant

Leslye Gilchrist

Jennifer Powers

Tammy Rose

Jennifer Tillman

Tonya Tippett

There is still time to sign up for Battle of the Books!

Are you a librarian with students in 3rd-5th grade and/or 6th-8th grade? Your school can participate in Battle of the Books with other Louisiana schools/libraries. The Louisiana Battle of the Books is based on the Louisiana Young Readers' Choice nominated titles.

The Battle of the Books is a great way to get your students excited to read! And it does not require a lot of work from you as the librarian.

Click here for more details and for the full criteria.

Reach out to Past President, Kristy Barker for more information: kbarker@centralcss.org.

Are your students ready?! ......

To renew your LASL membership, please renew your Louisiana Library Association membership by clicking here. You can base your level of LLA membership on your library's budget rather than your salary. When you renew your LLA membership, be sure to add LASL as your section!

Do not worry if you can't renew, you will still have access to all things LASL including this newsletter, any LASL alerts, and our PD days.

From AASL:

As libraries contend with the ongoing demands to censor library materials and the adoption of legislation designed to impair intellectual freedom, the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) has relaunched its Law for Librarians program.

This program provides training to library professionals so they will have the legal knowledge to address censorship and other challenges to intellectual freedom and privacy in libraries. The program seeks to develop the next generation of intellectual freedom advocates who will be equipped to provide support and expertise to library workers now and for the years to come.

At the program's center is a train-the-trainer model. An initial cadre of librarian trainers, almost two from each state, including trainers representing school librarians, has been trained to facilitate local, state, and regional training sessions on intellectual freedom. This first cadre is set to move into peer coaching and mentorship roles within the program, concluding the first phase of the program.

The OIF is now seeking recommendations for candidates who may be invited to join the second trainer cohort. Those invited to join the second cohort of trainers will receive online synchronous and asynchronous training between October 2025 and January 2026. Candidates will be asked to commit to mastering the subject matter and to providing training and consultations on intellectual freedom and privacy to public, school, and academic libraries for a minimum of two years.

Participants will be selected by Law for Librarians faculty and OIF staff from the nominees.

If you would like to learn more or are interested in being nominated, please email geauxlasl@gmail.com by September 15, 2025.

From October 16-18, 2025, AASL will be hosting their biannual conference. The AASL conference is the only national conference dedicated solely to school librarians and their unique role in education. The conference is a great way to get ideas, meet people, collaborate, and be INSPIRED!

LASL hopes to host a get together for Louisiana librarians who are attending. If you are attending or think you might attend, please fill out this brief survey!

(Did you know that if you register as an attendee, you can add a FREE registration for your administrator?! Having your administrator attend with you can be invaluable.)

Libraries around the country will celebrate Banned Books Week from October 5-11, 2025. To learn more and to discover ways to celebrate the Freedom to READ in your library, visit the Banned Books Week site.

Email: geauxlasl@gmail.com

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