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Email from Kathleen Currie Smith to the CASL Listserv March 13, 2017:

Maybe some of you saw CNN's Reliable Sources this weekend.  Media literacy is a part of the state and national conversation.  As school librarians we need to make our voices heard that this is WHAT WE DO and mandate positions in schools.  

If you took the time to write legislators and the Joint Committee on Education regarding Raised Bill 949 (from link, click on Public Hearing Testimony to see what others submitted), we should send these letters to our State Department of Education as well.  The proposed Advisory Council in 949 will ultimately report to the Department of Education.

I have included contacts below to make this easy for you. 

The commissioner of education is Dr. Dianna R. Wentzel.  

dianna.roberge-wentzell@ct.gov

(if an  Advisory committee were established, they would report to her) 

These two individuals are in charge of certification, team and etc

(notice it is called the talent office)

Sarah Barzee, Ph.D.
Chief Talent Officer
sarah.barzee@ct.gov 
(860)713-6848 




Shannon Marimón, Division Director

Bureau of Educator Effectiveness

shannon.marimon@ct.gov

(860)713-6816 

A few other contacts in case you are interested:

 


 http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2762&Q=335254


From California State Librarian Greg Lucas reposted on the LM_NET listserv on 3-17-17:

I’m in Washington D.C. starting a conversation about doubling the amount of money the federal government provides for public libraries nationwide from $150 million to $300 million.

The President’s initial budget proposal was released today.  It eliminates all funding for federal cultural agencies, including the Institute of Museum and Library Services, which distributes the current $150 million that the 22 states west of the Mississippi want to double to $300 million.

The President’s budget proposal is the beginning of negotiations between the House, the Senate and the executive branch. A strong, targeted effort on behalf of libraries will influence the outcome.

Here’s the facts:

A buck spent on a library comes back ten-fold, as any number of studies show.

But it’s not just an economic benefit – the dividends libraries pay are also in human capital.

I’m sharing with you a letter I’ve been handing out back here from the Western Council of State Libraries, which includes the 22 libraries west of the Mississippi that says this:

“Libraries are an essential part of the nation’s education system and spur economic growth in numerous ways, improving reading skills being the most obvious. A stronger reader secures a better paying job, reducing the need for government support of that reader and their family. A stronger reader is better able to retool and adapt in the wake of increased workplace automation. A stronger reader is more productive and more collaborative.

“The bottom line is that stronger readers improve the bottom line.”

We all know libraries do all kinds of amazing things but their role as economic engines might be unfamiliar to some and a more compelling reason to support them for others.

The odds of someone listening improve significantly the larger the number of people saying the same thing. Are there photos or stories that show the impact of your library on workforce development, literacy or job skills assistance? Share them at #doubledownlibraries and with your congressional representative on Twitter. (Congressional twitter handles are of the pattern @RepJaneDoe and @SenJohnDoe or find them listed on twitter at https://twitter.com/cspan/lists/members-of-congress/members?lang=en <https://twitter.com/cspan/lists/members-of-congress/members?lang=en> )

Twenty-two state librarians agreeing is great but it’s going to be thousands of librarians – and satisfied library customers, should they wish to participate -- that will get this message heard.

Thanks for stepping up for the nation’s libraries.

CONNECTICUT ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL LIBRARIANS

4 Wotton Lane • Burlington, CT • 06013• 

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