Welcome!
The true power of school libraries and librarians is not in the resources that we amass, but in the relationships that we build and the connections that we foster. On this page, we will highlight ideas for collaborating with various stakeholders and explore ways to ensure that these experiences are effective and meaningful. By sharing the models and best practices implemented by other librarians, my hope is that you will be inspired and find fresh ideas to take back to your community as conversation openers for potential collaborations. I invite you to visit this page throughout the year for more ideas and updates as we connect across our shared professional community. Thank you for joining me!
Suzanne Sannwald
Teacher Librarian, West Hills High School, Santee, CA
Suzanne Sannwald
Teacher Librarian, West Hills High School, Santee, CA
Collaboration to Promote Student Leadership
by Suzanne SannwaldOften, when we think about collaboration, we consider how we might co-plan and co-teach with classroom teachers or other adults. We might also approach collaboration from the lens of how we can help facilitate students working with one another so that they may develop the capacity to collaborate on their own. However, this past year, I've spent a lot of time reflecting on an awesome experience I have had collaborating directly as an adult with students. It wasn't just me serving as a mentor or coach for students. To me, the type of collaborating that we engaged in exemplified one with a balanced power dynamic, and in fact, one driven even more so by student leadership. Read More >>
Video
![Finding Ways to Share Power with Our Students [23:22]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2269/2269648s.jpg)
What does it mean to allow students to take ownership for decision making in their school community? In this video conversation, Suzanne Sannwald is joined by Vermont librarians Meg Boisseau Allison and Peter Langella to share the different ways they make space for student empowerment in their schools, and the positive results they've seen.
Video
![Exploring Participatory Design for School Libraries [34:40]](https://schoollibraryconnection.com/assets/mediaserver/SLC/2267/2267007s.jpg)
Some of the best school libraries are the ones where everybody is part of the design process. In this video, Suzanne Sannwald talks with Dr. Hilary Hughes, Associate Professor at Queensland University of Technology, about how participatory design can not only reinvigorate a library space, but also serve as a valuable teaching opportunity.
Editor's Note
Carl A. Harvey II reminds us that we aren't going to be able to solve the problems we face alone. Instead, we need to partner with various stakeholders in order to find solutions that will work for everyone. Some of those stakeholders can (and should be) students.
Article
Michelle Maniaci Folk and Lucy Santos Green examine one of the ways that school librarians can be impactful teacher-leaders: by supporting and encouraging youth leadership.
Feature
The Junior Librarians at Kym Kramer's elementary schools truly ran the clerical side of my library programs. They were responsible for all check-in, 90-95% of the shelving, and circulation desk duties during their shift or when their classes visited the library.
Courses
In this series of videos, Susan Kowalski shares details from her successful efforts to involve students in library operations.
Editor's Note
Liz Deskins reflects on how library programs that focus on student interaction and authentic leadership can set a strong foundation for students to succeed as members of their communities—now and in the future.
Article
Since 2010, students at Barrow Elementary School have been a part of a project called the "student book budget," where students have total control over book purchasing for a portion of the library budget. When learning went remote, Andy Plemmons had to get creative to to figure out how to engage students in the process virtually.
Article
In this guide from her website School Library Designing, Hilary Hughes introduces the charrette participatory designing process and explains how to implement it in school library design.
Feature
The heart of personalized learning is personal—students have a fundamental role as partners in the learning process where their voice is instrumental in maximizing impact of the experience. In this article, Allison Zmuda and Beth Campbell explore how teacher-librarians can provide opportunities to amplify student voice with their students and colleagues.
Feature
There are many examples of young people going above and beyond to raise awareness around important issues, build community, and create change. How does this happen? How can we help more students participate in their communities in such a way that they can carry a spirit of activism with them throughout their lives?