Senator Jack Reed to Introduce New Bill Proposing 'Highly Qualified' School Librarians

By Debra Lau Whelan -- School Library Journal, 6/22/2007

For those of you attending the American Library Association’s Annual Conference in Washington DC, try to make it to Senator Jack Reed’s (D-RI) press conference on Tuesday, June 26, Library Day on the Hill.

Reed, a longtime friend of school libraries, will introduce a bill that includes media specialists in the “highly qualified” category of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), which is up for renewal sometime later this year. NCLB requires a “highly qualified” teacher in every core academic classroom, but since librarians currently don’t qualify as “highly qualified” teachers, school districts can replace them with less expensive paraprofessionals.

If librarians are granted “highly qualified” status, not only will their jobs be better protected, but they’ll also qualify for any professional development money that’s set aside under NCLB for educators who belong to that coveted group.

“When the bill in the House and Senate are numbered [the American Association of School Librarians] will be back in touch with you to deliver that message and encourage you to contact your Senators and Congressmen to support the bill,” wrote Cyndi Phillip, AASL’s outgoing president, on LM_NET, an online discussion group for school librarians. “ Rally the support now so we can flood them with letters of support as soon as possible.”

ALA’s Washington office has been hard at work for the last two years trying to get media specialists included in the highly qualified category.

Reed’s press conference will take place at noon on Tuesday, June 26, at the Cleveland Bookmobile (it’s big and blue), which will be on South Capital Street between C and D Streets on the House side.

The press conference is scheduled to last 15 minutes, so make sure to arrive early or you may miss it. Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS), who is co-signing the bill, will also be speaking.