Jo Ann Carr

The SLMPY award from AASL is considered the Oscar of school library media programs. Given since 1963. Each of the applicant schools must provide detailed documentation to the SLMPY committee of their excellence. The application letter outlining their program has been collected over the years. While applicants could just be great writers, if they are chosen as finalists, a team of committee members visits the various schools to verify the claims of the documentation. The editor has compiled the various program descriptions and divided them by the program emphasis of Information Power. Thus, if one were applying for the award, this is a very valuable collection of statements since it demonstrates the kind of program implementation and level of excellence required to be recognized by the profession. But there is another use and that is to measure ones own program against the descriptions given. How do you compare with the winners? What level of excellence could you claim compared to those schools included here. Here are the top programs of the pile. And, it is a good time to publish this collection since the new AASL Learning Standards will probably have an impact on the program emphases from 2008 onward. Recommend as almost a rubric of gauging local programs.… (mais)