Once in a while , it’s nice to pick good news out of the daily scrum of disasters, complaints and malfeasance. So, here’s some.
There’s one American public institution that hardly any conservative or libertarian dares to attack directly: public libraries. That’s because a lot of people like libraries. They’re among the few places where you can go in with nothing and come out with a lot.
Libraries continue to grow, proliferate and modernize to accommodate new media. State-of-the-art libraries have been opened, or are being built, in places are far apart as Montgomery County, Maryland; Seattle and Fargo, North Dakota.
Here are some basic facts: There are at present about 9,200 public libraries, 16,500 if you count branches—and another 9,200 private libraries. But these numbers are dwarfed by the 77,000 public school and 17,000 private school libraries. All together, these institutions employ some 400,000 people.
But, there’s trouble, too. Many libraries are indeed underfunded and understaffed. Public school libraries and public libraries in low-income areas, in particular, have constant problems with getting and keeping trained librarians.
Enter a new bill, introduced into both the House (H.R. 1877) and Senate (S. 1121) Thursday. This is the Librarian Incentive to Boost Recruitment and Retention in Areas of Need, which doesn’t exactly flow off the tongue, hence the acronym, LIBRARIAN.
Its purpose, say the bill’s authors, is, “To authorize the cancellation of Perkins Loans for students who perform public service as librarians in low-income schools and public libraries.”
Current Perkins Loans forgive students going into a range of positions serving in low-income areas: teachers for Title I schools, special education and Head Start, as well as military, police, Peace Corps, medical technicians and nurses. The LIBRARIAN Act just adds to that list.
Support for the act comes from both sides of the aisle. It was introduced in the House by Rep. Xavier Becerra, D-Calif., along with Reps. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz; Vernon Ehlers, R-Mich.; and John Shimkus, R-Ill., and in the Senate by Senators Jack Reed, D-R.I. and Thad Cochran, R-Miss.
“With a shortage of librarians across the country,” said Sen. Reed, “and with many more set to retire, we must urgently encourage more people to enter the library science field and work to retain valuable librarians who are already serving our communities.”
--Alec Dubro |
Friday, April 20, 2007 10:18 AM
