Editorial
School Library Media Activities Monthly/Volume XXV, Number 3/November 2008
A Stitch in Time...
By Deborah Detenbeck Levitov
As Kristin Fontichiaro points out in her article in this issue of SLMAM, "persistence does not mean that there is a single 'right' path to travel. Persistence can mean identifying alternate routes or detours and validating them as legitimate pathways to the same outcome."
This statement is very relevant to paths taken for advocacy for library media centers. I recently read the article in School Library Journal, "Tough Mothers" (September 2008). The subtitle of the article was "How three women from Spokane saved their school libraries and created an advocacy model for the rest of us." SLMAM also ran an article about their efforts, "Making History on a Shoestring: The Story of the Spokane Moms" (May 2008). As I read and reread each article I was struck with a recurring question—can we really expect this of our stakeholders, our supporters, our advocates?
What these three women did was triage—a gallant effort to save their library media centers. They worked so hard that they were concerned about the well-being of their marriages and their children. One of them had extended family members travel to stay with them for three weeks to help keep their families on track. Can we possibly expect to set the bar this high for advocates? Is this really a model for the rest of us? Instead of providing a plan that others can follow it seems to be more like dreaming the impossible dream. Can it really be repeated?
What the Spokane moms did is quite unbelievable and very admirable. It would be wonderful if their dedication and support could be replicated. But that seems unrealistic. Instead, the old adage, "a stitch in time saves nine" comes to the forefront. Instead of reactionary methods, advocacy must be preventative and ongoing.
Library media centers must be promoted, supported, and defended every day. It must be relentless. That is what is so challenging and difficult about the field. There is no time like now. The article in this issue, "Getting a Seat at the Table—An Ongoing Effort" provides examples of proactive advocacy for library media centers. Although there is no single "right" path, it is essential to use multiple paths to anticipate challenges, promote, defend, and support library media centers and library media specialists so that triage isn’t necessary.
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