school libraries

Research has shown that diverse books are beneficial in many ways: they provide students with affirmation of their identities, they allow students to see other perspectives and experiences, and they help to create empathy and community. Professor Rudine Sims Bishop has described how diverse books can function as “mirrors,” “windows,” and “sliding doors”—one of librarians’ most loved analogies!—and I could not agree with her more. Reading diverse books really does help us to become better and more empathetic human beings.

Once a quiet place reserved for hushed study halls and solitary reading, our Marist library has undergone a radical transformation with Project Refresh and it was exactly what our students needed. Our administration greenlit an overhaul of the space and this grant provided the funding to create a brand new collection of games and maker activity materials. Our reinvented library embraces learning by doing, community building, and the joy of social interaction. 

It was quite an honor for the Virginia Community School District to receive the RAILS My Library Is… Grant! We were able to receive this grant through our teamwork and love for the library.  It all started when our 2023-2024 School Librarian, Ms. Stephanie, and our High School ELA teacher, Mrs. Crivilare, implemented a survey for student input on book recommendations for the school library.  Once Ms. Stephanie received the results she knew she needed to find funding for our student’s curious and growing minds! 

The My Library Is... Grant has allowed over seventy of our students to read books in their home language. Some of the languages spoken in our school are Ukrainian, Spanish, and Portuguese. Multilanguage learner instructors have utilized the foreign language texts purchased from Follett to work in cooperative groups, individual checkouts, or read-alouds in class with bilingual texts and document cameras.

My library received a My Library Is... Grant to purchase signage and more display carts for our outdated library space. We also purchased book stands, mobile book display carts, a new felt bulletin board for the wall, new Cricut paper, and sign holders. This grant was vital as most of our library budget is spent on databases, with minimal funds leftover for books and other materials. 

My Library Is... Cooking was a grant to purchase updated cookbooks for our library. Our library’s cookbook selection was unappealing and outdated, and this grant allowed me to purchase a whole new set of cookbooks based on input from both staff and students. 

We hosted a book club potluck in the evening where students used library cookbooks to create a dish for our final event. The food classes and Cooking Club at school have utilized our selection of cookbooks and the staff have also been excited to check out our new selection. 

As we all know libraries have changed over the years, from e-books, chromebooks, and maker spaces to adding STEAM, reading nests, Lego and Lite Brite walls and so much more.  However, one passion of mine has always been to keep real books in the hands of the students. 

Students need to understand how a book is written and what makes up a story.  There is a plethora of ways to express oneself.   This was the perfect opportunity to have a special maker space which allows students to do just that through writing and illustration.  

The Macomb High School library was honored to receive the My Library Is... Grant in the amount of $5,000. This grant is sponsored by the RAILS Library System and promotes collaborative projects between libraries and their community.

Ms. Pittman’s and Ms. Eddington’s English students visited the Western Illinois University (WIU) Archives and Special Collections Library and the WIU History Department. Dr. John Hallwas, President of the Illinois Historical Society, engaged the students with a thought-provoking presentation on Edgar Lee Masters's Spoon River Anthology.

My school is bilingual. And my library was too . . . sort of. Thanks to the RAILS My Library Is… Grant money, I can now say with confidence that the library is a bilingual space that serves all of our students.

“I can’t find anything to read. Nothing interests me.  These books are too hard. I do not know where the book is located.”  Sound familiar? The My Library Is... Grant provided funding to update and enhance the library collection and reading experience. It also provided colorful new signage to improve book accessibility for staff and students.