What Drives Me Nuts!

Outside of straightening up my Anime and Graphic Novels section (sometimes four times a day), this drives me nuts!

Conversations at the Circulation Desk #5

The Audacious Librarian Blogspot

Conversations at the Circulation Desk #5 

My student Christine reviews, ‘Sideline’ by Jay C. Rehak.  She finished reading the book in two days, thumbs up!

New Opportunity...

East St. Louis, Illinois:  City of Champions

     July 2015, I was presented with an opportunity that I couldn't turn down:  Serving as a district librarian.  I interviewed for the position and was offered the opportunity to serve in a hybrid administration/high school position that began in August of 2015.

     

     It was difficult saying goodbye to a great group of Phillips students, teachers and community members.  The blessing is:  I still have a relationship with the students, in particular my Anime/Manga Club Members.   I am now the Lead Library Media Specialist for East St. Louis School District #189 in East St. Louis, Illinois.  Previous posts from Wendell Phillips Academy High School can still be viewed.  Those experiences were valuable and are precious memories.  

     I hope that you will follow me as I rebuild the high school library, support a great group of librarians and help integrate print/technology resources into the district.  Most importantly:  Getting kids excited about reading is what I'm committed to executing.   I'm excited about this opportunity and I hope you will follow me as I begin a new journey in school librarianship.

My New Home!

 

New Faces, New Episode!

After a long absence, the Phillips 'Behind the Paws' crew has produced a new episode.

• New Faces
• New Music
• New Animation
• New Bloopers

Special thanks to Mrs. Kaushal for being so flexible during her interview!

Enjoy!

My Busy Week!

Last week was so busy!  Here's a day by day breakdown:

Sunday:  Reflection

Still overcome with emotion after watching the #Selma50 celebrations on C-Span

I snapped this picture when I was getting my locs maintained.  #SoInspiring

Monday:  Wake Up!

The big reveal took place:  I was named a 2015 Library Journal 'Mover and Shaker.'  Huge honor!

Updating the Phillips Twitter page, listening to Bob and drinking coffee

Anime/Manga Club Meeting:  The students are working on their next project, and I'm the subject!!!

Yup, they are up to something!

Selfie Tuesday!  

Here's a couple of pictures

I found my glasses, Tuesday is a good day!

My students just love coming into my personal space.

Fortee' is way to comfortable on top of my library table!!!

Wednesday:  

Good news and tears

I received some really good news from CPS.  Stay tuned!

When these kids graduate in June, I'm going to lose it.  #EmptyNester

Thursday:  

Technology Thursday 

So happy to see my Techie Girl Rebekah today!

Friday, March 13th is National Digital Learning Day!  See Phillips video below!

Urban Fiction/Street Literature....The Debate Continues

    Yesterday I was informed that there was an interesting discussion about Urban Fiction/Street Literature on the YALSA listserv. After reading the posts and sleeping on it, I decided to put in my two cents.

  I've been using and advocating the use of the genre of Urban Fiction/Street Literature for over 10 years with allot of successes. I pride myself on having a healthy mix of teen friendly and adult Street Lit. books for my teen readers. Regardless of how one may feel about this genre, it's here to stay. 

My student Rebekah describes what Street Lit. means to her and her classmates who live in the Bronzeville neighborhood in Chicago.

My Final Thoughts About Urban Fiction/Street Lit.

1. All stories have VALUE, regardless of the lens/perspective it's told from.

2. Who are any of us (librarians/libraries) to say Urban Fiction is not a genre?

3. Urban Fiction is a genre and Street Literature is a sub-genre of Urban Fiction, both should be respected as such.

4. Urban Fiction is a genre that should be in all library collections for teens and adults. As should other books about various subjects and cultures.

5. To make excuses (I've heard many of them) not to include them is just plain sad and a disservice to your patrons.

6. Urban Fiction is a genre that should not be ignored by librarians. This genre has served as a catalyst to jump start reluctant readers to read more frequently.

7. Urban Fiction has provided a pipeline for readers to learn/understand communities unlike their

own.

8. From my personal experience, many critics of Urban Fiction have not bothered to either read not just one book, but a body of work representing various authors and reading levels.

9. Many critics of Urban Fiction just don't understand it. Just think about it: What happens when we don't understand something....We reject it.

10. Many librarians have Young Adult Urban Fiction and Street Literature books within their collections, and are unaware of their genre classification.

 If you would like to read more on this subject of Urban Fiction/Street Literature you can read my blog post on my other blog, MissDomino.BlogSpot: 

"Street Lit. Writers Must Be Heard"
  http://missdomino.blogspot.com/2014/08/street-lit-writers-must-be-heard.html 

Another post that should be read is Amy Koester's blog post,
"Selection is Privilege"
http://showmelibrarian.blogspot.com/2015/02/selection-is-privilege.html

Making Animation Videos!

After several weeks, the Anime/Manga Club's meetings have resumed.   Club members decided to extend their meeting time and met online and at teen venues around the city/suburbs.    The website is finally done and the students are proud.....I'm proud of them!  Check out their work here:   http://phillipsanimemangaclub.weebly.com/


During the last two meetings, we covered allot!  Here's some pictures and video from these meetings and I hope you enjoy them all!

Each meeting begins with a review of the updates on the Anime/Manga Club website.

For Black History month, the students viewed and discussed African-Americans in Anime and watched this video.



They ate pizza!

Then they listened to a lesson led by their classmate, Jordan.  

Today's assignment:  perfect using the Animation Creator HD iPad app.

They received their iPads and stylus and started working!

Here's video from the last two meetings.  Enjoy!

Late Post: Behind the Paws

Here's a very late post and a good one.  My students were mentioned in an article published by DNA Info Chicago. They featured members of the Phillips Behind the Paws Student News Program and our 2014 Phillips Wildcats Football Champs.  I'm so proud of all of these kids!

Wendell Phillips Football State Finalists Featured on YouTube Show

Here's the actual video that was mentioned in the story.

Homecoming Week 2014

The students had so much fun during Homecoming (Spirit) Week 2014.  Here's just a couple of pictures from Twin Day, Nerd Day and Crazy Hair Day:

 The Behind the Paws crew members took pictures highlighting each day's theme.  At the end of this video, the students also created a mini-music video highlighting the lastest dance craze in Chicago, 'Boppin'.    The video was played during the Homecoming Assembly on Friday.  Enjoy!

Sick and Shut In

I love my Wonder Woman mug.

Monday while serving pizza for my new Anime/Manga Club, I picked up a gift from the kids:  A Cold.   This bug left me congested, weak and was the worst I've experienced in a long time.   After a couple of doses of anti-biotics and drinking Tumeric plant teas, I feel a little better.

I'm happy to share some statistics from my September Monthly Report I submit to my administration.

     701 books circulated (check-outs and renewals)

1,249 students visited the Library Media Center

That's all for now, I'm going back to bed.

My junky but functional circulation desk.

Conversations at the Circulation Desk #4

Conversations at the Circulation Desk is an ongoing series that celebrates the teen mind, voice and spirit.  in this episode, three seniors are providing 'Teen' Reader's Advisory for a junior level student.  Nikki Carter and Kelli London books are referenced heavily in this video.  #HowILibrary

Read more about both of these authors here:

The Brown Bookshelf:  Day 21 - Nikki Carter

http://thebrownbookshelf.com/2012/02/21/day-21-nikki-carter/

Sormag Blog:  Featured Author, Kelli London

http://sormag.blogspot.com/2012/06/featured-author-kelli-london.html

Support Jermaine Attending EIU

My student Jermaine Lumpkin graduated from Wendell Phillips Academy High School on June 7th with honors.  He was a member of the Phillips Debate, Bowling and Golf Teams during his tenure. Jermaine will be attending Eastern Illinois University this fall, majoring in Biology. 

Jermaine is need of serious financial help. Since the passing of his grandmother, Jermaine's family support and home life has been 'less than desirable'.  Despite these challenges, Jermaine has kept his grades up and continued to maintain a positive attitude.  His relatives did not attend graduation nor are they supporting his dream of attending college. Essentially Jermaine is on his own.  

My co-workers will be driving Jermaine to campus later this summer to begin a early bird program for freshman students. Currently we are organizing a Trunk Party for Jermaine that is scheduled for Friday, June 13th at Wendell Phillips Academy High School.  I along with many others at Phillips believe that this young man can make it!  Jermaine is an example of the 'good' that is produced out of the Englewood neighborhood.  At this time, Jermaine needs some support getting on his feet and beginning the next chapter of his life.

If you can assist and/or encourage friends, family/church members or organizations to donate the following items or gift cards, that would be wonderful! Items needed are toiletries, school supplies, and clothing (t-shirt - L, pants - 32-34, shoes - size 12).  These items are not covered by his partial scholarships he has been awarded.  

The school's address is:
Wendell Phillips Academy High School
244 East Pershing Road
Chicago, IL  60653
Attention:  Jermaine Lumpkin

If you have any questions, please contact me directly at 773/535-0315.