ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline
Volume 10, Number 12
February 22, 2001

In this issue:
	
SENATE URGENT ACTION NEEDED on ESEA:

The Senate Health, Education Labor and Pensions Committee is 
planning a mark-up of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 
reauthorization on March 5.  Your help is needed to get S. 327, 
the Improving Literacy Through School Libraries Act of 2001, 
included in the Committee version of ESEA reauthorization.  S. 327 
would authorize $500 million to support acquisition of school 
library media resources, well-trained certified school library 
media specialists, and access to library resources after school 
hours.

The bill is supported by both Republican and Democratic Senators, 
but there are no sponsors from the Republican membership of the 
Committee. Without additional Republican support from the 
committee for the bill, it will not be included in the ESEA 
reauthorization.  
 
School library supporters from the following states should contact 
their Senators, explaining the importance of dedicated funding for 
school libraries. 

(Capitol Switchboard Number is: (202-224-3121)
Virginia: Senator John Warner; Vermont: Senator Jim Jeffords; New 
Hampshire: Senator Judd Gregg; Tennessee: Senator Bill Frist; 
Wyoming: Senator Michael Enzi; Arkansas: Senator Tim Hutchinson;  
Missouri: Senator Kit Bond;  Kansas: Senator Pat Roberts; Maine: 
Senator Susan Collins;  Alabama: Senator Jeff Sessions.

? Describe the situation in your school library, system or state. 
?  Statistics show that well-equipped school libraries supported 
by certified school library media specialists contribute to 
rising achievement scores of students.  (See the Keith  Curry 
Lance studies at www.lrs.org). 
? Average expenditures in elementary schools for materials are 
around $7.00, hardly enough for half a book per child. 
? Academic success for all students must include a serious 
commitment in spending for school library resources. 

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