Congratulations on arriving at the end of June, the end of another school year, the end of 2023-2024, academically speaking. No doubt your libraries have been tidied up, closed up, inventoried, and they sit quietly waiting for students to come back in the fall. Before we embark on our summer travels, staycations, and summer reading adventures, let us take stock of all the accomplishments, both big and small, from this past year.
We had three fabulous, well-attended meetings this year. Our Fall Meeting was hosted by Saint Ann’s School. A meeting of Round Table Idea Sharing on topics like AI, best books to read aloud, curriculum on banned books, teacher and librarian collaborations and so much more followed by time to catch up with old friends and meet new ones.
Our Winter Meeting was hosted by The Trinity School. We heard from graphic novel guru Gina Gagliano, publisher Liz Frances (Street Noise Books), and author/artist Tracy White, creator of the graphic novel, Unaccompanied: Stories of Brave Teenagers Seeking Asylum, about the power of graphic storytelling. Again, we enjoyed time to chat and snack afterwards.
Our Spring Library Symposium, hosted by The Brearley School, was our inaugural all-day library symposium on Intellectual Freedom, Libraries as Sanctuaries and Teaching Practices. With Dr. Chelsea Clinton, a panel on intellectual freedom, Mr. Tony Marx and workshops presented by both HVLA members as well as public school librarians, over 75 librarians enjoyed a day of learning and networking. Feedback has been very positive and we hope to plan another symposium in the future.
In terms of socials, Brooklyn librarians win for being the most social. Our SORA Consortium committee continues to guide our association, share beautiful and effective promotional materials, curate amazing collections, and provide professional development so we all can optimize our SORA ebook collections at our schools.
I would like to thank the HVLA board members for their dedication of time and energy. Their commitment saw us through another successful year that included several elections, a petition to reinstate funding for NOVELny, several blog posts — with thanks to guest bloggers, board meetings, and multitudes of emails. All this extra work is done on top of their demanding full-time jobs, on top of their busy lives as people living in NYC, and on top of all the things that pop up unexpectedly that require their attention. I look forward to working with the incoming board members and wish those who are stepping down all the best. I am very grateful to you all.
Our hopes for 2024-2025 include developing our relationships with NYCSLS and public libraries and forming a planning subcommittee for the next HVLA Library Symposium. When we return in the fall, look forward to our Small Press Preview. There will be opportunities to get involved and make HVLA even stronger. Please consider volunteering.
For now, enjoy the summer! Exhale. Share your summer reading picks in the comments. I look forward to seeing you all in the fall. I hope you enjoy a restful, bookful, and as-adventurous-as-you-like summer!
Warmly,
Amy, for the HVLA board
Amy’s summer reading: Exhalation by Ted Chiang, Maud Martha by Gwendolyn Brooks, The Fellowship of Puzzle Makers by Samuel Burr, listen to full cast recording of Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros (of course I’ve already read it!)