The Colorado Department of Education

Offices | Staff Contacts | Colorado.gov

Power Libraries Program

Impact

Since 1998 the Power Libraries Program has:

  • Supported 147 individual schools located in 43 different school districts all across the state, including: 
    • 33 high schools
    • 31 middle schools
    • 77 elementary schools
    •  3 K-12 schools and 3 K-8 schools
  • Benefited over 108,605 Colorado students and their teachers by correlating content standards and information literacy standards
  • Trained 100's of school teams, made up of a teacher, an administrator and a teacher-librarian , in collaboration and information literacy
  • Resulted in the development of 1000's of collaborative, standards-based units
  • Instituted more flexible library scheduling in participating schools
  • Helped to establish integration of the library program with instruction and assessment

POWER LIBRARIES SCHOOLS are selected through a competitive application process and participate as one of two types of schools:

"High Performance" schools must meet the criteria for having an exemplary library and agree to mentor other schools to increase teacher and librarian collaboration

"Developing" schools must have a professional library media specialist and be ready to move away from the old model of teaching library skills in isolation to the new model of using information skills with content standards to develop good readers, information-users, and life-long learners.

All POWER LIBRARIES SCHOOLS must commit to a year-long partnership to increase collaborative teaching and learning, to share instructional ideas and best practices, to develop an action plan for continued improvement, and to commit to ongoing professional growth.

In Power Libraries Schools teacher-librarians demonstrate leadership in the following areas:

  • Serve on the school leadership team
  • Meet regularly with the principal to discuss student learning
  • Serve as a member of a technology planning group
  • Attend professional conferences and classes
  • Meet with other teacher-librarians to discuss professional issues
  • Sponsor a student group or activity
  • Organize a parent and/or community event in the library
  • Participate in test data review and planning sessions
  • Plan with teachers to embed information literacy skills into the content area
  • Employ specific strategies to develop advocates for libraries

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