Transcript
SARAH:
If you look at the media, the image they often portray of a librarian is some old woman in a bun and specs. And we know that that's not true. I mean, if you look at librarians today, they're dynamic, they're engaged people, they're interested, they're modern. And it's important that we change the story, that we are somebody that can help and can be dynamic.
The library brand is really important to the school. And because if we can construct it so that it actually supports the wider aims, and the mission statement of the school and we publicise, maybe on our library page of the website, how we're going to achieve those goals that the school has got, then it's going to have much more impact. And it makes our job visible to others, and they can understand the importance of our role. And it's important that we show our role in a language that they can understand, the other members of the school community.
It leads to respect, and it means that people want to work with us. They'll come and seek us out rather than us having to go to them all the time. It's got some other advantages, as well, because if we can say that we're providing this impact, we might get some extra funding for our library, because it's supporting the school mission.
It takes a bit of courage. It means you've got to step out of your comfort zone, and you've got to start questioning the status quo because schools are terrible about making changes, they like things to stay year after year the way they should be. And part of the dynamism of a librarian, is that we can actually change things and make things happen.