Our Program
Library & Information Services
Affirming Friends School as a community of learners, the libraries teach information literacy and research, advocate reading, create comfortable and welcoming spaces, and support the school’s commitment to Quaker values, diversity, intellectual freedom, intellectual property, and community. The library program encompasses the libraries in each division. Each division library provides age appropriate materials and instruction that is integrated into the academic curriculum. The libraries also provide professional development resources for faculty and administration.
The libraries through their teaching, working with faculty and students, and varied collections:
" School libraries are a powerful force in the lives of America’s children.” State and national studies, as early as 1992, have shown a positive and quantifiable relationship between strong library programs and student achievement not linked to other considerations, including socio-economic factors. (p.22, The White House Conference on School Libraries, June 4, 2002)
Query: How do we build on the good work we already do to enhance student learning and to build a community of lifelong learners?
Query: How do we become fully integrated members of the Libraries and Information Services Department, while still cherishing the uniqueness and special strengths of libraries?
1. Working in unison as Friends School moves from three isolated divisions to a PK-12 community, the divisional libraries will develop a clearly articulated program that affirms their role with enthusiasm and passion.
2. The librarians’ primary responsibility will be to maintain a program grounded in best practices and relevant research practice:
3. The librarians will use their understanding of the curriculum to take a leadership role in strengthening the PK-12 academic program. With the support of principals and administration, research will be an integral part of learning in all three divisions. Working with new and veteran faculty, the librarians will serve as resource advisors, whether for the revision of current research projects or the initial contemplation of new ideas.
4. The libraries will be the heart of the school, reflecting the school’s Quaker values, mission and philosophy.
Friends School of Baltimore Since 1784 | 5114 North Charles Street | Baltimore, MD 21210 | 410.649.3200
