MAME's Advocacy Committee needs your help! *Please send a letter to your Michigan Representative.* *EveryLibrary has made it easy to do so at this link:* https://www.saveschoollibrarians.org/3billsmichigan It only takes one minute to do so. We need to fill our representatives in-boxes to let them know the importance of school libraries staffed with certified school librarians for our students and school communities! As you most likely know, our students' reading scores are near the bottom nationally. Michigan is ranked 47th in the nation in the ratio of students to school librarians, and only 8% of our schools employ a full-time school librarian. Our students deserve better. Thus, it is important to contact your representative. You can follow up your email with an email to meet with your representative. The legislature will be on break during the weeks of March 25th and April 1st, thus, this would be a great time to meet with them locally as they will be working "in district" during that time. {Or you could send *one* email to request support and a meeting by copying and personalizing this sample email <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DnsOybPVb_GhPrVrXGIQzIOvNuedo3xe1oqPmz5aAQY/edit?usp=sharing>, instead of sending the EveryLibrary email with follow-up} *I**f you need support or talking points for a meeting, please let the MAME advocacy committee know.* *BACKGROUND INFORMATION:* State Representatives Darrin Camilleri, Matt Koleszar, and Kristy Pagan introduced three bills on Thursday, March 14 to require schools in Michigan to have a school library staffed with a certified library media specialist as well as staff to keep the library open when the library media specialist is unavailable. See: (https://housedems.com/article/dem-legislators-work-promote-improve-literacy ) MAME's advocacy committee has worked for several years to raise awareness of the critical need for effective school libraries and to have bills such as these introduced. The representatives want to raise awareness of the need for equitable access to school libraries staffed by certified school librarians to help them in their efforts to secure funding. Please send a letter to [or call] your Michigan House Representative asking them to support these three bills --- HB 4392, 4393, 4394. Thank you, Michigan Association for Media in Education (MAME) Advocacy Committee Kathy Lester, Chair Lisa Brakel Carrie Betts Tam Cummings Amy Hermon Klaudia Janek Cat Kerns Stephanie Luyt Gwenn Marchesano Shannon Torres Cynthia Zervos Kathy Lester, MLIS, MA *Advocacy Chair, Past-President 2014* Michigan Association for Media in Education (MAME) *Region 3 Director* American Association of School Librarians (AASL) *SIGLIB Communications Director* Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) *School Library Media Specialist / Technology Coach* *SL21 Model Library, 2017-2018* *SL21 Exemplary Ranking - Michigan School Libraries for the 21st Century 2016-2019* East Middle School, Plymouth-Canton Schools *ISTE Making IT Happen Award Winner* *2017 MAME Michigan School Library Program of the Year* *2012 **State Librarian's Excellence Award Winner* kathyL@mimame.org twitter: @LibraryL <https://twitter.com/LibraryL> 810.333.5873