From: Ginny Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Sat, 10 May 1997 17:06:18 -0500

Thanks, Eliza, for announcing the AASL/SIRS I.F. Award! Debbie Reese then wrote directly to me to see if she could ask what the CCBC does to "deal with issues before the censors strike." Now, I don't want to discourage dialogue about the important intellectual freedom
& academic freedom issues being raised on CCBC-NET today. However, neither do I want to discourage CCBC-NET folks who have located one or more of Paul Fleischman's books, read them and now look forward to more comments about them. Let me try to respond to what I thought Debbie's question is. Then, back to Fleischman!
     First of all, The CCBC Intellectual Freedom Information Services are a natural use & extension of all CCBC information services which are based on CCBC children's and young adult literature resources.
(Reminder: The CCBC is a noncirculating library of contemporary & historical books published in English in the U.S.A. for children and/or young adults. The CCBC also has extensive information about children's & young adult literature.) Because the CCBC is a library within an extensive network of libraries on this campus & elsewhere, we have access to extensive information elsewhere, as well.
     CCBC resources are used by many for many reasons: students fulfill course requirements; faculty prepare to teach courses and/or conduct research; public & school librarians do book selection; educators develop curricula; writers & artists find out about publishers & publishing trends; publishers check on their competition; people have dozens of other reasons for using this unique library - on site or "virtually" or when someone from the CCBC staff conducts a workshop or speaks or exhibits off?mpus. elsewhere.
     One type of general use of these resources comes at a time when a book complaint arises in a Wiscosnin school or library. If s/he chooses to use CCBC resources at such a time, the teacher, librarian or administrator contacts the CCBC to request copies of published reviews, information about any awards or distinctions this book received in the past, & any other information regarding that book, or its theme or topic as the former might relate to the context of the complaint. The CCBC staff locates whatever can be found relating to the above & provides the information to the person who requested it. The CCBC also includes a packet of general information about Intellectual Freedom, Libraries and Schools. The CCBC can link the caller with any number of curriculum consultants, professional colleagues & others who might be of assistance, depending upon what the caller wishes. The CCBC does not take a position on the complaint or become an advocate for a point of view regarding the complaint. The information sent is what the CCBC staff can find, both positive & negative - everything. The only role the CCBC assumes is its usual role, i.e. information provider. As part of the Intellectual Freedom community in this democracy, we hope that there is an up to date selection policy in place & being followed in that school or library, and we ask about this - as one way to make certain that the complainant is involved in a fair, equitable, democratic process from the standpoint of the library or school & vice versa. This is essential for all parties.
     We urge Wisconsin librarians & teachers to contact the CCBC at the time of an expression of concern or verbal complaint & not wait until/if a complaint is formally filed in writing. We believe in the power of information. We feel certain that if information professionals and educators receive prompt information about the book(s) in question, they will be able to function in a fully professional way when/if there is a formal complaint - and often there is not. Complaints originate from all manner of sources
(including co-workers) & about all manner of books. All CCBC information & program services relate to the CCBC's longstanding commitment to excellence in literature from a variety of perspectives
& to access to the varities of excellent literature for all youth. The single element that makes the CCBC Intellectual Freedom Information Services unique is that the CCBC & its staff think about
& are involved with literature for children and young adults All The Time. We are immersed in literature for children & young adults and in resources about that literature for all kinds of reasons every day
& every week. We do not have to shift gears in order to find information about a single book for whatever the reason. It's what we already assist others to do. It's what we think about, write about, speak & teach about. However, our limited staff makes it impossible for the CCBC to provide this level of immediate, in?pth information for everyone who calls or walks into the CCBC. This level of in?pth information is available only to Wisconsin teachers
& librarians only at the time of a book complaint. We wish we could do this much for everyone at all times, but that is impossible. However, we provide a wide range of services created to assist students, teachers & librarians to think independently & professionally about literature for the young themselves, to explore varying perspectives on excellence, & to make up their own minds which is what they ultimately do as a result of having the materials we send them and/or the consultants to whom we refer them under these special circumstances. We are constantly "in shape" in this respect because we are constantly working with the literature and the resources about the literature.
     Look at the CCBC Vision Statement in the newest edition of CCBC Choices 1996 or on the CCBC home page (www.soemadison.wisc.edu/ccbc/) to see how the CCBC I.F. Information Services are a natural part of all the CCBC stands for and does.
     We are deeply grateful to have been named the recipient of the AASL SIRS/I.F. Award, which is the national equivalent of the 1996 Wis. Library Association SIRS/I.F. Award we received with such appreciation in November. These awards, along with the 1989 Immroth Award and the 1990 Downs Award, are a tribute to the more than 100 graduate and undergraduate students who have worked so hard to provide this CCBC service during the past 20 years & to the graduate student coordinators of this service throughout those years - many of whom are now working in schools & libraries all across the nation. Even more, these awards are a tribute to the thousands of Wisconsin school library media specialists, public librarians & teachers who seek to find excellent books & use them with all of the children of all of the people.
     The AASL SIRS/I.F. Award will be presented on Monday, June 23, at the AASL Awards Luncheon during the American Library Association conference in San Francisco. Author Patricia McKissack will be the featured speaker. If you plan to attend this luncheon, please be sure to say hello. It will be wonderful to see you at that special occasion.
     Now - back to Paul Fleischman's books! On Thursday during the final session of the Children's Literature course I taught this semester, everyone in the class had the opportunity to read one of the poems from Joyful Noise or I Am Phoenix. I was struck all over again at Fleischman's skill in developing poems orchestrated right there on the page for two voices (or two sets of multiple voices). These fine poems are part of a long tradition of reading aloud, recitation & choral reading. Their placement on the page more than encouarges or suggests one of the above - the placement demands it. Some of the students read "cold," while others had rehearsed. Either way, the poems were enjoyable and meanings of the poems were clarified & illuminated! Yes, some are more difficult to read or understand than others & many depend upon prior knowledge. Our multiple voices added to Fleischman's voices became a powerful example of the power of his poems; they flew from the printed page and burned into our brains in new ways. Now - who has used any/all of the readings from Fleischman's Bull Run? Sincerely, Ginny
(gmkruse at ccbc.soemadison.wisc.edu)
Received on Sat 10 May 1997 05:06:18 PM CDT