Our school library program has been named the 2018 National School Library Program of the Year by the American Association of School Librarians! The award recognizes a school or district-wide library program that meets the needs of the changing school and library environment and is fully integrated into the school’s curriculum. 

Lewis High, a Fairfax County public school, is an accredited International Baccalaureate (IB) World School that prepares students to be global citizens; school librarians Mimi Marquet and Lisa Koch support the curriculum in a way that is critical to student success.

Marquet and Koch developed a schoolwide Hour of Code activity and created curriculum for classes with and without devices, providing instruction in multiple languages so every student could participate.  To foster a sense of community among students and staff, they coordinated a schoolwide reading program, challenging every student and staff member to read Congressman John Lewis’s Civil Rights memoir March. Marquet and Koch also led book discussions, developed monthly lessons for teachers, created videos, and established an art installation as part of the March program. Additionally, they recruited social studies teachers and students for a service-learning opportunity that involved writing letters of gratitude to active duty service members and veterans to be included in care packages.

“Ms. Marquet and Ms. Koch ensure every student achieves the outcomes of our ‘Portrait of a Graduate’ framework by crafting student-centered, equitable learning experiences that address the needs and interests of each student,” wrote Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Scott S. Braband in his letter of support. “Their use of an inquiry approach to learning and their leadership in blended learning has increased student engagement and fostered a deeply collaborative culture among instructional staff. They are leaders who create a dynamic library atmosphere that engages the entire school community.”

AASL award committee members praised the Lewis High library program by saying that “teachers and administrators both shared one common thought—infiltrating!,” said committee chair Ken Stewart. “As they discussed the program, we could see how the library was infused—actually infiltrated—into every corner of the school community.”

Lewis High will be honored at the AASL awards ceremony during the American Library Association’s annual conference in New Orleans in June. AASL is a division of the American Library Association.

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For more information, contact Mimi Marquet at [email protected] or Lisa Koch at [email protected].