Six Appointed to the State Advisory Council on Libraries

The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is pleased to announce that it has reappointed Kim Charlson of Watertown, Richard Poisson of Salem, Gail Scanlon of South Hadley, Joan Stern of Cambridge, and Diane Wallace of Brockton, and appointed Thomas Standring of Danvers to three-year terms on the State Advisory Council on Libraries.

Standring is owner of Independent Business Forms Distribution in Beverly and will be representing library users. An advocate of libraries, he is presently a Chairman of the Trustees of the Peabody Institute Library in Danvers, as well as a member of the Board of the Northeast Massachusetts Regional Library System. He has his Bachelor of Arts from Tufts University and an MBA from Northeastern University.

SACL is a 16-member board of representatives from all types of libraries, as well as individuals who use them. It acts as an advisory board to the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (Board) for administering Federal funds through the Library Services and Technology Act; participates in annual planning and budgeting activities; reviews and evaluates grants and programs that implement the MBLC long-range plan, and makes recommendations for funding to the Board.

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Massachusetts Family Literacy Month

Governor Romney has declared November 2005 to be Massachusetts Family Literacy Month. This annual celebration helps create awareness of the value and benefit of family literacy and encourages communities to celebrate with intergenerational literacy and other learning activities. Research shows students whose parents are full partners in their children's education have higher grades and test scores, better attendance, more motivation, better self-esteem, higher graduation rates, and a greater likelihood of pursuing a post-secondary education.

The Massachusetts Family Literacy Consortium (MFLC) is a statewide partnership of 14 state agencies, statewide and community organizations, parents, and other interested parties working to integrate and coordinate family literacy and family support. The Board of Library Commissioners is an active partner of this consortium.

The MFLC invites you to join us in promoting the importance of parents and children learning together. Visit the MFLC Web site www.doe.mass.edu/familylit/. Find links to free resources such as Every Grownup is a Famous Storyteller, reading tips, posters, and a guide for communities interested in celebrating family literacy.