Two bills proposed by Rhode Island legislators aim to ensure every public school student has access to staffed and well-resourced school libraries.
House Bill H7417 and Senate Bill S2078, together titled the Save Rhode Island School Libraries Act, would ensure all Rhode Island schools have a dedicated library space as well as required daily access in all public schools, including hours outside of the school day.
Every public school with more than 250 students must employ at least one full-time certified school librarian, and schools with fewer must employ at least one part-time certified school librarian.
The University of Rhode Island is the only in-state institution that offers the Master of Library Information Studies degree generally required to become a certified librarian, according to the American Library Association.
URI alumna Stephanie Mills, ’03, ’09, M.L.I.S. ’07, a librarian at Park View Middle School in Cranston, wrote a letter in support of the bill to the House and Senate, emphasizing the increasingly complex educational landscape.
As technology becomes more prevalent in daily life, librarians provide critical guidance to maintaining literacy and academic integrity, according to Mills.
“Every kid is going to have a research paper that is due at some point, so how do you get them off of Google and to utilize good reputable sources, how do you teach those skills?” Mills said. “I feel like my job is fifty-fifty now. It’s a lot of research based direct instruction, but it’s also about just taking the passion for making the library a happy place […] I think every kid in Rhode Island deserves that.”
The School Librarians of Rhode Island estimate an annual cost of $2.16 million to fill the positions required by the bill, according to a fact sheet provided to the Rhode Island Current. The highest estimated expense would be employing enough elementary school librarians to meet the requirements, at an estimated $1.38 million.
“Honestly, in an ideal world, we would prioritize this,” Andy Andrade, a Rhode Island Department of Education legislative representative, said in a House hearing on March 10. “When you look at the bill, it’s very comprehensive and it would be very costly.”
While the concept of the bill has been well-received, fiscal limitations raised hesitation among leaders in the hearing. The pipeline for librarians has slowed down, raising questions about the feasibility of the bill’s required roles, according to state superintendent representatives.
As education spending remains on a national downward trend, school districts may not be able to prioritize library budgets.
“If there is concern about not having enough folks, you might find that there are people working in a public library setting because their school library position has been cut or reduced to part time,” Mills said. “I can think of two people off the top of my head whose positions went to half-time and they couldn’t afford to stay part-time. I’m sure those people would love to go back to a school library setting.”
With the addition of an online MLIS program offering, URI may incentivize more education professionals to consider becoming certified librarians, according to Mills.
“I think there are lots of classroom teachers who would consider adding this as a certification, and prior to it being an online course where you could work at your own pace, I think it was very difficult,” Mills said.
Mary Allbee, MLIS ’26, recently completed the program online while working in childcare. Soon she will be starting a full-time librarian position in Providence, where her hours are split between two elementary schools.
“It’s becoming more common that librarians have to go to more than one school,” Allbee said. “For example, my son goes to elementary school down here in South Kingstown, and his librarian goes to three elementary schools. He only has library class every two weeks.”
Professional guidance as she adjusts to the role is limited, according to Allbee. She plans on relying on her existing connections in the library community for mentorship.
“I’m going to be a first time [library] teacher going to two different schools, and you know, having to learn not only how to do the job on my own, but also be in two separate places,” Allbee said. “I just think that you would get better results and happier people and more done in the library classroom, if your librarian was dedicated to being in that one spot.”
More information about the URI Library and Information Studies program can be found on the URI website.
