NAIS Guidelines of Professional Practice for Librarians

 View this GPP as a PDF file.

Approved by NAIS in 2008

Preamble

The NAIS Guidelines of Professional Practice (GPPs) outline standards for professional conduct for various roles or positions within independent schools. We encourage NAIS member schools to view the individual Guidelines of Professional Practice below and share them within their school communities. It is our hope that the increased visibility of and easy access to the guidelines will go a long way in helping schools fulfill their missions.

Overview

At the heart of the independent school library program is a professionally trained librarian who meets the following principles.

  1. As a member of the faculty, the librarian partners with teaching colleagues to integrate information, technology, and research skills into the curriculum.
  2. The librarian motivates and guides students to appreciate literature and reading.
  3. The librarian teaches information-seeking, critical analysis of sources, citation methods, synthesis, and the ethical use of information, and is thus a strong resource to students, teachers, and the school.
  4. The librarian provides intellectual, physical, and virtual access to print and digital learning materials that are efficiently organized and conveniently stored according to accepted standards.
  5. The librarian evaluates continually the currency, quality, depth, and breadth of the collection.
  6. The librarian understands the school's curriculum so that he or she can develop a collection that coordinates with long-term teaching goals as well as current and emerging needs.
  7. The librarian maintains a facility that is active, inviting, and conducive to student and faculty learning.
  8. The librarian utilizes a variety of interactive tools to provide services, information, and tutorials to the learning community.
  9. The librarian encourages both formal and informal input from the school community into the types, quality, and format of the information resources provided.
  10. The librarian partners with the school administration to provide knowledge, vision, and leadership to plan for change and the future success of the library program and thus guarantees that the library facilities, collection, and staffing will continue to meet the needs of the school over time.
  11. The librarian assesses the effectiveness of the library media program on an ongoing, regular basis.
  12. The librarian leads the school community in support of the principles of intellectual freedom, free inquiry, and equal access to information.
  13. The librarian offers professional growth opportunities (e.g. workshops, reading groups) for faculty on topics of current and emerging importance.
  14. The librarian maintains a personal commitment to professional growth by remaining current in the fields of library and information science, education, and emerging technologies.