Diversity & Collection Development: Why?

When Donalyn Miller was here in Rochester in the Spring of 2019, she made a strong case for the link between better reading scores and greater access to books. In their 2018 book, Game Changer! Access to Books for All Kids, Donalyn Miller and Colby Sharp state, "Without access to books, the persistent gap between children who have access and those who don't will remain. Our students will not reach their full potential without books, regardless of the educational reforms schools implement (Miller and Sharp 8)."

On the very next page they express, "The book access we offer children in school must be as varied, relevant, current, and engaging as possible. For many children, school offers the only access opportunities in their lives, so it has to count (Miller and Sharp 9)." Varied and relevant, and DIVERSE. This is true of kids no matter what type of setting they live. Even if students have a multitude of books at home, chances are they will not offer students a diversity of perspectives. It is up to us, as school librarians, to provide a diverse collection where all students can feel represented and learn about our American and World community members.

By creating diverse reading collections in our schools, we will be cultivating empathetic readers, understanding citizens, and people who see the commonality among all humans. We will create a culture of readers.