Cathi Fuhrman
School Librarian, Adjunct Teaching Professor, and Advocate for Libraries in State College, PA
With adequate staffing and resources, school librarians are the most equipped members of a school community to provide collaborative learning experiences, programs, instruction, and spaces in order to prepare our students for the future. School libraries are the equalizer - the equitable solution to fill the gap between access and opportunity for all learners in our schools. The school librarian sees students from whatever age they enter a school building until they leave that building to the next level or graduate to be career, college, or military ready. Students know their librarian and grow with them. School librarians are the one educator that understands our students at every grade level as a reader, a researcher, an explorer, a thinker, a tinkerer, a collaborator, a digital citizen, and a learner.
As a school librarian who recently retired after 31 years as a school librarian, I have always been active and an advocate in my local, state, and national library associations. I’ve been a member of the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association since I was a library science student in 1992. I became an American Library Association and American Association of School Librarians member in 1995. I am also a member of the Pennsylvania Library Association. In 2015, I began teaching online library science courses in higher education as an adjunct in multiple programs while continuing my roles as a school librarian/supervisor.
As a library department supervisor for 21 years, I was able to engage in work with administrators, curricular directors, content experts and teachers both within my own school district, statewide and nationally. My passion is to be able to strengthen the role of school librarians within the school communities, and to advocate for the role that all libraries play in the lives of students, parents, and community members.
My professional work has included serving PSLA in various roles – Board Member, President, Legislation Committee Chair, Intellectual Freedom Steering Team. My current passion is working as the Project Director for Read for Liberty PA, an ALA Intellectual Freedom Helpline. Within ALA/AASL, I served on the Board of Directors, several committees and have been the AASL Chapters Assembly Chair as well as the current chair of the AASL State Policy Task Group.
I am also currently a Councilor-at-Large for the American Library Association. I truly believe in ALA’s Ecosystem initiative of the interconnected network of all types of libraries. I belong to multiple ALA Committees and teams that include public, school, academic and special librarians. My vision is for stakeholders, parents, students, citizens, and community members to see that each type of library serves a unique purpose to their patrons – some of whom utilize more than one type of library. Read more about my thoughts on ALA's Ecosystem.
My education includes a BSE in Library Science, MSLIS from Drexel University and an Educational Doctorate from the University of Delaware.