Reflecting on the Multicultural Children's Literature Summit

July 27, 2020

Held in February 2020 and sponsored by Reading Success by 4th Grade and Springfield City Library Children's Services, library and museum professionals met to discuss the importance of diversity in children's literature

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    Ms. Zee Johnson, Owner of Olive Tree Books N Voices hosted the lunch and learn sessions, where she presented on building relationships with communities and the importance of partnerships.

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    Jenise Katalina, Chief Family Services Officer at Square One, gave a brief training on cultural humility. She asked participants to take stock of their social circles and work to broaden their perspective towards culture.


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    Dr. Maria José  Botelho, Associate Professor at the College of Education at University of Massachusetts, Amherst,  gave a keynote address of critical multicultural analysis of children’s literature. She discussed the ideas that literacy is socially constructed and how literature is shaped and created by culture and vice versa. 


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Written by Ellen Sulzycki, Children’s Services Supervisor at Springfield City Library
Instagram: @ellenatthelibrary Twitter: @elelenatthelib
& Chrissy Howard, Program Manager of Reading Success by 4th Grade 
Twitter: @ChrissyTeaches 

A continual focus of the Professional Learning Network on Children's Literature (PLN) is diversity in children’s literature and discussion of what informal educators can do to stop the perpetuation of racial inequities. 

PLN facilitates discussions, idea sharing, and learning opportunities among Massachusetts librarians and museum professionals with an interest in social issues in children’s literature through learning/networking events, sharing articles and research, co-writing opportunities, and more. 

The Network's focus on diversity led to the planning of the Multicultural Children’s Literature Summit: an in-person professional development event held in February of 2020 at the Springfield City Library Central Branch. This half-day event gathered almost 50 informal educators from across the state of Massachusetts - from Lawrence to Amherst and Waltham to Springfield. 

With both networking and learning the order of the day, presentations were focused on critical multicultural analysis of children’s books, educator’s cultural humility, and building community connections.

Cross-sector partnerships and networks such as this are imperative to establish a literacy ecosystem that supports children’s language and literacy development. We were so happy to celebrate the work of our colleagues and look forward to more virtual opportunities in the near future.

Multicultural Children’s Literature Professional Learning Network offers a system of support for professional and collaborative learning opportunities through a hybrid model (online/in person). Check them out on Facebook.

Reading Success by 4th Grade is a community wide initiative to get all of Springfield’s kids reading proficiently by the end of 3rd grade. Their projects bring people together to learn, share, and advocate for early literacy in Springfield, Massachusetts. www.readby4thgrade.com 
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn: @ReadBy4thGrade

Children’s Services at Springfield City Library serves children and their families through diverse collections, accessible library services, and innovative educational programming. https://www.springfieldlibrary.org/library/children/ 
Facebook, LinkedIn: @SpringfieldCityLibrary 
Instagram, Twitter: @spfldmasslib

Chrissy Howard
Chrissy Howard
Manager
Reading Success by 4th Grade
  • About Chrissy

    Chrissy Howard was named Manager of Reading Success by 4th Grade in 2019, and brings with her a deep understanding of the work of the initiative. Most recently at Springfield Public Schools, Howard served as an Instructional Leadership Specialist in Literacy. She has also previously worked as a teacher, instructional coach, literacy leader and principal in Springfield and Worcester. Howard earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Wheelock College; her Master’s in Education from Harvard University; and her Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS) from Simmons University, focused on urban elementary education. She is currently pursuing her doctoral degree at UMass Amherst in the Language, Literacy and Culture program. Howard is active in the community as a member of the board of the YWCA of Western Massachusetts and the Harvard Club of Western Massachusetts. She was part of BusinessWest’s 40 Under 40 class of 2018, and is also a recipient of the Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Award from the Harold Grinspoon Foundation. Howard resides in Springfield with her husband, Geoff, and their two young daughters.

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