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6 Ontario School Library Association The Editor's Notebook Diana Maliszewski Frequent readers of this column know that i often try to tie in the theme of the issue with anecdotes from my personal experience. i've mentioned my obsession with Twilight (on multiple occasions), my travels to different parts of the country, my parents' 50th anniversary, my blogs, my students' projects and requests, and my Teacher Performance appraisal, among other subjects. Those voyeurs hoping to get a glimpse of some juicy dirt or titillating detail may be sorely disappointed by the lack of "baking details" in this article. ("baking" is the euphemism my adult Twilight friends and i use when referring to intimate relations on the Pg-13 website, The Twilight Lexicon). i hope that the new look of our magazine will not disappoint our audience. Our OLa liaison and layout designer, amanda braun, has worked hard with our editorial board to create a modern looking, visually appealing print publication. Despite the declining success of print news, our magazine, The Teaching Librarian, is as popular and frequently read as ever. To add to the magazine's "sexy makeover", we've added a few new editors to our board. We had many applicants for this volunteer position and it was a very hard decision. We are pleased to welcome evelynne bernstein and Leslie holwerda to the board. Unfortunately, we are losing two of our most experienced editors. brenda Dillon has contributed to the magazine since Volume 9, and Martha Martin has been around for just as long. both women are great writers, conscientious editors, and amazing teacher-librarians. On behalf of the Ontario School Library association, i wish them all the best in their future endeavors. as i write this column, school libraries are "hot topics". The media has been abuzz with People for education's annual report on the declining state of school library staffing in Ontario, in addition to the decision by the Windsor essex catholic District School board to close all their elementary school libraries and distribute the books to classrooms. beyond Ontario, i've read through my Twitter feed that in california, only 24% of schools have credited media specialists. Lawyers are in the process of interrogating Los angeles school media specialists to prove they can teach and keep their jobs, and the U.S. Department of education has withdrawn federal support for school libraries. There are good news stories as well: in countries such as norway, Sweden, Portugal, italy, and Finland, according to canada's Dr. Dianne Oberg, there have been major national programs for improving school libraries, including financial support. closer to home, the Ottawa catholic District School board has earmarked $2,000,000 over three years to update its school libraries with digital tools. School libraries are sizzling fodder for discussion. Let's hope the public interest doesn't fizzle. May this edition of the magazine be Viagra to the news! z First comes love, then comes marriage... Diana and her husband James on their wedding day, July 5, 1997. TingL_19.1_final.indd 6 11-08-31 2:11 PM