Can't Shelve This

The podcast where we hammer home the importance of school libraries.

The Tea on Teaching, Budgets, & Burnout 11/11/2025

The Tea on Teaching, Budgets, & Burnout It's time for some real talk. ☕️ Janette and Leah dive into the realities of school librarianship today—unpacking the numbers, staffing shortages, and loopholes schools use to sidestep library standards. This one is a must-listen for administrators. Relevant Links: 💭 Have a topic idea? Want to be a guest? Email Ola at ola.gronski@railslibraries.org or leave us a voicemail on our hotline at 630.734.5015. /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/38984895

Diary of a First-Year School Librarian 10/14/2025

Diary of a First-Year School Librarian What’s it really like to be a brand-new school librarian? In “Diary of a First-Year School Librarian,” Janette and Leah chat with Mary Alice Maloney (Charles J. Sahs School Librarian) as she reflects on her first year as a full-time certified school librarian. Hear about the challenges, wins, and plans for year two. Relevant Links: 💭 Have a topic idea? Want to be a guest? Email Ola at ola.gronski@railslibraries.org or leave us a voicemail on our hotline at 630.734.5015. /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/38573755

The One Where They Get Connected 09/09/2025

The One Where They Get Connected You're not alone. School librarians have a powerful network of support behind them. In "The One Where They Get Connected," Janette and Leah are joined by Cyndi Robinson (Executive Director of the Illinois Library Association) and K.C. Boyd (District of Columbia Public Schools Librarian—AKA The Boss Librarian). Together, they unpack how to find your people, advocate for your job, and tap into perks like student discounts to help the next generation of librarians thrive. Relevant Links: Follow K.C. on and If you’re an Illinois librarian attending AASL in St. Louis, email or for details on our meetup! 💭 Have a topic idea? Want to be a guest? Email Ola at ola.gronski@railslibraries.org or leave us a voicemail on our hotline at 630.734.5015. /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/38134280

Back to the Stacks 08/12/2025

Back to the Stacks Season 2 is officially in session! Settle into back-to-school season with Janette and Leah as they unpack all the library propaganda we're not falling for. No homework—just laughs, mythbusting, and a few hot takes. Relevant Links: Have a topic idea? Want to be a guest? Let us know! Email Ola at ola.gronski@railslibraries.org or leave us a voicemail on our hotline at 630.734.5015. /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/37767630

Thnks Fr Th Mmrs 06/10/2025

Thnks Fr Th Mmrs It’s a summer send-off at Can’t Shelve This! In this season finale, Leah and Janette go straight to the source for school library wisdom: Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School librarian Heather McCarthy and two of her eighth graders, Emily and Nathan! Together, they talk about what it feels like to have a school with a thriving library, and what you can do to help build one. Relevant Links: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/36855465

An Airing of Grievances 05/13/2025

An Airing of Grievances Instead of feeling sad, let's get mad. In the spirit of a mid-year Festivus, co-hosts Janette and Leah address the current library landscape and read listener-submitted rants. Relevant Links: Books Mentioned: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/36539945

E is for Everyone 04/08/2025

E is for Everyone Every student deserves to be seen in their school library. Janette and Leah are joined by "A" (local school librarian) and Jessica Silva (RAILS Member Engagement Specialist) to discuss how to create welcoming and inclusive school libraries. Together, they share strategies for supporting EDIA in the changing educational landscape. Relevant Links: Executive Orders: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/35996155

Let's Get Certified 03/11/2025

Let's Get Certified We talk about certified school librarianship all the time in Library Land, but what does that even mean? Janette and Leah break it down for you in this episode with Lauren Ochs (School Library Licensure Coordinator at University of Illinois) and Hannah Fiedler (recently-certified school librarian). Relevant Links: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/35579320

A Love Letter to Libraries 02/11/2025

A Love Letter to Libraries Janette and Leah sit down with the internet's favorite librarian, Mychal Threets! Together, they talk about how even the smallest moments of library joy help us persist—both in librarianship and in life. Plus, we read and react to your library joy stories! Books We Discussed: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/35226995

A Good Librarian's Guide to Getting Along (with Administration) 01/14/2025

A Good Librarian's Guide to Getting Along (with Administration) School librarian and administrator relationships can be tricky to navigate. Janette and Leah are joined by school librarian Beth Kovacic and principal Akemi Sessler (Dryden Elementary School) and discuss how you can foster that positive relationship to improve student, teacher, and community success. Relevant Links: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/34808795

The Library's Got Rizz 11/12/2024

The Library's Got Rizz Janette and Leah chat with district librarian Nichole Folkman (Hartsburg-Emden CUSD #21) about the best ways to get your tots, tweens, and teens excited about visiting the school library. Plus, we read and discuss your submitted programming stories! Relevant Links: /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/33864047

Advocacy 101: Help Me Help You 10/08/2024

Advocacy 101: Help Me Help You Help us help you…share the important work that you’re doing in school libraries. Janette and Leah chat with school librarians Gail Meyer (Thornton Fractional High School) and Deb Will (Zion-Benton Township High School) about the simplest and most impactful ways that anyone can advocate for school libraries. Relevant Links: Music produced by Can't Shelve This is a Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS) production in collaboration with Illinois Heartland Library System (IHLS). /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/33371252

You Can Totally Sit With Us 09/10/2024

You Can Totally Sit With Us Welcome to Can't Shelve This: your new school library podcast. Co-hosts Janette Derucki ( Data Analyst) and Leah Gregory ( School Library Membership Coordinator) introduce themselves and discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly happening at Illinois school libraries. Relevant Links: Intro/outro music produced by . Can't Shelve This is a Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS) product in collaboration with Illinois Heartland Library System (IHLS). /episode/index/show/c42577d5-5376-4467-84fc-7f9e24ab86a0/id/32783687

Can't Shelve This

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