“It’s important for students to be aware of what they have access to,” says Lucy Podmore, librarian at Tom C. Clark High School in San Antonio, Texas. Understanding the myriad factors which impact that access, however, can be another story.
So, during Banned Books Week in 2023, Podmore decided to reconsider typical programming and switch to a “freedom to read” perspective—one that could educate students and their families about what goes into decisions affecting library bookshelves. Central to that event was what Podmore dubbed the Freedom Walk, an outdoor path on the school’s campus with interactive stations along the way.
Collaborating with social studies teachers to align with curriculum, the Freedom Walk occurred during student lunch periods and comprised of five stations centered around censorship issues: 1st Amendment rights, censorship terms, school district collection development and reconsideration policies, books as windows and mirrors, and voter registration/education. The interactive stations gave nearly 500 students the opportunity to reflect and learn about their own experiences with censorship through games and introspective prompts.
Podmore says the Freedom Walk was inspired by a similar program set up by a university library, one intended to educate college students about different library services available to them.
“I thought, oh, that would be kind of a fun idea,” she recalls. Tom C. Clark High School’s campus includes a central courtyard and Podmore was already familiar with delivering programming outdoors during COVID, so it was a perfect fit.
One thing gave Podmore pause, however. She had recently served as chair of the Texas Association of School Libraries, and in that role, she had spoken with legislators about the access that libraries have to information. She was met with these consistent attacks on her profession as a result. “It made me a little cautious, or extra aware,” she says.
Podmore says a conversation with the school’s principal about her idea put her mind at ease.
“I said, ‘Look, this is what I have planned. Please let me know your thoughts on it.’ And, he was very supportive of it,” she says. “That was really helpful.” History and government teachers at the school were also supportive, as was the American Library Association (ALA).
In 2024, Tom C. Clark High School received a Sara Jaffarian Award for Exemplary Humanities Programming for its Freedom Walk initiative. It was the first time the award had been granted to a high school. The $5,000 award is presented annually by ALA’s Public Programs Office and is sponsored by ALA’s Cultural Communities Fund in cooperation with the American Association of School Librarians. And at this summer’s ALA Annual Conference, being held June 26-30 in Philadelphia, Podmore will present a program about her Freedom to Read Week experience, with in-depth explanations of how the program was organized and ways it can be adapted to fit other communities.
Looking forward
Tom C. Clark High School’s campus community of 2,800 is diverse and was overwhelmingly supportive of the Freedom Walk concept, says Podmore.
“We have a culturally, racially, and socioeconomically diverse campus,.” she says. ‘We have some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in our subdivisions, and we have other students who were in refugee camps prior to coming here.”
By the time Podmore’s inaugural Freedom to Read Week had come and gone, it was considered a success by both students and school administration. The second annual walk was equally well received, Podmore says. She fully anticipates it returning as an annual event.
The best part about the experience, says Podmore? The students were really getting into it.
“They were asking a lot of questions,” she recalls. “I thought, ‘Holy smokes, they’re interested in this.’”
Your support of the American Library Association helps makes a difference in libraries across the U.S. Join us and become an ALA supporter today.
Bill Furbee is a freelance writer living in Kentucky.
Photo: A stop on the Freedom Walk at Tom C. Clark High School, courtesy of Tom C. Clark High School
Subscribe to the I Love Libraries newsletter! You’ll get monthly updates on library news, advocacy updates, book interviews, book info, and more!
