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Mastering the Basics 9 can choose to avoid the turmoil of a challenge and potential job loss and not order the title. A third option might be to purchase a title (sometimes with your own money) and keep it in reserve to hand to a student in need. While not as welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community as having it in your collection, being fired won’t do anything to help those students. Something is better than nothing. Having a statement of your values doesn’t always make the choices easier, but it helps to clarify what they are. If you have the courage to go ahead, know that there is support available from ALA. Become familiar with the resources available on ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom website.7 Your state library association will be there to help as well. In addition to ALA’s Core Values of Librarianship, school librarians (and public librarians as well) can look at the wording of the last two Common Beliefs in American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL’s) Stan- dards Framework for Learners.8 Common Belief #5 states that “intellec- tual freedom is every learner’s right.” It stresses the importance of information access being within the control of the learner, although par- ents and guardians can limit or prohibit access to books and resources for their own children. The sixth Common Belief is that “information technologies must be appro- priately integrated and equitably available.” Well before the advent of COVID-19, this Common Belief stressed the issue of the digital divide and how it restricts equitable access to digital information. Although the pan- demic brought attention to the problem and access improved, the divide is still there. Each of the Core Values and Common Beliefs should resonate with librar- ians and be incorporated into their Values. But the Values of the Children’s and/or Young Adult Department or the school library needs to include wording that applies to the community it serves. Addressing these local needs as well as your personal beliefs about librarianship should also be part of your statement. What environment do you want to create? Perhaps you want the library to foster the love of reading and learning. Do you want it to be the place where users feel comfortable discovering and exploring new ideas? All this becomes part of your Values.