About

Welcome to the Library Lyceum, West Essex High School Library’s home on the web. The site’s name invokes two ancestors.

Students of the first, Aristotle’s school in ancient Athens, pursued philosophy peripatetically, moving literally and figuratively between questions. Our library also ambles about, tirelessly walking down satisfying answers to complicated questions; our library also realizes a host of further inquiries lurks between the syllables of any given answer.

Educators of the second, America’s 19th century Lyceum movement, brought serious ideas to public audiences outside academia. Our library also believes the pursuit of knowledge belongs to everyone, regardless of credential, station, social status, or present course of study.

This hub anchors our network of research guides, instructional resources, and databases. Each component of the Lyceum is built around a specific course, assignment, or question. Each serves as a map through unfamiliar territory, and, like any map worth its vellum, proves most useful after you realize the territory itself takes priority over any abstraction.

I’m Mr. Thompson, and I serve as West Essex High School’s librarian. I value kindness, conviviality, creativity, and ambition in that order. I’m committed to building a school-wide culture of multimodal literacy that inspires students to read deeply, think critically, research skillfully, and produce and engage with media ethically as they prepare for college and career.

I curate the library’s database collection, design research guides and instructional materials, and collaborate with classroom teachers to help students develop the research skills and information literacy habits they will carry beyond high school. I consider questions more valuable than answers and know the most important lesson a library can impart is that joy erupts from seeking rather than finding.

If you need help with anything—anything!—reach out.