Ethiopia Reads

September 1, 2010

Thanks to the vision and perseverance of Yohannes Gebregeorgis, founder of Ethiopia Reads, a new library worthy of any developed country opened August 20 in Mekele, the first of its kind in this small and grindingly poor city. The Segenat Children and Youth Library in the region of Tigray is located in a sturdy, free-standing building donated by the municipal authorities. It’s fully loaded with some 10,000 books and a computer room with 10 workstations; two e-book readers and 8,000 more books are on the way. A companion donkey-mobile regularly transports some 2,000 additional books to more distant parts of Tigray, powered by two beasts of burden named Sege and Nat.

View of the city of Mekele, Ethiopia, population just under 1 million--with no public library for children, until now.

Two teens on their way to the library opening.

Children with the donkeymobile powered by Sege and Nat.

Janet Lee, right, explains how the library came to be, while Ethiopia Reads founder Yohannes Gebregeorgis and newly trained staffers look on.

Children of Mekele read for assembled dignitaries.

Coffee ceremony during the opening celebration.

Children respectfully enjoying their new space.

Local artist and illustrator plays with youngsters decked out for the Ashenda girls festival.

Grateful young folks dance with Yohannes Gebregeorgis, the man behind the new library and Ethiopia Reads.

Girls celebrating Ashenda in their new library.

Kids who attended the opening all received their own copy of Tirhas Celebrates Ashenda, written by Yohannes Gebregeorgis.

The day after: newly trained staffer hard at work.

Black Caucus in Birmingham

Latest Library Links

8h

Amy Katzenberger became director of ALA’s Development Office in early September. Among other fundraising activities, Katzenberger and her team have been shepherding the campaign for the Association’s 150th anniversary, which will culminate in 2026. Prior to joining ALA, Katzenberger worked at Riley Children’s Foundation in Indianapolis as director of foundation relations, where she secured millions of dollars in grants. Before Riley, she served as chief program officer for the American Camp Association. Early in her career, Katzenberger worked in ALA’s Conference Services department as a meetings and scheduling manager. She answered our 11 Questions to introduce herself to ALA members.

AL: The Scoop, Nov. 12
13h

Kyle Werner writes: “State Librarian Michael Lynn Scott has been arrested and charged with dissemination of obscene material for allegedly sending lewd images to someone he thought was a 14-year-old boy but was actually a deputy. Police arrested Scott, 54, on November 6. He had been the state librarian since 2014. Scott was reported to have been messaging a minor on the messaging app KiK according to a criminal complaint. The conversation, allegedly initiated by Scott, began on August 13, police said. Brenda Hall was appointed the interim state librarian on November 7.”

Des Moines Register, Nov. 8
1d

Nick Tanzi writes: “Whenever an emerging technology arises, there are inevitably those who will question the value and relevance of the library. Throughout my career, I have heard some version of the refrain ‘Why do I need the library when I have:’ the World Wide Web, Google, ereaders, the iPad, or ChatGPT. In each instance, the library adopted and/or adapted to these technologies. As we enter the age of artificial intelligence, we can expect the same skeptical voices challenging the relevance of our institutions. A closer look at the library and our brand reveals that their value has only grown.”

The Digital Librarian, Nov. 7
1d

Shannon Young writes: “In June, Prince George’s County (Md.) Memorial Library System embarked on a partnership with Maryland Public Television (MPT) to develop programs that empower families and caregivers to cultivate healthy media habits. MPT’s Early Learning Media Ambassador initiative is tailored for early childhood educators interested in helping families and caregivers learn how to use media effectively. Material provided by MPT includes Media STEPs, which outline strategies like selecting appropriate content, talking about what children are seeing, exploring new things that they learned, and playing in both virtual and physical environments.”

ALSC Blog, Nov. 9
2d

Alejandro Marquez and Brady Niemitalo Woods write: “While loneliness is a common experience, it is not evenly distributed. Some are more likely to experience loneliness. Factors include low income, parenthood, singleness, and age. LGBTQ people, minorities, and women are more likely to experience loneliness than the average. Libraries have long served as community spaces where people can connect, learn, and engage with others. Yet in a digital age, the sense of isolation among library users has become a growing concern. In this blog post, we explore the issue of loneliness in libraries and discuss strategies for librarians to address it.”

ACRLog, Nov. 11
2d

ALA announced on November 11 the candidates running for leadership positions. The candidates for 2026–2027 ALA president are Lindsay Cronk, dean of libraries at Tulane University in New Orleans; Andrea Jamison, assistant professor of school librarianship at Illinois State University in Normal; and Maria McCauley, director of libraries at Cambridge (Mass.) Public Library are . Larry Neal, library director of Clinton-Macomb Public Library (CMPL) in Michigan, and Joel Thornton, associate dean of collections and scholarly communication for University of Utah in Salt Lake City, are candidates for the 2025–2028 ALA treasurer. ALA also announced 21 councilor-at-large candidates. Members interested in running by petition may do so by completing a candidate biographical information form and a petition form with the signatures of no fewer than 200 ALA current personal members (25 members for Council positions) by December 13.

AL: The Scoop, Nov. 11
2d

Emily Weak writes: “Something I always hear from hiring managers is that they want to build a resilient, diverse workforce. Sometimes we say we want a resilient workforce, but what we mean is that we want staffers who are willing to go above and beyond, or to do more with less. These concepts are deeply entrenched in librarianship, but I think we’re beginning to see how they can cause problems. Instead of trying to hire people who will do more with less and who will thrive amid adversity, let’s think about resilience as an organizational feature.”

American Libraries column, Nov./Dec.

View more Latest Library Links

Ethiopia Reads

Share

Canadian Library Squelches Rumors of a “Don’t Be an Idiot” Campaign

Black Caucus in Birmingham