Throughout this period of growth and expansion, libraries and librarians have once again demonstrated their adaptability to new information formats and user needs with moves that reflect the various directions VR has moved. Whether it is classroom use of Google Expeditions, new educational spaces and lending programs on academic campuses, or a demonstrated commitment to … Continue reading In a Virtual World
The American Library Association (ALA) and the American Book Publishers Council formed the National Book Committee (NBC) in 1954 to fight these trends. One of their ideas: a National Library Week (NLW). The concept wasn’t new. As Larry T. Nix’s Library History Buff blog notes, at the 1922 ALA Annual Conference ALA’s Publicity Committee had … Continue reading “Wake Up and Read” to “Libraries Lead”
But what about data literacy? Did librarians tackle charts and graphs as much as headlines? And what about teens, who are often overlooked in the context of civic and voter preparedness? Increasingly, librarians are addressing these questions by bringing statistical education and opportunities to young adults—and they’re using massive collections of open civic datasets to … Continue reading Engaging Civic-Minded Teens
The situation can be managed in a compassionate and direct manner to create an effective conversation and a working solution. To begin, we must define the difficult conversation. What is a difficult conversation? For a conflict-avoidant person, it is any conversation that produces anxiety, that worries you, or that you have put off, and in … Continue reading We’ve All Been There
“Good readers’ advisory relies on creating a personal connection, and what’s more personal than a tattoo?” says Alison Kastner, reader services librarian at Multnomah County (Oreg.) Library (MCL). MCL began a tattoo readers’ advisory program as an offshoot of a successful 2011 social media campaign, in which it asked Facebook users to tell the library things … Continue reading Inked RA
Richland Library in Columbia, South Carolina, needed a better way to reach its African-American community. Quincy Pugh, film and sound manager, explains how the decision to celebrate black history year-round and start “I Have a Problem with That”—a series of panel discussions that address challenging social issues—has boosted program attendance and engagement among its target … Continue reading Every Month Is Black History Month
Godinsky says her library partnered with an area quilting club to create and donate them to patrons with memory loss and other cognitive issues. By 2050, as many as 16 million Americans may be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Hadi Finerty, senior manager of education and outreach at the Joliet, Illinois, chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, … Continue reading Community Fabric
What was the inspiration behind The Public? I was inspired by a moving 2007 essay called “Written Off” by Chip Ward, now-retired assistant director of the Salt Lake City Public Library System, published in part in the Los Angeles Times (and in full at tomdispatch.com under the title, “What They Didn’t Teach Us in Library … Continue reading Newsmaker: Emilio Estevez
11 Date in April 2018 that National Bookmobile Day—part of National Library Week—will be celebrated. 2010 Year that National Bookmobile Day was first observed by the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services (ABOS), Association for Rural and Small Libraries, and American Library Association’s Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. 1905 Year that the first … Continue reading By the Numbers: Bookmobiles
To thrive, libraries and library workers need a strong and healthy professional association that advocates for us and for those who come to our facilities or who use our online resources, enabling them to benefit from the wide range of services we offer. Within our library community, we must have an association that is itself … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Peter Hepburn
Many of our funders and constituents do not understand the role of the modern library and the tremendous impact we have on the communities we serve. As members of a profession that has so much influence and shares in the dissemination of information, librarians and library workers need to demonstrate the value and relevance of … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Wanda Brown
We must all fight the closing of school libraries, the reductions in professional staffing, the erosion of budgets for resources and technology, and the consequent weakening of the librarian–teacher partnership in the classroom. We must advocate for the federal funding that supports network access in schools. We must continue to document and demonstrate the powerful … Continue reading Fight for School Libraries
