Lori A. Goetsch

November 26, 2019 465 × 310 When Disaster Strikes

Graphic: On My Mind with Lori A. Goetsch

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Cindy Hohl writes: “A tradition of many Native American tribes is to observe the winter count—a visual record that depicts the important events of the year. An elder acts as a historian, chosen by the people to act as the recorder of the year’s activities as they select the top memory that will tell the story of their people. We as library workers may also recall the many special memories experienced by our staff members and patrons. What favorite memory—personal or professional—would you add to the list?”

American Libraries column, Jan./Feb.
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As 2024 comes to a close and we look ahead, Call Number with American Libraries reflects on the important work of librarians and our beloved institutions. In Episode 99, the Call Number team presents exclusive clips from conversations with authors we interviewed this past year, including Hanif Abdurraqib, Kwame Alexander, Connie Chung, Kate DiCamillo, Max Greenfield, Vashti Harrison, Maggie Nichols, and Jesús Trejo. They each talked to us about the role that books, libraries, and library workers have played in their lives.

AL: The Scoop, Dec. 18
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American Libraries’ annual roundup looks back at the news that affected libraries and the library profession in 2024. State bans on book bans, the Internet Archive’s copyright lawsuit, artificial intelligence, cyberattacks targeting several library systems, and ALA’s newly revised Core Values are among the most significant issues and events identified by AL editors in the past twelve months.

American Libraries feature, Jan./Feb.
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Year-end “best of” lists are a common phenomenon, and many libraries have created lists of staff or patron picks of their favorite reads of the year. See staff picks from Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Seattle Public Library, Kent (Mich.) District Library, Los Angeles Public Library, New York Public Library, Chicago Public Library, Farmington (Conn.) Libraries, and King County (Wash.) Library System. Seattle Public Library and Kent (Mich.) District Library have also released lists of patron favorites

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Dec. 11; Seattle Public Library; Kent (Mich.) District Library, Nov. 20, Dec. 13; Los Angeles Public Library, Dec. 16; New York Public Library, Nov. 26; Chicago Public Library, Nov. 18; Farmington (Conn.) Libraries, Dec. 6; King County (Wash.) Library System; Seattle Times, Dec. 17
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The Library of Congress announced 25 additions to the National Film Registry December 17. The new selections date back nearly 130 years and include a diverse group of films, filmmakers, and Hollywood landmarks. The selections range from Annabelle Serpentine Dance, a silent film created to entice audiences at the dawn of cinema in 1895 to the 2010 film The Social Network. Films are selected for their cultural, historic, or aesthetic importance, and this year’s selections bring the number of films in the registry to 900.

Library of Congress, Dec. 17
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Douglas Soule writes: “To support some of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ most prominent and controversial K–12 education laws, Florida has agreed to spend millions of dollars on a service it says is a tool for transparency. But free expression advocates warn it could be a vehicle for censorship. In a contract signed this September, the Florida Department of Education agreed to pay up to $15.6 million over four years to Maryland-based education technology company Trinity Education Group. The company has been tapped to develop a ‘statewide, centralized, easily accessible’ system for people to review and even object to instructional materials and library books in Florida school districts.”

Tallahassee Democrat, Dec. 12
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Olivia Olander and Jeremy Gorner write: “Starting this year, public libraries in Illinois had a choice: Adopt principles against book banning or give up state grants. [About 40] school districts, many of them in deeply conservative areas of south and central Illinois, appear to have taken the latter option. Administrators at some of those districts acknowledged being concerned about giving up any measure of control on what books are allowed on their schools’ library shelves. Some 700 school districts statewide have regularly applied for state library grant funding in the last two years.”

Chicago Tribune, Dec. 8

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