Author Archive: Anne Ford

Adulting 101

Adulting 101

May 1, 2018

“We had tens of thousands of Facebook hits, of calls, of emails. It was crazy,” says Lucas, who is assistant director of library services at North Bend (Oreg.) Public Library (NBPL). “Other libraries were saying: ‘Oh, tell me more, tell me more!’ At one point, I could barely keep up.” The frenzy reached its zenith … Continue reading Adulting 101


Patrisse Cullors and Marley Dias in conversation at the Opening Session of the American Library Association's Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits in Denver. Photo: Cognotes

2018 Midwinter Wrap-Up

February 26, 2018

Just over 8,000 registrants came to the Mile High City for five days of presentations, conversations, and innovations, many of which centered on the importance of making sure that people from all socioeconomic backgrounds and walks of life have a voice in our national dialogue. Artist, activist, and author Patrisse Cullors began the Opening Session … Continue reading 2018 Midwinter Wrap-Up





NCSU student Bharat Karunakaran plays Job Simulator with an Oculus Rift headset in Hill Library's VR Studio.

Making Virtual Reality a Reality

September 1, 2017

First-person shooter games. Military training exercises. Those are the applications most often associated with the words “virtual reality” (VR). But as new library offerings at North Carolina State University (NCSU) in Raleigh demonstrate, VR represents an amazing, state-of-the-art resource that can enhance just about any discipline, from cartography to psychology, architecture to English. No recordings … Continue reading Making Virtual Reality a Reality


The crowd reacts to Hillary Rodham Clinton at the Closing General Session. Photo: Cognotes

2017 Annual Conference Wrap-Up

July 19, 2017

Teens and tots At the Opening General Session, Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani kicked things off with a few startling statistics: Last year, the United States graduated 40,000 computer science majors for 500,000 open jobs. Only one in four American high schools offer computer science as part of the curriculum. And today, only 18% … Continue reading 2017 Annual Conference Wrap-Up


opioid abuse

Saving Lives in the Stacks

June 21, 2017

“As this nation’s opioid crisis has exploded, the staff at the public library … have become first responders,” NPR’s Scott Simon told listeners. “And I gather the librarians there have been obliged to become involved in a way that—well, become involved in a way librarians aren’t usually asked to become involved.” What Simon didn’t say—but … Continue reading Saving Lives in the Stacks


An officer escorts five men from the Alexandria (Va.) Library in August 1939. They were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

“I Always Will Refuse”

June 1, 2017

August 21, 1939. Five African-American men—William “Buddy” Evans, Edward Gaddis, Morris L. Murray, Clarence “Buck” Strange, and Otis Lee Tucker—walk into the whites-only Alexandria (Va.) Library (now the Barrett branch library). Strange’s younger brother Bobby, 14, serves as lookout and courier. The men, who range in age from 18 to 22, ask for library cards … Continue reading “I Always Will Refuse”



Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park

Offbeat Chicago

June 1, 2017

In downtown’s Millennium Park, the Frank Gehry–designed JAY PRITZKER PAVILION offers free outdoor concerts. On the evening of  June 23 or 24, bring a picnic and enjoy the strains of Stravinsky’s The Firebird, performed by renowned American pianist Conrad Tao. Not a classical-music fan? June 22 brings a concert by folk group Hurray for the … Continue reading Offbeat Chicago