Author Archive: Greg Landgraf

Khole Kash reads "Stella Brings the Family," at Mobile (Ala.) Public Library on September 8.Photo: WPMI

Drag Storytimes Bring Fierceness—and Fierce Opposition

By Greg Landgraf | September 20, 2018

But while queens have proven their ability to turn the party with fantastic fashions and tales of individuality and acceptance, pockets of resistance remain. Some programs held in libraries still draw protests, as organized opposition groups insist that these storytimes aren’t appropriate for children. Lafayette (La.) Public Library (LPL) is currently facing protests of a … Continue reading Drag Storytimes Bring Fierceness—and Fierce Opposition →

Data Collection and Privacy

By Greg Landgraf | September 4, 2018

It’s an example of learning analytics, the use of data to understand and optimize learning and learning environments. The general concept isn’t new—the university’s announcement noted that student retention has been studied for more than 30 years—but the amount of data that is easy to generate with card swipes has exploded in recent years. And … Continue reading Data Collection and Privacy →

Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews will appear at Annual Conference on June 22. Photo: Mathieu Bitton

2018 Annual Conference Preview

By Greg Landgraf | June 1, 2018

This preview offers a small sample of what to expect. For a complete listing of events, visit 2018.alaannual.org. Conference highlights ALA welcomes former First Lady Michelle Obama as its Opening General Session speaker. 4–5:15 p.m. on Friday, June 22. The lawyer, philanthropist, and author of the forthcoming memoir Becoming will reflect on social and political … Continue reading 2018 Annual Conference Preview →

When Ransomware Attacks

By Greg Landgraf | June 1, 2018

County Librarian Todd Stephens says that he and his colleagues suspect the attack came through an infected email message opened by a staff member, though the exact mechanism is uncertain. The anonymous attacker demanded 3.6 to 3.8 bitcoins in payment—then valued at about $36,000. Ransomware, a form of computer malware that encrypts a victim’s data … Continue reading When Ransomware Attacks →

A portrait of Nugget, Duke University's famous golden retriever, is added to the reading room at Duke’s Rubenstein Library on Sunday, April 1.

April Foolswatch 2018

By Greg Landgraf | April 5, 2018

A purrfect library Noting the popularity of Bertie, the library cat at the University of Nottingham (England) Hallward Library and inspired by Nottingham’s Kitty Café, Hallward Library announced that it would turn its top floor into the #Cattic, where students can study surrounded by cats. “We’re working closely with our vet school to ensure the … Continue reading April Foolswatch 2018 →

National Library Week promotional materials through the ages. Photos: ALA Archives

“Wake Up and Read” to “Libraries Lead”

By Greg Landgraf | March 1, 2018

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” →

2018 Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits in Denver. Illustration: Kimberly Sly/Albie Designs

2018 Midwinter Preview

By Greg Landgraf | January 2, 2018

Featured Speakers Opening Session Friday, February 9, 4–5:15 p.m. Marley Dias, who started the #1000blackgirlbooks campaign as a 6th grader, will have a conversation with Patrisse Cullors, artist and cofounder of the Black Lives Matter movement, to reveal the determining factors and mindsets that motivated each of them to take action and how different generations … Continue reading 2018 Midwinter Preview →

Jessie Carney Smith in 1965, her first year as a university librarian at Fisk University in Nashville.

Blazing Trails

By Greg Landgraf | January 2, 2018

American Libraries spoke with five leading African-American librarians about their careers, the changes they have witnessed over the decades, and the current issues in librarianship. While no two people have the same story, all five interviewees note inclusivity as an important theme. They discuss libraries as safe havens, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the … Continue reading Blazing Trails →

ALA's Annual Conference and Exhibition returns to Chicago, June 22–27. Photo: City of Chicago

2017 ALA Annual Conference Preview

By Greg Landgraf | June 1, 2017

Returning to McCormick Place—and ALA’s hometown—after four years, Annual will offer a host of professional development opportunities, new ideas to help shape the future of libraries, a full slate of author programs and fascinating speakers, and a variety of special events and other activities. This preview offers a small sample of what to expect. Click … Continue reading 2017 ALA Annual Conference Preview →

Image from Hillsboro (Oreg.) Public Library's video of its take-home tattoo gun for April Fools' Day.

April Foolswatch 2017 Has Been Canceled

By Greg Landgraf | April 4, 2017

Okay, okay, on to the real library pranks. Go for the gold The National Library of Scotland has launched a campaign to make speed-reading an Olympic sport, with a video profile of Declan, an aspiring long-distance nonfiction competitor, and other top contenders. The sport’s not without its controversies, mostly involving the Polymer Handbook, but it’s … Continue reading April Foolswatch 2017 Has Been Canceled →

Annie Lewis (left), librarian at Multnomah County (Oreg.) Library, listens as Nancy Herrera, librarian at Contra Costa County (Calif.) Library, makes her presentation at the 2016 ALA Leadership Institute in Itasca, Illinois. The institute—developed and led by former ALA President Maureen Sullivan (2012–2013)—offers midcareer librarians the opportunity to take part in a four-day immersive leadership development program.

Leading to the Future

By Greg Landgraf | March 1, 2017

The goal, says former ALA President Maureen Sullivan, is to introduce theories, concepts, and practices for effective leadership and “help people develop self-awareness of their strengths and areas for development.” Sullivan, who developed and leads the institute with library consultant Kathryn Deiss, says the institute accomplishes this goal with a mixture of presentations, small group … Continue reading Leading to the Future →

Library professionals joined the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women on January 21. Photo: Cognotes

2017 Midwinter Wrap-Up

By Greg Landgraf | March 1, 2017

One response was direct and immediate action, with at least 200 information professionals joining the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women on January 21. That event was part of the Women’s Marches series of protests, which drew an estimated 60,000 participants in Atlanta and as many as 4.6 million worldwide. Midwinter attendees gathered in … Continue reading 2017 Midwinter Wrap-Up →

Latest Library Links

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The Library History Round Table announced that this year’s Justin Winsor Library History Essay Award winner is Julie Park for her paper “Infrastructure Story: The Los Angeles Central Library’s Architectural History.” Park is assistant curator and faculty fellow at the Special Collections Center, Elmer Holmes Bobst Library in New York. Her essay uses written contracts, board meeting minutes, floor plans and renovation reports to show “how, as infrastructure, the library’s architecture and its spatial priorities were deeply ‘relational’ [which] required adaptation to changing contingencies over time, despite features that seemed permanent and immovable.”
LHRT, June 30
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ProQuest announced the first winner of a scholarship presented in collaboration with the ALA Film and Media Roundtable and the Association of Moving Image Archivists. Valeria Estefanía Dávila Gronros, a master’s candidate at University of Alabama, was selected to receive the deg farrelly Scholarship from a group of online applicants by a panel of FMRT and AMIA members. The scholarship has two parts—a $1,000 education grant for tuition and books and another $1,000 cash award to be used for other education-related expenses like workshops and conference fees.
FMRT, June 30
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Denice Adkins, associate professor; Jenny Bossaller, associate professor; and Heather Moulaison Sandy, associate professor and director of graduate studies, all at the University of Missouri’s School of Information Science and Learning Technologies, are the recipients of the 2020 ALA Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table David Cohen/EMIERT Multicultural Award for their article “Exploring Reader-Generated Language to Describe Multicultural Literature.” The David Cohen/EMIERT Multicultural Award recognizes recent articles that include significant new research related to the understanding and promotion of multiculturalism in libraries in North America.
ODLOS, June 30
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The American Association of School Librarians has released equity, diversity, and inclusion resources created by the 2019–2020 Presidential Initiative Task Force. Advised by AASL President Mary Keeling, the committee hosted office hours, designed informative bookmarks, and presented a webinar on EDI in the school library. The resources can be found at www.ala.org/aasl/all/EDI.
AASL, June 30
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Mirela Roncevic writes: “With the COVID-19 crisis forcing a rapid shift to remote and distance learning around the world, the issue of the accessibility of digital resources becomes even more prominent. This year, however, marks a turning point in what is required of universities and colleges across the US on the matter of accessibility. All institutions of learning that receive federal aid are now legally required to make their digital learning materials accessible to students, including those with disabilities.”
No Shelf Required, June 24
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Starting July 8, AL Direct, the e-newsletter of American Libraries magazine, will change to a weekly schedule and showcase an updated design. The newsletter, which is currently mailed on Tuesdays and Fridays, will mail every Wednesday. AL Direct, created in January 2006, is sent to personal members of the American Library Association. It provides summaries and links to news, announcements, and other information of interest to library and information science professionals. The newsletter is supplemented daily by other news on the American Libraries website widget, Latest Library Links, and the AL news blog, The Scoop.
American Libraries, June 30
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Wendi Maloney writes: “People chatting in the sun beside a taco truck in Oakland, California. A woman peering warily over a surgical mask in a Newark, New Jersey, bus line. A sign reading ‘no gloves, no mask, no service’ taped on the entrance to a Royal Chicken and Biscuit restaurant in Newark. What do these images have in common? They’re all by Camilo José Vergara, noted for photographing urban communities where life is often hard. They are also among the very first items the library acquired documenting the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. And they will be far from the last: The library anticipates a collecting effort that exceeds its coverage of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.”
Library of Congress Blog, June 24

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