The American Library Association (ALA) announced on November 11 the candidates running for ALA president for the 2026–2027 term and the candidates running for ALA treasurer for 2025–2028. (On December 9, ALA announced Joel Thornton, associate dean of collections and scholarly communication at University of Utah, has withdrawn his candidacy for ALA treasurer.)
The ALA Nominating Committee also announced on November 12 the 21 nominated candidates who are running for a total of 12 at-large seats on ALA Council for the 2025–2028 term.
The presidential candidates announcement reads as follows:
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 candidates for the 2026–2027 presidency of the ALA.
Lindsay Cronk
Lindsay Cronk currently serves as a member of Core: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures. She’s a member of the Core Five-Year Fundraising Team and served as 2021–2022 president of Core. She led the Core Communications Working Group and has also served on ALA Council, coauthoring ALA’s Resolution to Condemn White Supremacy and Fascism as Antithetical to Library Work. Before that, she served on the board of the Library Information Technology Association and edited its popular LITA Blog. She is the first woman to serve as dean of libraries at Tulane University.
Cronk is 2024–2025 vice chair of the Association of Research Libraries’ (ARL) Advocacy and Public Policy Committee. She also serves on the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries board, Clarivate North American advisory group, and editorial board of The Serials Librarian journal. She is cocreator and founder of PeMento: Peer Mentoring for Mid-Career Library Workers. Her past keynotes have covered a variety of topics, from leadership to team building to systems migrations, while her research has focused on scholarly communication.
Cronk holds an MLIS from Valdosta (Ga.) State University, an education specialist degree from Georgia Southern University in Savannah, and a bachelor’s from Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia.
“I’m honored and thrilled to be nominated for ALA president—thank you for this opportunity. Libraries are a collective superpower for learning, research, and discovery. We empower individuals and strengthen communities. The American Library Association champions and advances this vital work, offering all library professionals a shared home, a united voice, a thriving community of practice, and a values-driven foundation of policy. We have deep strengths and spectacular talent, and I am the loud librarian ready to amplify and advocate it,” Cronk said. “With a proven record of building teams and coalitions—within ALA and beyond—I am prepared to guide the Association through this pivotal moment of challenges and opportunities. Libraries are indispensable—not only providing resources but also fostering curiosity and inspiring a love of knowledge. When libraries lead, communities succeed.”
Andrea Jamison
Andrea Jamison’s career spans school, public, and academic libraries. She is a current member of the Association for Library Service to Children, the Black Caucus of the ALA (BCALA), and the Intellectual Freedom Round Table. She is also a juror for the Coretta Scott King (CSK) Book Awards Round Table, formerly served as CSK Breakfast chair, and is immediate past chair of the Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table.
Jamison served as an ALA councilor at large (2019–2021) and was chair of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom’s Diversity in Collection Development working group (2017). She is the social justice chair for the Institute of Humane Education, a community-of-practice group leader for Diverse BookFinder, and library ambassador for Lee & Low Books. She authored the book Decentering Whiteness in Libraries: A Framework for Inclusive Collection Management Practices, part of the Beta Phi Mu Scholars Series. She was also the 2022–2023 teaching scholar in residence in the area of equity, diversity, and inclusion for Illinois State University.
Jamison has a PhD in information studies from Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois; an MLIS from Dominican; a master’s in teaching from Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois; and a bachelor’s in business administration from Robert Morris College in Chicago.
“Libraries have a unique role in empowering people, not only by providing equitable access to information, but by fostering critical thinking and an understanding of our pluralistic world. The role of librarians has remained consistent: We assist all people in becoming effective and efficient seekers, users, and disseminators of information,” Jamison said. “However, today’s climate of censorship and social tension has created widespread misinformation about the work of librarians and has jeopardized the safety and well-being of many library workers. I am committed to supporting efforts that counter assaults on intellectual freedom, uphold the reputation of library professionals, reshape the narrative about libraries, leverage partnerships, advocate for legislative protections for library workers, and stand in unwavering support of every librarian dedicated to serving their communities.”
Maria McCauley
Maria McCauley, who was an ALA Spectrum Scholar, is a current member of Core: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures; the Public Library Association (PLA); and the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). She is also a member of the Rainbow Round Table, Sustainability Round Table, Intellectual Freedom Round Table, and the International Relations Round Table. She is also a member of the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association, Chinese American Librarians Association, BCALA, Reforma: The National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking, the American Indian Library Association; the Freedom to Read Foundation; the Massachusetts Library Association; and New England Library Association.
McCauley has held several leadership positions, including at-large councilor of ALA Council, ALA Executive Board member, and member of ALA’s Fiscal and Audit Committee. She was the 2022–2023 PLA president and a PLA board member.
McCauley holds a PhD in managerial leadership in the information professions from Simmons University in Boston; an MLIS from University of Pittsburgh; a bachelor’s in theater from Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio; and a leadership certificate from Northeastern University in Boston. She also completed ARL’s Library Leadership for New Managers Program.
“It is an honor to stand for the 2026–2027 ALA presidential election. ALA is a vital organization that is a lifeline for so many in the areas of professional development, advocacy, and connection. This includes me, from being a Spectrum Scholar, working in academic libraries, and serving for the past 13 years as a public library director, former ALA Executive Board member, and Public Library Association president,” McCauley said. “I am excited to bring my executive leadership and governance experience, knowledge, and passion for libraries to the presidential role. With my inclusive leadership practices and facilitation skills, I will work across the Association to strengthen ALA, inspire, guide, and connect members, and advocate for intellectual freedom, equity and inclusion, sustainability, and the public good of libraries.”
Cronk, Jamison, and McCauley will make statements and answer questions from members in a virtual ALA Presidential Candidates’ Forum to be held in February 2025. More information to come.
Members interested in running by petition for ALA president-elect may do so by completing a petition form with the signatures of no fewer than 200 ALA current personal members. Here are instructions for creating an e-petition.
In addition to the petition, members must complete a Candidate Biographical Information Form. The information submitted on this form will be used for the web ballot. Once the petition process is completed, petition candidates and nominated candidates are treated the same. They are not differentiated on the ballot. They are on equal footing and are all viable candidates for these positions. The petition period for the 2025 election is open now and will close on December 13.
Ballot mailing for the ALA election begins on March 10, 2025, and runs through April 2, 2025. Individuals must be members in good standing to vote in the 2025 ALA elections. Renew your membership online or by calling 1-800-545-2433 (choose option 1). For more information, please visit the ALA Election webpage.
2025–2028 treasurer candidates announced
The treasurer candidates announcement reads as follows:
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 ALA treasurer for 2025–2028.
[Editor’s note: Thornton announced on Dec. 9 that he would not seek the treasurer’s position.]
Larry Neal
Larry Neal has been the library director at CMPL since 2006. Prior to that, he was assistant director at CMPL. He also worked at Rochester Hills (Mich.) Public Library as the head of tech and a page, clerk, systems, and facilities manager. He also served as an adjunct clinical associate professor at University of Michigan’s School of Information in Ann Arbor (2017–2023).
Neal is a member of PLA and served as 2014–2015 PLA president. He is currently on the PLA Budget and Finance Committee and an ALA Policy Corps Fellow. He is a member of the Rainbow Round Table and the Intellectual Freedom Round Table. He served on the ALA Executive Board (2020–2023), ALA Council (2017–2023), ALA Budget and Review Committee, and ALA Finance and Audit Committee. He was also president of the Michigan Library Association earlier in his career.
Neal holds an MLIS from University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, an MBA from Oakland (Mich.) University, and a bachelor’s in Spanish and German from the Honors College at Oakland University.
“It is an honor to be invited to stand for election at this critical juncture in ALA’s history. We will be celebrating our sesquicentennial, onboarding a new executive director, and implementing a new operating agreement. At the same time, we will be making difficult decisions on how to achieve ALA’s financial stability for the short term and sustainability for the long term,” Neal said. “We must ensure ALA’s services and products align with the changing needs and expectations of our 50,000 members while providing good value for their hard-earned membership dollars. As treasurer, I will bring ample experience, expertise, patience, and diplomacy to the position. Future generations of library workers are counting on all of us to work together to overcome ALA’s numerous challenges which are significant but not insurmountable.”
Joel Thornton
Joel Thornton is an ALA Spectrum Scholar who has worked as the associate dean for collections and scholarly communication at University of Utah since 2022. Before that, he was director of research and instruction, and previously interim associate dean for research and learning, at University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. He began his career in libraries at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Thornton is a current member of ACRL, BCALA, and the Association for Information Science and Technology. He has served as treasurer and chair of the finance committee of the Fayetteville (Ark.) Public Library Foundation Board. He is on the Budget and Finance Committee for the Center for Research Libraries and is treasurer for BCALA. He served as a mentor for the Library Leadership and Management Association division and the Spectrum Scholars program and served on the ALA Business Reference and Services Section’s Education Committee.
Thornton holds a master’s in operations management and a project management graduate certificate from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. He also holds a master’s in information science from University of North Texas in Denton and a bachelor’s in business administration and accounting from Pittsburg (Kans.) State University. A current ARL Leadership Fellow, he has completed the Harvard Leadership Institute for Academic Librarians and the ARL’s Leadership and Career Development Program.
“I am delighted to stand for election as ALA treasurer. As a certified public accountant and a librarian, I am uniquely qualified for this role. Trust and transparency represent core values of the CPA’s code of ethics, which I would adhere to in serving the members’ interests,” Thornton said. “As treasurer, I will collaborate with leadership and stakeholders to ensure that members receive the expected value from the Association. Additionally, identifying solutions to increase organizational resiliency and the ability to thrive in any economic environment will be a key focus. If elected treasurer, through a fresh perspective, unique expertise, and collaborative engagement, I will work to address longstanding challenges like escalating operational costs and declining revenue to best position ALA for the future.”
Neal and Thornton will have an opportunity to make a statement and answer questions from members in a virtual ALA Treasurer Candidates’ Forum to be held in February 2025. More information to come.
Members interested in running by petition for ALA treasurer may do so by completing a petition form with the signatures of no fewer than 200 ALA current personal members. Here are instructions for creating an e-petition.
In addition to submitting the petition, members must complete a Candidate Biographical Information Form. The information submitted on this form will be used for the web ballot. Once the petition process is completed, petition candidates and nominated candidates are treated the same. They are not differentiated on the ballot. They are on equal footing and are all viable candidates for these positions. The petition period for the 2025 election is open now and will close on December 13.
Ballot mailing for the ALA election begins on March 10, 2025, and runs through April 2, 2025. Individuals must be members in good standing to vote in the 2025 ALA elections. Renew your membership online or by calling 1-800-545-2433 (choose option 1). For more information, please visit the ALA Election webpage.
Updated Dec. 9, 2024, to reflect Joel Thornton’s withdrawal of his candidacy for treasurer.
