Every day, library workers provide a vital public function. We are entrusted to serve our communities, and we know that the best way to serve the public good is to welcome everyone into libraries to access accurate information. To answer the call to join public service is to step into the rank of noble professionals … Continue reading Calling All Nations
September is an exciting time to welcome people into the library as we celebrate Library Card Sign-Up Month and observe Banned Books Week, this year scheduled September 22–28. Since 1982, Banned Books Week has been a critical national program aimed at helping everyone see that all stories belong in libraries. October brings TeenTober literacy and … Continue reading We All Belong
As we look ahead to meet the information needs of our membership, it is important that we stand united to remember why we work in this trusted profession. We have some big goals ahead with the hiring of the next ALA executive director, celebrating the Association’s 150th anniversary, creating a strategic plan to elevate the role … Continue reading A Good Way for ALA
Building that collective power is hard work and, as the storied organizer Jane McAlevey says, there are no shortcuts. The heart of any project is listening to one another. We must take the time to open our minds to the perspectives of others, attempt to understand their circumstances, and share what we find. The gift … Continue reading United for Success
But here’s one that’s hard to answer: “What’s your favorite library?” When you’ve seen as many amazing libraries as I have, it’s impossible to choose. For example, I’ve met with Jennifer DeCarlo, director of Easton Library in Greenwich, New York, who maintains an onsite fridge with fresh food for those in need. And Chulin Meng, … Continue reading At Our Core
At an academic library conference in Edison, New Jersey, I discovered that a Taylor ham and a pork roll are somehow both the same and different. In Morgantown, West Virginia, I learned that a pepperoni roll is indeed a delicacy, and I was grateful to be stuffed full of them at an event. And at … Continue reading Food for Thought
Silver made us each a cup of tea as we talked through the challenges and joys of her job. She had taught a class that morning using the book Drum Dream Girl—for which illustrator Rafael López won a Pura Belpré Award—that sparked the imaginations of her 3rd graders. When she asked what the main character … Continue reading Stories That Resonate
As president of ALA during this critical moment in history, I get asked this question a lot. Libraries and library workers are both in the spotlight and under the microscope, and people want to know who we are and what we do. Maybe you’ve even asked this question yourself. One of the joys of this … Continue reading Our Shared Mission
Whether it’s marveling at the dome inside Carnegie-Stout Public Library in Dubuque, Iowa, the vibrant entrepreneurship lab at University of Rhode Island in Kingston, or the bright carpets and colorful student art at P.S. 28 in Manhattan, those first few moments through the door always call home the magic that happens inside our buildings. We … Continue reading A Welcoming Space
A few months into the gig, I made a mistake. I printed the number of bargains for one luxury department store on a two-page photo spread featuring a different luxury department store. I was in so much trouble. The magazine sent the store a huge bouquet of flowers as an apology, and I couldn’t stop … Continue reading Making Trouble That Matters
As I contemplate the future of libraries, I am reminded of adrienne maree brown’s book Emergent Strategy. In the chapter “Intentional Adaptation: How We Change,” she describes the need to be an active participant in change—to not resist but embrace it—and to be as intentional as possible during the process while being in community with … Continue reading Until We Meet Again
For me, this was on full view during my international travels representing ALA last year. When other library workers and I attended the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions’ World Library and Information Congress (IFLA WLIC) in Dublin, Ireland, in July, we heard from Mary Robinson, the first female president of Ireland who now … Continue reading A Global Impact
