A key goal of the 2011–2015 ALA strategic plan is to provide leadership in the transformation of libraries and library services for today’s dynamic and increasingly global digital information environment. Virtually every media interview I’ve had during the past seven months has been an occasion to illustrate how libraries, the people who work in them, … Continue reading Transforming Libraries
Over the past few months, I have been contacted by a variety of media. Quite a few of my interviews with them were about the privatization of libraries. Interest in this subject was initiated by LSSI, a private-sector firm with contracts in place to manage the operations of nearly 70 public library branches, whose president … Continue reading Outsourcing: Turning a Negative into a Positive
One of the best aspects of being ALA president is the opportunity to be a part of state chapter conferences. I’d like to focus on my experience at the Kentucky Library Association/Kentucky School Media Association joint conference in Louisville, September 15-18. The hospitality of colleagues in Kentucky was outstanding, thanks to Emmalee Hoover, Leoma Dunn, and … Continue reading Some Good News Out There Too
“Our Authors, Our Advocates” was launched at my Inaugural Banquet during Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., in June. I was deeply honored to have as my special guests four wonderful authors who spoke so eloquently. They were, by turns, funny, passionate, compelling, and thoughtful, and they illustrated how authors can partner with us to advocate … Continue reading In Their Own Words
During my travels as president-elect, I often spoke about the challenges and opportunities of becoming 21st-century libraries that incorporate new formats, technologies, and ways of learning. By transforming libraries for this new era, we are leaders in a rapidly changing and increasingly global economy that depends on people getting the right information, at the right … Continue reading Advancing Advocacy
In my first column, I mentioned the symbolic journey on the old Route 66 from Chicago to L.A.—Library Advocacy. Let's now embark on the second part of that trip. It is still the same route from Chicago to L.A., but this time the road leads to Literacy Advocacy. Although I include all types of literacy, … Continue reading Advocacy: Part II
