Advocacy Archives | Page 34 of 44 | American Libraries Magazine

Random House Also Agrees to Meet with ALA

January 26, 2012

As reported to ALA Council and at other venues during the 2012 Midwinter Meeting, I will be leading an ALA delegation next week to meet separately with Penguin, Macmillan, and Simon & Schuster. I am now pleased to announce that Random House has invited ALA leadership to meet with them as well. The four meetings … Continue reading Random House Also Agrees to Meet with ALA →

Harwood: Libraries Must Do Better Job in Addressing Community Needs

January 24, 2012

“We live in serious times,” Richard C. Harwood, president and founder of the Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, told the audience at the start of his presentation at the ALA President’s Program on Sunday about the condition of the United States. The head of the catalytic nonprofit dedicated to helping people imagine and act for … Continue reading Harwood: Libraries Must Do Better Job in Addressing Community Needs →

John Green: Nerdfighter, Fighter for Free Speech

January 23, 2012

“Librarians adopted our social media presence way before anyone else,” said New York Times bestselling young adult author and vlogger extraordinaire John Green, who was at the 2012 American Library Association Midwinter Meeting in Dallas to promote his new book, The Fault in Our Stars. “And the only people who watched us were either librarians … Continue reading John Green: Nerdfighter, Fighter for Free Speech →

Excitement Builds for World Book Night 2012

January 22, 2012

The concept of World Book Night, April 23, 2012, is simple. Just sign up by February 1 as a volunteer to give away 20 copies of a popular book to new or reluctant readers in your community to encourage reading. Carl Lennertz, former publisher and now executive director of World Book Night, spoke on Sunday … Continue reading Excitement Builds for World Book Night 2012 →

The Librarians of Occupy Wall Street

January 21, 2012

Five librarians associated with the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement’s People’s Library offered their views on democracy, protest, and the difficulties of providing reader’s services under radically different circumstances at “A Library Occupies Wall Street,” Saturday morning as part of the ALA Midwinter Meeting Masters Series. All five spoke of their personal experiences as part … Continue reading The Librarians of Occupy Wall Street →

Libraries, Meet Boing Boing

January 21, 2012

Boing Boing is one of the coolest places on the internet. It’s edgy, irreverent, collaborative, and hugely popular. And guess what—Boing Boing has agreed to partner with ALA to help promote libraries. Today I attended a brainstorming session at the Networking Uncommons to discuss how ALA members will contribute content to this effort. The result … Continue reading Libraries, Meet Boing Boing →

Advocacy without Assumptions

January 20, 2012

Jennifer Martin, senior associate provost and dean of the Graduate School at Texas Woman’s University, offered her perspective as a non-librarian advocate for the university’s library at the Advocacy Institute Workshop. “I see libraries making a difference in the development of human capital, and I think we need to think about it in that way,” … Continue reading Advocacy without Assumptions →

Union Sues to Block Library Outsourcing RFP

By Beverly Goldberg | January 18, 2012

Just a month after the Simi Valley (Calif.) City Council voted to withdraw its city library from the Ventura County Library System, the union local that represents southern California library workers is suing to have the decision reversed. Filed January 10 in Ventura County Superior Court by Local 721 of the Service Employees International Union … Continue reading Union Sues to Block Library Outsourcing RFP →

Good News on the Road to ESEA

December 21, 2011

School librarians have regained a bit of ground at the federal level as the push continues to get school libraries restored to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which is due for reauthorization. The foothold comes in the congressional appropriation of $28.6 million for literacy programs in the $916-billion budget for FY2012, and, reading … Continue reading Good News on the Road to ESEA →

Transforming Libraries, Transforming ALA

By Keith Michael Fiels | December 14, 2011

The digital “revolution” has been a major topic of public attention and discussion among librarians this year, as we are confronted by daily developments, announcements, and headlines related to ebooks. The transformation being brought about by digital media has been a strong emphasis of the Association as well. During the fall meeting October 21–23 at … Continue reading Transforming Libraries, Transforming ALA →

ALA Members Get Their 15th FIL in Guadalajara

December 6, 2011

“For those who are worried about the future of print books, I encourage you to go to the Guadalajara Book Fair!” recommends ALA President Molly Raphael, who attended FIL (La Feria Internacional del Libro) for the first time this year. “The print book was so dominant that it was hard to find exhibitors who were … Continue reading ALA Members Get Their 15th FIL in Guadalajara →

Latest Library Links

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Karin Greenberg writes: “There’s something about reciting a memorized poem that induces calm and shuts out the rest of the world for a few seconds. During National Poetry Month in April, I focused on this often forgotten activity. After putting together a display of poems by various poets, I posted them in a Canvas announcement titled ‘April Poetry Challenge.’ Most students who come into the library during lunch or free periods want to relax or do work. With the lure of a gift card, though, I got dozens of participants.”

Knowledge Quest, May 13
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Becky Spratford writes: “We are less than two weeks away from Memorial Day, the unofficial start of summer. Summer Reading lists will start coming fast and furious, so best to get ready now. We know that some lists [such as those from Publishers Weekly] are meant to generate excitement about books that are coming soon, but the average reader does not understand that they are not out yet. If they see a book on a list, they expect you to have it. We need to be ready in a couple of key ways.”

RA For All, May 14
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Lisa Zhuang writes: “As a second-generation daughter of immigrants, I am often saddened by the stories that will be forever lost between my mother and me. Yet, as I grow as a reader and writer, I see the potential between the cracks: a chance to insert myself into my culture’s history. It is inevitable that myth will mutate with time. The right author will make the best of it. Below are eight works of fiction based on Asian folklore.”

Electric Lit, May 8
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Kara Arundel writes: “A newly issued federal rule to ensure web content and mobile apps are accessible for people with disabilities will require public K–12 and higher education institutions to do a thorough inventory of their digital materials to make sure they are in compliance, accessibility experts said. The update to regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, published April 24 by the US Department of Justice, calls for all state and local governments to verify that their web content—including mobile apps and social media postings—is accessible for those with vision, hearing, cognitive and manual dexterity disabilities.”

K–12 Dive, May 6
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Andrew Albanese writes: “Amid a three-year nationwide surge in book bans, 2024 began on a hopeful note for freedom-to-read advocates, with legal victories in book-banning lawsuits in Iowa, Florida, and Texas. But after some early successes, several cases are poised to enter a critical next phase. As the wheels of justice grind on, Publishers Weekly rounded up the status of some of the more closely watched book-banning suits.”

Publishers Weekly, May 10
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Tess Vrbin writes: “The Arkansas State Library Board on Friday voted down two motions to withhold state funding from public libraries that board member Jason Rapert put forth in his ongoing opposition to the presence of certain books on library shelves. Rapert reintroduced a motion he proposed at February’s board meeting to suspend funding for libraries suing the state [over the state’s 2023 obscenity law]. He also moved to withhold funds for ‘any library that allows unrestricted access to books or materials that contain sexually explicit, obscene or pornographic materials to minors,’” Both motions failed 6–1.

Arkansas Advocate, May 10, Feb. 9
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Jennifer Matthews and Ane Turner Johnson write: “A focus on digital resources requires careful consideration of library policies by policymakers to ensure that they reflect the university’s public mission and ensure the success of all students. At Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, one such endeavor was to embark on this study to determine if our policies actually reflected the ways in which the student body used the library collection. Through a mixed-methods study, our team discovered that both continuing-generation and first-generation students primarily prefer print books for course materials.”

College & Research Libraries News, May

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