ALA President Archives | American Libraries Magazine

Garcia-Febo Wins 2018–2019 ALA Presidency

April 12, 2017

Garcia-Febo received 3,278 votes, while her opponents, Scott Walter, university librarian, DePaul University, Chicago, received 3,209 votes, and Terri Grief, school librarian at McCracken County High School in Paducah, Kentucky, received 2,636 votes. As ALA president, Garcia-Febo will be the chief elected officer for the oldest and largest library association in the world. She will … Continue reading Garcia-Febo Wins 2018–2019 ALA Presidency →

America’s Librarian

By Greg Landgraf | November 1, 2016

Hayden didn’t use any privileges of her new position to access Parks’s notes, however, because LC has digitized the collection and posted it online. “I pulled it up on my iPad,” she says. “To think that a kid in Baltimore who just experienced the unrest there could look at Parks’s handwritten thoughts about unrest, that … Continue reading America’s Librarian →

Helping ALA Cruise to Success

By Julie B. Todaro | November 1, 2016

We also can’t leave out areas such as competitiveness within organizations for appointments and time, the question of whether one can make a difference in the profession through an association, and the need for one’s values and ethics to be in sync with those of the association. And then there is the inevitable query: Is … Continue reading Helping ALA Cruise to Success →

Obama to Nominate Carla Hayden for Librarian of Congress

By Amy Carlton | February 24, 2016

In a statement, President Obama said: “Michelle and I have known Dr. Carla Hayden for a long time, since her days working at the Chicago Public Library, and I am proud to nominate her to lead our nation’s oldest federal institution as our 14th Librarian of Congress. Dr. Hayden has devoted her career to modernizing … Continue reading Obama to Nominate Carla Hayden for Librarian of Congress →

ALA President Sari Feldman (right) talks with fourth- and fifth-graders in the Thomson Elementary School library classroom.

Seeing How Libraries Transform
Across D.C.

By Terra Dankowski | October 30, 2015

Concurrent to the tour, Libraries Transform street team members went around D.C. to bring the message of the transformative impact of libraries to the public. American Libraries followed the Libraries Transform street team and tour, and here’s what we saw. 8:25 a.m. – Dupont Circle The Libraries Transform street team had an enticing proposition for … Continue reading Seeing How Libraries Transform
Across D.C. →

Engaging All of Us

By Courtney L. Young | June 2, 2015

I am also proud of my project to support the job seekers who are our patrons. The presidential initiative Career Development Facilitators program not only created an opportunity for 20 library employees from around the country to help patrons and job seekers address various components of job searching and career planning, it also created a … Continue reading Engaging All of Us →

ALA cheers expiration of intrusive Patriot Act provision

June 1, 2015

On May 31, 2015, key provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act expired. In response, American Library Association (ALA) President Courtney Young released the following statement applauding the expiration of Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act: “The expiration of Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act signals a welcome and overdue end to the mass … Continue reading ALA cheers expiration of intrusive Patriot Act provision →

Todaro Wins 2016–2017 ALA Presidency

By Amy E. Carlton | May 8, 2015

CHICAGO – Julie Todaro, PhD, Dean of Library Services at Austin (Tex.) Community College, has been elected president-elect of the American Library Association. Todaro received 2,899 votes, while her opponents, Joseph Janes, associate professor and chair of the MLIS program at the University of Washington Information School, received 2,877 votes; James LaRue, CEO of LaRue & Associates, … Continue reading Todaro Wins 2016–2017 ALA Presidency →

In Midnight Deal, Florida Legislature Reprieves Public Library Funding

By Gordon Flagg | November 20, 2012

Last-minute wrangling in the Florida legislature produced a deal to preserve state funding for libraries at the current-year level. At just before midnight on April 26 the House, which originally wanted to zero out all funding for the State Aid to Public Libraries program, accepted a Senate offer to restore it to the FY2009 appropriation … Continue reading In Midnight Deal, Florida Legislature Reprieves Public Library Funding →

Trust in Your Trustees

By Will Manley | October 30, 2012

It frustrates me profoundly to have someone in the library profession approach me at a conference to challenge my credibility as a speaker—usually in view of the fact that I’m retired, out of touch, and behind the times. In other words, I’m no longer actively involved in library matters. My defense is immediate. I explain … Continue reading Trust in Your Trustees →

Georgia Archives to Stay Open

By Sanhita SinhaRoy | October 18, 2012

“Georgia’s Archives are a showcase of our state’s rich history and a source of great pride,” Deal said. In September, following the announcement of the closure, ALA President Maureen Sullivan wrote a letter to Gov. Deal, expressing her concern and dismay. Calling the Georgia State Archives a “treasure trove of unique documents and official records,” … Continue reading Georgia Archives to Stay Open →

An Interview with John Chrastka

October 10, 2012

John Chrastka, ALA’s director of membership development from 2003 to 2011, didn’t leave library advocacy behind when he resigned from ALA to devote more time to his start-up consulting agency. First, he was already on the Berwyn (Ill.) Public Library board (where he has served for six years). Now, in characteristically maverick fashion, Chrastka has … Continue reading An Interview with John Chrastka →

Latest Library Links

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In the May edition of the Libraries Transform Newsletter, we asked libraries to send us their Because statements. Vote for your favorites. A maximum of three can be selected. The winner will receive a $50 gift card for the ALA Store.

Libraries Transform
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Michael Waters writes: “One of the most significant features of the Los Alamos National Laboratory was its scientific library, a secret space that, during the 1940s, housed the secrets of the nuclear bomb. The library had two sections: the main area and the document room—a locked vault containing reports and designs from all the Manhattan Project sites. In 1942, J. Robert Oppenheimer selected statistician Charlotte Serber to operate the library in part because of her lack of librarian experience. He wanted someone who would be willing to bend the rules of cataloging.”

Atlas Obscura, June 23
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Libraries in Alaska are hosting new foodcentric book clubs. Sherry Vogel, Fairbanks North Star Borough adult services librarian, started cookbook clubs at the Noel Wien and North Pole libraries in February. She’d been thinking about the concept and researching it for more than a year. Participants choose a cookbook that fits the theme, select a recipe, and prepare the dish to share at meetings. Themes have included cozy comfort food, Mexican, soups and salads, Mediterranean, and regional Americana.

Fairbanks (Alaska) News-Miner, June 28
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Livraria Ets Haim is the world’s oldest functioning Jewish library. As such, it is no stranger to the prospect of imminent destruction. Founded in 1616 by Jews who fled Catholic persecution in Spain and Portugal, the three-room library is adjacent to Amsterdam’s majestic Portuguese Synagogue in the Dutch capital’s center. The 30,000-volume collection mostly contains manuscripts written by people who fled the Inquisition on the Iberian Peninsula or their descendants.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency, June 27
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Alice Eng writes: “The literature about neurodiversity and libraries is heavily skewed toward libraries accommodating neurodivergent patrons. There is little written about librarians who are neurodivergent and their professional experiences. In this interview, Charlie Remy, an academic librarian who has autism, discusses his autism, his professional experience, and what others can do to create a more inclusive neurodiverse profession.”

In the Library with the Lead Pipe, June 28
19h

Join us July 24 for a free 60-minute episode of AL Live, where Jason Kuscma, deputy director at Toledo Lucas County (Ohio) Public Library, will discuss how his library uses Analytics on Demand to publicize library services, to market special programs to targeted households, and as a tool to aid managers in understanding their community. Also joining us for the episode will be Liz Bondie.

American Libraries, June 28
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It seemed like a simple exercise. “You’re 4th-graders in my class. Tell me everything you know about ‘Waltzing Matilda.’ Draw or write your own description,” instructed Karla Collins, assistant professor at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia. Collins was trying to illustrate a crucial lesson—that we make assumptions about what students know—for attendees of “Library Readiness: Steps to Ensure Your Students Are Ready to Learn in the Elementary Library,” her AASL session on Monday.

AL: The Scoop, June 27

View more Latest Library Links