ALA Presidential Candidates Archives | American Libraries Magazine

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Tamika Barnes

March 2, 2026

ALA’s mission has guided my work from the beginning. Whether serving on the ALA Executive Board, chairing the Budget Analysis and Review Committee, supporting the Spectrum Scholar community, or leading state and divisional organizations, I have seen firsthand how ALA’s values of equity, diversity, inclusion, intellectual freedom, and social responsibility are lived out every day … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Tamika Barnes →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Becky Calzada

March 2, 2026

We have been navigating rigorous, unyielding times, yet through it all, library workers have stepped up and answered the call to lead and serve. We remain resilient, dedicated, and hopeful in every microinteraction that occurs daily in the many vibrant library spaces across the country. In my own work and leadership, I am grounded in … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Becky Calzada →

2027-2028 ALA Presidential Candidates Tamika Barnes and Becky Calzada

Barnes, Calzada Seek 2027–2028 ALA Presidency

November 6, 2025

Tamika Barnes currently serves as the Georgia Library Association (GLA) president-elect and will assume the role of president in 2026. She served on the GLA executive board from 2013 to 2021, the ALA Executive Board from 2018 to 2021, and ALA Council from 2015 to 2018 and 2019 to 2021. Barnes is a member of … Continue reading Barnes, Calzada Seek 2027–2028 ALA Presidency →

ALA Presidential Candidate Andrea Jamison Withdraws from Ballot

March 7, 2025

The full statement reads as follows: Andrea Jamison, assistant professor of school librarianship at Illinois State University in Normal, has withdrawn her candidacy for ALA president-elect and Intellectual Freedom Round Table director-at-large. Her name will be removed from the election ballot, which will be sent to ALA members on Monday, March 10. Two candidates remain … Continue reading ALA Presidential Candidate Andrea Jamison Withdraws from Ballot →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Lindsay Cronk

March 3, 2025

I seek the office of president to help us meet this moment and shape a future worthy of ALA’s legacy, its promise, and above all, the library workers who make it all possible. Libraries aren’t just essential—they’re transformational. Whether we’re safeguarding intellectual freedom, ensuring equitable access, or improving financial sustainability, the challenges we face require … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Lindsay Cronk →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Andrea Jamison

March 3, 2025

Now more than ever, ALA needs radical leadership—a president who will engage in meaningful dialogue with allies and critics alike, to emphasize how equitable library services and social justice are not anti-American. Andrew Carnegie once stated, “There is not such a cradle of democracy on earth as the free public library, this republic of letters, … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Andrea Jamison →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Maria McCauley

March 3, 2025

We are living in a time of uncertainty: We have seen significant censorship attempts, librarians targeted, and adverse library legislation, while social and economic inequities persist. We have also seen remarkable services and programs created, curated, and offered by gifted library workers and partners across the US and internationally. We are community connectors, teachers, guides, … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Maria McCauley →

Headshots of candidates for 2026-27 ALA president candidates

Cronk, Jamison, McCauley Seek 2026–2027 ALA Presidency

December 9, 2024

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 … Continue reading Cronk, Jamison, McCauley Seek 2026–2027 ALA Presidency →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Sam Helmick

By Sam Helmick | March 1, 2024

Together we will write the next chapter of ALA’s legacy. With tremendous passion for the work and impact of libraries, I stand for election as ALA president and seek to leverage this great opportunity to promote, uplift, encourage, and endorse you, your steady efforts, and the values we represent as a profession. As an ALA … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Sam Helmick →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Raymond Pun

By Raymond Pun | March 1, 2024

Today, libraries and library workers are enduring simultaneous challenges of book bans, artificial intelligence, climate crises, surveillance, digital content price gouging, job burnout, and workplace safety. ALA must realign itself and its core values to empower our work and better support our communities during these turbulent times. As a first-generation college graduate and an emergent … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Raymond Pun →

2025-2026 ALA Presidential Candidates Sam Helmick and Raymond Pun

Helmick, Pun Seek 2025–2026 ALA Presidency

November 9, 2023

The announcement reads as follows: The candidates running for ALA president for the 2025–2026 term are Sam Helmick, community and access services coordinator at Iowa City Public Library, and Raymond Pun, academic and research librarian at Alder Graduate School of Education in Redwood City, California. Helmick is a current member of the ALA Executive Board … Continue reading Helmick, Pun Seek 2025–2026 ALA Presidency →

Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Cindy Hohl

By Cindy Hohl | March 1, 2023

With a passion for leadership, I make myself available to help speak out about matters of inclusion, community and team building, intellectual freedom, equal access, literacy, and career development. To quote my role model since the 3rd grade, Martin Luther King Jr. called so many to action by stating “the time is always right to … Continue reading Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Cindy Hohl →

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Shana Lynch writes: “This year’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Index report reveals AI’s capabilities are advancing quickly; less so, our ability to measure and manage them. The annual AI Index has tracked the field’s evolution since 2017, measuring everything from technical capabilities and research output to societal impact and public perception. The new report shows that AI models are achieving breakthrough results in science and complex reasoning, but at a concerning environmental toll. Meanwhile, AI’s workforce disruption has moved from prediction to reality, hitting young workers first.”

Stanford University Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, Apr. 13
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On April 8, ALA announced the fourth and final round of recipients of its Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities grant, an initiative to help small and rural libraries increase the accessibility of facilities, services, and programs to better serve people with disabilities. The 300 funded proposals represent 46 US states and the Northern Mariana Islands, and 73% of selected libraries serve communities with populations of 5,000 or fewer. Fifty libraries will receive grants of $20,000, and 250 libraries will receive grants of $10,000.

ALA Public Programs Office, Apr. 8
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Cara Bertram writes: “On April 28, 1892, the first librarian of the Milwaukee Public Library (MPL), Klas August Linderfelt, was summoned to a meeting with library trustees and Mayor Peter J. Somers. There, Linderfelt was accused of embezzling $4,000, to which he admitted guilt and was subsequently arrested. Linderfelt’s arrest came as a shock to the library profession. Not only was he the head of the MPL, but he was also the president of both the ALA and the Wisconsin Library Association. A longtime and active member of ALA, Linderfelt was well liked by his colleagues, leaving them reeling at his arrest.”

ALA Archives, Apr. 10
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Sungmin Park and Yuji Tosaka write: “The focus of this article is to analyze how gender is represented (or not represented) across headings for classes of persons within Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). In particular, the study examines these terms through the lens of gender marking. LCSH has a significantly disproportionate number of feminine demographic terms. A significant disparity was also observed in gendered headings lacking corresponding terms for the opposite gender. Disparity between feminine and masculine headings is particularly severe in categories that have historically been associated with men.”

Library Resources & Technical Services, vol. 70, no. 2 (Apr.)
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Margot Conahan writes: “The ACRL Information Literacy Framework Review and Revision Task Force is pleased to announce that the first draft of the revised Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education is ready for feedback from the community. There are two main options for providing feedback on the draft. You may use any or all of the opportunities available to provide feedback. The task force has created a detailed feedback form open until May 8. There are also two webinars scheduled for April 23 and April 28 where you can provide feedback in conversation with your peers and the task force.

ACRL Insider, Apr. 10
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ALA and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees have reached a settlement with the US Department of Justice in their lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The April 9 settlement allows IMLS to continue carrying out its congressionally mandated work. On April 6, the Trump administration also withdrew its appeal in a separate but similar case brought by the attorneys general of 21 states to protect IMLS. The administration’s fiscal year 2027 budget proposal eliminates all IMLS funding, although Trump’s initial proposals have consistently eliminated IMLS funding only to have funding preserved or increased after library advocacy efforts.

ALA Public Policy and Advocacy Office, Apr. 9, Apr. 7, Apr. 3
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ALA’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy Working Group has released the draft document Guidance of the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Libraries. The group was established by Council in June 2025 with a charge to develop a unified, critically informed ALA position on AI in libraries through the lens of ALA’s Core Values. All ALA members are invited to provide feedback by May 8 to inform revisions that will be incorporated into a final document that will be presented for approval by Council at the 2026 ALA Annual Conference.

ALA AI Policy Working Group

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