“None of us saw this coming,” said Woodson. “One day we walked into our classrooms, we walked into our libraries, we walked into our jobs, and the next day we didn’t.” This abrupt and significant change exposed what we’ve taken for granted. “We had just expected the next day to be there—just as the previous … Continue reading Making Sense of Our Collective Grief
Fisher is now the principal investigator for “Trauma in the Library: Symptoms of PTSD Among Staff and Methods for Ensuring Trauma-Informed Care,” an Institute of Museum and Library Services–funded study of the effects of workplace trauma exposure on library workers. She and Lauren Alexa Gambrill, research manager of the study, presented their preliminary findings during … Continue reading The Trauma of Library Work
Wong’s election makes ALA history At the conclusion of the 2021 Annual Conference Virtual, Patricia “Patty” M. Wong began her term as the first Asian American to serve as ALA president. The American Rescue Plan Act and libraries When President Biden signed into law the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March … Continue reading 2021 Year in Review
In Delaware, the Division of Public Health (DPH) approached the Delaware Division of Libraries (DDL) with a plan to distribute more than 75,000 BinaxNOW antigen self-tests through the state’s public libraries for three months from summer to fall 2021. “I think it’s a slam dunk that [health departments] would think of libraries,” says Alta Porterfield, … Continue reading Put to the Test
An estimated 19 million Americans—or 6% of the population—still lack access to fixed broadband service at threshold speeds. And as more job interviews have moved online during the pandemic, those without access face a major roadblock to finding employment. That’s where Do Space has stepped in. In July 2020, the Omaha, Nebraska–based community technology library … Continue reading Acing the Interview
I am a health science librarian at University of Arizona’s Phoenix Biomedical Campus. I am also Akimel O’odham (Pima) from the Gila River Indian Community. From a Native perspective, the needs of the community are greater than the wishes of the individual. Mask mandates are in place on tribal lands, and colleges and universities occupy … Continue reading Fighting Medical Racism
On September 15, the American Library Association (ALA) Executive Board issued a statement about transitioning LibLearnX (LLX), ALA’s upcoming conference, to a virtual-only format. The full statement follows: The American Library Association’s Executive Board announced today that LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, scheduled for January 21–24, 2022, in San Antonio, will take place virtually. “Given the … Continue reading ALA Announces LibLearnX Will Be Virtual
God gave Noah the rainbow sign No more water, the fire next time! (“Mary Don’t You Weep,” Black American spiritual) I will never forget Friday, March 13, 2020, the last day we worked in our building. It was also our admitted-student day, and several attendees had already arrived. Our staff quickly arranged a socially distanced … Continue reading LIS and the Next Crisis
On August 18, the IFLA News Media Section presented “Libraries Enable News Literacy: Finding Solutions to Fake News.” Moderator Ana Krahmer, director of the Digital Newspaper Unit at University of North Texas Libraries, talked with panelists about how to support information literacy for the public. Presenters included data scientists Katharina Beckh and Vishwani Gupta from … Continue reading IFLA: Closing Virtually with a Call to Action
What were some of the biggest changes in the manual—such as new laws, policy updates, privacy rules, and technology issue—since the ninth edition in 2015? MARTIN GARNAR: One of the biggest changes was the sheer number of new interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights—eight in total, with topics ranging from religion and politics to … Continue reading Intellectual Freedom: A Manual for Library Workers
I was almost through with a first draft when a nagging truth asserted itself, insisting I speak to it: that the challenges, uncertainties, and indeed, opportunities we have faced during and emerging from the pandemic have taken their toll on us, in the form of worry, fatigue, and stress. And yes, though I firmly and … Continue reading A Little Light to See By
Kemper started his position in January 2020 with “mixed messages”—he’d been appointed by a president who had proposed defunding IMLS over three consecutive years and unanimously confirmed in the Senate, which had approved increases for the agency over the same period. There was no time to process the president’s fourth proposed elimination before the pandemic … Continue reading Realms of Opportunity
