On Tuesday, comedian, actor, director, and author B. J. Novak offered some entertainment at the Closing Session of the 2014 ALA Annual Conference in Las Vegas. In addition to having the “honor of addressing an audience of more than 1,000 librarians in Las Vegas,” Novak quipped that it was a “specific sexual fantasy.” He put … Continue reading Hey Librarians, Call Me
ALA Council met for its third and final session at the 2014 Annual Conference and Exhibition on Tuesday, July 1. The Intellectual Freedom Committee presented 14 action items (CD#19.3–19.17) as revisions to the Intellectual Freedom Manual, which is set to be published later this year. After a motion to refer the section on labeling and … Continue reading Intellectual Freedom Manual Dominates Council III
“Welcome to planet Tatooine. That’s what it feels like outside…..” Star Wars nerds and public librarians united on Friday for a hilarious and important panel about managing a circulation desk with moxie to match the Rebel Empire at “Boba Fett at the Circ Desk: Library Leadership Lessons from The Empire Strikes Back,” sponsored by the … Continue reading Boba Fett at the Circ Desk
“We allow our children to be taught to hate,” said Ilyasah Shabazz, the daughter of Malcolm X, and an auditorium speaker on Sunday at the 2014 ALA Annual Conference. When love and positive values are not instilled in a family, she said, “Ultimately, we have failed our obligation to God (if you believe in God), our … Continue reading Ilyasah Shabazz Discusses the Power of Family and Heritage
While libraries are so much more than the physical books on our shelves, those books play a critical role in the services we provide to patrons. Which is why, for many of us, half the fun of ALA Annual Conference is hearing about what is new and upcoming from our favorite authors. With a plethora … Continue reading Literary Speed Dating
On Saturday, ALA Council met for its first session, with ALA President Barbara Stripling presiding. Among its actions, Council passed a Resolution in Support of Stable Funding for Air Force Libraries (CD#43). The two-part resolution calls on “the US Department of Defense and Air Force to restore funding to Air Force base and command libraries … Continue reading Council I Expresses Support for Air Force Libraries
Advocacy and lobbying in the nation’s capital on behalf of libraries and the library profession was the focus of “Washington Update–2014 Congressional Election and Its Impact on Libraries,” an event held Saturday morning at ALA’s 2014 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Las Vegas. Strides in the right direction are being made, but the work is … Continue reading Our Work in Washington
Wayne Bivens-Tatum, philosophy and religion librarian at Princeton University, called upon the research he conducted for his book Libraries and the Enlightenment to explain the origins of the 20th-century academic service model. Prior to the early 19th century, university library collections were small and often built on the materials amassed by teachers and students. “The … Continue reading Examining Our Values
Now in its fourth year, the Ambassador program run by the ALA Membership Development Office was in full force at the 2014 ALA Annual Conference in Las Vegas and operating out of the ALA Membership Pavilion. Paul Signorelli, who has served as consultant to the program, gave American Libraries a rundown on how it operates: … Continue reading ALA’s Volunteer Ambassadors
The first of four Annual Conference programs presented by the ALA Public Programs Office, “Turning Outward to Lead Change in Your Community: Aspirations,” introduced attendees to the concepts of the Harwood Institute and the ALA initiative—libraries transforming communities (LTC). Facilitated by Cheryl Gorman, vice president of national programs at Harwood, the program explained that the … Continue reading Turning Outward
The American Library Association (ALA) is pleased to announce this year’s recipients of the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction, funded through a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York. The Goldfinch, by Donna Tartt received the medal for fiction, and The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of … Continue reading Goldfinch, Bully Pulpit, win Andrew Carnegie Medals
Michelle Singletary, financial columnist for the Washington Post, had the audience at ACRL’s President Program singing and swaying to Bill Withers’s “Lean on Me” as she talked about how librarians can lean on experts to assist in offering financial literacy programs for college students. Outgoing ACRL President Trevor Dawes, who introduced the program, has focused … Continue reading The Weight of Student Debt
