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Terra Dankowski writes: “Connie Chung has made an indelible mark on broadcast journalism—and even inspired a younger generation of Connies. Now she reflects on her life with her memoir, Connie (Grand Central Publishing, September), which traces her family’s immigration to the US, the stories she broke, and the legacy she hopes to leave behind. American Libraries talked with Chung after her appearance at the American Library Association’s 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Diego about her forthcoming book, the state of journalism, and her childhood library.”...
American Libraries, July/August
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Pamela Espinosa de los Monteros, Greg Rentsch, and Amanda Comstock write: “Appreciative inquiry invites leaders and organizations to leverage evidence-based practices from change management and positive psychology. Its methods radically shift away from focusing on system dysfunction or weaknesses and instead centers on understanding ‘what gives life’ to organizations, teams, and individuals when they are at their best, including the discovery of common values, existing strengths, and shared aspirations. Appreciative inquiry does not ignore or minimize challenges; instead, it asks what there is to appreciate and leverages these findings to develop a collective strategy for change.”...
ACRL Keeping Up With…, Sept.
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Rachel G. Payne writes: “I used to think storytime was all about the kids—engaging them by having fun and promoting early literacy and book love. And while that is core to our mission, parent engagement is also vital. What are the forces that really impact families in communities? And what can parents do in their communities to make sure their children thrive in every area of life? Encouraging parents to register to vote and knowledgeably vote in the election is one, vital way we can support families.”...
ALSC Blog, Aug. 16
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Gain the skills you need for success in the growing field of library and information studies by earning your MLIS, EdS, PhD, or graduate certificate through The University of Alabama Online. Tailor your coursework to the area where you want to make a difference. Focus on school libraries, archival studies, youth services, digital stewardship, or social justice and inclusivity.
Contact us today to enroll in the upcoming spring or fall 2025 cohorts!
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ALA invites proposals for
60-minute education programs and
poster sessions at the 2025 Annual Conference and Exhibition, taking place June 26—July 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. ALA’s Annual Conference explores critical issues impacting libraries and their communities through an array of innovative programs, professional development opportunities, timely research, strategic initiatives, and best practices. See the
press release for submission guides, video walkthroughs, evaluation rubrics, and submission sites for both types of proposal. Proposals are due September 23....
ALA Conference Services, Aug. 19
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Sean Jones writes: “Pamunkey Regional Library System, serving rural counties north of Richmond, Virginia, has come under fire over the past year and a half. It has faced a nearly total turnover on its board as well as the resignation of its director, after a display at the Atlee Branch in September 2022 during Banned Books Week. Until recently, the Pamunkey system served the counties of Hanover, Goochland, King William, and King and Queen. King and Queen has since left the system, and King William’s Board of Supervisors recently voted to do the same.”...
Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch, Aug. 13
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Alejandro Marquez writes: “Loneliness might seem at the outset to be outside of the library’s mission. However, as library professionals, it is part of our passion and mission to help provide individuals what they need to be their best selves. The library profession is already offering services and resources to help people connect. Researchers and policymakers suggest using strategies that encourage social connectedness. Instead of focusing all of our efforts on the people who are very isolated and need serious help, public policies, programming and initiatives can help everyone feel more connected to others.”...
The Journal of Creative Library Practice, Aug. 13
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The Digital Public Library of America and Independent Publishers Group have announced an agreement that will allow libraries around the country to purchase tens of thousands of ebook and audiobook titles and own them in perpetuity, rather than license them. Dozens of independent publishers are participating in the deal. Libraries will be able to purchase books through the
Palace Marketplace, a nonprofit ebook and audiobook platform developed by The Palace Project in consultation with libraries....
Digital Public Library of America, Aug. 13
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Williesha Morris writes: “For four weeks, 10 people pulled children’s books from library shelves at Ozark Public Library and checked each title for explicit content. It took a month for library staff to review about 8,000 children’s and young adult books and make sure they complied with new guidelines from the Alabama Public Library Service. During that time, the library was closed to the public. Librarians looked for online reviews or complaints about sexually explicit or inappropriate content for each book’s age range. They found no books in the library’s collection with content deemed inappropriate for minors.”...
AL.com, Aug. 20
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Essy Barroso-Ramirez writes: “I am a first generation Chicana academic librarian. What I look like and who I am does not ‘align’ with stereotypical preconceived notions of what a librarian is. I understand that my lifetime of experiences have prepared me to be more than capable of achieving tenure. However, as someone who already experienced anxiety prior to entering academia as a faculty member, anxiety pervades my mind when I think of the tenure track process. My tenure track process began in summer 2022, and while I have certainly felt supported, I can’t help but feel behind.”...
WOC+Lib, Aug. 14
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Kathryn Palmer writes: “Western Illinois University (WIU) in Macomb is laying off all nine of its library faculty—eight of them tenured or on the tenure track—as part of wider efforts to offset a $22 million budget deficit driven by rising operational costs and a 21% enrollment drop since fall 2019. Numerous other departments lost multiple faculty positions, but the library is the only department to have all faculty positions eliminated.” A WIU spokesperson said the library would continue to have adequate coverage after the layoffs with 20 remaining staff....
Inside Higher Ed, Aug. 20
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Syed Hammad Mahmood writes: “There are many ways to share files between people and devices, but a lot of those methods can be cumbersome by requiring app downloads, account registrations, cloud storage setups, and so on. That's why we prefer these no-hassle file sharing websites that let you drag-and-drop files and share links to those files so that others can download them right away.”...
MakeUseOf, Aug. 19
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Inspired by the Dayton (Ohio) Accords that ended the Bosnian War, the annual
Dayton Literary Peace Prize honors writers whose work demonstrates the power of the written word to foster peace. Based on those criteria, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation has announced its 2024 book award finalists. Six fiction finalists and six nonfiction finalists were named. The Dayton Literary Peace Prize is the first and only international literary peace prize awarded in the United States....
Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation, Aug. 15
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