The Sesquicentennial - Update from the ALA 150th Commemoration Steering Committee
March 5, 2025
By Martin Garnar and Courtney L. Young
As you may know, the American Library Association (ALA) will be marking its 150th anniversary in 2026. ALA has a long history that includes moments of which we are proud and others when we fell short of our ideals. It is the charge of the ALA 150th Commemoration Steering Committee to develop a program of activities that commemorate what we’ve done well and where we could have done better, and to also look to the future and think about what the next 150 years could bring.
It is the charge of the ALA 150th Commemoration Steering Committee to develop a program of activities that commemorate what we’ve done well and where we could have done better, and to also look to the future and think about what the next 150 years could bring.
The steering committee has been hard at work generating ideas for events, programs, and other initiatives to commemorate this important milestone. We are in the process of identifying partners within the association to assist with planning these initiatives and hope to be announcing in the next few months a complete list of what will be happening. We are excited to celebrate ALA at the 2026 Annual Conference in Chicago as well as via virtual opportunities for attendees and non-attendees alike.
In the meantime, we invite you to visit the 150th Anniversary page on the ALA website for more information. Look for more details to be added to this page in the months to come, including an events calendar. If you are interested in assisting with some of the confirmed activities, including developing a trivia event and creating an oral history project, please fill out this anniversary project volunteer form. From this form you can also sign up to be contacted as more volunteer opportunities open up.
We will share regular updates on The Sesquicentennial as our planning process continues, and we look forward to both commemorating our history and thinking about our future with you.
Sincerely,
Martin Garnar and Courtney L. Young, Co-Chairs
ALA 150th Commemoration Steering Committee
