By: Jean Demas, Literacy Librarian, Lisle Library District, Lisle, IL Families Together: Reading Enrichment for Social/Emotional Learning (SEL) is a project designed to build social and emotional learning for birth to 5-year-old children from the Ann Reid Early Childhood Center (ARECC), Naperville School District #203. Children are joined by their parents in a weekly program at the Lisle Library District (LLD) that can be transferred from the school and library settings into...
Intersections
About Intersections
Intersections, the blog of the ALA Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services (ODLOS), highlights the work of library and information science workers as they create safe, responsible, and all-inclusive spaces that serve and represent the entire community, as well as initiatives and projects supported by the office that promotes their work. Please note that these blog posts are by individuals and do not reflect the views of their employers.
By Beth Nieman, Youth Services Librarian, Carlsbad Public Library, Carlsbad, New Mexico A coffee break or brisk walk can temporarily reduce workplace stress, but what about long-term solutions for a satisfying work environment? Self-care can include nurturing our careers by raising public awareness about the importance of librarians, networking with colleagues, and making time for what we love about our jobs. Pam, a public librarian, shared with me a negative experience she had at a city council meeting. Pam voiced her concerns about parents dropping off young children at the...
By: Alison M. Armstrong, Collection Management Librarian, Radford University, Radford, Virginia “Leave work at work” is great in theory but not always attainable. When things are stressful, you take it home. If you are like me, you carry it around with you by replaying conversations and enumerating all of the issues, preparing to make your case to anyone who will listen. When I am not at work, I need a way to disengage my brain from work. Some ways I de-stress: A bath. I have a fear of getting books wet which means I can’t read in the bath so I light candles...
By: Rachel Hadidi, PhD, Community Outreach Librarian, Plano Public Library, Plano, Texas Are you looking for ways to connect with your community outside the library walls? Preparing a strong, diverse group of staff for outreach opportunities is key to our success. Plano Public Library (PPL) continues to support staff participation with training, clear procedures and roles, and a “just one thing” theme to build confidence and engagement. Guided by a new strategic plan, PPL launched an initiative to increase community engagement in 2016. At that time, the few...
By: Rhiannon Sorrell, Instruction and Digital Services Librarian, Kinyaa'áanii Charlie Benally Library Every year, ALA puts out a call for project proposals for the Emerging Leaders Program (EL), a leadership development program for professionals in their first five years in the librarianship field. For the 2018 cohort of Emerging Leaders, AILA submitted a proposal, “Tribal Libraries, Archives, and Museums of the United States Directory & Interactive Map,” which was shortlisted as one of many project options for the incoming group professionals. The goal of this...
Hadeal Salamah, Children’s Librarian, D.C. Public Library After reflecting on my time spent at JCLC, I realized that I wanted to share my thoughts on some of the presentations that I have heard. We are a community of information professionals, and yet, there is so much ignorance in our community in dealing with culture, diversity, race, etc. It’s even more evident that there is a problem as I think about staff relations and how they relate to those issues. At the discussion panel I attended called “Mentoring the Next Generation of Librarians of Color,” I...
By: Aldo Vasquez, Children’s Library Associate, Chicago Public Library Earlier this year, I was awarded a travel grant to attend the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color by the ALA Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services (ODLOS). As a Latinx Children’s Library Associate working in the diverse city of Chicago, I knew how important it would be for me to attend the conference and connect with individuals around the country who share similar experiences and deal with the same challenges I encounter on a daily basis. Currently working in a predominately...
By: Rose Rodriguez, Public Services Librarian, Northwest Vista College Benjamin Alire Saenz blessed us as the speaker for the opening session at JCLC. I sat there unable to focus on anything but his words. Being able to relate to him in so many ways and having him speak of the significance of our profession touched my spirit. The energy and love I felt at the conference impacted me so deeply that it continues to follow me. I didn’t know what to expect from attending my first conference. I was just hoping to get ideas and tools I could use to help students succeed but I...
By: Alea Perez, Head of Youth Services, Westmont Public Library, Westmont, IL When I arrived at the Albuquerque Convention Center Thursday morning, I had already missed half of the keynote speech due to the timing of my flight. Yet, the moment I walked into the ballroom, I felt as though I stepped through a fictional portal and into a whole new plane of existence. Before me were a thousand library personnel of color who all understood the highs and lows of being in a predominately white profession, and onstage was Mr. Benjamin Alire Sáenz, who was sharing great insight with fire...
Libraries as the community partner By: Ari Baker, Blount County Public Library The opioid crisis is a hot topic in public libraries. From collaborating with community agencies to administering Narcan, librarians are doing what they always do, finding ways to connect with and support their communities at crucial points of needs. Often these needs call on librarians to learn new skills, but in the case of Blount County Recovery Court, Blount County Public Library was the perfect fit when they sought to expand education to help participants escape the cycle of recidivism. Blount...