ALA establishes committee on public and cultural programs

Contact: Deb Robertson, Director

Public Programs Office

312-280-5057

For Immediate Release

February 15, 2005

ALA establishes committee on public and cultural programs

CHICAGO - The American Library Association (ALA) has established the Public and Cultural Programs Advisory Committee.
The committee's charge is to serve as an advisory committee to the ALA's Public Programs Office, promote excellence in cultural programming, assist library staff to become more effective providers of cultural programming, identify and disseminate resources for cultural programming and promote the ALA's Cultural Communities Fund.

Committee members are Deborah Jacobs, Seattle Public Library (chair); Rochelle Hartman, Bloomington (Ill.) Public Library; Barbara Immroth, University of Texas at Austin; Sarah Ann Long, North Suburban Library System in Wheeling, Ill.; Dwight McInvaill, Georgetown (S.C.) County Public Library; George Needham, OCLC Online Computer Learning Center; Jennifer Paustenbaugh, Oklahoma State University Edmon Low Library in Stillwater, Okla.; Susan Richards, Lawrence University Seeley G. Mudd Library in Appleton, Wis.; and Wicky Sleight, Kirkwood (Mo.) Public Library.

"Public and cultural programming is an essential and invaluable library service that is often overlooked," said committee chair Deborah Jacobs.
"I am honored to chair the Public and Cultural Programs Advisory Committee and look forward to working with the ALA Public Programs Office to build resources and garner support for library programming across the country."

The new committee held its first two meetings at the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Boston on January 15 and 17.
Subsequent meetings are scheduled for June at the ALA Annual Conference in Chicago.

For more information about the ALA Public Programs Office, please visit
www.ala.org/publicprograms.

The Public Programs Office is a unit of the American Library Association, the oldest and largest library association in the world.
The mission of the ALA Public Programs Office is to foster cultural programming as an integral part of library service.
Established in 1990, the office helps thousands of libraries nationwide develop and host programs that encourage dialogue among community members and works to establish libraries as cultural centers in their communities.