Confessions of a Mad Librarian

I have developed a platform on Building Community Locally and Professionally that can be seen at http://www.barbstripling.net. As President, I will offer a strong national voice for the First Amendment rights and equitable access for every individual. I plan to focus on providing support to libraries in their local communities, because I believe that ALA has a responsibility to reach out to members and help them respond to the challenges and opportunities they face in their local libraries every day. ALA needs to listen to its members and deliver the programming, publications, networking opportunities, and professional development that will enable members to build communities of learning and empowerment for all their patrons.

An essential piece of empowering patrons is helping them develop the skills to participate actively in their community. One of ALA�s five Key Action Areas is 21st Century Literacy. As President, I will develop an ALA action agenda on the library�s role in fostering 21st century skills. These skills include information literacy in the changing information environment, basic literacy for adults and English language learners, cultural literacy, and engagement in public discourse about community issues. In my career of working with youth, I have discovered that librarians empower users for lifelong learning by helping them develop these critical skills.

My presidential focus on Building Community Professionally will address recruitment of new library workers who are as diverse as the communities they serve and the salaries and status of library workers in the field. New members will particularly want to be involved in the work to improve salaries because they know firsthand about the low starting salaries for most library workers.

Newer members to ALA will be essential to the success of my presidential initiatives. First, newer members can look with fresh eyes at their local library community -- why people use the library and why they don�t -- to see what services, skills, and programming people need and want and, therefore, what ALA should offer its members. Newer members will bring diverse ideas and creative perspectives to the action agenda on 21st century skills and will be heavily involved in its development. Perhaps most important, newer members will provide much-needed impetus for ALA to be more flexible as an organization, to involve members in substantive work that responds to their needs and interests, to use technology to push the Association out to members, to make a real difference in the salaries and status of all library workers, and to build a more collaborative culture within ALA.

2. Could you address the issue of the graying of the profession, specifically with regards to the leadership of ALA?

This is an amusing question to me, since I have a head full of white hair. I do see the problem though -- committee and Council leaders are often those who have been in the Association the longest and it�s very hard for new people to break in. I actually see two solutions to the problem that I would recommend even if the leadership weren�t graying. First, the definition of leadership needs to change. Leadership should not be power and control vested in the �leader.� Instead leadership should empower others. A good leader establishes a collaborative environment and builds capacity and energy in those with whom he or she works. Perhaps ALA should offer leadership training for those who are placed in leadership roles.

Second, ALA needs to change the way it involves members. Every member of ALA who wants to work on professional issues with others should have that opportunity. After all, leadership abilities are developed when we have opportunities to lead. I envision flexible electronic work groups that form when a professional interest or need arises, complete the investigation/task, and disband when appropriate. I think new members can help ALA figure out how to restructure the opportunities for member involvement and leadership development.

3. (For someone new to ALA or thinking of joining), from your experience, what are the benefits of being in ALA?

For me, the most important benefit of being in ALA has been the friendships I�ve formed with fellow librarians across the country. I have several very close friendships that are a direct result of our getting to know one another through ALA. The friendships began when we discovered that, although we were in totally different parts of the country, we shared many experiences. I�ll never forget my first conference. I was all alone at a reception, clinging to the wall because I didn�t know anyone. I struck up a conversation with the person next to me and almost immediately we discovered that we were dealing with the same issues in our libraries. I was hooked.

I�ve gotten a number of other benefits from ALA because I got involved in division committees right away. Through committee work, I have been able to grow professionally, to learn alongside others. My thinking has been pushed because I have encountered different perspectives and new ways of doing things. I have had many opportunities to contribute to the Association and the field, which is essential for my old-fashioned, �save-the-world� mentality.

ALA has also given me national support in the field of librarianship. Without ALA, I think I might have stayed in my school-library circle, never understanding the larger picture of libraries and the specific contributions of librarians in niches like government documents, cataloging, database management, and public library services. Because of ALA, I could see how the work I did with students in high school connected to public library experiences and fed into their academic and lifelong library experiences. The documents and professional development available through ALA have kept me up-to-date and thinking about the future of our field as well as the changing nature of our users and the information landscape.

I have also appreciated ALA�s national support for the fundamental values of intellectual freedom and equity of access that I tried to implement every day. For example, I was able to use ALA documents with my principal to end a potential censorship challenge. Even ALA public-service ads and National Library Week materials have helped me garner local support for my library program.

Finally, and this is still somewhat surprising to me, the connections I�ve formed through ALA have provided me opportunities for career advancement. I would not be working where I am today without ALA.

4. As ALA President, how would you provide more opportunities for new ALA members?

The major way that I think ALA needs to change is in member involvement. At the present time, a number of characteristics of ALA curtail opportunities for members to participate in the work or governance of the Association, connect with other members, express their opinions, or affect the actions or positions of the Association. I�ve identified some possible ways to address the problems.
Communication should go two ways � from the Association to the members and from the members to the Association. Through technology, ALA can solicit member opinions and analyze trends and patterns. ALA�s actions should be based on the needs of our members. Members of the New Members Round Table are in an excellent position to provide information about your needs because of your electronic list. ALA should provide a mechanism for you to provide input to the organization on a regular basis.

New members need to be appointed to ALA committees, perhaps as interns, so that they can contribute to the ongoing work of the Association. Because committee appointments do not offer enough opportunities for members to participate in the work of the Association, ALA needs flexible work groups that can respond quickly to arising issues and that are open to all who are interested.
Membership meetings should provide opportunities for members to connect with one another around issues of interest. We need to restructure the meetings to enable everyone to have a voice. New members are often not able to come to conferences, but they still need to be able to express themselves. Perhaps we can use technology to conduct virtual components of the membership meetings so that ALA members at home can participate.

I am very interested in providing deliberative forums for our members. These carefully constructed sessions actively engage participants in investigating all sides to an issue. New members would have a place at the table in helping all members understand and value different perspectives on library issues.
New Member Round Table members represent a slice of membership across all ALA units. You are in an outstanding position to connect ideas and people from one division or round table to those in another. Wouldn�t it be interesting if ALA used new members to break down the Association�s silos?

Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to respond to your questions. I hope you got to know me a little. I welcome any follow-up questions or comments.

Barb