Voting for the American Library Association (ALA) 2016–17 presidential campaign has opened, and ALA members in good standing can cast their ballots through May 1. In order to offer voters some additional insight into the candidates’ opinions and plans, LJ has asked them to weigh in on some key issues facing the president-elect and general items of interest. The four candidates—Joseph Janes, associate professor and chair of the MLIS Program, University of Washington Information School, Seattle; James LaRue, CEO of LaRue & Associates, Castle Rock, CO; JP Porcaro, librarian for acquisitions and technological discovery at New Jersey City University Library, Jersey City, NJ; and Julie Todaro, dean of library services at Austin Community College, TX—have given their responses below. Full biographies of the candidates can be found on ALA’s Election Information page.
1. What do you predict will be the most important issues facing ALA during your prospective tenure? And, how will you handle it?
Joseph Janes
Joseph Janes: Short answer: nobody knows. Variations on current matters, no doubt: funding, open access, intellectual property, ebooks, advocacy, discovery, creation spaces, joined inevitably by something out of left field that nobody expected or saw coming. I wouldn’t be surprised if data science really started to pop even more in the next 18 months or so, with ever-increasing concerns about security, privacy, authenticity, and so on. My approach, regardless of what emerges, is always to be collaborative, to seek advice from smart, experienced people, build the broadest possible consensus, and then move forward as best we can.
James LaRue
James LaRue: The most important issues will continue to manifest from the underlying issue: a “frame” in our society, a deliberately nurtured mindset, that has undercut our investment in the public sector for the past half a century. That frame, in which libraries of all kinds are seen as mere amenities, drives both funding and community possibilities. I will handle it by focusing on three distinct ways for libraries to demonstrate and effectively communicate our contributions. Briefly, that means I would underscore and encourage our capacity to move from embedded librarian to community leader, from gatekeeper to gardener (in the realm of digital publishing), and from book deserts to book oases (promoting early literacy). See my website (www.larueforpresident.com) for amplification.
JP Porcaro
JP Porcaro: The three most important issues are assuring strong funding for our libraries, giving a louder platform to diverse voices, and recognizing that ALA membership is imploding. I have a semi-connected solution to these three things, which is outlined in my platform. We know from data released by OCLC that targeted marketing messages work. I will challenge ALA to respond to that OCLC study and embark on a large-scale public relations campaign demonstrating that it’s the staff that makes a library. Part of that will be including underrepresented voices in a marketing push about us—about my colleagues—to help people who have never thought of “libraries as a career” to better see themselves in that role.
ALA membership is imploding because of the constant funding hits we are taking year after year; libraries just have less staff than they used to. Look at AASL. A few years ago they were above 11,000 members. They broke below 7,000 this year. That isn’t because the division is putting on less interesting conferences or offering bad continuing ed. It’s because there are fewer school librarians in this country. We have to reverse that trend for the kids they serve and for the entire professional ecosystem. The association is here for libraries and librarians, and a strong support of library staff will help the ALA maintain resonance in librarianship.
Julie Todaro
Julie Todaro: Although we can’t easily predict what the most important issues will be, ALA—like other organizations and institutions— will continue to struggle with how to handle policies and practices for social justice issues (Florida, Indiana, investment portfolios, etc.) in both a meaningful and appropriate way. Additional areas of concern for policies and practices for libraries include implementing policy revolution at local, state, and federal levels and marketing the initiative “choose privacy.” Another important issue facing ALA is ALA itself. Issues to be addressed include: the timeline for decision making, member services to meet the depth and breadth of ALL member needs, involvement and training as well as placement for the current and next generation of leadership, the importance and presence of communication mechanisms to reach members with current information and content, contemporary models of content delivery of training and development, the role of the association in employment, association roles in education and accreditation, and—most importantly—member engagement for ALL members.
Of course, the ALA president doesn’t work on association issues alone, but needs to be informed and accessible at all times for quick assessment of issues so that—whatever the situation—he or she can weigh in quickly on opinions as well as how the process would work. The President then works as part of the Board, and the Board works in consultation with Council—and of course ALA Administration as part of the Board or as content specialists. The goal is not always speed but ALA must respond quickly to some situations and that includes consulting with association expertise: Council as a body, Council subgroups, division leadership (staff and elected officers) and the ALA attorney. In addition, the President should work in consultation with designated groups such as diversity issues with the Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, and legislative issues with the Committee on Legislation.
2. How can ALA support diversity? How should ALA specifically work with REFORMA, CALA, BCALA? How should ALA work with We Need Diverse Books?
Joseph Janes: I think “ALA” does, in lots of ways, though those aren’t always as well known or understood or coordinated as best as they could; a quick check of the ALA website reveals quite a number of diversity-related initiatives and projects, many of which have had long-lasting and significant impacts.However, as those of us who have been engaged with it know, diversity work takes time, effort, patience, persistence and continuity. It’s not a conference presentation here, a task force report there, a one-year initiative, a meeting producing a strategic plan that makes everybody feel better. It’s long-term, thoughtful, dedicated, cooperative work that fully integrates the participation and voices of the people and communities involved to find common cause, dig in, and do the hard and day-to-day work. All the groups named in the question (and others: AILA, GLBTRT, APALA) are critical to the success of any forward progress around diversity matters, and I’m proud to say I have supporters from a wide spectrum of the association and profession.
James LaRue: ALA has already established a Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. This task force includes representatives from all the ethnic affiliates, including BCALA, REFORMA, CALA, and AILA, as well as the ASCLA Accessibility Assembly and GLBTRT. ALA should carefully consider the recommendations from the Task Force and make sure that the Association funds all related initiatives to support diversity within the association and profession. As for working with We Need Diverse Books, let’s help our communities write them!
JP Porcaro: On all of my campaign stops, I have worn a We Need Diverse Books button as a show of support for that organization. A real show of support for diverse voices in librarianship will not be just another ALA presidential diversity initiative, but a shift in thinking within the organization on who holds power and how to deal with that. I address this directly in my presidential platform.
Julie Todaro: ALA should use its existing infrastructure (Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion; the Diversity Office and other ALA offices; ethnic affiliates, etc.) to support diversity; however, ALA should audit staffing levels for support of these initiatives to determine if current staffing levels (staff for diversity, special and unique needs and so on) are enough to meet needs. In addition, the ALA President can work toward expanded research on diversity and association initiative impact as well as increased ALA staffing levels to assist in a commitment to and design of diversity action plans. Also, ALA needs to work within its current structure AND think “bigger,” such as increasing the number and amounts of Spectrum student scholarships and also expanding library school/ALA partnerships, and—most importantly—taking a step forward by beginning identification and recruitment at even younger ages for a more diverse profession.Currently a number of ALA groups—including divisions—are working with We Need Diverse Books and other related groups on a successful model of diverse authors discussing their works for programs for conferences and other local presentations such as book festivals and state conferences. Support for this group can be supplemented by ALA sponsoring expanded creative writing work—beginning with middle and high school students—as well as partnerships with writing groups throughout the country.In addition, the obvious answer to this question should begin with “yes” we should work with We Need Diverse Books and the “how” should also include a look back to the fact that historically ALA drove the publication industry to dramatically increase numbers of children’s and youth materials through the design and promotion of the Newbery/Caldecott awards as well as—over time—the design and promotion of a variety of other book awards. This historical focus should serve as the foundation for a new focus on the value and role libraries place in this specific area of economy by articulating the purchasing power of all types and sizes of libraries today.
3. How do you feel about ALA’s insistence on holding the 2016 conference in Orlando in light of the Stand Your Ground law?
Joseph Janes: We all know that the conferences are massive undertakings, planned years in advance, and major revenue generators for the association, so they can’t be moved easily or nimbly. The analysis cited in the joint statement issued last March cited a minimum fine for cancelling Orlando contracts of over $800,000, which would equate to the membership dues for more than 6,000 members.That said, I also know that that decision left a bad taste in many people’s mouths. And, let us not forget, lots of jurisdictions have policies or laws that some members might find unpleasant or worse. (For the record, several of our upcoming conferences, including Orlando, Atlanta, New Orleans, as well as AASL and IFLA in Columbus, will take place in states that permit legal discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. And at least at the moment, my marriage isn’t valid in Georgia, Ohio, or Louisiana either. Not to mention the recent pernicious developments in Indiana.)So, for those conferences we can’t move, we do what we do: engage, educate, set an example, show people what diversity and intellectual freedom look like. Going forward, we can do our best not to place future conferences in places that don’t share our values, and communicate our displeasure with offensive policies or laws, knowing that planning as far in advance as we must, circumstances will change and conflicts arise in the future.
James LaRue: The financial costs of canceling a conference at this late date are well known and would cripple the Association. But I think letting it be known in the right circles—Orlando economic development and Chamber of Commerce groups—that a cancellation was seriously considered, and may affect future conferences, helps that community begin to understand broader ramifications of political stands. Rather than turn our backs on parts of the country with laws that may be in conflict with member concerns, the Association can use this opportunity to engage the local community about issues of race, ethnicity, and other differences, as well as make a statement of support to those local libraries grappling with these issues.
JP Porcaro: I am glad to have been at the heart of that discussion; it was posted on ALA Think Tank before it was even discussed by the ALA Council listserv. I stand with BCALA on this, which is also an answer to the last question: ALA needs to work with the ethnic caucuses by listening to them when they say something is important, and doing something about issues they voice as issues of importance.
Julie Todaro: Over the past decades and presently, ALA has spoken up about a number of issues related to what we do, who we are and what we believe in and value. Those issues have included and still include social justice issues, green and sustainability commitments, “political and legislative” situations and financial/investment issues related to social justice issues. While there has always been a commitment to act with statements there has and continues to be a call to action. How a president feels about a topic; however, doesn’t typically drive ALA discussion or decision making. Instead, presidents should determine processes, and focus on what is best for the organization and membership in general, but not be afraid to provide opinions contrary to practice.That being said, the legislation on this or related issues is “all over the place” and is confusing as legislation can get. What I did see—when I looked up the status of the law—was that currently over 33 states have Stand Your Ground or related laws. Given the pervasiveness of this legislation, it is hard to fulfill the location and equity approach of taking ALA around the country to the members. In addition, given the cost of the conference and the revenue generated by conferences (and we all know money isn’t everything …BUT…) calling off a conference or moving it (and yes, ALA is booked ten—or more—years out) would seriously, negatively impact members through the likelihood of increased costs not only for membership but conference attendance, housing, etc.It is my understanding that the Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion has been charged with discussing this issue and focusing on ways to work with local environments to create meaningful structures and dialogue within cities and communities where conferences are held. That is—similar to the investment and divestiture debate—many feel that greater change can occur from within an organization or within an environment or community.
4. What is your position on ALA’s divestiture of fossil fuel holdings?
Joseph Janes: Council dealt with this question at the 2013 Annual Conference, and since I wasn’t part of that discussion, I won’t second-guess their judgment.Investments matter, and ALA’s should follow our principles and values, but…I’ve had the chance to talk with a lot of members of ALA over the last several months, and not a single person has asked me about ALA’s investment strategy, or for that matter much about ALA per se. They were way more interested in how libraries and librarians are perceived, how we can make a stronger case for our worth, how they can find a substantial and satisfying position, how to do a better job in serving their communities. I am too.
James LaRue: It’s right to want to align our investments with our values. But I think it’s wisest to focus on what we want to support, rather than what we’re opposed to. For instance, many libraries of all kinds in the United States have gone green: reducing carbon emissions, water use, and generally demonstrating the practice of thoughtful facilities planning and public stewardship. So let’s shift our investments to areas where we want to demonstrate practical leadership for our communities.
JP Porcaro: This is not a question for me to answer, per se. The ALA Constitution and Policies say that the Endowment Trustees have the responsibility to develop and set an investment policy. Because the Executive Board appoints Trustees, and Council elects the E.B., we need to have this discussion in Council and among the board.
Julie Todaro: I can remember coming on the Texas Library Association Executive Board years ago with the first investment presentation being on responsible investments. At that time it was hard to pull apart investment packages as well as to determine the nature of investments due to the complexity of company ownership. Increasingly; however, sustainability, green and responsible investing has become an issue for companies seeking not only returns but returns to support values and positive global commitments. With the push from other large entities such as the university communities to identify (at last count over 200+) companies to avoid and companies to consider, it has become more of a science. In addition, the investment world now realistically presents likelihoods of percent of “complete” social responsibility with a baseline of 3% to reflect the complexity of doing business.With all of that said—it is my understanding from the review of the administration and Council documents that the negative financial impact of divestiture is projected to be high for this year and next year; however, the expectation is that—if we divest and reinvest in renewable energy investments—although not doing well now—they may yield greater results in the future. Although ALA—as a business—decided NOT to divest at this point in time—there should be ongoing and persistent discussion for identifying renewable energy for investments as soon as possible.
5. How can ALA be more proactive in dealing with the trending, devastating cuts to schools and libraries in Tea Party leaning states? How can we best tell our library story and advocate for staff libraries and collections?
Joseph Janes: There is no higher priority for us. Thank goodness for the recent decision in Kentucky, which is a relief to us all, but of course that won’t be the end of it. We have to recognize that there’s a slice of the public who just don’t believe in the concept of a “public good” any longer. Whether that’s an economic concern or a political or philosophical one, I don’t know, and that plays itself out in funding and support for education, parks, social services, all kinds of things, including libraries. These are people who just don’t (or won’t or can’t) get it, and they’re largely lost to us, at least for now. For the ones who can be swayed, whose minds are open, we have to use every tool in the box, throw the kitchen sink at them. Ground-up, grass-roots work, of course, supported by all the muscle ALA can muster. (And bravo to the EveryLibrary people for all their great work too.) How about we get some people who’ve done those fantastic READ posters to do some stumping for us? Send the ALA president out to speak to people who hold the purse strings: U.S. Conference of Mayors, National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, the Urban League, and while we’re at it the national associations of elementary and secondary school principals, the American Council on Education and the AAUP, tell the story, break a few stereotypes and sear their souls about our value and the critical nature of the infrastructure that we provide in every community and organization we work for. I’m absolutely game for that.
James LaRue: We need to claim the hearts and minds of our community, and building library use (the focus of most library marketing to date) won’t get us there. I’ve done a lot of work in this area. See our Big Hairy Audacious Goal initiative site, and my WebJunction session “Telling the Library Story” for more insights. Broadly speaking, ALA should point the way toward a more research-focused advocacy: recruiting local and respected non-librarians to speak on our behalf, arming them with stories first, and data second, and recognizing that changing a culture isn’t the work of a year, but the work of a generation. That means we need to keep sending the same message, over and over, until it becomes truly ingrained in our communities.
JP Porcaro: It’s not just in “tea party” states: it’s nationwide. If school librarians and school libraries are not “in the Bill”, we will never get funded. I don’t care who the governor or legislator is, the challenge to get our school librarians in the Bill starts with the SKILLS Act and ESEA reauthorization and doesn’t end until we have all 50 states following the lead of places like Kentucky—which has a right right leaning political climate—to include school librarians in their education laws.
Julie Todaro: LJ is correct, proactivity is the key to dealing with the negative trending we are experiencing throughout the country AND—don’t forget—negative trends aren’t only in Tea Party states and have a variety of platforms and rationale—not just the ones we have been used to! That being said, we need to lean in with the “face” of who we are and what we do BUT that face needs to be supported by real data on value and worth. To make this happen, ALA needs to increase its attention to gathering and analyzing data, identifying and targeting legislators and possible legislators for matching and delivering both classic and contemporary messages and identifying partnerships (workforce, economic development, the literary community, the research community, home schooling structures and teams, P–16 initiatives and—of course—our profit community—to name only a few) to not only team with but carry our message for us. And—while these ideas are NOT drastically new or original, our data can be, our identification of our supporters, our match of unique data to supporters AND requested outcomes need to be a continuous, aggressive initiative with expanded use of our existing as well as new champions.I believe that data and stories are critical delivery mechanisms. The emphasis for us, however, needs to be not only the value of libraries and our services and resources but also the value of librarians and library staff and the unique aspects of our profession. My presidential initiative focuses on library staff and how we—as a profession—are the driving force behind libraries and our services and resources. It doesn’t happen without us and our vision and commitment and we need to quantify as well as qualify what we do to transform our communities and our constituents.
6. ALA has placed itself in the forefront of advocating for individual privacy, access to government information and for library support at all levels of government. Should ALA also advocate for access to balloting in local and national elections? Are the voter ID efforts contrary to ALA principles?
Joseph Janes: Personally, I think voting should be as free and easy and open as possible, while maintaining the integrity and trust of the process. Great news recently in Oregon, as they just adopted automatic voter registration. Laws that needlessly inhibit or restrict voting, particularly among people who need us and our services the most, are bad and anti-democratic. I haven’t heard yet of any discussion of this within ALA but would welcome that if it emerges.
James LaRue: Voter ID efforts are definitely contrary to ALA Principles. But let’s step back to question #5. Effective advocacy, real change, requires a deep and repetitive focus, not just being drawn into an endless series of partisan conflicts. If the theme is “building communities,” libraries can certainly tie voter engagement to that. Positioning ourselves as “friend to the voter” will certainly work to the benefit of our communities and to libraries.
JP Porcaro: I had a discussion with current LJ Mover & Shaker Alison Macrina about this, and she really helped shape my opinion on it when she told me, “Voter ID efforts are contrary to our principles in a similar way that privacy violations are, because voter ID laws disproportionately target the poor and marginalized and make them less likely to participate in the democratic process. It is similar to how poor and marginalized people are subject to more surveillance, which puts their democratic rights in jeopardy.” That being said, this is a matter for the states to address—with provision of the federal Civil Rights Act and other ballot access laws and oversight by the DOJ when needed. If ALA can help steer the states in the right direction on this, I am supportive.
Julie Todaro: Expanded access to balloting varies dramatically across states. Some initiatives require greater identification and sharing of that identification to bring greater and varied numbers to the polls with easier modes and methods of voting. ALA must—as many groups must—weigh the measures to determine which ones encourage voting without compromising privacy. While this is difficult—the profession has always joined in on the expanding voting marketing campaigns (for example Rock the Vote)—and although some initiatives are in opposition to some ALA principles, few dispute the fact that increased voting supports a democracy.
7. What needs to change in LIS accreditation standards? What works?
Joseph Janes: Well, they just changed, so we don’t know yet. The newly approved standards contain significantly more emphasis on assessment of student learning, in line with the movement with accreditation and higher education in general, as well as more attention to strategic planning and outreach and connection with important stakeholders and constituencies. As someone who has served a four-year stint on COA [Council on Accreditation] and has been involved with LIS education for nearly 30 years, I’ll say that accreditation works more often than not, and more often than most people think, though it’s never perfect and rarely makes everybody happy.
James LaRue: To my mind, the key contribution of LIS education is that it steeps our professionals in our deepest values (intellectual freedom and access, privacy, the promotion of literacy) and provides a grounding in essential skills (the reference question, the creation and management of metadata). The conundrum: “standards” tends to be backward looking, and we’re in a time of extraordinary change. Too, there’s a tension between research and practice. What works? Continued robust conversations between faculty and practitioners. Librarians are still trusted in our society, so we’re doing something right.
JP Porcaro: Did you know that ALA-accredited LIS programs are not specifically required to teach students anything diversity-related, and the word diversity is only used once in the curriculum section of 2015 Standards for Accreditation of Master’s Programs in Library and Information Studies? We are being left behind, when compared to the national population, on that issue. LIS programs are also doing a poor job of preparing students for post-graduation success; INALJ eclipses them on that issue. The “what works” part is that we are still graduating strong and active librarians.
Julie Todaro: While LIS accreditation processes require graduate programs to plan strategically and build curriculum based on identification of student outcomes, current criticism of accreditation processes includes: a lack of consistency across core programs and programs that reflect student achievement and student outcomes; a lack of employability programs; and alumni engagement as well as “community” engagement—now an expanding “community” given the contemporary online educational environment. In addition, critics of the current LIS accreditation cite several basic approaches for addressing issues including tackling the lack of consistency with the design and measurement of common outcomes across graduate programs and—not surprisingly—a discussion and implementation of standardized exit exams at the national level. In addition, it might be time for an independent assessment of the process from external reviewers and a discussion of what OTHER professional schools use as measures for benchmarking. In addition, the age-old debate of the wisdom of ALL schools covering all or most areas of the field should be discussed for contemporary viability.
8. What are you reading?
Joseph Janes: As usual, a bunch of stuff. I’ve been into biography, history, and science fiction lately; finished the new biographies of Edward VII and Josephine Bonaparte, a great book on the history of the search for the beginning of the universe, as well as Blackout and All Clear by Connie Willis, and have started William Gibson’s The Peripheral. The last couple of weeks I’ve been re-re-reading Terry Pratchett, who passed away just recently. I’ve read the entire Discworld series and then some; his use of language, his characterizations, and his way of speaking truths through fantasy have always endeared his writing to me. I got a chance to meet him once; he could not have been more generous or more genuine and when he heard that I helped people to become librarians he was delighted. Not surprising, considering one of his more colorful characters is a librarian who also happens to be an orangutan. The copy of The Truth that he signed for me will always be a great treasure.
James LaRue: I just re-read Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy on my Android tablet. I’m also reading (in print) Will Durant’s Fallen Leaves: Last Words on Life, Love, War, and God. Durant, who died in 1981, had a wise, penetrating take on things. His recently discovered manuscript is worth a read.
JP Porcaro: Resonant Leadership by Annie McKee and Richard Boyatzis and the monthly Ms. Marvel comic by G. Willow Wilson!
Julie Todaro: I am reading (and listening to) Outliers: The Story of Success (Malcolm Gladwell) and anything by Dan Ariely as well as anything and everything by Richard Peck. In addition, a graduate school friend writes the best short stories and novellas—Bonnie ZoBell. In fact, I reread her short story “This Time of Night” monthly.
9. Finally, why you—what will you bring to the organization and libraries that no one else can?
Joseph Janes: Much of what I think and believe and want to accomplish is in my writings and presentations, many of which can be found on my campaign web site at http://joejanes.org/. What else do I offer? Breadth of vision, thoughtfulness, and a sense of humor about myself. I can tell a great story, inspire and move people, pose challenging questions and help people develop creative responses. I build consensus within groups and organizations, listen well, and have helped lots of people become what they’ve always wanted to be.I am, fundamentally, an optimist; I believe the best days of libraries and librarianship are ahead of us, using new and old tools and resources to do our important work. In partnership with those who support us and whom we support, we can—if we act with purpose, vision and courage—thrive as the information environment evolves again and again and again.
James LaRue: While I can point to lots of my leadership work in our profession (running largish and successful libraries, chairing various statewide and national library committees and associations that actually got things done), I think what distinguishes me is my work communicating and working with non-librarians. I am the only librarian ever to be named the “Business Person of the Year” by our local Chamber of Commerce—acknowledging the library’s contribution to economic development. Our reference support for another community resulted in a complete redesign of Main Street. I’ve co-founded charter schools and helped launch and teach leadership development programs for civic leaders and teens. As a newspaper columnist and TV host I’ve demonstrated a keen interest and involvement in shared issues, helping to clarify and make meaning as the first step to action. To tie this back to the beginning, the core issue of librarianship in the 21st century is the reclamation of a moral and cultural sanction for our work, a common understanding that libraries are a vital social asset. I can carry that message, and help librarians to embrace it.
JP Porcaro: When my team and I built the ALA Think Tank (with around 12,000 members, we’re over 1/5 the size of the American Library Association itself), we did it in order make an impact on the field. In the words of Jessamyn West: “I’ve been following along with ALA Think Tank for a while. They have managed to do the impossible: making the idea of joining ALA so that you could hang out with these folks seem like a really good idea.” At a time when ALA is hemorrhaging membership (losing about 1,000 members per year), can we afford to continue moving in the direction we are moving, or is it time to “do the impossible” and start injecting energy back into the ALA?
Julie Todaro: I bring a breadth and depth of association leadership and management as well as a large body of literature to support professional development for all levels of library staff. I also have—and believe it to be helpful—experience in all types and sizes of libraries as well as contemporary management and leadership experience in the field. In addition, besides my concentration in public librarianship, I have extensive work in academic settings, as faculty in graduate education and have my K–12 school library certification. Vote for me!