Search

The article "Up Front" by Johanna Jacobsen Kiciman reflects on her year as the outgoing Washington Library Association (WLA) Board President, emphasizing the passage of time and personal growth. Topics include her impactful Neurodivergence & Libraries Presidential Summit, efforts to improve internal WLA structures, and gratitude for the collaboration and support received during her presidency.

The article focuses on the impact of budget decisions on school library programs, particularly in the Evergreen School District, and the importance of advocating for the preservation of these programs. Topics include the challenges faced by libraries due to funding cuts, the need for advocacy and collaboration within the library community, and the initiative to build connections both within and outside the library world to strengthen support for libraries.

The article reports that Wowbrary, runs a service that automatically queries the catalogs of subscribing libraries for new acquisitions into the decisionmaking process that produces partner newsletters. Topics include person making the complaint assumed the organization had made an intentional selection for promotional material; and racist with well-documented attempts to use pseudoscience and statistics based on discredited assessments with library workers.

The article explores LIS 563, Cultural History of Children's and Young Adult Literature, has traditionally offered a survey of canonical children's literature (the White canon), starting with early texts like hornbooks and battledores, dipping into Puritan texts, Rationalism, Romanticism, The Golden Age of Children's Literature, and ending with (if there's time) a drive-by introduction to contemporary texts by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) authors.

T oday, WCLS has 10 branches (with an 11th in the works), a Bookmobile, and a Library Express to serve the citizens of W ashington's most northwesterly county. -Submitted by Mary V ermillion, Community Relations Manager at Whatcom County Library System Bookmobile at Whitehorn School: Whatcom County Library System is celebrating its 75th anniversary. T o ensure WCLS' rich history lives on, staff recorded library patron stories and scanned memorabilia for the W ashington Rural Heritage website's digital collection. [Extracted from the article]

The article presents the author's views on giving oneself the option of not finishing a book, giving a break, and closing a book if one needs to. She shares that being a librarian, she used to finish every book she read. She discusses that during the COVID-19 pandemic, she barely had the energy to finish a book that did not meet her particular parameters for comfort reading.

The article discusses perspectives to coalesce into ONE VOICE for all libraries in Washington, D.C. Topics discussed include information on how library advocacy calls for ecosystem thinking about the interrelated role of libraries in communities; growing expertise in recognizing inequity, in striving to be inclusive, in building community coalitions; and community engagement skills to bring digital equity and literacy.

The article examines whether the Bellingham Public Library would continue to serve as a severe weather shelter in the future and reflects on the importance of libraries as a public forum. Topics discussed include concerns expressed by both staff and library patrons over how traditional library services were affected, and ways found by the library to continue to remain a vital support to those experiencing housing insecurity.

The article presents Reenergizing and Reconnecting, which includes keeping open communication and being open about the impacts of the pandemic on work at the library and in our lives has been helpful in strengthening the team. This also keeps us motivated for when we come out the other side stronger and better equipped to be creative and energized serving our patrons and our community.