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February 7, 2007
Amy Harmon for ALA Council!
While I was at ALA Midwinter in Seattle, I attended the Libraries We Love reception hosted by BookExpo and Berkshire Publishing at the Seattle Public Library. I wasn't there with anyone, it was just my tired self and my backpack, and it made for interesting mingling, between the vendor types and the librarians in clusters noshing and chatting.
It was at this party that I bumped into a candidate for ALA Council for whom you must vote. I actually met earlier at a Council meeting, and I happened to be her last signature on her petition to run for Council, so it was very cool and serendipitous.
We got to talking, and, well, she's awesome. She's well spoken, understands technology, is a real thinker, is very action-oriented, and has the best interests of librarians in mind. Not long after, I caught Joe Eagan working the room, a fabulous man I'd interviewed for a PLA Blog podcast, who also happens to be the guy in charge of new Council member orientation, and I introduced Amy to him, and mentioned her campaign. After some chatting about how no one gets elected their first time out on the ballot, and how it's mostly about name recognition, Mr. Joe Awesome starts working Amy around the room, campaigning her a bit. We also managed to run into a few other people I'd met earlier in the conference, and I made a point of mentioning her run for Council, working that name recognition.
I am now all about getting Amy elected to Council. She's young, hip, smart, and totally what Council is looking for, according to Joe (and what Council *should* be looking for). So I'm working her name recognition as much as I can.
Here's Amy's platform, as she tells it (it's still a work in progress, and a great place to start):
- There are too few members attending Council sessions. I would like to foster better communication amongst members whether it be through live streaming or downloadable video and/or podcasts.
- I would like to propose that all ALA accredited institutions are required to have practicum programs in place for all MLS/MLIS students. Too many graduates are being churned out of programs without any experience. I would propose that this would be a requirement to graduate at any ALA accredited institution. This program would be requirement as part of the ALA accreditation process.
- I am also an ALA-APA committee member and would like to see ways that the ALA could create a program that would highlight what library workers do in order to demystify and enhance the status of libraries. While the ALA cannot work/lobby for library workers, stressing the importance of the people behind the libraries would hopefully help elevate what we do.
If you've been reading my blog a while, you can tell why this resonates so well with me. I don't think I'll be the only one, either.
So yes, I'm officially endorsing Amy Harmon for ALA Council! You should, too!
February 7, 2007 8:06 PM