Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Library diversity and inclusion

Two items: Firstly, the North American Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) has made a statement on diversity. It "reaffirms its commitment to, and promotion of, diversity, equality, and inclusion in the library and information science (LIS) education and professional community, and condemns racism, hate, bigotry, and violence." Additionally "To help LIS instructors teach and promote diversity, equality, and inclusion in their curriculum, we have compiled a list of recent works". The resources can be found at http://www.alise.org/alise-board-statement-on-diversity--equality--and-inclusion
Secondly, published today is: Schonfeld, R. and Sweeney, L. (2017). Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity: Members of the Association of Research Libraries Employee Demographics and Director Perspectives. Carnegie Mellon Foundation and Ithaka S+R. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18665/sr.304524 "In this project, we focus on libraries at four-year colleges and universities within the United States. We asked deans and directors to complete a survey that captured both the demographics of library employees and the directors’ assessment of the diversity climate within their libraries and in the greater library sector."
"This report has shown the difference in various levels of seniority in the library ["homogeneity increases with seniority"], and included nonprofessional staff in the analysis, showing that directors may need look no further than professional development initiatives and growth pathways for MLS-holders to begin diversifying librarianship."
Photo by Sheila Webber: fountains by the conference centre, WLIC, August 2017

No comments: