I'm Interested in Diversity in the Profession

Diversity in our profession is everyone's responsibility - bring your voice and ideas to these sessions. 

Interested in other topics? Check out the conference scheduler and use the drop down "Subject" search field or visit the interests pages to see other topics. 

Saturday 

Climbing the Ladder: African American Deans and Directors Speak On Leadership
Saturday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
Librarians who are new to the profession or those who are approaching mid-career and are contemplating moving into management often seek advice on how to advance in the profession. African American Library Deans from predominantly white institutions (PWIs) and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), representing both private and public institutions, will discuss the supervisory and managerial skillsets necessary to advance in academic libraries. 

APALA President’s Program: The Things We Do Make A Difference
Saturday 10:00AM - 11:30AM
In 2020, the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) will celebrate its 40th anniversary in serving and advocating for APA librarians and communities. Throughout the years, APALA has been involved in providing library services such as programming and diverse collections to libraries. In addition, the organization has been in the forefront of discussions on larger issues in the profession and library services such as equity, diversity, and inclusion. As APALA reaches another milestone, its members are continuing essential and innovative work in and out of libraries. 

ACRL President’s Program: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion... and Leadership: Where Do We Go From Here?
Saturday 10:30AM - 12:00NOON
Issues of equity in diverse workplaces, and the trend towards more inclusive language and policies, often leaves leaders in the difficult position of navigating the needs of the organization and the need to help the organization accommodate today's workforce. How can leaders effectively influence and motivate their teams, when the individuals on those teams struggle with the challenges of poor communication, collaboration, culture, change and conflict? Dr. Angela Spranger, author of Why People Stay: Helping Your Employees Feel Seen, Safe, and Valued addresses contemporary issues around diversity, leadership, and inclusiveness throughout the employment lifecycle. 

Implementing Equity and Diversity Training
Saturday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Are you looking to add Equity and Diversity training to your staff development? Hear from a panel on how they implement this training.

Diversity, Equity, and Justice Talks: In and Beyond the Library
Saturday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Technology is often championed as the great equalizer--a perfect set of tools and services that make our libraries run more smoothly, and reach broader audiences. It is important, however, to be critical of the ways technology does or does not address inclusion, equity, or systemic oppression, or indeed exacerbates core problems. 

Intersectionality and the Experience of LGBTQ+ Folks
Saturday 4:00PM - 6:00PM
LGBTQ+ folks in the library world face a range of issues that often overlap with other forms of oppression, including gender, race, ethnicity, ability, economic status and education level. Queer library folks with multiple identities often struggle to find acceptance and belonging, feeling excluded and invisible within an already marginalized community. This panel explores intersectionality and the ways that multiple forms of oppression are interconnected. Panelists discuss how each of their lived experiences is different. 

Sunday

New Destinations in the Recruitment, Retention and Advancement of People of Color to the Library Profession
Sunday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
In spite of ongoing diversity initiatives and programs by organizations such as ARL, ACRL and other groups, recruitment, retention and promotion among library and information studies (LIS) students and library workers is lagging. Two recent projects, the REFORMA Telling Our Stories: Community Building to Recruit and Retain Latinx to the Library Profession grant and the Hampton University Forum on Minority Recruitment and Retention in the LIS Field grant, both awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), address the need to set new goals and create profession-wide efforts to look at the recruitment and retention efforts if we really want to diversify the profession.

Monday

The Sense of the Self: How Identity Informs Academic Librarianship
Monday 9:00AM - 10:00AM
Autoethnography is a qualitative research method centered on personal experiences; through self-reflection and observation, it presents an opportunity for researchers to actively examine themselves and their sense of self as they relate to the cultural, social, and political context surrounding them. It also presents an opportunity for library professionals to critically explore our own field at large, as well as how diversity, inclusion, and the intersectionality of our identities impact the practice of librarianship. 

ALCTS President's Program
Monday 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Marcia Chatelain, Associate Professor of History and African American Studies at Georgetown University, will discuss her forthcoming book, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America. The days of black-owned funeral homes, insurance companies, and banks anchoring the central business district of the once labeled ‘colored sections’ of cities are long gone. In their places: McDonalds, KFC, Taco Bell, and other fast food joints in the now simply segregated quarters of our cities, suburbs, and exurbs. We think we know the story of what the presence and impact of fast food in communities of color means. Poor people eat too much of it. The jobs it provides pay too little. Children are too enticed by it. But, as the food revolution looks to eradicate trans fats from American diets and enthusiastic, do-gooders plant gardens in inner city schools, few have stopped to ask the most important question: How did we get here? How did fast food outlets spread across the South Side of Chicago, the central core of Los Angeles, and the southeastern quadrant of Washington, D.C.? How did a concept borne in the suburbs become a symbol of urban deficit—nutritional and economic? 

Bringing Culture Back: Managing Unconscious Bias to Strengthen Your Corporate Culture
Monday 1:00PM - 2:00PM
Have you ever examined the sources of unconscious bias and how it can influence interactions with others? Have you ever understood how cultural values impact our own biases and interactions? Understanding unconscious biases and cultural awareness are critical first steps towards improving our performance, however we cannot stop there.