Dr. Carla Hayden (Image Source: Library of Congress)
In the fall of 2016, Carla D. Hayden had just been confirmed as the 14th librarian of Congress—the first woman and the first African American to hold the position. Hayden, AM’77, PhD’87, was wandering the stacks in the James Madison Memorial Building, familiarizing herself with the vast collections under her charge (at that time, more than 164 million items).
[Clip]
A five-decade career in librarianship has made Hayden familiar with these “pinch-me moments.” She has experienced plenty herself and seen others quickened by the discovery of certain books or historical objects. Now at the helm of the world’s largest library, she wants to share these moments with everyone in the country.
“The effort to open up the institution and its collections to the general public has been at the heart of what Carla’s doing,” says David Ferriero, who, as head of the National Archives, worked closely with Hayden until his retirement in April 2022. Hayden has poured resources into digitization. She seeks to draw children and teenagers and people of color to a place that, historically, has expended little effort attracting or welcoming them.
She is trying, above all, to bring the library into people’s lives, highlighting its role as a keeper and shaper of America’s prismatic story.
[Clip]
It never occurred to her, though, to become a librarian. She majored in political science and history at Roosevelt University in Chicago, where she had moved with her mother at age 10 after her parents divorced.
Upon graduation, unsure whether to pursue a law degree or a master’s in social work, Hayden applied to jobs as she tried to make up her mind. When she wasn’t interviewing, she would retreat to the central branch of the Chicago Public Library downtown. It was there one day that she ran into a college classmate who asked if she was applying for one of the open library positions. They’re hiring anybody, he told her.
Hayden was assigned as a library associate to a storefront branch on 79th Street. It was 1973. She knew nothing about being a librarian except the stereotype—glasses, hair in a bun, spinster, demure. Her first day she found her new colleague Judy Zucker, a white woman in jeans sitting on the floor reading books to a group of autistic Black children.
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area.
He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.
Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
Here’s the Full Text of a JSTOR Release: JSTOR, part of the non-profit ITHAKA, announced today the release of the first books in Path to Open, a new program designed to ...
From the Canadian Urban Institute: OVERDUE is the outcome of three years of engagement with Canada’s urban public libraries through one of the most extraordinary periods in human history – ...
From the Yakima Herald-Republic: With a housing market slowdown choking off a key source of its funding, the Washington State Library is shaving hours and pausing virtual inquiries to librarians. Effective this ...
From NLM: NLM is excited to announce that long-time leader and innovator, Stephen Sherry, PhD, is now our Acting Director. Dr. Sherry has 25 years of experience performing research, education, ...
Florida Judy Blume, James Patterson and Other Authors are Helping Pen America Open Florida Office, “To Counter Florida’s Surge in Book Bannings in Recent Years” (via AP) ||| Learn More: ...
UPDATE: An Announcement From the University of Chicago is Also Available: UChicago Library Expands Access to Banned Books Amid National Debate Over Censorship From a DPLA Announcement: The Digital Public ...
Here’s the Full Text of the IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) Statement Released Today: IFLA has been informed of the decision to withdraw the invitation to hold ...
From Statistics Canada: In Canada, the 6.2 million persons with disabilities often experience challenges related to accessibility in their daily lives. While persons with disabilities face unique experiences and challenges ...
From the Office of the Inspector General, Library of Congress: The Library’s digital planning and execution activities have resulted in numerous accomplishments. Despite these achievements, more work remains to clearly ...
EDUCAUSE 2023 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report: Holistic Student Experience Edition Missouri Kansas City Public Library Introduces a New Logo (via KCPL) Public Library of Science (PLOS) A New Open Science Indicators ...
The bill linked below was posted on September 29, 2023. From the Summary: Requires online sellers of books created wholly or partially with the use of generative artificial intelligence to ...
From the Video’s Description: Beloved reading advocate, writer, and television and film star LeVar Burton is leading this year’s Banned Books Week, which takes place October 1–7, 2023. He’s ready ...