Category: Libraries

The California State Library and California Library Association are pleased to announce the first cohort of participants in the Catalyst leadership development program. Catalyst is a cohort-based program under the banner of California Libraries Learn (CALL) designed to equip and support California library workers with development opportunities that allow them to lead from anywhere. To ensure a comprehensive and fair selection process, a team of 12 library workers evaluated over 100 applications in a blind review during the initial round. Their aim was to identify a robust cohort that encompasses individuals with diverse perspectives, strengths, and unique lived experiences, all of which contribute to the enriching work carried out in libraries.

Following a thorough evaluation, the final group of 25 individuals was chosen from the pool of top-scoring candidates. Consideration was given to fostering diversity in terms of library types and representation across various regions of California.

The Catalyst cohort participants for this year are:

Name: Joe Ayala
Library: Sonoma County Library

Joe is a literacy associate at the Sonoma County Library system and enjoys reading, walking, sewing, and spending time with his cats. 

Name: Cloud Bell
Library: San Mateo County Libraries

Cloud is currently a Community Program Specialist with San Mateo County Libraries where she enjoys providing systemwide innovative programs and fostering strong community connections. She loves hiking and the outdoors and playing competitive Netball. 

Name: Ruby Buentello
Library: Yolo County Library

Ruby works for Yolo County Library as an Outreach & Programming Librarian. She is a dedicated individual who prioritizes making impactful services available to her community. 

Name: Eric Castro
Library: Carpinteria Community Library

Eric Castro, an immigrant to the US, is an outreach librarian at the Carpinteria Community Library with over 25 years of experience working in different types of libraries with an emphasis on public libraries.

Name: Kyla Carroll
Library: Sacramento Public Library

Kyla has been with Sacramento Public library for about five years, transitioning through the phases of the pandemic in several different branches and is currently extensively involved in DEIAB work through a leadership position on the Equity committee, with a focus on facilitating conversations and tangible changes to volunteer processes. Through Catalyst, she hopes to learn critical skills for tough conversations and how to promote more effective communication to unite front-facing staff with library administration, bringing understanding and inclusion to all levels.

Name: Rosa Cesaretti
Library: Pasadena Public Library

Rosa Cesaretti, who was born in Mexico City, has been a librarian in Pasadena for 10 years, developing equity-based programs that enrich the diverse community. Ms. Cesaretti believes that public libraries are an essential resource where minds are encouraged to grow free of judgment or restraint.

Name: Danielle Davis
Library: Grossmont College Library

Danielle Davis has worked for over five years as a technician within a Marine Corps library system and now works as the lead technical services technician at the Grossmont College Library in southern California. She is very passionate about advocating for the needs of overlooked populations and believes libraries are perfectly situated to take the pulse of local communities while prioritizing DEIA, social justice, and a culture of care.

Name: Gabriella Dixon
Library: Santa Maria Public Library

Gabriella Dixon is a Teen Librarian at the Santa Maria Public Library; she is passionate about creating and fostering long-lasting connections with youth and their families through library services. Gabriella holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from San Jose State University, is a recent MLIS graduate from Valdosta State University, and has her childhood library card framed at her desk.

Name: Glenda Gamboa
Library: Los Angeles County Library

Glenda Gamboa has been with LA County Library since 2012. Currently the supervising Adult Services Librarian at West Hollywood Library, she has a track record of implementing programs that promote inclusion and diversity, most notably launching their Drag Story Hour as part of her previous position as the Children’s Services Librarian.

Name: Elizabeth (Liz) Garcia
Library: San Mateo County Libraries

Liz currently works as an Adult Services and Makerspace Librarian for the San Mateo County Libraries where she focuses on creating and supporting services that expand access to information to all. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and all things pop culture.

Name: Dorothy Gruett
Library: San Luis Obispo County

Dorothy Gruett is the Senior Library Associate and staff manager for the downtown branch of County of SLO Public Libraries and the Committee Head for the Library Green Team. She has a passion for bringing sustainability to libraries, loves to hike the beautiful beach and mountain areas of the Central Coast and has a super cute and feisty terrier that she spoils rotten.

Name: Yvette Herrera
Library: Madera County Library

Yvette Herrera Children’s Librarian at the Madera County Library, she is very passionate about working with the children and the community.

Name: Rene Hohls
Library: Fort Bragg Unified School – Districtwide

Name: Erik Jones
Library: Santa Ana Public Library

Erik is a Bookmobile Librarian at the Santa Ana Public Library. Erik is passionate about giving back to his community and to the institutions that helped him get to this stage of his career

Name: Kari Leos
Library: Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library, Troke Branch Library

Kari is a Librarian Trainee at Troke Branch Library, part of Stockton-San Joaquin County Public LIbrary system and is halfway through getting her Master’s in Library Science. 

Name: Isariya Locke
Library: Fresno County Library

Isariya Locke is a Children’s Librarian originally from Bangkok, Thailand. She earned her Master of Library Science degree from Texas Woman’s University. Isariya is deeply passionate about creating inclusive programs that reflect the diversity of her community.

Name: Heidi Mark
Library: Los Angeles Public Library, Sylmar Branch

After working in a school library for more than a decade Heidi is now an adult librarian at the Sylmar branch of the Los Angeles public library. 

Name: Andriana Martin
Library: Lodi Public Library

Andriana has been working at a Public Library for roughly 2 years now. In her free time she enjoys reading, gaming, and traveling around the world.

Name: Jovanah Martinez-Hoboo
Library: Cutten Elementary School Library 

Jovanah has been the District Library Technician for a small school district in Humboldt County for the last 10 years. In her spare time Jovanah is a Dj, producer of all-ages shows, and slam performance poet.

Name: Terezita Overduin
Library: Chaffey College Library

Terezita Overduin is a Reference Librarian at Chaffey College and works to provide student-centered services, programs, and instruction. She has a passion for UX and library design, and her work will be published in the forthcoming publication “Building Our Own: Critiques, Narratives, and Practices by Community College Library Workers of Color.”

Name: Lauren Patterson
Library: Riverside County Law Library

Lauren Patterson is the Administrative Officer for the Riverside County Law Library. She earned her B.A. in political science from UCLA and J.D. from USC. 

Name: Christy Ricky Meister
Library: San Diego Public Library, Ocean Beach Branch

Christy Rickey Meister is the manager of the Ocean Beach Branch Library, part of the San Diego Public Library system. She is committed to connecting her community to needed services, information, and enrichment in a warm, welcoming, and safe environment. 

Name: Elsie Rivas
Library: San Diego Public Library

Elsie is a self-professed Jill of many trades mostly delving into creative ventures such as sewing or crafting. A spooky loving gal with infinite curiosity and endless optimism, a lover of romance novels, Pedro Pascal, Star Wars and her family.

Name: Alicia Rodriguez
Library: Los Angeles Public Library

Alicia Rodriguez is a bilingual outreach librarian and she loves sharing information about FREE library services with EVERYONE especially the Spanish speaking communities. She loves horror films and she has a sewing program called It’s Sew Cool! 

Name: Valerie Tohom
Library: Los Angeles Public Library

Valerie is a San Jose State University graduate student earning her Masters in Library and Information Science and a Messenger Clerk with the Los Angeles Public Library. 

A guest post by Linda Hofschire, Community-Centered Libraries and Meg DePriest, California State Library

Do you work with quantitative data such as demographics, outputs (circulation, program attendance, etc.), or survey responses? This fall and winter, the California State Library and Pacific Library Partnership are providing training on equitable data practices as part of the Community-Centered Libraries: Harnessing the Power of Data to Equitably Serve Your Community project. This training will enable you to:

• Gain a greater awareness of how the subjective choices you make when working with quantitative data have statistical and human consequences 
• Become conscious of whose lived experience you are prioritizing in your data projects
• Acquire tools and skills for working with quantitative data so that it aligns with the intended experiences of the people you care about
• Develop connections with peers around California who are engaged in similar work

We’re offering this training in a variety of formats so that there is something for everyone! You can participate in:

1. Webinars: Are you curious about this topic but don’t have a lot of time to dive deep?  Join us for our four-webinar series. We encourage you to attend all of the webinars, but you’re also welcome to sample sessions that look interesting. 

2. Cohort: This is for people who want to dive deep into a data project and connect with peers around California who are doing similar work. Cohort members will participate in eight sessions online between October and February, work on a project, and meet in person in May (travel stipends will be provided). The deadline to apply for the Equitable Data Practices cohort is October 5^th.

3. In-Person Workshops: Do you learn better in-person rather than online, and want to meet with other data people to socialize and learn together? We are offering one-day workshops in Sacramento and Ontario in May 2024.

Heather Krause, data scientist and founder of We All Count, will be leading all of the Equitable Data Practices trainings – webinars, cohort, and in-person workshops. The first webinar has already occurred and you can check it out in the Community-Centered Libraries online community space (all California library workers are welcome to join this space!). After attending this webinar, one participant commented, “the presentation was so impactful and the information provided feels really actionable.”

During the winter and spring of 2024, we will offer a webinar series, in-person workshops, and cohort learning opportunities on the topic of Culturally Responsive Evaluation. You can learn more about these opportunities on the Community-Centered Libraries website.  

Questions? Please contact Linda Hofschire, Community-Centered Libraries Project Manager. 

Have you taken an on demand learning module in CALL Academy lately? If you haven’t, you’re missing out!

CALL Academy is a great way to learn at your own pace. Learning modules can be accessed any time of day, any day of the week. Most take about an hour to complete, but if you can’t finish in one session you can come back anytime to pick up where you left off!

CALL Academy has over 800 learning modules to choose from on various topics such as communication, crisis situations (like de-escalation), leadership, trauma-informed practices and more!

But, like any collection, sometimes the CALL team has to do some weeding. Check out these learning modules before they’re gone!

• A Trauma Informed Approach to Dealing With Difficult People
• Developing Employee Career Paths
• Helping Patrons with Social Media
• Fighting for the First
• From Diversity to Inclusion: Auditing Your Collection
• Library Partnerships 101
• Performance Evaluations: A Skill-building Refresher for Library Leaders
• Providing Mental Health Information to Patrons
• Speaking Volumes: Podcasts for Patrons and Professionals
• Understanding Intellectual Freedom and Censorship

Trying out CALL Academy for the first time? Create an account using your library email address for instant access. If you don’t have a library email address that’s OK! Sign up using your personal email address and you’ll receive a short email from CALL to verify your library affiliation.

CALL Academy is a resource available to all library staff in California, library volunteers, and individuals associated with various library projects.

California library workers are invited to a no-cost training about co-design that will help libraries engage with their communities AND craft stronger services and grant proposals. If you want to find out about co-design, register to learn more at a 90-minute webinar, Exploring Co-Design: Fostering Inclusive Collaboration in Libraries, on Thursday, September 28 from 10-11:30 a.m. (The webinar will also be recorded and made available at CALL Academy.)

But what is co-design? Simply said, co-design incorporates community engagement into your work. Training in co-design helps libraries plan with communities, instead of for communities, and use a “nothing about us, without us” mindset, where community member voices are an active part of the planning and implementation process. Co-design’s not an add-on; it’s a way of thinking based in equity.

Why is this training timely? The California State Library’s five-year plan aims to promote equity in services and programming. For example, Goal 1 of the LSTA plan is to “Strengthen the ability of California libraries to design equitable programs and services in collaboration with their local communities.” A success indicator for this goal is that co-design be embedded in the creation of programs and services.

Co-design and equity are fundamental parts of the State Library’s grantmaking process. Here’s one of the questions you’ll answer in the current LSTA Inspiration Grant 2023-2024 application and in future LSTA 2024-2025 applications, opening in early 2024. “Describe how your project has been designed and will be implemented in collaboration with the marginalized community(ies) on which your project will focus and other members of your community.” Specifically, the application instructions explain: “Provide information about how you will: include co-design activities for library staff and communities to learn about local marginalized populations and develop a shared understanding and language of equity principles and practices; engage staff in professional development activities that integrate equity-centered learning with practice; include new or expanded partnerships and collaborations in which libraries engage with community stakeholders and groups from targeted populations; engage staff in understanding barriers to service for and with marginalized populations and in implementing strategies to remove barriers. Note: The State Library understands that this section of the application requests information and activities that may be new or unfamiliar to some applicants. Respond to the best of your abilities and reach out to State Library staff with any questions. Applicants’ responses will determine the level of support that grantees will need from the State Library if a project is funded. Responses will not determine whether or not a project is funded.”

Open opportunities that refer to co-design include LSTA Inspiration Grants, which close November 30, 2023 at 12:00 noon, or once all available funds have been awarded. Inspiration Grants provide Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funding for California libraries that are inspired to implement projects outside of the State Library’s other funding opportunities. Inspiration Grants provide funding for projects that may not fit within the bounds of the other grants offered by the State Library and/or for ideas that are generated outside of other funding opportunity application timeframes. If you have an idea or project you’ve been waiting to implement that addresses community needs and aligns with community aspirations; supports improvement, innovation, and experimentation in library services; and can be completed by June 30, 2023, you’ll definitely want to learn more about co-design as soon as you can!

You’ll want to refer to the full application for questions and definitions, but here’s the definition of co-design used: The process of designing programs and services together with community members, instead of making decisions for community members. Co-design enables library workers to build strong relationships with the community and empowers community members to take a lead in the design and implementation of library programs and services. Co-design democratizes the design of services by equalizing the power dynamics between multiple community assets, making everyone partners in the design of programs and services. Inviting a group of teens to be part of a library’s Teen Advisory Board to co-develop, co-plan and co-implement library programs for teens in that community is an example of co-design. (Adapted from the “Our Philosophy” page of the VRtality website: https://www.vrtality.org/about/our-philosophy/.)

Helping California Ensure Their Libraries’ Direction Is Consistent with Community Needs

Guest Post by PolicyMap and Meg DePriest, Library Programs Consultant, California State Library

The California State Library, in collaboration with Pacific Library Partnership, is now offering free access to PolicyMap as a resource for data and mapping for public library administrators and workers. California’s public libraries are essential institutions for fostering community progress and well-being. Trustworthy information from diverse yet reliable sources is crucial for making strategic decisions. Here’s a snapshot of how PolicyMap can elevate the offerings of public libraries in California for the betterment of communities:

• Exploring Beyond Census Data: Although Census data is vital, there’s a universe of information. PolicyMap recently wrote a blog post about additional sources for deeper community analysis.

• Informing Strategic Planning: Libraries must understand communities/ evolving needs. PolicyMap’s geographic information offers insights into local demographics, assets, and needs, enabling libraries to align services and resources effectively with their communities. An easily accessible Community Profile Report can be produced for any area you draw on the map, a radius around your central library or branch, or by clicking the library district name, as in this example where we chose Solano County Library. Download a sample report.

• Simplifying Data Collection: Administrative reports, strategic plans, demographic reports, and grant reports, to name a few, may require extensive data collection from multiple sites. PolicyMap simplifies this work by providing the information you need one place, making data collection efficient and thorough. You can collect and download data from 150 disparate sources.

• Enhancing Collection Management: Library administrators generate reports for their Boards, local and state governments, grantors and donors, the public and their staff, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), which provides federal support for libraries. Awareness of your community ensures that your library collection resonates with the diverse needs and interests of the community.

• Designing Targeted Community Programs: Libraries can harness local data from PolicyMap to curate collections and design programs that directly address and engage a community’s unique needs. In this example, we have clicked on the boundary for the Monterey Library District to download information about educational attainment with a list of public schools, including enrollment information, into a CSV spreadsheet, or you can view the data in the sidebar.

• Supporting Grant Applications: Using PolicyMap, librarians, grant writers, and board members can provide compelling evidence and impact statistics that grantors often seek, bolstering the quality of grant proposals. Information that identifies a gap or need in the community that the grant will address—such as demographic information about the community including age groups, access to fresh, healthy foods, educational attainment, languages spoken, and access to the internet or computers–is readily available and easily understandable with maps to support current information.

• Facilitating Patron Research: Whether you’re supporting students working on projects, local entrepreneurs seeking market insights, or community activists wanting neighborhood information, having reference staff equipped with PolicyMap means patrons get in-depth maps, trend charts, and community profile reports.

• Promoting Digital Equity and Ebook Projects: PolicyMap can be valuable in understanding digital divides, helping libraries design projects that address inequities, and ensuring all patrons have equal access to ebooks and other digital resources.

• Accessing Information for Needs Assessments: Beyond just offering books and digital resources, libraries can use PolicyMap to conduct comprehensive needs assessments, providing in-depth information and helping position the library as a community anchor.

• Inclusive Design with Communities: Designing programs with communities, rather than just for them, promote inclusion, equity, and belonging. Libraries can use PolicyMap to deeply understand community assets and needs and then begin to design in tandem with local aspirations.

• Narrating the Library’s Story: A story well told can be transformative. Library directors can harness maps and information from PolicyMap to convey the library’s narrative, impact, and vision to boards and governing bodies, leading to stronger support and understanding.

• Championing Inclusivity: Using PolicyMap, libraries can identify areas of marginalization or underrepresentation, ensuring library services and resources are crafted to be inclusive.

PolicyMap Empowers Libraries to Develop Offerings That Meet the Evolving Demands of the Neighborhoods They Serve

PolicyMap isn’t just a data tool. For libraries, it’s a means to deepen community connections, inform strategic decisions, and ensure every patron feels seen and served. By leveraging this information, libraries can be more adaptive, inclusive, and practical, cementing their role as indispensable community pillars.

Interested in using PolicyMap? Request an account here. Guidance for use is available on the platform. Training sessions are available twice a week; register here. 

PolicyMap is now available to all California public library staff as part of a statewide initiative by the California State Library and the Pacific Library Partnership to support libraries in making equity-based, data-driven decisions for community impact.

This project is supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.

We are excited to invite all library workers in California to learn about Catalyst, a new leadership development program (formerly Developing Leaders in California Libraries). 

Catalyst is designed to equip and support California library workers with development opportunities that support leading from everywhere. The Catalyst program will last for a total of 18 months. During the first 12 months, participants will be part of a cohort that meets both online and in-person to learn, reflect, and work on projects that apply their new skills and ideas. After the first year and the completion of a final project, the cohort will continue to meet on a monthly basis for an additional six months to deepen their learning, network, and reflect on their experiences. (Please note that activities beyond the first project year are contingent on funding being available for the second year.) 

Catalyst will be led by two new incredible CALL Team members–Maddy Walton-Hadlock and Joseph Sanchez.

Maddy Walton-Hadlock‘s inspiration to lead was sparked when she heard her kindergarten teacher replace the term “bossy” with “future leader”. Over the last 15 years, she has had the opportunity to develop leadership skills as a librarian, supervisor, and administrator in California libraries. She has also contributed to libraries as a trainer, facilitator, project advisor, and consultant. Maddy’s belief in the inherent strengths and expertise of individuals drives her passion for supporting library workers to feel confident in their abilities. Outside of work, Maddy enjoys singing in a choir, walking for miles with her family, and watching videos of dogs making friends with cheetahs and finding their forever homes. She’s excited to connect with this year’s Catalyst cohort and embark on a journey of growth and development together.

Joseph Sanchez grew up visiting his local public library every week, and even got kicked out for skateboarding as a teenager, which did nothing to curb his enthusiasm and love for libraries (or skateboarding). He has academic and public library experience in California, Colorado, and Hawai’i. He has spent much of his career solving personnel, budget, and communication challenges and enjoys supporting and mentoring library workers in their professional growth. He is looking forward to the communication and mentoring opportunities with the Catalyst cohort, and growing new relationships.

Interested in learning more about Catalyst? Be sure to join Maddy and Joseph for one of the upcoming information sessions below. Also be sure to check out the application which is now open!

• Information Session – September 8th at 10:00 am
• Information Session – September 12th at 1:00 pm

This no-cost program is brought to you by California Libraries Learn (CALL), which is a joint project of the California Library Association and California State Library.

Thanks to the Building Forward state grant funds administered by the California State Library, many public libraries around the state are planning or in the middle of infrastructure projects. Whether your library is addressing deferred maintenance needs or constructing a new building, professional guidance can make the process smoother.

The American Library Association conference in June featured several sessions on building projects, and CALL is happy to bring two of these events to California audiences: The Top 5 Mistakes Renovating Your Library, a one-hour webinar on Tuesday, August 1, and Build Better: Effective Library Project Management, a one-hour webinar on Wednesday, August 16.  Plus there’s a six-week course on Planning and Management of Library Buildings from ALA, starting August 14.

If you want to learn more than just these just-in-time offerings, don’t forget the recordings from Carlos Baffigo’s Building Basics and Building Basics Continued series, available 24/7 on CALL Academy.

The Top 5 Mistakes webinar from ALA focuses on renewing existing library structures. A renovation is a golden opportunity to renew your space for a new generation of patrons. But not every library has staff with current experience renovating, so every year, libraries make the same 5 mistakes when renovating. Join NYU professor and author of Library Space Planning: A PLA Guide David Vinjamuri, library architect Joe Huberty of Engberg Anderson and community librarian Julie Retherford (who just finished a two-year pandemic renovation) to learn their secrets for a successful renovation and how you can avoid the most common pitfalls.

At the end of this webinar, you will be able to:

• Create a renovation plan that avoids the most common mistakes libraries make when renovating;
• Understand the process to uncover hidden community needs;
• Measure the circulation efficiency of collection items and identify dead zones;
• Spot red flags when hiring a design team; and
• Assemble a cross-functional team that will preserve the original vision for the renovation through completion.

The Library Project Management webinar from ALA provides an overview that applies to all types of library improvements to help you achieve your system’s objectives. Learn strategies for effectively communicating your project goals to a design and construction team and leave with the tools necessary to prepare a detailed needs assessment and project scope. Charleston County Public Library’s Project Manager Toni Lombardozzi, who has a background in architecture and construction project management, is currently overseeing a $108.5 million capital improvement project that includes small renovations to larger-scale new construction. Lombardozzi has spent the last six years on the project and will share insights into the cross-disciplinary experience of working closely with both library staff and design and construction teams and provide tips and tools on how to make this type of communication effective. This presentation is geared towards anyone with an upcoming improvement project. However, the project management strategies presented can be applied to a wide range of ventures not limited to construction. If you have worked on design/construction enterprises before, you’ll find innovative ideas for successful project implementation, and if you are new to this practice, you’ll learn the groundwork for efficiently advancing projects.

By the end of this webinar, attendees will be able to:

• Successfully prepare a viable needs assessment and develop a detailed project scope;
• Given a capital improvements project, attendees will be able to accurately translate project goals and objectives to consultants, design and construction teams;
• Will have the tools to create practical strategies for successful project implementation within their organization; and
• Given a capital improvements project, attendees will be able to effectively identify project deliverables throughout progressive project stages.

Register now for these great webinars, selected to help California library staff reach their goals!

If you have more time to devote, consider enrolling in Planning and Management of Library Buildings, which runs August 14 to September 25. (Please remember that you can only enroll in one CALL-sponsored course at a time, and when you register for a long-form course, your space is reserved and must be cancelled if you cannot attend.)

This course, led by instructor Kimberly Bolan, will provide learners with an understanding of the key elements, best practices, methodologies, and overall processes for successfully planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and evaluating library buildings. The overarching goal of the course is to prepare participants to lead any type of facilities projects with the knowledge of how to plan and build functional, adaptable, forward-thinking, community-centric libraries and spaces.

You’ll learn to:

• List building maintenance and operation procedures for effective budgeting and selection of maintenance programs and staff.
• Describe short- and long-range capital improvement and facility development plans.
• List procedures in employing architectural, engineering and consultant assistance in building maintenance and development programs.
• Describe key components and required information in developing building programs.
• Describe the planning and construction processes for renovated or new facilities.
• Describe the roles of other governmental entities in developing building programs and renovation/new facilities plans.
• List life and safety issues in building operation and planning.
• List technology planning needs and building requirements.
• Describe post-occupancy evaluation procedures.
• Understand issues related to emergency, disaster, and other unexpected situations within the building.

The University of Washington has recently released a new Autism-Ready Libraries Toolkit to help you develop more inclusive services and programming. Your library may already offer a sensory-aware storytime, but how else can you promote accessible and inclusive services? The toolkit’s three modules include Autism Acceptance and Inclusion, Autism-Inclusive Customer Service, and Inclusive Early Literacy Services. Children and adults with autism have a variety of interests and needs, and library staff discussions can begin with a discussion of neurodiversity, consideration of generalizations and misunderstandings about autism spectrum disorders, and ways to build improved understandings. The toolkit will then help you explore how to build better services to all patrons and develop inclusive family programming.

We’re grateful to our friends at WebJunction for their excellent July 2023 article, which contains links to the toolkit training modules, useful resources, a free course, and a recorded webinar.

A guest post by Ivan Aguirre

“There are no heroes, only heroic decisions.” In upholding the freedoms to exist in public space some library leaders have been called heroes and lately some villains. In light of that, we must ask ourselves one important question. Who do we become when we move into positions of leadership? What do our decisions as leaders say about us?

In leaders we ask them, why? Why is this the way? Why do libraries suffer the brunt of ignorance? Why are we as library staff, and institutions, at the mercy of a so-called neutrality? Why do we sit by as more privileged yet less qualified counterparts advance past us? Why do our patrons have to go home hungry? Why do our patrons seek shelter with us only to leave shelterless at closing hours? Why does the subjectivity of an odor dictate a person’s access to our services? Why do we think we are so imperative to the communities we serve but always seem to be on someone’s budget cut list? Why do we do what we do? Why? These questions stem from an instinctive reaction to understand the world in front of us. However, too many of us only ever ask why and never move into the what of an issue or land on the opposite end jumping to a what before ever knowing the true why.

As a former cohort member turned coach mentor for the Developing Leaders in California Libraries (DLCL) program I have been privileged to understand leadership in ways that would never have been afforded to me otherwise. I am a Chicano library manager having worked in 3 different libraries on various grants that hold equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) core standards to implement equitable changes to library service. In my managerial and EDI work experience I have seen the worst and best of what lies in holding a position of leadership. From being bodily threatened for my race to falsely accused in attempts to fire me on more than one occasion, through it all though I am still here. Just the same, some have called me a hero but more often than not a villain. Through it all I’ve been asked why. Why put myself in a leadership role if the toll is beyond pay or benefit? It’s because if I can make the difficult decision to stay and endure then maybe I can help find the answers to my own whys. Why is there a toll to begin with? Why am I taking on a higher rate of risk due to my culture and race? In the silence of lacking a satisfactory answer, I must ask why. As a leader it is my chosen duty to then understand the why at its root, before I can ever hope to understand the ripeness of any one of that why’s whats. What can I do to make this better not only for myself but for those around me and those who will succeed me? What can we do as members of evolving institutions? What can my sphere of influence do? What can I do to be an ally? What can I do as a leader? The answer is simple. Ask yourself why? In our current reality, with the best or worst of intentions some of us are at the mercy of someone else’s “What we are going to do is…” The consequence of never asking “why” in building an equitable “What we are going to do is..” as a leader? It is a consequence of ignorance in which its cruelty is felt upon the backs of those in silence who carry the weight of your institution and influence.

What struck me in my time working alongside the DLCL team is the tumultuous yet transformative power of what lies in taking a why and using it to build an equitable what. This year a great deal of time was taken to conduct root cause analysis for each team’s brief papers, in other words asking for the true why or whys of an issue. Every single cohort team came to similar themed conclusions of inequity being at the core of many issues affecting the public. The two teams I was fortunate to work with focused on the inequity of the housing voucher process (Cloud Whorl, Alma Madrigal-Ward, Cherie Buenaflor, Meghan Croll, with mentor coach Robert Karatsu) and inequitable food access (Tamiko Boyd, Susie Quinn, Katrena Woodson, with mentor coach Mandy Nasr). Any member from those teams respectively can attest to the sheer volume of understanding required to tackle either topic let alone provide readers of their brief papers a solution. Yet, like those who came before them they rose to the challenge and stood on the shoulders of giants  to not only deliver amazing work but more importantly grow into leaders in their own respect by applying an equitable lens to the work so many of us encounter on a daily basis. These cohort members made the heroic decision to step into a light to decry inequity. Each of those members day in and day out make the heroic decision to point to flaws in our systems, especially the systems designed to address inequity and choose not to stop at the “why” or jump up to accept just any “what”. DLCL gave them the opportunity to step up as leaders and to go beyond the toll of daily library work that burns so many of us out to share in the burden of betterment as a community of leaders. On a final more personal note I, like Fin another coach mentor from this year’s cohort, am sitting with gratitude. Gratitude for the teams I worked with. Gratitude to Linda Braun, Nicole Rawlinson, Christine Bolivar, LaKesha Kimbrough, Caitlin Martin and Danis Kreimeier for allowing me the space to learn and grow as a mentor coach. For all that I’ve seen and experienced in terms of cruelty, just the same there has been mercy and love. Mercy in DLCL’s mission to give leaders the opportunity to acknowledge their own flaws with tools developed through trial and error. Love in meeting and working with allies like Fin Minjee Lee, Akiliah Manuel Mills, Robert Karatsu, Mandy Nasr, Alysa Cua, Patty Alvarado, Leslie Masland, Elan Delgadillo, and many others through DLCL. I hold hope for a new generation. You ask me why? It’s because I’m not alone.

As 2023’s DLCL cohort comes to a close. To you, current and future leaders, in the face of being called a villain or even hero, know that it was never your duty to be either. I ask of you, when the time comes that you make the same heroic decision that every DLCL cohort has taken on not only for yourself but for those of us who continue to endure. Be equitable, be inclusive, and be love.  

With determination, 

Ivan Aguirre el luchador.