ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Report from the President

By Barbara J. Ford President, ACRL

Underrepresented minorities

At the 1990 Annual Conference in Chicago the ACRL Board of Directors received the final report of the ACRL Task Force on Recruitment of Underrepresented Minorities. This Task Force was established by ACRL President Joseph Boissé and ably chaired by Edith Maureen Fisher from the University of California, San Diego. The report will be reviewed at the fall meeting of the ACRL Executive Committee and appear in the December issue of C&RL News. As we prepare to act on the important recommendations in the report, I wanted to review the ALA Policy Manual for relevant ALA policies.

Under ALA priority Area E (Personnel Resources), Goal 8 states that “Librarianship recruits a racially and ethnically diverse group of high caliber persons.” Under Priority Area F (Library Services, Development, and Technology), Goal 11 states that “Libraries are proactive agencies which meet the challenges of social, economic, and environmental change.”

ALA has an official Policy on Minority Concerns (Policy 59). It states:

“The American Library Association promotes equal access to information for all persons and recognizes the urgent need to respond to the increasing racial and ethnic diversity among Americans. African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian American, Native Americans, and other minorities have critical and increasing needs for information and library access. They are affected by a combination of limitations including illiteracy, language barriers, economic distress, cultural isolation, and discrimination in education, employment, and housing. Therefore, the role played by libraries to enable minorities to participate fully in a democratic society is crucial. Libraries must utilize multivariate resources and strategies to empower minority peoplé. Concrete programs of recruitment, training, development, and upward mobility are needed in order to increase and retain minority personnel within librarianship. Within the American Library Association, the coordinating mechanisms for programs and activities dealing with minorities in various ALA divisions, offices, and units should be strengthened, and support for minority liaison activities should be enhanced.”

Policy objectives include:

“1. Promoting the removal of all barriers to library and information services, particularly fee charges and languages barriers.

“2. Promoting the publication, production, and purchase of print and nonprint materials that present positive role models of cultural minorities.

“3. Promoting full funding for existing legislative programs in support of minority education and training, and to explore alternative funding sources for scholarships, fellowships, and assistantships to encourage minority recruitment into librarianship.

“4. Promoting training opportunities for librarians, including minorities, in order to teach effective techniques for generating tripartite public funding for upgrading library services to minorities.

“5. Promoting the incorporation of minority programs and services into the regular library budgets in all types of libraries, rather than the tendency to support these activities solely from ‘soft monies’ such as private grants or federal monies.

“6. Promoting equity in funding adequate library services for minority populations, in terms of professional and nonprofessional personnel, materials, resources, facilities, and equipment.

“7. Promoting supplemental support for library resources on cultural minorities by urging local, state, and federal government, and the private sector, to provide adequate funding.

“8. Promoting increased public awareness of the importance of library resources and services in all segments of society, especially minority communities.

“9. Promoting the determination of output measures through the encouragement of community needs assessments, giving special emphasis to assessing the needs of cultural minorities.

“10. Promoting increased staff development opportunities and upward mobility for minority librarians.”

Combating Prejudice, Stereotyping, and Discrimination (Policy 59.2):“The American Library Association actively commits its prestige and resources to a coordinated action program that will combat prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination against individuals and groups in the library profession and in library service because of race, sex, creed, color, or national origin.”

Goals for Indian Library and Information Services (Policy 59.3):

“1. All library and information services must show sensitivity to cultural and social components existent in individual Indian communities.

“2. Indian representation through appointment to local boards and creation of local advisory committees concerning services to and about American Indians are essential for healthy, viable programs.

“3. Materials which meet information and educational needs and which present a bicultural view of history and culture must be provided in appropriate formats, quality, and quantity to meet current and future needs.

“4. Library programs, outreach and delivery systems must be created which will insure rapid access to information in a manner compatible with the community’s cultural milieu.

“5. American Indian personnel trained for positions of responsibility are essential to the success of any program.

“6. Continuing funding sources for library and information services must be developed.”

Library Education to Meet the Needs of Spanish- Speaking People (Policy 59.4):

“The American Library Association will take steps through its Committee on Accreditation to encourage graduate library schools seeking accreditation or reaccreditation to assure that course content reflects the cultural heritage and needs of the Spanish-speaking people of the United States and will encourage such schools to include bilingual/bicultural persons on their faculties.”

Latinos in State Agencies (Policy 59.5):

“The American Library Association urges and supports the recruiting, hiring, and promotion of Latinos within the state library structure, especially in the areas of administration and consultation.”