After three years, my time on the ALSC Advocacy & Legislation Committee has come to an end. When I was first asked to serve on this committee, my initial reaction was to decline (hard pass). What did I know about advocacy (besides being a loud mouth) or legislation (besides that it is usually complicated), in relation to libraries? After talking it out with friends, I regained my composure to accept the initial appointment, and a later appointment as co-chair. Because, ultimately, I saw not only an incredible opportunity to make a positive impact in the profession, but a learning opportunity for myself. As my final act on this committee I wanted to share with you some of the work this committee has done, and encourage you to be involved in a process committee in the future.
During the last three years, this committee has:
- Changed to a fully virtual committee (no requirement to attend national conferences!)
- Surveyed the membership, and youth services professionals outside the membership to gauge their knowledge of advocacy and legislation resources and learn what types of resources would be most useful to their advocacy work.
- Sent Co-Chairs (myself and Africa Hands) to NLLD 2017 to learn, participate, and report back.
- Facilitated a discussion about Advocacy Tools at the ALSC Membership Meeting, ALA Annual 2017
- Collaborated with the Public Awareness Committee to develop a presentation for ALSC Institute 2018.
- Collaborated with the Managing Children’s Services Committee to develop an advocacy webinar for Fall 2018.
- Helped to create and update NLLD talking points, tweets, and Facebook posts.
- Written monthly blog posts to update and educate the profession.
- Totally evolved my understanding and knowledge of advocacy and legislative issues in libraryland!
If you, like me, are dedicated to developing your own self, as well as the profession, consider volunteering for a process committee. Even better, ask to join a committee covering a topic you know little about. Then, be ready and willing to put in the time to learn and contribute. Committee members who actively participate in discussions and projects are far more valuable than subject matter experts who are hard to reach or too busy to contribute to group projects. Serving on a committee is work. It takes time. However, the more committees are filled with hard working members, the more we can accomplish for the profession. So, roll up your sleeves, and get to work!
Read about the appointment process and fill out your ALSC Committee Volunteer Form. You can submit your volunteer form any time, though best practice is to submit after Annual and after Midwinter.
Kendra Jones is a Co-Chair of the ALSC Advocacy & Legislation Committee and is the District Manager for Youth & Family Services for the Timberland Regional Library in Washington State.