In an effort to help ALSC members make an informed decision before they vote, the blog posts for yesterday and today consist of statements from the candidates for 2026-27 ALSC Vice President/President Elect; one to be elected. Both candidates submitted a written statement. Today’s statement is from Lisa Gangemi Kropp; yesterday’s statement was from Danielle Jones.
Vice President/President Elect Candidate: Lisa Gangemi Kropp
I have gained much professionally over the past 20 years from my involvement in ALSC. I am standing for election as President-Elect to be an active participant as the reunification of ALSC and YALSA begins, so that fifty years from now, library workers serving youth will have a strong professional organization throughout their careers.
When you are in a public library, the children’s and teen departments have to work together because we serve the same audience, just at different times. There needs to be a continuity of services and programs from birth through high school, as the children’s librarians are modeling strong library services to encourage patrons to use teen services, then adult services, and ultimately, to bring their own families into the library! I believe that a circular perspective is essential to the beginning of the reunification process between ALSC and YALSA.
If elected, I promise to actively listen and seek out diverse voices to guide us through a time that will have more questions, perhaps, than answers. When I served as President of the New York Library Association, I came in during a similar period of change (a new Executive Director, fiscal stress, and struggling membership divisions). I visited different areas of NY to engage with membership and hear their concerns and suggestions. I attended monthly committee meetings (5-8 per month) to hear from different areas of membership, and worked with our Executive Board to begin the hard work of creating policy, procedures, and handbooks.
I am currently the Director at the Lindenhurst Memorial Library in New York. Because of my administrative background, I am very comfortable leading collaborative meetings where policies, procedures, and strategic plans are created. I have strong communication skills and am comfortable in the gray areas of change. Change can be messy, but it is also creative, bold, and exciting. My recent year serving on the Newbery Committee was a fabulous lesson in collaborative leadership. Leaning into ALSC’s Community Agreements helped me become a stronger listener, a more engaged participant, and a more empathetic person when considering perspectives different than my own.
These will be useful qualities to lean into if I am elected to serve our members during these years of growth. And, in a world where DEI is attacked and access to materials, programs, and services is being challenged, I will be a strong advocate and voice for all of our members. By focusing on a commitment to organizational excellence as we knit the two divisions together, an EDI lens will help create a respectful and inclusive space together.
If elected, ALA’s core values of Access, Equity, Intellectual Freedom, Privacy, Public Good, and Sustainability will help me work with the Board of Directors, ALA staff, and membership to guide our new division through these challenging times, especially in the current political climate that threatens those core values. I pledge to also uphold ALSC’s core values to support library services and collections for youth of all ages as we work to integrate YALSA’s strategic priorities with ALSC’s.
Finally, as a long-term ALSC member, I look forward to being a new member of our reunified division! The most valuable aspect of membership, in my opinion, is the same for a new or long-term member: the power and strength of a professional network. We can lean into each other with support, with guidance, with encouragement, and with safe voices when the outside world seems against us. I learn something new every time I attend a conference, a webinar, read an article from Children and Libraries, or chat with fellow members in a committee meeting. That is the value of a strong professional division.
Thank you for the opportunity to give back to my professional association in such a meaningful and sustainable way. I am honored to have been nominated to stand for election, and I look forward to our work for the next few years.
Lisa Gangemi Kropp
The 2026 ALA Election opens Monday, March 9th and closes Wednesday, April 1st. One candidate will be elected to the 2026-27 President/President Elect position. Don’t forget to vote!