In an effort to help ALSC members make an informed decision before they vote, the blog posts today and yesterday consist of interviews with the candidates for 2013-14 ALSC Vice President/President-Elect: Ellen Riordan and Rhonda Gould. Each candidate was given eight questions and submitted written answers.
Today’s interview is with Rhonda Gould.
1. What do you consider the most important role of the ALSC President?
I feel the most important role of the president of ALSC is that of a visionary leader who understands the issues we face in the field of youth services librarianship.
Whether an issue is something affecting all of us nationally such as funding, or an issue one of our members is facing locally, I feel the ALSC president needs to be cognizant of present and future cultural trends in librarianship as a whole order to be the leader our membership needs. I also feel that another role that is as important is to be accessible to the membership and that the membership is empowered to voice their concerns to the president and share their stories.
2. What skills & strengths would you bring to the office?
The biggest strength that I will bring to ALSC is that I am a “big picture” type of thinker who looks beyond the walls of my office to see what is happening in other areas of the library besides youth services and I look to see what is going on in other types of libraries. Often I find that what I learn from those other colleagues is immediately applicable in my own work. In that regard, I am able to share my expertise in youth services and what I’ve learned during my time as a consultant and share that with others. I also have an established and successful track record in leadership positions as president of the Wisconsin Library Association and president of the Collaborative Summer Library Program.
3. What area of library service to children is your favorite?
I really don’t have a favorite area of library service to children, though over the years I have noticed that my professional interests have followed the developmental stages of my daughter, who is now almost 17! At this time, however, I’ve renewed my interest in early literacy and infant development and would like to do more in that area.
Oh, and I LOVE anything to do with summer reading program! So perhaps I should say that summer reading is my favorite area of service! 🙂
4. Why should someone choose to join ALSC? What services do you feel ALSC provides that are valuable to new members? To long-term members? What are your ideas for reaching members? What are your ideas to recruit new members?
I chose to join ALSC initially for the excellent continuing education opportunities my membership provided. I now choose to stay involved for the camaraderie and the shared sense of purpose. Someone should join for two reasons: to improve their skills and knowledge, and for the opportunity to network with some of the best youth services professionals in the country. Someone should maintain their membership for the same two reasons. I feel that what you get out of the organization is what you put in to it, and that will be the message I send to the membership: That we need energy of new and younger members, but that we also need the vitality of our more established members. I think we can grow our membership through more collaboration with our members within state associations and by encouraging more formal and informal mentoring.
5. How has ALSC membership impacted your life? How has your membership in ALSC impacted library service to children?
My ALSC membership has provided me with some of the most rewarding experiences of my professional life. The greatest impact the organization has for me is the network of friends and colleagues I have been able to cultivate over the years through my participation in both committees and on the board of directors. I can’t reiterate enough how valuable the process committee work was in terms of what I learned and how I could apply my newly gained skills immediately once I was home.
Being active in the organization put me at the forefront of many trends and developments in youth services over the years and I was able to share this knowledge with my colleagues locally. I always returned home re-energized after Midwinter and Annual!
6. Changes in the economy and advances in technology are dramatically impacting libraries. What are your thoughts on how ALSC can best continue to be a positive force?
ALSC can continue to be a positive force for its membership by providing information and education to meet these challenges. The economic decline is a fact of life for everyone in libraries and our communities, and that has necessitated changes in how we accomplish our daily work as well as what we are able to offer our patrons in terms of programming, services, and materials. New technologies have changed how we access and process information, as well as how we disseminate it our patrons and staff. Through collaboration among members and forward-thinking education, ALSC will help us meet these challenges and provide the best library services to our communities.
7. What strengths would you bring to help ALSC attain the goals of the ALSC Strategic Plan?
I have three strengths that help attain the strategic plan goals. The first, and most important, is that I am familiar with the workings of the organization and how the committees function to bring about results. The second is that I have experience working in my library career in the three goal areas of advocacy, education, and access to library services. And finally, I firmly believe that this strategic plan provides ALSC with a vision of goals and activities within a framework that allows for us to be proactive in our work to achieve our vision.
8. What else would you like the voting ALSC membership to know about you before they vote?
I’ve told my family on more than one occasion that working in youth services is not just a job or even a career, it’s truly a calling. Some of us consciously chose to go in to this field of librarianship, others (like me) find it by default or accident.
The various threads in my life unknowingly lead me to library services to children and I have been humbled by observing when the right book was given to the right kid at the right time. That’s ultimately what I bring to ALSC. It is an honor to have this opportunity to serve ALSC and ALL of you!
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Thanks so much to Rhonda Gould for answering these questions for the ALSC Blog! And thanks to Ellen Riordan for answering the same series of questions on the blog yesterday.
Voting in the 2013 ALA election will begin at 9:00 a.m. Central Time on March 19, 2013. Ballots close at 11:59 p.m. on April 26, 2013.
Voting is an important part of ALSC membership. If you are an ALSC member… don’t forget to vote!