Author: Gregory L. Reese

Publisher: American Library Association

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 156

ISBN-13: 9780838907627

"As librarians enhance their commitment to the ideals of multicultural service & their recognition of the rich diversity of U. S. society, the single largest obstacle to realizing this commitment is the profession's failure to recruit & train a diversified work force." Kathleen de la Pena McCook Stop Talking & Start Doing! Recruiting Minorities to the Library Profession is a practical guide to finding, nurturing, & retaining a diversified workforce for libraries that reflects & attracts the communities they serve. Minorities now make up around 26% of the U.S. population & by 2000 are expected to make up one third. However, the library profession is not keeping pace with these changes. The profession has, for the most part, failed to attract new members from the very populations that can benefit most from library services: people who are younger, non-white, & from a variety of ethnic & social backgrounds. The number of minorities entering or already working in the library profession is minute compared to the populations served by libraries. Minorities, including African Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, & Asians make up only 10% of new LIS graduates. The total number of minority librarians working in academic & public libraries is less than 12%.It has become imperative to recruit a diverse workforce for the library profession. Authors Reese & Hawkins provide clear & workable solutions to attracting new faces to add diversity to the profession. The authors provide practical ways to attract, recruit, & mentor minorities to the library, including: Marketing strategies geared to the tastes & perspectives of minorities & young people Practical methods for mentoring minorities Guidelines on the role of library schools in minority recruitment Gregory L. Reese is one of a handful of African American Directors of public libraries in the United States. He is the Director of the East Cleveland Public Library. He was the 1998 president of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. Mr. Reese regularly gives presentations to library professionals on recruiting & retaining young people & minorities. In 1996 he was named one of the "Seven Most Powerful Black Men in America" by Ebony Man. Ernestine Hawkins is the Deputy Director of the East Cleveland Public Library. She was the first President of the Cleveland Area African American Library Association & is currently serving on several national committees of the American Library Association.