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A Diversity Audit of Juvenile Picture Books: What we did, what went well, what we would never do again!!
This event is being held online via a Zoom meeting.
Stephanie Anderson of Albany Public Library will share the library staff's experiences and lead a discussion on doing a diversity audit of their picture book collection.
From Stephanie:
After attending multiple webinars and training sessions related to creating diverse collections, I was frustrated by a lack of information on the "How To". I chose to use an outside vendor for APL's overall collection, but with picture books, genres and subjects are not always listed in the record of the book. A hands-on approach appeared to be a good way to assess what was in APL's collection. A working group of Youth Services Librarians and I would have to figure out how to structure an audit from the ground-up, without any solid examples to guide us.
In this discussion, I am going to go over what our working group at APL created, what went well, and what absolutely did not work at all. I have several suggestions for "what to do the next time", based on what we learned throughout this process. This discussion will be less about outcomes, and more about "how do I start" with information on the pitfalls you may encounter along the way. The outcomes of our audit were encouraging.
About the Presenter: Stephanie Anderson has been the Head of the Collection Management Services Department of Albany Public Library since 2018. Prior to joining APL in 2014, she spent time as a Children's Dept. Lead Bookseller and Merchandising Manager for Barnes & Noble. She has an MSIS in Archives and Records Management from SUNY-Albany. To encourage the CMS Staff's professional development, she often enrolls them in collections or cataloging courses, as a group, for fun!
Related LibGuide: Diversity Equity Inclusion