School Librarian Runs for ALA Presidency
This article originally appeared in SLJ's Extra Helping. Sign up now!
By SLJ Staff -- School Library Journal, 9/30/2009 2:00:00 PM
Sara Kelly Johns, a school librarian from New York, and Molly Raphael, a retired public library director from Oregon, are the two candidates running for president of the American Library Association for the 2011–2012 term.
Raphael, who began her career as a children’s librarian, was named Multnomah County library director in the fall of 2003 and retired last May. Prior to that, she spent 33 years with the District of Columbia Public Library. Raphael has spent 35 years advocating for the profession through service to ALA. Most recently, she was president of ALA’s Library Leadership and Management division.
 |
|
Molly Raphael |
As a media specialist serving grades 6 to 12 in Lake Placid, NY, and as past-president of the American Association of School Librarians, Johns already has a campaign slogan—“SKJ for ALA,” with the tagline of Energy, Enthusiasm and Experience. She also has her own Web site and is associate editor of the AASL publication Knowledge Quest.
 |
|
Sara Kelly Johns |
The last school librarian to serve as an ALA president was Ann Symons of Alaska in 1998. Since then, school librarians Linda Williams of Anne Arundel County, MD; Barbara Stripling of New York City, and Ken Haycock, professor and director of the School of Library and Information Science at San José State University in California and past president of AASL, have had unsuccessful bids for ALA president.
