New Director Hired for ALSC

Malore I. Brown, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's School of Information Studies, will be the new executive director of the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

Before becoming a professor, Brown was a children's librarian for two years at the Milwaukee Public Library and for two years at the Chicago Public Library, where she was promoted to assistant head of the children's department at the Carter G. Woodson Regional Library.

Brown (whose first name rhymes with "galore") was chosen from a wide array of candidates, because "she's young and energetic and really represents the future of our association and the profession," says ALSC President Virginia Walter. Also, says Walter, "the fact that she's been a children's librarian and library educator gives her a unique skill set. And she's obviously really smart."

Brown's job will involve running the day-to-day affairs of the division, housed at ALA's Chicago headquarters. Initially, she says, "I think it's my role to listen and learn and see how everything is going—not to come in like gangbusters and say, 'It's my way or the highway.'" Her main responsibility, she says, will be to execute the goals set out by the ALSC board of directors. She also hopes her background will help "bridge the gap between practitioners and academe."

During the last academic year, Brown was a visiting professor at the Rutgers University School of Communications, Information, and Library Science. She was on a tenure track at Wisconsin, where she taught courses in both public library youth services and school library administration. Her research has focused on collection development in both digital and traditional libraries, with a focus on multicultural and international children's literature.