2020 WLA Candidate Statements

Board Candidate Statements

Vice President/President-Elect

Danielle H. Miller

It would be an honor to represent WLA membership as Vice President/President-Elect. I served as chair of the Special Libraries Division in 2017 and 2018, and currently serve as secretary. During my tenure as chair, we developed a mission, charter, toured special libraries, and forged a strong relationship with the Special Library Association, Pacific Northwest Chapter. My experience bridging the diverse areas of the Division would be foundational to my work with our organization.

Contributing to an active library community while learning from my colleagues is essential to me. I have been the director of the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library (WTBBL) for the past 11 years, a statewide service which is part of the Washington State Library. I serve as vice chair for the Libraries Serving Persons with Print Disabilities ALA Roundtable, serve on the Executive Steering Committee of the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Pacific Northwest Region, and represented the Western Conference of the Network of Libraries for the Blind and Physically Handicapped as chair.

During my career, I have also worked in academic and public libraries which provides valuable insight for collaborating with the Divisions to continue to build a cohesive WLA. My time at WTBBL has instilled a deep commitment to inclusion and accessibility. I would follow in the footsteps of leaders before me, and listen to membership about how we can truly honor each other and continue to become a more diverse, inclusive, and supportive organization. In my leadership role I can actively work towards advancing the goals of the library community, equity in our field, and our commitment to lifelong learning.

Board Director, Public Library Division Representative

Lisa Vos 

My name is Lisa Vos and I am the Circulation Supervisor at the Colville branch of the Libraries of Stevens County. I have worked with my library system for almost seven years and I know I have found my calling in public libraries. Working in a smaller public library, I am exposed to various types of library work, including (but not limited to,) developing programs, delivering WSL kit programs, tech help, research, collection development/management, scheduling and writing procedures. I have been an active member of WLA for six of those seven years, serving as WALE Conference Chair, WALE Vice-Chair/Chair/Past Chair. I am your current Intellectual Freedom Section Chair and I would like to continue my involvement within WLA as a Board Director for our Public Library Division. Thank you for your consideration!

Board Director, School Library Division Representative

Erin Bethel

Candidate statement to come

Rebecca Wynkoop

I am excited and humbled to be considered for the School Library Division Representative for the WLA Board of Directors.  I began my career in libraries as an undergrad in 1994 at the University of Washington working in the Drama Library, the Libraries' Gift Processing Section and the Mathematics Research Library.  Shortly after finishing my MLIS at the iSchool, I began my career in school libraries in Seattle, WA (The Bush School for 5 years, Eckstein MS for 5 years, Daniel Bagley ES for 5 years).  I am currently the teacher librarian at Robert Eagle Staff Middle School.

This past year, Seattle Schools, along with far too many school districts in our state faced deep budget cuts that left many school librarians fearing for the loss of their jobs, their prized library programs and fearing for their students who would be the direct and immediate victims of a state model for education that merely recommends school librarians, rather than requires them.  It has become abundantly clear that we need to not only update and define our critical roles within our schools but that we need the strength, community and advocacy of the WLA to work with our State Legislature to strengthen the language in our prototypical schools model to ensure all students in Washington have access to a qualified teacher librarian, a budget to continue to provide critical services to students and clear direction for those in power who make decisions about the health and well being of our school libraries.

Student Representative to the Board

Kaitlyn Griffith

My name is Kaitlyn Griffith and I am so excited and honored to run for the position of 2020 WLA Student Representative. I am a proud WLA member and MLIS student at the University of Washington. For nearly 7 years I have served the Pierce County Library System in a variety of different positions. I began as a volunteer before being hired as a Library Page, and I have recently advanced into the position of Senior Branch Assistant at the PCLS Fife branch. I focus much of my time and studies on teen and young adult services, technology literacy, and advocating for public libraries. 

I had the opportunity to attend my first library conference earlier this year during the joint OLA-WLA conference in Vancouver, WA. I was inspired by the amount of dedication many conference sessions demonstrated towards teen services. I am passionate about revitalizing teen and young adult interest in public libraries through the exploration of new technology and the evolving world of programming and video games. I strive to provide opportunities for teens to express who they are and what they want from their local libraries and from their communities.

As a Student Representative, I would serve as a bridge between those who research and create library science curriculum and Washington library advocates in order to promote strong communication and encourage the sharing of new, innovative ideas. I would be honored to serve as the WLA Student Representative of 2020 and would work hard to keep my fellow students connected to all the amazing work WLA does. Thank you! 

Division Candidate Statements

Academic Library Division - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Amy Thielen

My name is Amy Thielen and I have worked in Access Services for the Holland & Terrell Libraries at Washington State University for 3.5 years. In this position, I maintain a variety of responsibilities, including providing customer service to patrons at service desks, training student employees in their duties, and providing patrons access to materials through involvement in resource sharing services. For the WSU Libraries, I have experience working with faculty and staff in other library departments, including performing a weekly reference shift and serving on the libraries’ health & safety working group, library services strategic planning task force, and employee engagement working group. Currently, I am in my second year as chair of our employee engagement working group and believe this leadership experience overseeing regular meetings and coordinating trainings for library staff will aid me in the position as WLA Academic Division vice chair/chair.

In the future, I would like to see the WLA Academic Division coordinate regular virtual or onsite training sessions for library faculty and staff working in all aspects of academic libraries. In the WSU Libraries’ employee engagement working group, we conducted a library staff survey to help our decisions regarding what types of professional development training our colleagues were seeking, chose training topics that apply to a wide variety of staff, and offered applicable trainings via webconferencing platforms, including Zoom. This allowed staff from WSU campuses throughout the state to view the training sessions. I would like to replicate and coordinate these types of training offerings for the WLA Academic Division, based on the interests and needs of division members.

Pursuing the position of WLA Academic Division vice chair/chair would increase my leadership and supervisory experience to the benefit of patrons. Thank you for your consideration for this position.

Public Library Division - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Carol Ellison

Hello! My name is Carol Ellison and I’m thrilled to have been nominated for Vice Chair/Chair-Elect of the Public Libraries Division. I’ve been a member of WLA for more than 10 years, and involved with WLA since 2012 when I took that first volunteer shift at a conference. From that moment I was hooked! From 2013-2015 I served as WALE Secretary, where I learned the ins and outs of conference planning and gained valuable leadership experience. I was also recognized with the WALE Outstanding Employee of the Year Award in 2016.

I’ve worked in public libraries for over 20 years, the last 14 at the Everett Public Library. I began my career in a small Midwestern library where everyone was trained to do a little bit of everything. I’ve worked the checkout desk, filled in for storytimes, resolved complicated patron complaints, conducted reference interviews, troubleshot computers, processed materials, and cataloged them. I’ve been everything from front desk staff to supervisor.

This variety of experience allows me to observe a situation and simultaneously consider it from several different perspectives. How could this impact the patron? Reference staff? Youth Services? Circulation? I’m currently a cataloger where I consider these angles every day when creating access points.

I am passionate about the value of public libraries and bringing new voices into the conversation. Many of the ideas I have to increase participation in the Division are asynchronous, like e-forums and Twitter chats. With shrinking training budgets and the varied schedules we work in public libraries, we can no longer rely on traditional meetings to reach the maximum number of members. I’m living proof that if you can reach someone just once, you may have hooked them for life.

I would be honored to have your vote. Thank you!

Public Library Division - Secretary/Communications

Elizabeth Koenig

Hello! I am running for Secretary/Communications of the Public Libraries Division. When I served in this position in 2018 I really enjoyed it, and would like to have another chance to see the division grow and develop. During that time we hosted quarterly online meetups, sent out monthly newsletters, and held a programming roundtable at the WLA Conference in Yakima, which included my own indigo dye hands-on demo.

I have volunteered as secretary off and on for various organizations over the past 20 years, and in my current position I have been in charge of creating my library’s public newsletter for nearly five years. I stay on top of tasks, communicate well, and meet deadlines. I am a hard worker and a good team member and feel confident in this role. Besides being a lifelong library user, I have worked in public libraries since 2007, as a page, in circulation, as a children’s liaison, and then finally as a librarian, so have a good understanding of what libraries excel at and struggle with today.

I would like to see the Public Library Division become an active and vibrant piece of WLA. One idea we discussed when I was on the team in 2018 was organizing regional get-togethers to share knowledge in areas such as programming and customer service. I believe this could be inspiring and empowering to our wide variety of public library employees around the state.
Thank you!

School Library Division - Chair

Hillary Marshall

I am honored to be considered for the Chair position for the WLA School Library division. My name is Hillary M. Marshall and I’m the Washougal High School Library Media Specialist. I have been an educator for 24 years and a school librarian for 20 years in various elementary, middle and high schools in Washington and overseas in South Korea, Brazil and the Philippines. I bring a wealth of K-12 school librarianship experience and a regard for including all cultures.

I am a strong candidate for this position due to my strengths and experiences. This past year, I have served on the WLA ScLD Committee as your Communications representative. I worked with our WLA ScLD Chair and Vice Chair and understand the leadership this role requires. Due to an unexpected move of our Vice Chair, I am the most qualified person to fulfill this role. I understand the advocacy needed to change the mindset and reveal the impact that a certificated librarian with a classified library assistant in each of our public schools benefits all in the learning community. We finally achieved this library model in Washougal and were featured in a recent Alki Milestones article.

As our WLA School Division heads into more advocacy work, making sure all dollars allocated for our school libraries are given to benefit our collections and services for our patrons, I envision an energetic, collaborative, and innovative school librarian is needed for the job. I’m that girl! Thanks for the opportunity and consideration.

School Library Division - Secretary/Communications

Elizabeth Roberts

Hello, my name is Elizabeth Roberts. I am excited to be running for the secretary/communications position for the School Library Division of WLA. I am currently in my 9th year as a school librarian, including 4 years as a K-12 librarian at an international school in Brazil and am entering my 5th year as an elementary librarian in the Bellevue school district. In additional to my role as librarian, I am also currently the K-5 Information Literacy Curriculum Developer for our district. In the past two years in this role, I have been a district advocate and trainer for our 18 elementary libraries and 22 elementary librarians.

If elected as Secretary, I look forward to supporting all our school library division members and helping to create better connection and communication within our division. I’m also looking forward to learning more about how our local association works from the division board position so that I may help move us forward as an association. I am particularly interested in how we are supporting equity and inclusion in our school library practices and making sure that all our work, communication and recommendations are viewed with an equity lens that matches the resolution for inclusion of materials that reflect the diversity of our society.

Special Library Division - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Laura Edmonston

Having spent the majority of my career serving in special libraries and seeing every day the important role they play, I would be honored to be elected as Vice Chair/Chair-Elect of the Special Libraries Division. I am currently the Deputy Law Librarian (Reference) for the Washington State Law Library and for the past two years, I have been a special libraries representative for WLA’s legislative committee. My work at the Temple of Justice follows years of experience as a legislative librarian for the Louisiana House of Representatives.

As Vice Chair/Chair-Elect, I would use my experience and enthusiasm to be a passionate advocate for special libraries and the essential services they provide. I would work to continue to build the presence of the Division and create opportunities for colleagues to learn and collaborate.

Special Library Division - Secretary/Communications

Carmen Tinker

My name is Carmen Tinker, and I am running for Secretary/Communications of the Special Library Division. After working in public and academic libraries, I have found the unique pleasure of working in a special library at the Washington State Library, where I have now worked for nearly two years. My previous involvement experiences in WLA serve as strong stepping stones into this position. Last year, I helped coordinate and run the Career Lab at the 2018 WLA Conference in Yakima. This year, I served on the WLA Legislative Committee in 2019, for which I was the Engage point person, facilitating our committee’s use of the ALA provided software to send out legislative advocacy actions to WLA members. I believe that this grounding paired with my love of organizing and planning make me the ideal candidate for this position.

Since becoming a librarian, I have enjoyed the opportunity to connect with other library employees and pursue professional development through WLA. I look forward to the chance to help increase the WLA involvement opportunities specifically targeted to those of us in special libraries by collaborating with and supporting the chair and vice chair of the Special Library Division as well as increasing communication to our division members. Thank you for your vote.

Section Candidate Statements

Collection Development & Technical Services (CATS) - Chair

Jocelyn Kehr

My name is Jocelyn Kehr and I am interested in being the Collection Development & Technical Services (CATS) chair. For almost two years I have worked at the Puyallup Public Library and have loved working on Collection Development projects. Currently, I am in the middle of an intense (is there any other kind?) weeding project of the Adult Fiction section. Although I am relatively new to the profession, I have a deep respect and commitment to public libraries and the access they provide to vital resources. Providing the public ways to access those resources through Collection Management and Technical Services is one of the first steps and I am so excited to be a part of that process.

In the future, I would like to help new members to WLA and the profession feel welcomed and included in the organization and to support ongoing training.

Collection Development & Technical Services (CATS) - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Julie Graham

Hi, my name is Julie, and I have a book acquisition problem. Thankfully for my own bookshelves and floor space, my job involves helping select and order materials for Yakima Valley Libraries. I’m about to celebrate my 14th anniversary here – I started as a copy-cataloger in Technical Services, and then moved to public services before being hired for my current position as part of the Collection Development department four years ago. I believe libraries are a vital – and wonderful – component in our communities and schools.

I have previously served as CATS co-chair, was involved with TRIP (now part of SAIL), and helped with planning the 2011 WLA conference. I was co-chair of the Greater Yakima Friends of the Library for several years and continue to assist the Yakima Valley Libraries Foundation with its biannual book sales. One of my favorite projects the past few years has been coordinating YVL’s Winter Reading Challenge for adults. I love participating in the monthly EarlyWord galley chats (#ewgc) on Twitter and get very excited for each month’s LibraryReads reveal.

I’d like to help develop more learning opportunities for collection and technical services topics, in collaboration with other sections and divisions when applicable. (E-materials are certainly going to be a major issue for the foreseeable future.) I look forward to seeing CATS and WLA continue to grow and appreciate this opportunity to support that.

Thank you kindly for your consideration.

Children & Young Adult Services (CAYAS) - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Nic Figley

I am excited to further commit to the success of CAYAS by submitting my candidacy for Vice Chair/Chair-Elect. I’m an early career Youth Librarian currently working as a Public Service Assistant at King County Library System (KCLS) where I have worked since 2015. For the 2018/2019 year I have been a part of the Steering Committee for CAYAS and been active in several KCLS committees.

Working at KCLS has given me experience with collaborative projects and my role in CAYAS as a Steering Committee member has prepared me to take on a leadership role. During my time in a Reader Services committee I have been mentored by colleagues who have modeled great leadership, and as a Summer Reading Committee member I have been able to collaborate creatively. I have dedicated time to outreach efforts at KCLS and in my personal time have lead panels on topics I’m passionate about.

No matter the role I fill, I plan to get input from all CAYAS members to focus our role in Youth Librarianship. I want to strengthen our section by connecting school and public librarians, including early career librarians and LIS students who will carry on this work. Career growth needs to be accessible to everyone, which means addressing systemic barriers to conferences, workshops, and mentorship opportunities. I want knowledge to be exchangeable throughout the year, not just during conferences. This is how I envision CAYAS and WLA in the future. Should I be selected I will focus on recruiting new members and increasing participation, improving communication, and creating spaces for library workers experiencing systemic barriers to contribute and lead.

Children & Young Adult Services (CAYAS) - Position #1, #2

Jodeana Kruse

My goal is to serve the young adult readers within the State of Washington, and I believe that can be done most effectively when I collaborate with other librarians. I have been an active member of the Washington Young Adult Review Group (WASHYARG), the Evergreen Teen Book Award Committee, in addition to two national book juries. I have been a presenter at WLA conferences representing the Evergreen Teen Book Award and as an educator who wanted to bring the issue of teen human trafficking to librarians who, at that time, had had little exposure to the issue.  I would like to continue to build bridges between CAYAS and the School Division of WLA.

Brandi Gates

I am excited to be considered for Position #1 of the Steering Committee for the CAYAS division of WLA. I am a relatively new Youth Services Librarian at the South Hill branch of the Pierce County Library System. Like most Children’s Librarians, I love my job and I am very enthusiastic about my work. I thoroughly enjoy creating programs that are fun and educational for children and their caregivers; I have so much fun in the process and I try to share my enjoyment and enthusiasm with others. Though I have only been a librarian for a year, I have planned and presented over 100 fun and engaging programs, on both a large and small scale, for children of all ages. I am passionate about building and sustaining a community where everyone involved can learn and grow together.

I plan all of my programs with the expectation that the process is the most important part, though the outcome is important, the process is where learning and development take place. This position is the perfect opportunity to apply my enthusiasm and process oriented program planning skills to connect librarians so we can foster a community where we all share ideas, learn and grow as people and librarians, and ultimately have practical information to take back to help enrich the lives of our library communities. I look forward to being more involved with WLA to help create a thriving community of youth librarians.

Sue Hart 

Hello!

I’m Sue Hart, Youth Services Librarian at the Ellensburg Public Library. This is a position that I’ve held for 4 years, after being mentored as an Assistant for 6 years and living here for 25 years. Working in this smaller, stand-alone library, I have the opportunity to wear many hats and provide a broad array of services and experience. Not only do I provide storytimes for babies, toddlers and children from visiting schools, I also maintain a collection for youth of all ages, run the after-school book clubs, recruit and train volunteers, create fun programming for all ages throughout the year, and engage with our community supporters. The work of a small town librarian can have its own challenges different from larger branched libraries.

As a steering committee member, I would bring a voice from the eastern side of the state that reflects the needs and concerns of the smaller library. Working well with a modest budget, fewer staff members and less notice from governing agencies, smaller libraries can feel bigger through the community support that Washington Library Association brings and the collaborative connections we build.

Drawing on my years of growing community support and engagement, I will bring programming that can assist rural libraries toward reaching bigger goals.

College Libraries Across Washington State (CLAWS, formerly CLAMS) - Chair

Greg Bem

I have been a faculty librarian at Lake Washington Institute of Technology (LWTech) since 2015, and prior to that served in education and technology positions in Philadelphia, Phnom Penh, and Seattle. I am currently the library coordinator for the college. As an academic librarian responsible for information literacy instruction, collection development, and community programming, I am committed to exploring the transformation of higher ed in Washington State and beyond. My interests include exploring and advancing open education, and supporting the ongoing effort for openly-licensed materials. My personal interests include water ecology, the Cascadia bioregion, contemporary poetry, and video art. I live in South Seattle.

College Libraries Across Washington State (CLAWS, formerly CLAMS) - Secretary

Katie Hart

I am very excited to be celebrating a decade of working as an academic librarian next month! Currently, I am the Information Literacy Librarian at Centralia College. My past positions are Education Materials Center Librarian at Texas A&M University – Kingsville, Agriculture & Life Sciences Reference at the University of Idaho, and Head of Instruction Services at the University of Washington Tacoma Library.

I have been fortunate over the past decade to contribute to our profession in a variety of service roles, including: serving as a member on various ACRL committees, as member-at-large for ACRL WA, and Co-chair of the Social Issues group of USAIN. I am interested in serving as Secretary to CLAWS as I am new to community/trade college librarianship and felt this role would allow me to more deeply connect with colleagues across the state as well as learn more about CLAWS from the inside.

Intellectual Freedom Section (IFS) - Secretary/Communications

Karen Kline

Greetings WLA!  I urge everyone reading this to click over to the WLA Intellectual Freedom section's webpage at: https://www.wla.org/ifs As past secretary of the IF section among other duties I have worked to maintain and update the section's website. I hope you will find something useful there. When we report issues of censorship to the WLA IF leaders as well as ALA's Office of Intellectual Freedom, we are upholding core values of our organization. Reports can be made anonymously and assistance and support is there for the asking. Through reporting and sharing issues of censorship we can all become wiser about how to improve and maintain the freedom to read. Unfortunately, there are organized groups and individuals who threaten our rights to attend Drag Queen Story Times, read George by Alex Gino, and even use research databases in public libraries.  Libraries and the public at large face limiting access issues to facilities as well.  Everything from library meeting rooms challenges to artwork and posters in libraries to closure of school libraries in order to facilitate state-mandated testing are just some of the insidious issues we are all struggling with. If elected, I hope to organize an online Zoom meeting of the IF membership to discuss ​these and other issues facing our membership.  I hope you will join us!

I have been a public school teacher-librarian for seventeen years. I earned my MLS at the University of Arizona -- Bear down, Wildcats! I am National Board Certified. Before serving as secretary of IF I was a co-chair of the IF section. I would be honored to continue serving the WLA membership as IF secretary into 2020.  Thank you for taking the time to vote!

Leadership Is for Everyone (LIFE) - Secretary/Communications

Katy McLaughlin

I’ve discovered through my work with the Yakima and Prosser Leadership groups over the last seven years that I have a passion for developing leadership skills in people across fields and positions. I am currently a Prosser Leadership Board member and the curriculum co-director, and the process of refining our program has enriched my understanding. I am the secretary of the Prosser Rotary group and my hometown Granger Friends of the Library; the conscientiousness and attention to detail required seem to be useful in any organization. I have worked to develop my own leadership skills in various library positions; have offered staff training my branch and across the library system, in-person and in groups; and regularly push for ongoing skill development for every staff member.

I haven’t been active in WLA in recent years due to my young children but would like to get more involved now that they are reaching school age, and I think assisting with leadership development in libraries would be a good fit. I would love to help build LiFE as a section; our professional passion should be bolstered with the skills to drive change, inspire our staff, and make wise and compassionate decisions in lean, stressful times. I like the idea of assisting in providing opportunities to connect and develop leaders across the profession, in ways that work for busy and budget-conscious libraries.

Library & Information Student Section (LISS) - Chair

Marissa Rydzewski

Hello, my name is Marissa Rydzewski and I am entering my second year as an online MLIS student at the University of Washington’s Information School. Additionally, I work full time as a Library Technician II at the Gallagher Law Library. I work in both the Circulation and Research Services departments. In my position, I get to combine my passions for organizing, public service, and promoting access to legal research. I have worked for the library for over six years. My main duties are to set policies, train students, answer legal research questions, and assist librarians with administrative tasks. During my time at Gallagher, I have used innovative thinking to enhance our policies and procedures, updated our library guides, and created a more open and welcoming space for our users.

Throughout my years of experience, I have learned how to communicate, set directions, and delegate. All of these qualities are the reasons why I’m running to be the Chair of LISS. I think this would be a great leadership opportunity and give me the chance to become more involved with my library community. My goal is to take what I have learned as a Library Technician and as an MLIS candidate and apply that knowledge to the LISS. Furthermore, I would like to support fellow students pursuing a career in librarianship by advocating for our interests. I am committed to building a library community that fosters communication, collaboration, and creativity.

Serving Adults in Libraries (SAIL) - Chair

Beth Wood 

Thank you for considering me for Chair of SAIL (Serving Adults in Libraries). Earlier this year, I was promoted to a Senior Public Services Librarian position within my library district – Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries. I have worked at FVRL at the Vancouver Community Library branch since this branch opened eight years ago. The positions I have held have all been focused on adult services. In 2017, I was invited to join our district’s Adult Services Advisory Group, a workgroup made up of coordinators, librarians and branch managers who meet to discuss the services and opportunities that we provide for adults in our libraries. I was the Chair of the Adult Services MiniCon in 2017 and 2018 – day-long events for adult services staff to engage with each other to learn about, improve and expand our district’s services. This year, I was asked to become Chair of that workgroup. Serving as SAIL Chair for WLA strikes me as a natural extension of my interest and career focus.

I am passionate about libraries and the ongoing need for them, as well as for trained librarians to assist the public in navigating the vast amounts of information they are faced with every day in our current world. Training staff and mentoring peers to be the best they can be has been a focus of mine since becoming a full-time librarian. I hope to be able to connect with my peers to better our services for adults throughout the state of Washington.

Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) - Chair

Samantha Hines

I’m the Associate Dean of Instructional Resources and Library Director at Peninsula College, and a PhD candidate in Ethical and Creative Leadership at Union Institute and University. I chose to work at the community college level because of the social justice component of access, one which librarianship shares. Equitable access to information is a human right and a library worker’s responsibility. I’ve focused my professional efforts around developing better connections between library services and social services and addressing the equity gap in librarianship. I would love to extend my experience with WLA and build on my past work with the Montana Library Association and ALA’s Social Responsibilities Round Table with this position.

Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) - Vice Chair/Chair-Elect

Alexa Andrews

My name is Alexa Andrews and I am both a Branch Manager for Whatcom County Library System and MLIS student at San José State University. I earned my undergraduate degree in Political Science and Cultural Anthropology, giving me a solid foundation of the ways that government and culture intersect as well as how patterns of discrimination are codified in society, whether intentional or not. I found my home in libraries, where we operate every day at this intersection, because our professional values include protecting free access to information and equity of opportunity for everyone.
I can bring much experience to this role, both as a leader and facilitator of difficult conversations. I served as Co-Chair of the Whatcom Democrats Outreach Committee (Jan. 2017 – Aug. 2018), have presented on issues of women in leadership for a national audience, and was recently selected to participate in a Whatcom County Library System work group to address our service to underserved populations.

If elected, I would like to facilitate more conversations about the tougher issues facing our profession today, including the friction between safe spaces and freedom of speech, equality vs. equity of service, the impact of cultural and socioeconomic differences on access, and whether libraries can (or should) be truly neutral entities. Such conversations won’t be easy and won’t always identify a clear path forward, but this is the kind of messy, uncomfortable work that excites me. I am thoughtful, highly organized, and ready to work with my peers to help WA libraries reach our potential.

Washington Library Employees (WALE) - Secretary/Communications

JoLyn Reisdorf

I am excited (and nervous) to be considered for the position of Secretary/Communications of the WALE section of Washington Library Association. I am a fairly new member, and after attending the OLA-WLA Conference, I knew I wanted to be more involved with library employees in Washington. For the past 12 years, I have been a paraprofessional at Tacoma Public Library, and I am lucky enough to work at my neighborhood branch which allows my neighbors and patrons to see me in our community both at work and outside of work.

Building and being a part of a community has always been important to me because of this I have been a Girl Scout volunteer for 20 years, and I have been the Recording Secretary for my union’s Local for the past year. As recording secretary, I have maintained the meeting minutes and worked with our International union to use a content management system to build a new website.

If elected for the Secretary/Communications position, I would aid the chair in building a stronger community amongst library employees.

Washington Library Trainers (WALT) - Chair