Organizational Updates

NJLA Organizational Update: October 2024

NJLA’s Executive Board met on Tuesday, October 15. Here are some of the highlights:

  • Tiffany McClary, Director of Communications, Marketing, and Outreach at the NJ State Library collaborated with NJLA Executive Director, Brett Bonfield, on a Media Training 101 Guidebook to help library staff feel more confident when journalists ask for interviews or comments. The Guidebook is posted on the NJLA website in the Resources section. Our thanks to everyone who made suggestions on the Guidebook, including several members of the NJLA Executive Board, and the newly formed NJLA Public Relations and Marketing Section. You do not have to have “PR” or "Marketing” in your job title to join this section; it’s for any member with an interest in promoting their libraries and programs.

  • The New Jersey Senate's Education Committee approved S2421 (Freedom to Read Act) on September 30. NJLA and New Jersey libraries were represented by Brett Bonfield, Jennie Pu, and Jeanne Marie Ryan, along with the New Jersey Association of School Librarians (NJASL) and the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), and other key partners, including Jen Nelson, the State Librarian. Fittingly, Senator Zwicker, our primary partner through this process, substituted as chair for the Senate Education Committee session. The next step: Senate and Assembly floor votes. We’ll keep you informed as the bill progresses.

  • NJLA President, Jeff Cupo, is visiting Unsung Libraries. This month, he is visiting Worth-Pinkham Memorial Library in Ho-Ho-Kus on October 16, and Collingswood Public Library on October 29.  

  • NJLA is partnering with the State’s Department of Human Services to provide free Narcan at libraries statewide. The Overdose Prevention Act requires libraries (and many other public agencies)  to have Narcan and at least one trained staff member or volunteer. We also encourage libraries to distribute Narcan to those who need it. Narcan saves lives, and conversations around Narcan offer opportunities to answer questions about  harm reduction. Libraries can obtain free supplies through the State’s Naloxone Distribution Program.

  • Congratulations to our latest NJLA Mini-Grant awardees:

    • Young Adult Services Section: Teen Librarian Toolbox ($500): This Mini-Grant will support a speaker for Teen Librarian Toolbox, an annual training held on a current topic to help with the professional development of teen library staff. "Future-Ready Teens: Preparing Our Patrons to Navigate the Age of AI" will be held on November 15, and will focus on helping teens navigate AI during an unsteady time of lack of regulation and misinformation. The featured speaker is Nick Tanzi, a library technology consultant and Assistant Director of the South Huntington Public Library.
    • History and Preservation Section: Preservation for Small or Underfunded History Groups ($750): This Mini-Grant supports a speaker for two sessions at the East Jersey Old Town Village open-air museum in Middlesex County. Dyani Feigi, director of Preservation Services at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, will speak about preserving archival materials on a budget and by those without extensive archival training.
    • Diversity and Outreach Section: Unconference 2024: Community Partners:  ($675): This Mini-Grant offset costs associated with the "Community Partners Unconference" on October 16, which Diversity and Outreach co-hosted with the Library Workers of Color section, enabling the sections to waive registration fees for participants. The conference offered an opportunity to connect with others who are passionate about serving their communities. The keynote speaker was Fred Gitner, Assistant Director of New Initiatives and Partnership Liaison - New Americans Program, Queens Public Library, a recipient of the 2024 I Love My Librarian Award.
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1 NJLA Organizational Update, September 2024
2 NJLA Organizational Update, August 2024
3 NJLA Organizational Update, July 2024
4 NJLA Organizational Update, June 2024
5 NJLA Organizational Update, May 2024
6 NJLA Organizational Update, April 2024
7 NJLA Organizational Update, March 2024
8 NJLA Organizational Update, February 2024