The group met 2-3 times this reporting period.
After reviewing the current PLA Strategic Plan, please tell us:
Describe the current work of this committee and how it supports our strategic goals. Include work accomplished, decisions made, and any recommended follow-up actions.
• Advocacy engagement & environmental scanning: Members are conducting ongoing environmental scans to surface emerging library priorities and policy trends, participating in state library legislative days, and supporting the upcoming Feb 25-26, ALA legislative agenda and National Library Legislative Day (NLLD), while positioning libraries to engage in high-visibility national moments with local and state officials.
Do you see opportunities to better align committee work with those goals?
Storytelling & coalition building: We are developing compelling library stories and partnership coalitions that demonstrate library impact locally and nationally, learning directly from libraries what they need from us to advance advocacy agendas, and preparing libraries to leverage large-scale initiatives like FIFA and America 250 to deepen community engagement.
What recommendations do you have for in-coming committee members? Are there particular streams of
work in progress to be carried over into the new committee year? (January–June reporting period only)
• Strengthening alliances & information sharing: The PLA Advocacy and Strategic Partnerships committee is actively building and sustaining partnerships across library, nonprofit, and civic sectors. Committee members are sharing timely insights among our mighty committee members to align advocacy efforts with the PLA strategic plan and community needs. With FIFA and America 250 ahead, this is a big year for identifying and activating nationwide partnership opportunities.
What specific activities will this committee undertake over the next six months to support that alignment? (July–December reporting period only)
Are there other PLA or ALA committees whose partnership and collaboration would accelerate meeting PLA strategic goals?
ALA Committee on Legislation, and Committee on Advocacy.
Is there anything else about your committee experience you’d like to share?
It's a strong group that has built trust information sharing, and wants to help libraries get what they need without being overwhelming. How can we simplify and support? Thank you!
Submitted by Susan Braukus Hempstead on 02/02/2026