The group met 4-6 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.
The EDISJ Committee has supported PLA’s strategic goals by using consensus-based decision-making to identify 5 committee projects that support EDISJ work in libraries, including:
Project 1: EDISJ & MEAC conference proposal on PLA Project Outcome & Benchmark
-Addresses PLA goals related to EDISJ, Professional Growth, Advocacy & Awareness, and Organizational Excellence.
Project 2: Host EDISJ Conference Listening Sessions at ALA & PLA
-Addresses PLA goals related to EDISJ, Transformation, Professional Growth, Advocacy & Awareness, and Organizational Excellence
Project 3: Create a living document of EDISJ library resources by state.
-Addresses PLA goals related to EDISJ, Transformation, Professional Growth, and Organizational Excellence.
Project 4: Create a document with base-level accommodation language that does not require HR/official paperwork, including developing talking points for staff in libraries that celebrate religious observances and how to communicate with supervisors about time off.
-Addresses PLA goals related to EDISJ and Organizational Excellence.
Project 5: Basic training series for library workers on EDISJ
-Addresses PLA goals related to EDISJ, Professional Growth, Advocacy & Awareness, and Organizational Excellence.
Do you see opportunities to better align committee work with those goals?
The EDISJ Committee could follow the work of other committees more closely to see if there are additional opportunities for collaboration.
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)
N/A
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?
EDISJ is already collaborating with MEAC, but we could also partner with the Leadership Development Committee to help funnel emerging minority leaders into the EDISJ committee so that they have an opportunity to build a portfolio that reflects national / association-wide projects.
Is there anything else about your committee experience you’d like to share?
The PLA EDISJ committee has provided a space for members to connect and be in the community during a very challenging political climate.
Submitted by Gittemeier, Oscar, Hutson, Amiya on 12/10/2024