As the proverbial light at the end of the pandemic tunnel comes into view, so does the discussion around whether a library can require its staff or patrons to have a vaccination in order to enter the building. I’ve spent a good deal of time pondering this question, and while I’m not an attorney and not offering legal advice, there are several things to consider, about this and other related issues.

Earlier this spring, in conjunction with a survey of how academic library deans and directors’ perspectives and strategies around equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) and anti-racism have changed over the last year, Ithaka S+R announced that it would launch an anti-racism talent management audit in partnership with library leaders from Binghamton University, NY, and the University of Delaware.

With the COVID-19 vaccine rollout gaining momentum in the United States, libraries continue the process of reopening. They’ll need to get the word out to patrons about changing hours, resumed services, and in-person events. This product spotlight focuses on marketing platforms for libraries designed to help streamline outreach efforts via social media, email, newsletters, mobile messaging, and more.

I’ve been delighted to watch the ambitious program in Ohio in which 137 of the state’s 251 library systems (and counting) have chosen to help distribute about 2 million at-home coronavirus testing kits. At press time, libraries had already distributed nearly 60,000 tests through about 365 locations.

COVID shifts drove falling print circ and rising ebooks. But will it last? LJ's 2021 Materials Survey looks at some of the last year's trends.

This is the 13th year of the LJ Index of Public Library Service and Star Library ratings. The 2020 scores and ratings are based on FY18 data from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Public Library Survey (PLS). Because of that delay, they don’t reflect the impact of the coronavirus; that won’t be reflected in the data until 2022. The big news in this year’s edition is that successful retrievals of electronic information (e-retrievals)—measuring usage of online content, such as databases, other than by title checkout—joins the six other measures that determine the LJ Index.

Whether librarians are providing services in-person or virtually, reference has changed with the pandemic.

Library Journal’s annual Placements & Salaries survey reports on the experiences of LIS students who graduated and sought their first librarian jobs in the previous year: in this case, 2019. Salaries and full-time employment are up, but so are unemployment and the gender gap; 2019 graduates faced a mixed job market even before the pandemic.

From a Meeting Summary by Kaylyn Groves: Association of Research Libraries (ARL) member representatives, guests, and staff convened for the 178th Association Meeting via videoconference on April 20–29, 2021. Meeting participants discussed “The Big Pivot: Disruption, Discovery, Transformation” in four sessions, each targeting a timely, critical issue: the dissemination of misinformation and disinformation; the social […]

From the American Library Association: The American Library Association (ALA) announced today the appointment of Mary Davis Fournier as executive director, Public Library Association (PLA), a division of ALA. Her first day in her new role will be Monday, June 14. Fournier is a 20-year veteran of ALA, having served in various roles including, most […]

From the Pioneer Press/TwinCities.com: The Minnesota Historical Society has digitized 30 years’ worth of coverage from the state’s oldest continuously operating Black-owned newspaper, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. Researchers will now be able to browse issues of the Minneapolis Spokesman and the St. Paul Recorder dating back to the the mid-1930s on MNHS’s digital newspaper hub, according […]

From the Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin: A digital collection of manuscripts and photographs related to the Welsh poet and writer Dylan Thomas held at the Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin is now online thanks to an international collaboration just in time for International Dylan Thomas Day […]

When the long-awaited COVID-19 vaccines began to roll out in mid-December 2020, their distribution was immediately complicated by a shortage of doses and widespread uncertainty about who would be given priority. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued suggested guidelines for phased allocation. When it was not yet clear who would be next, many library workers, leaders, and associations began advocating for public facing library workers to be vaccinated as soon as feasible.

In the messy middle of the pandemic, library leaders share how things have changed since March 2020, their takeways, and continuing challenges.

Whether librarians are providing services in-person or virtually, reference has changed with the pandemic.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of books on the subject has been increasing exponentially. This introductory list, which will be updated regularly, is meant to help collection development librarians get started on determining which books work best for their collections.

The 2021 African Speculative Fiction Society (ASFS) Nommo Awards longlists are announced and the 2020 & 2021 Robert E. Howard Foundation Awards finalists are out. Posthumous success for Richard Wright’s The Man Who Lived Underground. Interviews with the following authors: Jon Mooallem of This is Chance!: The Great Alaska Earthquake, Genie Chance, and the Shattered City She Held Together, Nora Zelevansky of Competitive Grieving, Julian Rubinstein of The Holly: Five Bullets, One Gun, and the Struggle to Save an American Neighborhood, and Morgan Harper Nichols of How Far You Have Come. Jessica Seinfeld announces a new cookbook Vegan, At Times. Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit Entertainment joins with Jim Henson Company on the adaptation of The Conductors by Nicole Glover.

The 33rd annual Triangle Awards winners and 2021 Firecracker Award finalists are announced and Trevor Shikaze has been named the first winner of n+1’s Anthony Veasna So Prize. 21st Birthday by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave, Project: Hail Mary by Andy Weir, Killing the Mob: The Fight Against Organized Crime in America by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, and The Premonition by Michael Lewis top the best sellers lists. Colin Kaepernick announces the Oct 12 release of a book he has edited and published, Abolition for the People: The Movement for a Future Without Policing and Prisons and Carmen Maria Machado writes about the challenges around her latest book In the Dream House. Tawny Kitaen revealed that she was working on an autobiography in an appearance before her death.

On the morning of Monday, May 10, the three New York City library systems reopened 53 branches for computer use, limited browsing, and in-person reference. Later that day, the leaders of all three systems testified at a New York City Council executive budget hearing to call for support in the face of the $10.34 million in budget cuts to the three library systems in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s proposed FY22 executive budget—a number that could rise to as much as $22.2 million if City Council declines to re-up its yearly commitment.

Smith College and Kansas State reopen libraries after extensive renovations and Brooklyn, East Asheville, and the Carnegie Library of Pittsburg unveil substantial remodels.