NOELLE CRUZ CURRENT POSITION Teen Services Librarian & Acting Library Assistant Manager, Alameda County Library, CA DEGREE MLIS, University of North Texas, 2014 FAST FACT Cruz has made friends from around the world at BTS concerts. Photo by Rudy Meyers Photography

MELISSA SANTOSA CURRENT POSITION Library Technician, Alameda County Library, CA DEGREE Master’s coursework, Community Psychology, California Institute of Integral Studies, 2016 FAST FACT Santosa enjoys visiting local bookstores, like Marcus Books and Sistah Scifi, that are focused on books by, about, and for those who are BIPOC. FOLLOW BOTH @aclib; Facebook AlamedaCountyLibrary; Instagram @aclibrary Photo courtesy of Melissa Santosa

JEDI Force

Noelle Cruz and Melissa Santosa may seem like an unlikely team. Santosa worked for years in education and counseling before landing at Alameda County Library (ACL). Cruz worked multiple jobs simultaneously while earning her MLIS and searching for a library position. ACL County Librarian Cindy Chadwick, who nominated the duo, describes Santosa as a gentle warrior with a calming influence, while Cruz is a spitfire, an energized ball of goodness.

“We are opposites, and that’s why we work well together,” says Santosa. Both have leadership roles in the JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) initiative, ACL’s effort to confront racism in both its organization and its community. The two are members of a larger team; JEDI includes nine programming groups, each with its own separate budget. This has allowed branches to host events they might not ordinarily be able to afford, such as visits by authors and filmmakers focusing on BIPOC issues and people.

Santosa relishes seeing how much these programs, including special story times and Kwanzaa giveaway books and craft kits, have meant to the community. “Through JEDI, we’ve expanded what we’re offering to bring in new members who previously would have said [of library programs], ‘They don’t really speak to me,’” she says. “I’ve seen new faces in the library.”

The group works on equity issues among employees as well, letting staff—including management—know when they need to do better. Cruz and Santosa developed a mentorship program for junior staff members, also identifying those with potential for library careers but lacking the resources to earn an advanced degree. They worked with HR to create library technician positions, thus reducing obstacles for employees with the goals—but not the means—of becoming librarians.

Cruz knows the exact number of job applications she submitted while searching for a librarian position: 120. “This was the last place that I was going to apply to,” she says. “The reason that I did was to make [myself] feel that I didn’t get beat down by a field…that’s 88 percent white.” Her thoughts continue to inform her work today: “If I give up now, it means they won.” 

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