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Following a polarized political season and threats to de-fund public agencies, the Public Library Association (PLA) has heard a range of concerns from our members and a desire for community and peer sharing. From increased book challenges to potential adverse legislation to supporting diverse staff and patrons, library workers are feeling isolated and overwhelmed by what lies ahead. But you are not alone! Standing up for libraries and library workers will demand persistence and strategic action from all of us. Join PLA for a virtual town hall to connect with colleagues and hear from PLA member-leaders on how they are staying focused but flexible during these times of transition.

Registration is free, but space is limited. Please note: This virtual town hall will not be recorded.

Panelists

• Sonia Alcantara-Antoine, CEO of the Baltimore County (MD) Public Library and PLA Past-President
• Mary Ellen Icaza, Director and CEO of the Stark County (OH) Public Library and PLA Director-at-Large
• Nick Demske, Director of the Racine (WI) Public Library, and member of the PLA Committee on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Social Justice
• Adam Webb, Director of the Garland County (AR) Public Library and member of the PLA Advocacy and Strategic Partnership Committee
• San Francisco City Librarian and PLA President Michael Lambert will serve as the moderator

Accommodations

This virtual town hall will be captioned in English (United States). Zoom desktop client or mobile app is required to access captions.

Attendees using screen readers are advised to turn off speech prior to joining the Zoom event because PLA webinars make extensive use of chat functionality. Attendees who find chat distracting may wish to disable it in the Zoom event, as PLA moderators will verbally highlight important topics raised in chat.

If you have a physical or communication need that may affect your participation in this webinar, please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752) at least two weeks prior to the webinar. Without prior notification of need, we may not be able to provide appropriate accommodations for the live event.

Tech Requirements

This webinar will be presented using the Zoom platform. Please review Zoom technical requirements and support information, and test your connection.

Once you've joined the webinar, there are two ways to connect your audio: via computer or via telephone. No microphone is required. PLA works with its webinar platform provider to assure the highest quality audio is being delivered to attendees. However, variables over which PLA has no control—such as the speed of your Internet connection or traffic on your local network—can affect the end quality of the webinar audio delivered by your computer. Each webinar’s audio is also available by telephone via a toll number, so we recommend you have access to a long-distance enabled phone as a backup in case you experience issues with webinar audio.

Contact

Questions about this webinar? Please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752).