91´«Ã½

Message from The Co-Chairs

Welcome to the Elder Justice Task Force webpage! After reviewing the material on this site, feel free to .

Sincerely,

Joseph Winberry and Kristina Shiroma

Introducing the Elder Justice Task Force

Across numerous cultures, elders have been revered for their wisdom, seen as living libraries of knowledge, and engaged as guides for younger generations. But who is an “elder”? In the modern era, numeric definitions differ but most commonly refer to someone 65 years or older. What do people in this age range wish to be called? The term “” is most frequently cited, but because of its positive history “” is also sometimes preferred in comparison to more clinical, segregated, or deficit-focused terms like elderly, geriatric, old, or senior citizens.

“Elder Justice” is a term used in law that funds the , the statements of organizations such as and the, and in the writings of scholar-practitioners such as . While defined in different ways, the spirit of the term is that elders have social justice needs because of inequities they experience due to real or perceived circumstances around their age. For more information on the justice imperative of this population, .

Mission

The Elder Justice Task Force (EJTF) seeks to partner with adults 65 and older, libraries, and communities to identify, understand, and address the needs of this growing and diverse population.

We see our mission as being in alignment with the SRRT belief that libraries and librarians must recognize and help solve social problems and inequities in order to carry out their mandate to work for the common good and bolster democracy.

Statement of Goals

To meet its mission, the work of the EJTF is guided by the following 4 goals:

1. To challenge 91´«Ã½ and the library profession to be more inclusive of older adults through increased, anti-ageist representation of this population in the programs, services, and education offered
2. To collect and curate resources including programming support for serving older adults in libraries
3. To create a network for those seeking to serve older adults and disrupt stereotypes about this population in the library profession
4. Facilitate training for library staff on best practices for serving older adults
   

Projected Activities

To accomplish its goals, the EJTF projects the following activities:

Activities to meet Goal 1:

1. Conduct a baseline audit of 91´«Ã½ and broader aging-related programs, services, staffing, and education for and around the needs of older adults which will inform the future work of the taskforce
2. Facilitate the education of library professionals on the needs of older adults through programming and other services in person at 91´«Ã½ conferences.

Activities to meet Goal 2:

3. Create and maintain a webpage of resources (e.g., companies that offer services helpful for older adult programming, grant opportunities, aging services partnerships)
4. Maintain best practices for serving older adults through collecting, analyzing, and synthesizing academic research, library practice documentation, and aging services information

Activities to meet Goal 3:

5. Build community across the currently decentralized efforts to serve older adults in 91´«Ã½ and the broader library profession
6. Award small grants to library students and/or early career library workers who win a short essay contest on how they will serve older adults and challenge systems where necessary on their behalf

Activities to meet Goal 4:

7. Collaborate with academic, government, and community partners to provide library staff training on topics important for serving older adults such as information literacy, digital literacy, AI literacy, scams/fraud prevention, culture, social interaction, intersectionality among older adults, grants for libraries around aging, successful programming ideas for serving older adults, etc.

EJTF Guidelines

Foundation

1. The charter members of the Elder Justice Task Force (EJTF) adopted the title, mission, and guidelines on August 1, 2024. Once adopted, the title, mission, and guidelines of the task force can only be changed by a majority vote of the active task force members and then must be agreed to and certified by the Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) Action Council.

Meetings & Membership

2. The EJTF must meet no less than quarterly. Active task force members include those who:
   1. have gone through the membership process of the task force which includes filling out an application found on the task force webpage,
   2. agree in that application to participate in the work of the task force, and
   3. prove 91´«Ã½ (91´«Ã½) membership—and stating SRRT membership—by sharing their active 91´«Ã½ membership ID number in the application.
   4. Members can be removed from the task force for violations of 91´«Ã½, SRRT, and EJTF bylaws/guidelines/policies by the co-chairs in consultation with the SRRT Action Council.

Leadership

3. Two co-chairs will be elected to lead the task force for a period of one year (July 1 - June 30).
4. The co-chairs will work in partnership with one another and be responsible for leading activities aligned with the mission and guidelines of the EJTF. They will create additional leadership positions or sub-committees as they deem necessary. The only required position they must fill is the EJTF’s representative on the SRRT Action Council. All positions within the task force report to the co-chairs except for the secretary position.
5. The secretary position will be responsible for taking and managing meeting minutes. They will also administer the election process. In the inaugural year of the task force, the co-chairs will appoint the secretary, but this position will subsequently be elected by the active members of the task force.

Elections

1. There will be a standing business/election meeting run by the secretary that occurs annually in June. A survey should be sent to all active EJTF members by May 15 to determine a date and time for the annual meeting in June. Members must respond by May 30 to ensure their availability is considered. A date and time convenient for respondents will be selected in a transparent process led by the task force co-chairs.
2. The annual meeting survey sent by May 15 will also serve as the first ballot of the election of the two co-chairs. If no two candidates receive a majority of the vote, subsequent run-offs will be held at the annual business meeting until two candidates who each receive a majority of those present at the business meeting are elected. There are no term limits on co-chairs.
3. Any active EJTF task members as of May 1st can be nominated by themselves or other active members for one of the two co-chair positions. Any nominees must agree to run before they can be placed on the ballot.
4. A petition signed by a majority of active members can force a vote on a topic related to the bylaws, mission, and activities of the task force at either the next annual business meeting or at a meeting that must be held within two months of the petition being delivered to the co-chairs. Which timeline applies is at the discretion of the petitioners.
5. The only exception will be if there is a petition to remove one or both co-chairs. A vote to remove one or both co-chairs must be held as soon as possible at a time as convenient to the active members as possible but no later than one month after the petition signed by a majority of members is delivered to the co-chairs.
6. A petition that is defeated by a majority vote at the annual or at a special business meeting may not be brought up again during the same July 1 - June 30 year.
7. Prior to the annual business meeting or co-chair recall efforts, the secretary of the task force will work to ensure that the membership rolls are up to date so only those who are active members can vote. A reminder to double-check active membership will accompany any annual membership meeting invitation and any effort to recall the co-chairs.

Logo credit: M Winberry