Nicole Pagowsky

From the EditorKristen Curé

This newsletter gives just a glimpse into the wide scope of PLG-UA members and SIRLS student interests. Some of us who are involved with small libraries share insight in the progressive ways that such projects respond to their communities. Molly Osborn’s experi-ence starting a small library in Belize led her to look at a much larger-scale literacy and library project that works in many developing nations—Room to Read—and analyze how to measure its success. In another article, I share from my experi-ences organizing the small library at the local Girl Scout Council’s new youth lounge and invite you all to the Grand Opening.

We have also included articles on our major activities from the past semester: a panel on progres-sive librarianship organized by Rachel Cannady, the Lost Film Festival organized by Jacy Bell, a yoga and relaxation fundraiser organized by Rebecca Bliquez. See the letter from the President, Nicole Pagowsky, for a highlight of the activities planned for next semester. In this issue, you can also glance at what we have been reading. Nicole Pagowsky gives a review of Radical Cataloging: Essays at the Front. Patricia Escarcega pro-vides a look at Scrolling Forward and shares a question and answer session with author David Levy.

Finally, I’d like to direct your attention to our web publications. Last Spring, Sho Ikeda served as PLG-UA’s first webmaster, establishing our presence on the

Progressive Librarians GuildUA Chapter-- Spring 2009 Newsletter

Volume 1, Issue 2

From the PresidentNicole Pagowsky

Fall semester 2008 brought some changes to PLG-UA with the addition of new members and becoming more widely known on campus and in the commu-nity. With these changes, we also have some exciting plans for Spring semester 2009.

We officially became a campus organization in Febru-ary of 2008, using that Spring semester to establish our structure, complete necessary paperwork, and

participate in other groups’ events. Over the summer, we published our first newsletter and geared up for Fall semester, in which we attracted a broader membership and organized a variety of our own very success-ful events.

We had a panel event on September 17th, 2008 at the Main Library, with a theme to better introduce ourselves to SIRLS and the campus: What is a Progressive Librarian? Mary Feeney, Tom Wilding, and Kay Mathiesen participated in the panel, creating a very lively and informative discussion.

On October 30th, 2008, properly timed pre-election, we planned a visit from Scott Beiben and Lost Film Fest, which through grants and funding by the Gradu-ate and Professional Student Council (GPSC), School of Media Arts, Hanson Film Institute, and SIRLS, the event was able to be free to attendees, and was open to all of campus and the greater Tucson community.

Our Fundraising Coordinator, Rebecca Bliquez, led another Yoga Fundraiser Workshop for us on Novem-ber 16th, 2008, as she is a certified yoga instructor.

Continued on next page Continued on next page

1

Incredibly relaxing and suitable for all levels of fitness, the workshop helped attendees to de-stress before the busiest portion of the semester began. This fundraiser was followed by a social brunch at Govinda’s.

A number of new members joined us as well, and we have been lucky to have a variety of perspectives and voices participating in our group. Because our group focuses more on positions of Project Managers to plan events and work with the community, we follow more along the lines of consensus decision-making, rather than being heavily led by a select few officers. Officers are elected through a democratic voting process, and these individuals take on leadership roles in regards more so to administrative tasks. We edited our con-stitution this semester to eliminate the Events Coor-dinator and Social Coordinator positions so we could focus more on Project Management. Anyone, officers and non-officers alike, can volunteer to be a Project Manager (or part of a Project Manager’s support team), allowing greater involvement from a wider number of members. This helps to make PLG-UA more diverse; it also opens up more opportunities to more members for leadership and teamwork experiences. We are able to focus on events and projects we all care about, with the ability for individuals to participate in project manage-ment for events they feel are particularly of interest to them.

Other changes to our structure and constitution in-clude making the Treasurer position a stand alone one, rather than an addition to another officer position. We also changed Vice President to Co-President. This structural change allows for a more seamless transition when new elections occur, as well as better retention of information. When one is elected to Co-President, he or she works with the President closely during the semester to get a feel for the position, to then become the new President the following semester. The previ-ous President then rotates out of office, and a new Co-President is elected to repeat the process again. We hope this also encourages more new members to run for these and other officer positions since the respon-sibilities might seem less intimidating with a period of introduction.

Finally, a peek into our plans for Spring semester 2009:

We are going to be collaborating with Professor Botti-

celli to organize a panel or roundtable discussion event on the controversial topic of the Google Books settle-ment. This event should be towards the beginning of the semester.

Dawn Hunziker from the Disability Resource Center will be working with our group to present to PLG-UA members how to make web documents (PDF’s) more accessible to those with disabilities.

An Intellectual Property Workshop for Progressive Li-brarians is also in the works to inform participants and discuss topics affecting progressive librarians within the realm of IP. A group of law and copyright librar-ians are planned to be included in this event.

As part of our interest in and commitment to col-laboration with the community at large, we are in the planning stages with community groups such as Read Between the Bars (a Tucson books-to-prisoners group), Dry River (an activist community space, written up in our first newsletter), and potentially the National Lawyers Guild. We feel establishing these connections is extremely important, and we hope to work together through the means of community service and activism to improve our community by utilizing our skill sets of LIS students and professionals.

If not already a member, we hope you will consider joining PLG-UA this semester, whether you are new to SIRLS, have been in the program for some time, are alumni, or a LIS professional in town. Everyone is welcome and we encourage as much participation as individual members are comfortable with. Information on how to join is located in this newsletter, as well as in our online wiki. Membership forms are included in these places as well.

Cheers!

web and in print with our first newsletter. The fall se-mester brought PLG-UA a new, Drupal based website and me, the new webmaster. You can find our new website here: http://sirls.arizona.edu/PLG. Our new website is still a work in progress and we look forward to seeing how Jez Gaddoura, our webmaster for 2009, will develop it.

2

Continued from previous page (From the President)

Continued from previous page (From the Editor)

On Sept. 17th, twenty people gathered to hear what one current librarian, one retired librarian, and one philosophy professor could offer on the subject. Mary Feeney, Associate Librarian at the UA Main Library, started the panel by discuss-ing what progressive really means when it comes to core library values. She then went on to dis-cuss SRRT (Social Responsibilities Roundtable), which is part of the ALA’s round tables. Mary also discussed an SRRT task force with which she is personally involved: the Task Force on the En-vironment (TFOE). She mentioned the Round Tables and Task Forces as means that librarians can use to create and promote progressive interests within the profession.

Tom Wilding, Professor of Practice at SIRLS, and retired librarian and library director, provided some additional background information on SRRT’s origins. He also discussed how a Task Force becomes a Round Table in ALA, how our parent PLG organization originated, and the effectiveness of grassroots activ-ism within the library profession. Tom emphasized the importance of being as proactive as possible within the profession, rather than being merely reactive.

What is a Progressive Librarian? Panel Rachel Cannady

The panel was rounded out by SIRLS Senior Lecturer Kay Mathiesen’s presentation. Kay asked a series of pro-vocative questions and quotations about what the role of a librarian is. She asked whether neutrality was possible and if it was the responsible thing to do. Many audience members were involved as the gears started working on what progressivism really means within today’s libraries.

3

Continued on page 8

On Sunday, November 16, 2008, the Progressive Librarians Guild (PLG) held its second Yoga Fundraiser in Room 313/314 of the Main Library. This fundraiser was a yoga class designed to create a state of relaxation and calm and has been traditionally held towards the end of the semester to help alleviate the stress of papers and class deadlines. The class was led by Rebecca Bliquez, the PLG Fundraising Coordi-nator who is also a certified yoga instructor. Attendees learned poses designed to stretch and strengthen the body, breathwork to enhance a state of calm and completed a “Release and Relaxation” meditation. Eight attendees participated in the class and afterwards carpooled to Govinda’s Natural Foods Buffet at 711 E Blacklidge Dr in Tucson (www.govindasoftucson.com) for a social gathering and to sample Govinda’s delicious vegetarian brunch buffet! PLG raised $45 from this fundraiser for our coffers. We are excited to have completed yet another successful fundraiser and had a wonderful time. Thank you to all who participated and Namaste!

PLG Yoga Fundraiser

The Sahuaro Girl Scout Council (SGSC) is a not-for-profit organization that serves more than 13,000 girls and has over 3,000 adult volunteers from communities in Southern Arizona. Chartered by Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. since 1935, SGSC is responsible for organizing, maintaining and developing the quality of Girl Scout-ing within its jurisdiction of eight counties in Southern Arizona. The core of SGSC’s work is exemplified in its mission that “Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.”

When most people think of Girl Scouts, they immedi-ately think of cookies and camp. Thanks to SGSC, the scope of Girl Scout-ing in South-ern Arizona builds upon the traditional Girl Scout experi-ence (troops led by girls’ moth-ers) and through outreach and community partnerships, ex-tends the reach of Girl Scout-ing to bring programs and activities to girls who do not have other opportunities. In addition to managing outreach troops on local Native American reservations, within immigrant communities as well as at schools with large low-income and at-risk populations, SGSC organizes a wide variety of programs and events for girls of all age levels. SGSC strives to provide quality, age-appropriate experiences for registered Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scout girls including: summer camp op-portunities, possibilities for volunteering and engaging with local community groups, fun and educational or creativity-themed activities and even interactive work-shops where teen girls can explore contemporary issues

Featured Community Group: Sahuaro Girl Scout CouncilKristen Curé

to develop their skills as agents of change. Whether organizing a program for kindergarten or high school girls, SGSC follows the philosophy of facilitating girl-led activities and cooperative learning.

Always working to better serve ever larger percentages of the girl population in Southern Arizona, SGSC builds partnerships with other community organiza-tions and businesses to develop and improve their services. One of SGSC’s latest projects is the re-vision-ing of their Resource Center library as an after-school library and lounge. The library’s original collection of

about 1,000 books has been weeded and updated. For the first time, it will be digitally organized in an online catalog (LibraryThing was the most cost-efficient option for the small library) as well as in a relational data-base for internal maintenance and circulation management. As an intern, I have been working with

SGSC to develop a controlled vocabulary to apply to LibraryThing’s tagging system. The goal is to create tags that will be accessible to girls and reflect the Girl Scout community while being appropriate descriptors for items in the collection. Feedback from both adult and girl users will be especially important in regard to the library’s special collection of historic as well as lo-cally made Girl Scout items.

The library has also been redecorated to be made into an inviting and warm place where girls will feel com-fortable lounging, studying and socializing. SGSC

4

Continued on page 8

5

Literacy is a major issue not just for librarians and educators, but for communities in countries across the world. According to UNESCO (2008), 776 million adults lack minimum literacy skills. The need for ad-equate literacy education, especially in the world’s least developed countries, is massive. One program attempt-ing to meet this need is Room to Read. But how effec-tive is this organization at helping alleviate the issue of illiteracy? What influences sustainable success?

Room to Read

Moved by the deplorable primary school conditions and lack of books in rural Nepal, former Microsoft ex-ecutive John Wood started the nonprofit organization Room to Read (“Straight answers from John Wood,” 2004). Room to Read addresses literacy issues by providing reading materials, publishing local authors, building schools and computer labs, and offering scholarships to girls. After three years, communities assume sole responsibility for the programs (Topper, 2008). Communities collaborate with Room to Read by providing community members to be trained to run the facilities, and also either identify existing facilities or help construct new ones for the programs. Room to Read has established more than 5,160 libraries and 442 schools, donated over 2.2 million English language books, published 226 new local language children’s titles which created over 2 million books, started 155 computer labs, and granted over 4,000 girls scholar-ships to complete secondary school (http://www.roomtoread.org).

Evaluation

Room to Read delivers a comprehensive program of services for the development of literacy. But do they result in sustained literacy development within the communities?

The Corporate Model

Wood has created a results-driven organization with the numbers to show it. But sustained development involves more than numbers. Equally important

Promoting Sustainable Literacy Growth in Developing Countries: Are Libraries the Answer?Molly Osborn

to the physical materials supplied is the quality of training provided. Wood has stated that new librarians in these developing nations would receive only three days of training (“Straight answers from John Wood,” 2004), but on the website, it said that there would be “three years of support, which includes … further training” (http://www.roomtoread.org). Creating a literate community from one that contained little or no print is a process that can take three generations (Daniel, 2002). Though it is important to ensure that the local communities are not dependent on outside aid (Olden, 1995), on-going support would help en-sure sustained development.

The Local Language Publishing Program

As the entire process of publishing books takes place within host countries, local talent is cultivated and local economies benefit (http://www.roomtoread.org). According to the International Reading Association and the National Council of the Teachers of English, children who learn literacy in their first languages can use that as a bridge in learning new languages; this program takes advantage of that (http://www.ncte.org/about/over/standards/110846.htm). It does not, how-ever, address sustainability. Do the fledgling publishers have a plan for funding the printing of children’s books once they lose their main client (Weber, 2007)? For ongoing success, Room to Read must make room to address the sustainability of this very valuable publish-ing program.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Room to Read stands committed to increasing the availability of reading resources and “fostering a culture of reading” (http://www.roomtoread.org). But are they improving literacy? Currently, the program has neither a system for assessing literacy rates before the implementation of the program, nor for assessing the communities over time. Such information would be beneficial for future decisions concerning the direc-tion and focus of the program (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2008).

Continued on page 11

On the Stacks

Radical Cataloging: Essays at the Front edited by K.R. Roberto

– Book Review –

What is radical cataloging? Roberto explains that although difficult to define in specifics, generally, it is cataloging from a progressive point-of-view. He posits, “why not just call it progressive cataloging?” and answers with the explanation of

there being a tradition of referring to various aspects of library work of a progressive and socially responsible mindset as “radical.”

A wide variety of issues within cataloging are covered, but also areas surrounding and affected by it. Catalog-ing is often thought of as the backbone of librarianship because it is how all materials are organized; access would be greatly hindered without it. This, in turn, can also depict how political cataloging work can be. Subject headings can be connotative of one meaning or another, influencing users of what to understand the essence of an item is. How items are cataloged and classified can also shape historical events and popular thought.

Sandy Berman provides an introduction, and topics discussed in this book include the history of queer subject access, bias in Library of Congress subject headings, a critical review of OCLC, metadata for digital libraries, cataloging zines, user-centered catalog-ing, the politics of cataloging, and much more.

Radical Cataloging was inspiring in regard to how catalogers are examining problems and working to effect change, but it was also frustrating to learn how many issues there really are. This book was informative and thought provoking, as it helped to explain the ba-sics, history, current climate, and future of cataloging for a library student continuing to gain experience in cataloging herself. This is recommended for students and professionals alike, regardless of doing cataloging

work or not, as these issues affect all aspects of librari-anship.

Non-librarians who are interested in activism and who may do a lot of research will also find relevance in certain essays within this book.

-Nicole Pagowsky

Anxiety in a Digital World:

Q&A with David M. Levy

Two years after finishing a PhD in Computer Science at Stanford, David M. Levy left the high tech world of Palo Alto to study calligraphy and bookbinding in London. He was disillusioned with the lack of “cultur-al and historic perspective” in his graduate work, and so (despite protests from family members) he made the choice to immerse himself in the meditative world of traditional crafts. In Scrolling Forward: Making Sense of Documents in a Digital Age (Arcade, 2001), Levy describes the moment of epiphany in which he realized the two worlds could be merged. The book is a meditation on the history of documents and the im-portant, yet often invisible, roles they play in our lives. Levy offers an expansive definition of documents: they are “talking things,” he says, “artifacts to which we delegate the task of speaking for us.” In one of the book’s opening chapters, Levy traces the history and role of a seemingly insignificant document—a slightly crumpled deli receipt—to illustrate the way docu-ments operate in our daily life. He writes: “For here, right under our noses, too close and intimate to be seen clearly, are creatures that share with us the ability to speak. And we have created them. Some of them—books in particular—aspire to nobility and long life. Others, such as cash register receipts and personal notes, typically have a less exalted status and a shorter useful lifetime. But all of them are bits of the material world we have taught to talk.”

One of the book’s central arguments is that much of our anxiety concerning the digital world is not so much about the properties of digital documents, but how these raise questions about our mode of life. Compare, for example, the slow-paced process of penning a hand-written letter, versus the quick,

6

Continued on next page

efficient act of typing and sending an email. These documents—email and letter—represent two differ-ent modes of life. One corresponds to a slower paced, perhaps more thoughtful existence, while the other represents the speedy transmissions of a fast-paced world. If we resist the onslaught of constantly chang-ing digital documents, Levy argues, it’s probably not the documents themselves that we are protesting, but what this change represents in our lives. Levy has ad-dressed this issue in his recent work. In March he gave a talk at Google—”No Time to Think”—on bring-ing contemplative awareness to our online practices that is available for viewing on YouTube. Levy is a professor at the University of Washington, where among other classes, he teaches a course roughly based on the material in Scrolling Forward.

-Patricia Escárcega

You write about the invisibility of doc-uments—how we absorb them with-out even realizing it (advertisement on billboards, street signs, or cash register receipts, for example). What kind of reac-tion did you receive after the publication of Scrolling Forward? Have documents become more visible since then, or is it in their nature to act more or less invisibly?

David Levy: When Scrolling Forward was writ-ten, it was right at the height of the dot.com boom. I wrote the book between 1998-2000. Times have changed. We’re at a different stage in the develop-ment of digital materials. My feeling is that many of our paper-based documents are still pretty invisible, and for the most part are considered inconsequen-tial. There’s a continued debate within some digital forms. But look at what’s happened with blogs. I don’t know that blogs existed yet back then. But blogs are very visible now. Look at what’s happened with texting. Twitter, for instance. For certain types of documents, especially certain digital documents, people have become more aware of their presence in their lives. But I think that a lot of the little hand-written documents, those still act invisibly.

You argue that part of the anxiety about the changing nature of documents is that they are not yet stable. Do you see some digital documents achieving more fixity?

DL: I think to some extent we are beginning to see greater stability and fixity. An example that comes to mind right away is news, and newspapers. As I’m sure you’re aware, there’s a lot of concern about the future of the newspaper. But look at something like the New York Times. If you look at their website, they’ve begun to establish certain rhythms to the ways news stories are put online. Everyone has the

entire corpus of the New York Times stories available to them, there online. And if you are a member of the New York Times website, you can even save articles indefinitely. I also feel some notion of the news story is becoming a bit more stable and fixed. We also see more developments happening as to digital books. We see collaborative projects like Google Books. And Kindle with Amazon, which may be the first successful e-book endeavor. These are examples of forms that were stable on paper and now we see them becoming more established in digital form.

With products like the Kindle and the Sony ebook Reader, there seems to be an attempt to merge the world of paper books with the digital realm. The products seemed designed to emulate the feel of a book. I was wondering if you have any experience us-ing these products, and what that experience was like.

DL: I actually have very little experience. I played with some of the early readers. I haven’t actually used the Kindle, only seen it from a distance. But friends sound enthusiastic and report good things.

You devote one of your chapters, at least in part, to the subject of greeting cards. You write that they are immensely popular documents of strong cultural value that help mediate our social relationships. It occurred to me that greeting cards, like your deli receipt, are a type of document that perhaps collectively we take for granted. I’m curious how you arrived at this subject matter. As you noted, very little serious writing has

7

Continued on page 9

8

envisions the new lounge as an alternative for girls who would normally go home to an empty house. With lounge chairs, a couch, custom-made window benches and a new computer area, the new library lounge will serve not only as a resource library for adult volunteers and registered Girl Scouts, but as a fun and safe place where all local girls can go after school to study, hang out with friends, use the internet, participate in events, as well as, of course, fall in love with reading.

The local chain of bookstores, Bookmans has partnered with SGSC to redecorate the space and develop the collection of the library lounge. Named after Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., the Bookmans Low Lounge provides girls an expanded and updated collection. The rich non-fiction section offers; in addition to science, art, world history, career development, outdoor and craft books; special collec-tions on Girl Scout history, local history and women’s issues. The fiction section includes a variety of books for all reading levels from early readers up through young adults.

Girls will be encouraged to use the books at their leisure and will have the opportunity to participate in a book club to earn reading badges. The lounge will have three computers for girl use as well as free wi-fi. Addi-tionally, SGSC will be collaborating with organizations such as the YWCA to program leadership and youth development activities in the Bookmans Low Lounge. Two YWCA facilitated programs that are scheduled to take place in 2009: “Let’s Get Real,” a workshop that will look at the complex issue of bullying and sexual harassment in schools and in social internet sites; “Journey to a hate-free millennium,” a workshop that will focus on creating a vision of a positive future where senseless acts of violence and hate will be some-thing of the past.

Located at the council’s Resource Center in midtown Tucson at Broadway and Columbus, the new library lounge is along major bus routes, at the edge of a major residential district and not far from Reid Park. As a vibrant, centralized and safe space, the new lounge is a place that girls can take ownership of through use, participation and even planning of future activities.

Come celebrate the Grand Opening of the Bookmans Low Lounge on Saturday, January 31!

Continued from page 4

Contact Information:Sahuaro Girl Scout Council Headquarters and Re-source Center4300 E. Broadway Blvd., Tucson, Arizona 85711 520.327.2288 or 1.800.331.6782http://www.sahuarogsc.org/

On-line Catalog: http://www.librarything.com/catalog/LowLounge

The evening ended with Dorothy Hemmo winning the raffle for a PLG: UA Chapter and PLG Parent Chap-ter membership. People stayed to enjoy the vegan and vegetarian finger foods as well as discuss progressivism. PLG was every excited by the great turn out and excel-lent discussion that came from the panelists’ presen-tations. We are already generating ideas for another panel next year. If you have any ideas for a panel, don’t hesitate to suggest a topic by going to the PLG wiki.

Think that this panel sounds like something you are sorry that you missed? Don’t worry! The panel has been made digitally available for you. Go to http://milton.sbs.arizona.edu/~sirls/20080917plg.html and you can listen to the podcasts and download Mary and Kay’s PowerPoint presentations as well.

This panel was also featured on the front page of the Arizona Library Association November/December Newsletter. You can read it here: http://www.azla.org/associations/2837/Nov.%2008%20newsletter.pdf

You still have lots of time to ponder and explore pro-gressivism within the vast library field!

Continued from page 3

been done on the subject of greeting cards.

DL: The truth is, I can’t remember. I think once I focused on greeting cards, I realized that there was something very colorful or important about them. You can watch people as they try to pick a card. I suspect it’s something that almost all of us do—that really careful reflection and emotional sensing we do as we look at different cards and try to imagine the moment in which they are received.

You sought to bring “the spirit of calligraphy” to your work with digital documents. Do you still practice calligraphy? Have you been able to bridge the two worlds?

DL: I don’t practice calligraphy anymore. The practice of calligraphy and the things I learned about the Arts and Crafts movement—I have other outlets now in my life for these things. The work I’m doing now is all about bringing contemplative awareness into mainstream culture in relation to online practices. I gave a talk at Google in March based on my work called “No Time to Think.”

It’s my attempt to make time for contemplation and reflection when working in digital environments.

You write that “libraries are places not just where books can be found, but where people can temporarily remove themselves from the speed and busyness of life, where they can read and write and reflect. They are (or can be) shared, sacred spaces in a secular, common world.”

Do you think this analysis is at odds with the notion of libraries as community centers—places where people might hold community meetings and forums, where children might receive homework assistance, for exam-ple. In short, the library as a not-so-quiet place?

DL: Yes, the library can be both. The idea of a library as a contemplative space doesn’t have to be at odds with these other roles. I’ve talked to various academic library directors, and they talk about the fact that students want quiet spaces, but they also want talking spaces. There’s an agreement that you can find spaces where you can do your homework alone, and where you can do it with others. The ecology of the library ought to be diverse enough to sustain both.

9

Continued from page 7

PLG-UA Officers Fall 2008

President: Nicole PagowskyVice President & Treasurer: Rachel CannadySecretary: Jacy BellWebmaster: Kristen CuréEvents Coordinator: Rebecca BliquezFundraising Coordinator: Rebecca BliquezFaculty Advisor: Tom Wilding

PLG-UA Officers Spring 2009

President: Nicole PagowskyCo-President: Kristen CuréTreasurer: Diana OlivaresSecretary: Rebecca BliquezWebmaster: Jez GaddouraFundraising Coordinator: Patricia EscarcegaFaculty Advisor: Tom Wilding

10

“Lost Film Fest is a testament to the importance of free media in a democracy. Using Creative Commons licensed and open source materials, Beibin has crafted an accessible new presentation format that success-fully introduces people to complex issues bridging the gap between academia and popular culture. Through the Lost Film Fest, Beibin empowers his audiences to realize the power of their own voice in a postmodern world” (Lost Film Fest website).

Lost Film Fest was an admission-free event that took place at the University of Arizona on October 30, 2008. It was sponsored by the Graduate and Profes-sional Student Council, School of Media Arts, Hanson Film Institute, and the School of Information Resourc-es and Library Science. Progressive Librarians Guild: University of Arizona Chapter organized the event.

Scott Beibin is the host, curator, video jockey, and travelling Renaissance man of Lost Film Fest. Al-though based in Philadelphia, Beibin is often visiting other cities and countries to present Lost Film Fest around the globe. He plays videos interspersed with comical and thought-provoking commentary to inspire discussion amongst audience members.

Topics for the evening included election montages, collages, and commentary; U.S.-Mexico border is-sues; footage not presented by mainstream media of the Democratic and Republican National Convention riots; racism; and a variety of other issues and events.

PLG-UA was interested in bringing Scott Beibin and the Lost Film Fest to Tucson to promote less-prominent viewpoints around election time, as well as support tenets of progressive librarianship regarding expansion of access to alternative media. This pertains to the goals of the Social Responsibilities Round Ta-ble (SRRT) Alternative Media Taskforce, but also to our mission as a chapter of PLG, as well as our parent organization, in which it states, “We strongly oppose the commodification of information which turns the 'information commons' into privatized, commercial-ized zones. We will help to dissect the implications of these powerful trends, and fight their anti-democratic tendencies” (PLG website).

-Nicole Pagowsky

Resources and References

Lost Film Fest website: http://www.lostfilmfest.orgEvil Twin Booking: http://eviltwinbooking.org/SRRT Alternative Media Taskforce: http://libr.org/amtf//The Alternative Press Center: http://www.altpress.org/Listing of Alternative Libraries and Infoshops: http://www.radicalreference.info/altlibrariesProgressive Librarians Guild: http://libr.org/plg/state-ment.php

1. WHO CAN JOIN PLG? Library and Information Science students at SIRLS, alumni of SIRLS, and current library workers in Tucson at any level can join.

2. HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?$20 for 2 years of membership

3. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF JOINING?PLG: UA is one of only six student chapters of PLG in the country, and currently the newest, so you would have the opportunity to shape the direction of our chapter and help build our programs, events, and structure. You would be able to participate in creating our newsletter, work with Tucson community groups to create ties and organize events, and get to know fellow students in the SIRLS program, alumni, and community library workers. Please complete the membership form and pay the appropriate dues to join.

If you are interested in joining the PLG parent organization, please go to their website for more information on dues and benefits:http://libr.org/plg/index.php

Considering membership with PLG: UA? Here’s a rundown on joining our chapter!

Room to Read. (2008). Room to Read. Retrieved August 3, 2008 from www.roomtoread.org.Standards. (2008). National Concil of Teachers of English. Retrieved August 7, 2008 from http:// www.ncte.org/about/over/standards/110846.htm.Straight answers from John Wood, (2004). [Electronic version]. American Libraries, 35(8).Retrieved August 3, 2008, from Academic Search Complete database.UNESCO. (2008). Education for All (EFA) interna tional coordination. Retrieved August 7, 2008, from http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php URL_ ID=47044&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SET ION=201.html UNESCO Institute for Statistics & Division for the Coordination of UN Priorities in Education. (2006). Education for all (EFA) in least developed countries. Retrieved August 7, 2008, from http://unesdoc. unesco.org/images/0014/001472/147259M.pdfWeber, E. (2007). Improving the integration of public reading in cultural policies of Francophone devel oping countries. [Electronic version]. IFLA Journal, 33(7). Retrieved from Education Abstracts Full Text. doi: 10.1177/0340035207074073

11

Conclusion

Thousands of children are benefitting from the ef-forts of organizations like Room to Read, but those efforts still have room for improvement. Just as we, progressive librarians in the United States, must think about sustainability in our projects, designing development programs rooted in sustainability--through host community participation, planning, training, and monitoring and evaluation--is neces-sary for ensuring the long-term benefits of creating libraries in developing countries.

References Daniel, J. (2002). Literacy: The 877 million left behind. Education Today newsletter. Retrieved August 4, 2008 from http://portal.unesco.org/ education/en/ev.php-URL_ID=4898&URL_ DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlOlden, A. (1995). Libraries in Africa: Pioneers, policies, problems. Lanham, MD: The Scare crow Press, Inc.

Continued from page 5

Continued on next page

4. HOW MUCH OF A COMMITMENT DO I NEED TO MAKE?As much or as little as you would like. We have bi-weekly meetings, collaborate on our wiki, and promote discussion through our listserv. We don’t require a certain amount of participation, but do en-courage at least some. However, if you choose to run for an officer position, most will require a substantial time commitment.

5. WHERE DO I SEND MY DUES?You can send them C/O our Treasurer to the SIRLS building:

School of Information Resources and Library Science PLG: UA Chapter -- C/O Treasurer 1515 E. 1st St. Tucson, AZ 85719

-Checks should be made out to -- “Progressive Librarians Guild: UA Chapter”

6. WHAT IF I’M A DISTANCE STUDENT IN THE SIRLS PROGRAM OR AN ALUMNI WHO HAS MOVED OUT OF TOWN?Distance members are able to attend meetings through Breeze, collaborate on the wiki and through the listserv, and contribute to our newsletter. Dis-tance students can also run for certain officer posi-tions (Webmaster/Newsletter Editor and Fundrais-ing Coordinator).

7. WHO CAN BE AN OFFICER?Because we are a University group, only students can run for officer positions; however, any paying member can become a “Project Manager.” A Project Manager (PM) takes the lead in organizing a par-ticular even, and reports information to the group. There can be more than one PM per project.

12

8. I’VE NEVER REALLY DONE ANY ACTIV-ISM IN THE PAST; WOULD I FEEL AWKWARD JOINING?No; you do not have to be a “seasoned” activist to join PLG: simply an interest in progressive librarianship and hopefully a willingness to participate and collabo-rate with us is all we ask.

9. I’M STILL NOT SURE IF I’M INTERESTED OR NOT, WHAT ELSE CAN HELP ME DECIDE?That’s okay -- you can still join the listserv and come to our meetings to get a feel for PLG to see if you want to become a member. To subscribe to the list-serv:Send an email message to: listserv@listserv.arizona.edu with an empty subject line, and with the follow-ing as the only line in the body of the message:

subscribe UA-PLG Yourfirstname YourlastnameBecause the list engine registers your email address as a subscriber instead of your name, only the email account you registered will be allowed to receive postings or to post messages. You may register all of your email addresses. We discourage students from subscribing with a Hotmail email address as this has caused problems the LSO listserv in the past.

10. I’M NOT A LIS STUDENT, ALUMNI, OR WORKER; HOW CAN I PARTICIPATE?We are unable to take individuals as members who do not fall in the above categories; however, we are very interested in collaborating with community groups, so please do get in touch with us if you are with another group!

Continued from previous page

Progressive Librarians Guild: UA Chapter Membership Form

Name: ___________________________________

Email Address: ____________________________

Mailing Address: ___________________________

________________________________________

Student – Expected Graduation Date: _______

Are you a virtual student? YES NO

SIRLS Alumni – Graduation Date: __________

Current Library Professional – Library: __________________________________________________

Areas of Interests/Specialization: _________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

Membership Dues:

$20 for 2 years of membershipPlease make checks payable to “Progressive Librarians Guild: UA Chapter”. Send checks and membership forms directly to the UA Chapter.

Submit Form and Dues to:

School of Information Resources and Library SciencePLG: UA Chapter -- C/O Treasurer1515 E. 1st St.Tucson, AZ 85719

PLG USE ONLY:

Entered into Database – Date: __________

Payment:

Cash Check - Check no.: ___________________

13