Public Library Trustees: Selection, Training and Collaboration for Equity, Access, and Civic Engagement

Public Library Trustees: Selection, Training and Collaboration for Equity, Access, and Civic Engagement ABSTRACT Public libraries support people’s freedom to engage with a wide range of ideas, as active members of a self-governing society, and do this, in part, by depending on community-based governance decisions about funding, policy development, and access to materials. These decisions often rest in the hands of volunteer boards of trustees. As key decision-makers in libraries, trustees impact the public sphere and the free exchange of ideas necessary to a thriving participatory democracy. Yet we do not know how trustees are trained, if at all, how they represent the diversity of their communities, or how they are otherwise prepared for the important work they do. Little research has explored trustees or their practices, and the most recent research on trustees in the United States is more than a decade old, with substantive research older still. This sparse body of research finds that trustees may have no connection to, or training in, library values of access, equity, and intellectual freedom. Yet trustees are often tasked with intellectual freedom and access decisions, such as whether challenged materials remain on library shelves. As trustees are asked to do more, due to recent increases in book challenges, they may need more tools to reconcile disparate perceptions of informational access. This project will begin to address many of the research gaps and open questions about trustees, exploring the interconnected nature of trustee governance and the communities that libraries serve. Using survey, interview, focus group and Participatory Action Research methods, the study asks: Who are the nation’s public library trustees, how are they are selected and trained, how do they work with libraries, what is their understanding of their role and its civic value, and how they might be better prepared for the many duties required of them? In answering these questions, this research will contribute to the capacity of public library administration and boards of trustees in supporting shared governance processes that benefit communities, while supporting equity, access and civic engagement. GOALS 1. This project will further the early career development of the Primary Investigator, as well as two graduate research assistants, per the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian/Early Career Development objectives set by the IMLS Notice of Funding Opportunity. At least six conference presentations and 4 publications will emerge from this study, as well as significant networking opportunities among both practitioners and scholars. 2. The initial survey will learn the demographics and current practices of existing trustees, how trustees and library administrators understand trustee roles and responsibilities, and if, and to what extent, differences in libraries or communities impact trustee practices. 3. Then, the focus groups and interviews will delve deeper into the promising practices regarding trustees, specifically those that support equitable, inclusive, and beneficial governance, as well as community members’ civic engagement. 4. Finally, working with a Participatory Action Research Council of 20 people identified through the focus groups and interviews, as well as 1-2 scholars interested in library governance, a PAR symposium will be held in Lexington to assess the findings of the earlier steps, then collaboratively analyze and design materials or processes that could advance beneficial and inclusive trustee governance. This will result in draft materials for a planned trustee toolkit that is responsive to the many types of trustee selection, community, and library need. 5. The goal of this project is to support the well-being of communities across the United States, by supporting this community governance of libraries.