ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


April 1991/241

Racial and Ethnic Diversity: Information Exchange

B y  S u gana H in o jo s a
Chair, ACRL Racial and Ethnic Diversity Committee

Recently established by the ACRL Board of 
Directors, the ACRL Racial and Ethnic Diversity 
Committee met for the first time at ALA Midwinter 
in Chicago. This committee was established upon 
the strong recommendation from the report of the 
ACRL Task Force on Recruitment of Underrepre­
sented Minorities. The December 1990 issue of 
C irR L  News contains the text of the final report of 
this task force, and the charge to the committee. On 
behalf of the committee’s members and the many 
librarians who joined our meetings in Chicago, I 
want to thank the members of the Task Force, 
especially Dr. Edith Fisher, for their report, 
thought-provoking recommendations, and for the 
opportunity to work on these issues.

One recommendation, to develop an informa­
tion exchange column in ACRL publications, has 
become a reality. Our goal for the column is to 
serve as a clearinghouse of information on under­
represented groups and to highlight academic li­
brary and ACRL programs, publications, and ac­
tivities on underrepresented groups in academic 
libraries. I would appreciate your sending items for 
the column to: Susana Hinojosa, Moffìtt Under­
graduate Library, U.C. Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 
94720; e-mail: shinojos@library.berkeley.edu; or 
shinojos@ucblibra.bitnet; fax: (415) 643-7891.

• The ACRL Racial and Ethnic Diversity Com­
mittee is developing a survey that will be sent to all 
ACRL units and chapters, requesting data on the 
participation of underrepresented librarians as 
officers and members, information on action plans 
for increasing participation, and future programs 
on issues of interest to this committee. Preliminary 
results will be available by ALA Annual.

• The ALA Recruitment Assembly, composed 
of representatives from ALA units interested in and 
working on recruitment to the profession, was 
formed during ALA Midwinter in Chicago. This 
group will coordinate recruitment efforts within 
ALA. Contact: Margaret Myers, ALA OLPR, 50 E. 
Huron St., Chicago IL  60611 for more informa­
tion.

• The University o f California, Berkeley, 
School of Library and Information Studies recently

formed a Northern California Library Schools 
Recruitment Committee to promote and encour­
age the recruitment and mentorship of librarians 
who reflect the ethnic, cultural, and language di­
versity of California. The committee’s first pro­
gram, March 2, featured Arabella Martinez, co­
author of the report, “Adrift in a Sea of Change: 
California’s Public Libraries Struggle to Meet the 
Information Needs of Multicultural Communi­
ties.” Janice Koyama, 1989 CLA president, re­
sponded and related the report to academic librar­
ies. Contact Ana Maria Cobos (Green Library, 
Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-6004) for 
information about the committee. “Adrift in a Sea 
of Change” is available from the California State 
Library Foundation, P.O. Box 942837, Sacra­
mento, CA 94237-0001. Price per report: Califor­
nians $23.30; and for everyone else $22.00 (price 
includes shipping).

• Fourth Annual National Conference on Ra­
cial & Ethnic Relations in American Higher Edu­
cation, May 31-June 4, 1991, San Antonio, Texas, 
"... continues the focus of the series on building 
multicultural university environments capable of 
responding to wide-ranging changes occurring 
throughout society.” Contact: The Southwest Cen­
ter for Human Relations Studies, Univ. of Okla­
homa, 555 Constitution, Norman, OK 73037- 
0005, or call (405) 325-3936 for additional infor­
mation.

• Developing Library Collections f o r  Califor­
nia’s Emerging Majority: A Manual o f Resourcesf o r  
Ethnic Collection Development is available for $35 
from: Bay Area Library and Information System 
(BALIS), 520 3rd St., Suite 202, Oakland, CA 
94607-3520; or call (415) 839-6001 for informa­
tion. The manual focuses on the four major ethnic 
groups: African American, American Indian, 
Asian/Southeast Asian, and Chicano/Latino. In­
tended to help both academic and public libraries 
develop relevant collections for our increasingly 
diverse communities, the manual was produced 
through the joint work and effort o f academic and 
public librarians.

mailto:shinojos@library.berkeley.edu