On Friday, June 28, I packed into a bus with several dozens of librarians to tour three libraries in the San Diego area.

This architecture tour was organized by CORE.

Tour Itinerary:

8:00AM // Depart Convention Center

8:00AM – 8:30AM // Travel to Central Library (30 minutes)

8:30AM – 10:30AM // San Diego Central Library Presentation + Tour

10:30 AM – 11:15 AM // Travel to Imperial Beach Library

11:15 AM – 12:15 PM // Imperial Beach Library Presentation + Tour

12:15 PM – 1:00 PM // Lunch at Imperial Beach Library

1:00 PM – 1:15 PM // Travel to San Ysidro Library

1:15 PM – 2:15 PM // San Ysidro Library Presentation + Tour

2:15-3:00pm // Return to Convention Center (30 minutes)

Additional Information about each space:

San Diego Central Library

The nine-story, 497,652 square-foot Central Library opened in 2013 at a cost of $184 million. The library features an outdoor garden courtyard, 350-seat auditorium, three-story domed reading room, an art gallery, an Idea Lab and maker space, a charter school co-located on the 6th and 7th floors, special event rental spaces, and at the top you’ll find an iconic 140-foot dome consisting of eight sails connected on three points. The dome is an ancient architectural form that ties us to the larger history of civic and community architecture and serves as a symbol of enlightenment and democracy. The cutting-edge structural engineering and unique design of the dome are intended to be contemporary and responsive to the San Diego climate. The dome distinguishes this civic resource from the many commercial towers and residential buildings which surround it. The dome anchors the nighttime cityscape with a soft and welcoming glow. The dome is a metaphor. It will never look finished. Like the human spirits being nurtured within, it is in the perpetual act of becoming.

Magazines and Newspapers are kept on the 3rd floor of the Central Library.

The "Historic" magazines are in the open stacks.

Daily newspapers are kept on a wire display area near the reference desk at the center of the floor.

Miscellaneous newspapers are kept on some shelving at the far end of the floor.

Detail of the large "San Diego Central Library" sign from the backside, taken inside the library.

This library still has pay phones, which cut an interesting figure against the back drop of the large cement arch in the grand entryway of the library.

As a California resident, I got my Padres-themed San Diego library card!

Imperial Beach Library

The new Imperial Beach Library includes spaces for children, teens, and adults; a marketplace area featuring popular books and media; a computer lab, homework center, and Wi-Fi; a Community room for flexible programming. This project which won an Award of Merit from the ENR California – 2017 Regional Project and also a 2017 Energy Efficiency & Integration Award from the San Diego Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. It is LEED Gold Certified.

This library is part of the San Diego County network of libraries, which is different from the City of San Diego libraries.

The magazines and newspapers area of the neighborhood branch library. It was finally here I obtained a copy of the San Diego Union Tribune for that day's date.

The wave theme permeates the entire architecture of the building, from the view from the entrance...

...to the view from the opposite side of the floor...

...to the mosaic made of recycled porcelain and pottery adorning the front entrance

San Diego Public Library, San Ysidro Branch

The single-story, 15,000 square-foot San Ysidro Branch Library is designed to encourage interaction and activity. The library features modern amenities, such as children and teen areas, a homework center, maker space/Idea Lab, community rooms, a food serving kitchen, a reading patio, and an outdoor theatre. The Idea Lab focuses on digital textile arts and features a 3D printer, die cut machine, sewing/embroidery machines, serger, button maker, and a heat press. The outdoor reading patio and landscaping complement the library’s architectural design and support the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED™) Silver certification.

Magazine display area of the San Ysidro Branch Library

Daily newspaper area. Sign says, "Please do not take the newspapers home" in Spanish and English.

More daily newspapers and magazines laid out for browsing.

Left side detail of the grand entry way art

Right side detail of the grand entryway

The grand entryway art is by the de la Torre brothers, who use lenticular prints as seen on the left and ride sides of the entryway, and whose work is also featured in the elevator shaft of the Central Library.

Bonus: on my last day in San Diego, I also managed to visit the Mission Valley branch library!

Side view of the Mission Valley branch library

Front view of the Mission Valley branch library, with a wavey,metal exterior and a clock tower

The pages of the paper are connected with tied strips of twine rather than a staple or interleaved into a newspaper stick

View from the upstairs of the library's reading room

American Library Association Annual Conference 2024, San Diego, CA June 27-July 2

My presenter badge from the conference

Friday, June 28

8:00am – 4:00pm Pacific

Public Libraries Tour

Off Site, Off Site

4:00pm – 5:30pm Pacific

Opening General Session featuring Trevor Noah

Trevor Noah in conversation with past ALA president Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada

Ballroom 20, San Diego Convention Center

We don't lose our imagination as we get older, but we may lose our ability to trust our imagination

There's you, and then there's the way you think about yourself

He wrote his new book, Into the Uncut Grass, for the child he once was, for everyone that was once a child, because that's when we start to become who we are now

Libraries give context and curation

5:30pm – 7:00pm Pacific

Collaborative Zine

Exhibit Hall - Booth 2742

5:30pm – 7:00pm Pacific

The Beach @ ALA

Front of 3000 Aisle

5:30pm – 7:00pm Pacific

The Library Marketplace Opening Reception

Exhibit Halls - B2--G

Saturday, June 29

9:00am – 10:00am Pacific

When to Tap-In and Tap-Out: Nurturing Resilience and Renewing Bonds in Library Teams

Nicole T. Bryan, branch manager at Macon Library of Brooklyn (N.Y.) Public Library (BPL); and BPL Regional Directors LaMeane C. Isaac, Sharon M. Palmer, and Taina K. Evans

Room 28 D E, San Diego Convention Center

Brooklyn Public Library division managers "tapped in" to cover for branch library staff on a branch-by-branch basis in order to give branch staff a time to "tap out" -- time for retreat, rejuvenation, and team building on a special Friday in the wake of the post-Covid lockdown re-opening.
This session was the feature of an American Libraries Magazine blog post.

10:00am – 11:30am Pacific

2004 Is the New 2024: Blogs for Marketing and Outreach

Kelci Baughman McDowell

Sails Pavilion

My first poster session at #ALAAC2024!

1:00pm – 2:00pm Pacific

You've Got Their Attention. Make It Count: Micro-Learning for Adult Learners in the Library

Jessica A. Curtis

Room 09, San Diego Convention Center

I liked this presenter because she taught us some useful things about the ALA conference app while we waited for the lunch break to end, and she pointed out that the bite-sized lesson of how to take notes in the app and export them later was an example of micro-learning (the topic she was about to discuss). I liked that she educated us about different learning styles, but I don't think she emphasized enough that the learning style belief has been myth-busted--in fact, there was a presentation at the conference specifically about busting this myth--but keeping a variety of approaches can't be a bad practice.
The slides of this presentation (and the learning styles myth busting session) are available--just ask if you'd like me to share.

3:30pm – 5:00pm Pacific

Cultural Awareness Programs at San Francisco Public Library’s Magazines and Newspapers Center

Kelci Baughman McDowell

Sails Pavilion

My second poster session at #ALAAC2024!

San Francisco City Librarian Michael Lambert showing up for my second poster!

Sunday, June 30

10:00am – 11:30am Pacific

Zines as Graphic Medicine for Librarians

Exhibit Hall - Booth 2742

Cassy Lee

I had no idea when I came over to the Zine Pavilion Sunday morning that I'd get to connect with two San Francisco-based educators! Cassy Lee's presentation, Zines as Graphic Medicine for Librarians (slides), covered comics and zine-making as a modality for promoting health communication, wellness, and processing. While the presentation was tailored to librarians at ALA seeking wellness, she also made it adaptable for anyone wanting to take the program back home to their library. The presentation gave ample time for participants to make their own zine, which was co-facilitated by SFUSD teacher librarian Lisa Bishop, who absolutely lit up the Zine Pavilion with her enthusiasm for zines. Let me know if you'd like a copy of my zine!

12:30pm - 1:20pm Pacific

How To Love a Forest with Ethan Tapper

Exhibit Hall - Chapter One Stage (Booth 2311)

The ONE author event I caught in the exhibit hall. Truly, you could keep yourself busy with an exhibits-only conference pass with all the author events, unconference activities, and vendor booths available.

Tapper's book is about "weeding" a forest in order to maintain its health... not unlike library collections =) I had to leave to set-up for my poster before the book signing :(

1:30pm – 3:00pm Pacific

Who Cares About Print Magazines? We Do! Managing and Promoting Physical Periodicals

Sails Pavilion

My third poster session at #ALAAC2024!

Meeting of SFPL librarians at my last poster

3:30pm – 5:00pm Pacific

ALA Awards Presentation & President’s Program - The Heart of Our Story: A Celebration of Library Workers

Angela Watkins, Kathleen Nubel, Christina Gavin, and Gerald Moore in conversation with Emily Drabinski

Ballroom 20, San Diego Convention Center

This was the feel good portion of the conference that allowed me to wallow in vocational awe for myself and my colleagues. First there were dozens of award winners announced (see the list of award winners, obtained from ALA), and then there was a panel of public and school librarians that discussed popular topics we're facing as a profession in conversation with ALA president (at the time) Emily Drabinski.

I enjoyed everything each panelist shared about their work, philosophies, and accomplishments, but I especially appreciated the information aspect of the innovative programs shared by Angela Watkins, Director of the Aztec Public Library in New Mexico. For example, her library innovated a way to connect users with help filling out government forms related to bail bonds, warrants, and other carceral holds. Ultimately it drove home how much public libraries do to support their communities outside of traditional "library and information science" areas, like food pantries, the library of things, and supporting unhoused patrons.

This session was the topic of an American Libraries Magazine blog post.

5:00pm – 6:00pm Pacific

ALA Community Reception

Center Terrance, San Diego Convention Center

I enjoyed socializing with Dr. Danielle Maurici-Pollock, recipient of the Beta Phi Mu Award, and Joye Cauthen, acquisitions librarian at Georgia Gwinnett College, during the reception.

Monday, July 1

9:00am – 10:00am Pacific

Pondering Primary Sources: Authenticity, Bias, and Controversy in Historical Research

Roxanne F. Owens and Cyndi Giorgis (moderators) with Sarah Aronson, Candace Fleming, and Sherri L. Smith

Room 25 A B C, San Diego Convention Center

I expected this session to be more academic or scholarly, but it was interesting even though the panelists are authors of nonfiction young adult and middle grade books. The discussed some examples of using marriage and divorce licenses, autobiographies, archived film clips, to verify facts and creatively work around omissions in their books.

10:30am – 12:00pm Pacific
How to Come Alive with Norman Mailer
Location: San Diego Convention Center, Room 22

I caught one movie at the Now Showing @ ALA Film Program, this documentary about the author who innovated "new journalism," a.k.a. creative nonfiction, Norman Mailer. I have never read anything by him, but I think I will need to correct that soon. Maybe I'll start with The Executioner's Song, which is the name of a song by my favorite musician.

1:00pm – 2:00pm Pacific

The African American and Ethnic-American Press: Newspaper Collection Development and Access in the 21st Century

RUSA-sponsored program with Amanda Binder (moderator), Dominique Daniel, and Elizabeth Russey Roke

Room 05 A, San Diego Convention Center

Finally, the one session specifically applicable to a Magazines and Newspapers Librarian! Daniel's presentation discussed the rise of the ethnic press in the U.S. in conjunction with waves of immigration and provided bibliographies, indexes, and directories of said newspapers, which are rich resources that are at high risk of obscurity. She laid out examples from Michigan, where she works, and brought the information into currency by discussing how these newspapers are being preserved and digitized and what we can learn from studying the news-seeking behaviors of select ethnicities in the U.S. today.

Russey Roke discussed a project she's been leading to turn an African American periodicals directory into a queryable database with linked data, which has successfully used ChatGPT with a 90-95% accuracy rate to process data sets.

There is a handout for this session, which is entitled “'Collecting and Preserving the non-English Ethnic-American Press': Selected Useful Resources.'” I can provide a copy upon request.

2:30pm – 3:30pm Pacific

(Room Change) A Call to Play: Encouraging Staff to Play in Public Libraries

Kristen Duke and Jennifer Waugh

Room 30 A B C D E, San Diego Convention Center

I thought this session was going to be in the context of staff wellness and development, but it ended up being about ways to justify librarians engaging in "playful" programs with children with scientific evidence and rhetorical tools to make the case for it at a library. Not very applicable to my work as an adult services librarian.

4:00pm – 5:00pm Pacific

The ABC’s of Youth Engagement: Culturally Affirming Tools

Christy Estrovitz, moderator, with Brodrick Clarke, Sheryl E. Davis, and Michael Lambert

Room 30 A B C D E, San Diego Convention Center

San Francisco Public Library represent! Estrovitz and Lambert anchored this session in context of SFPL's summer reading program, Summer Stride, while Brodrick and Davis delightfully brought music, song, and creativity into the session, embodying and exemplifying the methods they promote for engaging students in learning. I attended this session to find out more about my new place of work even though it did not apply as much to me as an adult services librarian. I was proud to see a program out of San Francisco with sing-alongs and guitar playing bringing the pizzaz to the conference. We don't do things the dowdy way at all.

Some of the SFPL crew at the end of this session

Tuesday, July 2

9:30am – 10:30am Pacific

Closing General Session featuring Anika Noni Rose

Anika Noni Rose in conversation with Kwame Mbalia

Ballroom 20, San Diego Convention Center

This closing session began with the announcements and celebration of the incoming presidents of ALA subgroups and professional organizations, including announcing SFPL's City Librarian Michael Lambert as the incoming president of the Public Library Association.

Once that celebrating was done, the session provided one last chance for me to indulge in shameless vocational awe for myself and my fellow librarians as we sat in the presence of two Black authors in conversation about the power of reading. Being interviewed by Kwame Mbalia, author of popular books for middle graders, Anika Noni Rose gushed about how transformative the library was for her while growing up and how much she loves reading and books. She discussed the message of her new book, Tiana’s Perfect Plan, a children's picture book coming out in October, that encourages young readers to let go of the need to be perfectionists.

Librarian celebrity Mychal Threets was in attendance at the session; he already was drawing attention as folks asked to take pictures with him before it began, but once Rose called him out for his incredible work spreading library joy, he got hit by groups of folks wanting to talk to him and take more pictures once the session was done.

Even though children's literature is not something typically in my wheelhouse (except for the one class about the history of youth literature I took in library school), I really enjoyed this celebration of the most basic principles of librarianship: supporting the development of literacy and fostering the love of reading in young readers. It made me grateful to my dad for reading to me every night when I was a kid, and I told him that afterwards! It also gave me time to reflect on my own journey of finding infinite information about the world and life in the books I devoured growing up, and how, just maybe, that led me to become a librarian. As Rose said, give yourself GRACE.

This session was the topic of an American Libraries Magazine blog post.

Biblio Bebé

Saturday, July 13, 2024

ALA 2024 Public Libraries Off Site Tour

Saturday, July 6, 2024

My Schedule at the American Library Association Annual Conference 2024 (San Diego, CA)

American Library Association Annual Conference 2024, San Diego, CA June 27-July 2

Friday, June 28

Saturday, June 29

Sunday, June 30

Monday, July 1

Tuesday, July 2

My Posters at the American Library Association Annual Conference 2024 (San Diego, CA)