Librarian Irene Herold authors book on library consortia and advocacy
Irene Herold, Librarian of the College
Irene Herold,responsible for leadership and administrative management of libraries at69ֱ, examines the ܰԳwork of library groups in her book,Leading Together: Academic Library Consortia and Advocacy, publishedon April 15 by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). According to announcement from theassociation, consortia advocacy has ٴǰfocused onthe legislation, policy, and funding of libraries,butthis book covers the unexplored area of advocacy models and frameworks meant to help consortia develop their own advocacy plans.Herold, a former ACRL president,said her work was sparked after being selected to present a workshopin 2018for astate-wide consortium to create an advocacy plan, whichinvolved reviewing hundreds of U.S. and Canadian library groups. “After that workshop,I was looking for other models of what I had created and done and discovered the gap in the literature,”shesaid.
A librarian since 1992, Heroldused herownexperiences withlibrary consortia and researchexpertise inleadershipfor the topics covered inLeading Together. “As a library and ACRL leader, I have done advocacy work on a personal, professional, and political level,” she said.“I’ve conducted research on leadership, so turning that lens to consortia was in alignment with my previous publications on leadership development, mentoring, and mindful leadership.”While the beginning of the book models traditional scholarly research studies with a historicaland literature overview, theoretical framework, and description of methodology, Herolddedicates the second halfto acase study ofthe hypothetical “Consortia X.”Modeled after the groups she researched for the2018workshop, Heroldused Consortia X to create a detailed plan that consortia leaders could use to create their own advocacy training.“It includes links to multiple readings, resources, exercises, and tools,” Herold wrote in the publication’s announcement. “A facilitator may pick and choose which to use to build their own curriculum.”
According to the Wooster librarian, this research is significant because it fills a gap in the library science literature, andwhile specific to academic library consortia, “the concepts and principles apply more broadly” as well. Herold is grateful for the opportunity to contribute to this research area and to Wooster forhelping the book come out earlier.“I am delighted and honored that this has been published,” she said.“It has come out a year ahead of schedule due to the supportive environment of 69ֱ that values faculty research and scholarship.”
Posted in News on April 21, 2021.
