Literacy & Library Movers & Shakers 2009

Library Movers & Shakers 2009
Library Journal
Librarians recognized for their work with literacy in libraries across the country.

Lisa Harris-Advocates
Alameda County Library, Fremont, CA

Fresh Starts Lisa Harris grew up in a rough neighborhood in East Oakland, CA, where many classmates dropped out around eighth grade and later wound up behind bars. Eighteen years ago, when Harris answered an ad for a “Jail Literacy Coordinator” with the Alameda County Library (ACL), she reconnected with some of those peers—and began teaching them literacy skills. That's one great aspect of her current job as jail literacy manager: “I can help people I grew up with,” she says.

Another winning Harris initiative, Start with a Story, educates kids as they wait to see incarcerated loved ones. “Incarceration and low literacy skills are intrinsically intergenerational,” says Harris. “There are myriad issues these children face. We can't solve them all, but we can 'Start with a Story.'”

Carey Gross-Activists
Butte County Library, Oroville, CA

Chuck Ashton, of Redwood City Public Library, CA, calls Gross “a force of nature cutting through any obstacles between learners and their goal of literacy.” To Butte County Library (BCL) director Derek Wolfgram, she's a positive bundle of “infectious energy” who, despite BCL's limited resources, built one of the strongest adult and family literacy programs in California.
Early Learning with Families (ELF)

Daniel Marcou-Innovators
Hennepin County Library, Minnetonka, MN

Hennepin County Adult Corrections Facility, he also coordinates and oversees innovative programs like Read to Me, which teaches offenders about family literacy while providing books to their children. “Too often families of the incarcerated are forgotten,” Marcou says. Read to Me, winner of a National Association of Counties Award and a Marshall Cavendish Excellence in Library Programming Award, “helps to maintain the family connection, promotes reading, and encourages library use.” Another program, Freedom Ticket, which Marcou is currently promoting to Minnesota state prisons, assists ex-offenders in using their public libraries to find jobs and develop technical skills.

Ken Pienkos-Marketers
Oxford Public Library, PA

Determined to engage with the Spanish-speaking community, Pienkos partnered with a local organization and revived an ESL program that now has 70 students. The irresistible lure: free quality childcare. He also convinced the Chester County Health Department to publish brochures in Spanish.

Map: People Shaping the Future of Libraries: 2002 - 2009