Literacy
in Libraries: Challenges and Opportunities
Robert Wedgeworth
University Librarian and Professor Emeritus,
University of Illinois
Former President and CEO, ProLiteracy Worldwide
What I would like to
do in these remarks is to chronicle what I consider to be some key moments in
my relationship to libraries and literacy. I also plan to assert that
despite the efforts of many libraries, volunteer literacy organizations,
funding agencies, and important members of Congress like the late Senator Paul
Simon, these programs have not achieved the traction we expected. In
addition, I plan to suggest what may be helpful in addressing this issue more
successfully and how to initiate a new agenda for literacy. Since I am an
appointee of President Obama to serve on the Board of the Institute of Museum
and Library Services, I must declare that the opinions and judgments expressed
here are solely my own.
Although I began my
career in a public library, I was a cataloger and had little contact with
users. My subsequent career was in academic libraries before being
appointed Executive Director of the American Library Association (ALA) in
1972. It was at the beginning of my tenure at ALA that I became familiar
with library literacy programs. Mostly I asked questions in order to understand
what opportunities there were for ALA to be of assistance to literacy
programs.
George H. W. Bush
Signs Paul Simon's Sawyer
National Literacy Act :: July 25, 1991
National Literacy Act :: July 25, 1991
Published on Sep
2, 2015
Special
Collections Research Center, Morris Library, Southern Illinois University
Carbondale
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