Showcasing diverse leadership styles and perspectives from across the globe, this collection invites readers to reimagine what effective leadership in libraries looks like, sharing both inspiration and practical guidance for those committed to creating more just and inclusive libraries.
In a world of constant change and evolving societal expectations, libraries stand at a critical crossroads. As institutions traditionally dedicated to knowledge preservation and dissemination, libraries now face unprecedented challenges that demand innovative leadership approaches centered on equity, diversity, and inclusion. This book represents a vital contribution to this conversation—one that amplifies marginalized voices and challenges us to view leadership through a social justice lens. Whether you’re a library administrator, a department head, a front-line library worker, or an LIS student, you will find both challenges to your thinking and concrete strategies for moving forward, including
- real-world perspectives from Canadian, American, Asian, and Australian contributors with varying identities;
- leadership roles, competencies, and lessons drawn from navigating the complexities of higher education and librarianship;
- guidance on inclusive strategic planning processes, shepherding working groups, effective administrative structures and hiring best practices, scholarly publishing, and other key topics;
- insights on dealing with ongoing momentous upheavals, such as changing political landscapes, pandemic disruptions and tragedies, and racial violence;
- explorations of the ways in which higher education institutions and their libraries are embracing DEI, Indigenization, and decolonization;
- reasons why reflection, intentionality, non-reactivity, and other ways of slowing down are so important for embracing thoughtful planning and implementing sustainable practices and ethical approaches; and
- advice on building meaningful relationships and resisting political, societal, and personal pressures.
List of Figures
Foreword by Trevor A. Dawes
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1 Practicing Slow Dwelling as an Approach to Anti-Oppressive
Journal Editorship: A Case Study of CAML Review/Revue de lACBM, the Journal
of the Canadian Association of Music Libraries
Carolyn Doi, Jan Guise, and Jada Watson
Chapter 2 The Road Less Traveled: Leadership and Advocacy in NGO Libraries
in the Philippines
Iyra S. Buenrostro-Cabbab and Danilo Madayag Baylen
Chapter 3 The Power of Perspective: Diverse Women Steering Library
Committees
Kim Geraldi and Kaia MacLeod
Chapter 4 Reframing with Abundance: Critically Examining Our Professional
Practice
Cleire Lauron, Melissa Gillies, and Carolyn Casenas
Chapter 5 A Blueprint for Belonging: An Academic Librarys Strategic
Planning Journey
Jeehyun Davis
Chapter 6 Assessing Guiding Documents Through the Symbolic Frame:
Practical Strategies from Two Libraries
Amy Andres and Irene M. H. Herold
Chapter 7 Leadership Roles and Competencies of Australian Health Science
Libraries: A Perspective
Ann Ritchie, Michele Gaca, Alice Anderson, and Gemma Siemensma
Chapter 8 How Do They Get There? Where Do They Go? An Exploration of
Senior Administrator Hiring Practices and Roles in Canadian Academic
Libraries
Nicole Eva and Jasmine Hoover
Appendix: VCU Libraries Strategic Action Plan Task Force 202223 Charge
About the Contributors
Index
Maha Kumaran is a faculty librarian at the University of Saskatchewan. She graduated from the University of British Columbia with an MLIS degree in 2005 and received her PhD from the University of Saskatchewan in 2023. She has authored several papers and published three books. Her research and practice focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion in libraries, particularly Canadian and academic libraries.
Beth McNeil is dean emerita and Esther Ellis Norton professor of library science at the Libraries and School of Information Studies at Purdue University. She served as dean of libraries at Purdue from 2019 to 2025 and at Iowa State University from 2015 to 2019. She received a PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and earned masters and bachelors degrees from the University of Illinois. She is the author of several books and journal articles on aspects of library leadership and management.
