Andy Runton has always loved to draw and always loved comics. After college and a career in corporate America, he finally followed his heart, started drawing comics, graphic novels, and children’s books, and he hasn’t looked back since. In 2001 he created the all-ages series of graphic novels, Owly, which features a kind-hearted little owl who’s always searching for new friends and adventure. The Owly series has earned praise from fans and critics alike, winning multiple awards including the Harvey Award, two Ignatz Awards, the 2006 Eisner Award for “Best Publication for a Younger Audience,” and many others. He currently reside in the greater-Atlanta area where he works full-time as a cartoonist!
Jessie Rosen got her start with the award-winning blog 20-Nothings and has sold original television projects to ABC, CBS, Warner Bros., and Netflix. Her live storytelling show Sunday Night Sex Talks was featured on The Bachelorette. She lives in Los Angeles.
Cory Doctorow (craphound.com) is a science fiction author, activist and journalist. He is the author of many books, most recently THE BEZZLE (a followup to RED TEAM BLUES) and THE LOST CAUSE, a solarpunk science fiction novel of hope amidst the climate emergency. His most recent nonfiction book is THE INTERNET CON: HOW TO SEIZE THE MEANS OF COMPUTATION, a Big Tech disassembly manual. Other recent books include RED TEAM BLUES, a science fiction crime thriller; CHOKEPOINT CAPITALISM, nonfiction about monopoly and creative labor markets; the LITTLE BROTHER series for young adults; IN REAL LIFE, a graphic novel; and the picture book POESY THE MONSTER SLAYER. In 2020, he was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame.
Audrey Barbakoff is the CEO of Co/lab Capacity LLC, which provides community-centered consulting for libraries and social good organizations. During more than a decade in public libraries, her work was recognized by Library Journal Movers & Shakers, the Urban Libraries Council Top Innovators, and the Freedom to Read Foundation. Dr. Barbakoff holds an MLIS from the University of Washington and an EdD in Organizational Change and Leadership from the University of Southern California. She is co-author of The 12 Steps to a Community-Led Library, and author of Adults Just Wanna Have Fun: Programs for Emerging Adults and the forthcoming picture book The Schlemiel Kids Save the Moon.
Noah Lenstra is an associate professor of library and information science at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he brings a community organizing approach to the teaching and research of public librarianship. Since 2016, Dr. Lenstra has managed the Let’s Move in Libraries initiative, an online space for sharing stories and resources related to public library participation in community health initiatives related to food or physical activity. Dr. Lenstra holds doctoral and master’s degrees in library and information science from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
Elizabeth A. Wahler is Professor and Director of the School of Social Work at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA, and founder of Beth Wahler Consulting. She has collaborated with libraries and library systems across the United States to conduct assessments of their patrons’ psychosocial needs and staff challenges with these types of patron needs; provided training to library staff about trauma-informed librarianship and other approaches to addressing their patrons’ needs; and created and piloted various interventions to address patron needs and support library staff. She is recognized internationally for her work on library and social work collaborations.
Sarah C. Johnson, MLIS, LMSW, is adjunct lecturer at the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois, where she teaches a course on library social work. She is a licensed social worker, and her research focuses on the impact of social work students conducting their field placements at public libraries. Her aim is to foster quality internships by building alliances among students, public librarians, and social work educators, with the goal of enhancing services to library patrons and their wider community.
James LaRue is the director of the Garfield County (Colorado) Public Library District. Author of “The New Inquisition: Understanding and Managing Intellectual Freedom Challenges,” (2007) and “On Censorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the US,” (2023) LaRue has been a public library director for many years, as well as a weekly newspaper columnist and cable TV host. From January of 2016 to November of 2018, he was director of the Freedom to Read Foundation, and ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. He has written, spoken, and consulted extensively on intellectual freedom issues, leadership and organizational development, community engagement, and the future of libraries.
Janette Derucki joined RAILS in January 2022 as part of the SLATE (School Library Advocacy Through Education) Project before transitioning to her current role as Data Research Specialist. She is a second-career librarian, earning a Master of Information degree with a concentration in Data Science from Rutgers University in 2021. The use of data for advocacy and to support advancement in the field of library and information science is one of her many interests, and she endeavors to work with library professionals to make a positive impact.
Grant Halter is the Data Analysis Manager at RAILS and has been there for 4.5 years helping steadily grow the Data Analysis Department. Grant joined RAILS after a short stint at the Oak Park Public Library as their Data Analyst, where he learned the ins and outs of the library world and how data can best impact the industry. His background is in applied mathematics, which he utilizes to uncover useful insights that help guide RAILS staff and members with data. His favorite chart is a scatter plot, and his favorite part of his work is developing formulas to equitably distribute grant funding.
Ashley is an avid reader who pretty much has an interest in all types of genres and has recently become a big fan of manga/comics. She runs a blog at BookishRealmReviews also makes YouTube videos – all related to books!
Thomas Maluck is a Teen Services Librarian for Richland Library. He has worked in public libraries, including youth services and readers advisory, for over thirteen years. He was the 2019 recipient of the F. William Summers Outstanding Alumni Award from the University of South Carolina. He co-presented the keynote address with Kristin LaLonde at the Quebec Library Association about graphic novel collections and their impact on readers. He has been a panelist and moderator about graphic novels and library programming at American Library Association, New York Comic Con, Toronto Comic Arts Festival, Dragon Con, and C2E2 conferences. He has served on YALSA’s Great Graphic Novels For Teens book selection committee as well as School Library Journal’s Best Graphic Novels team. He currently reviews for Kirkus and contributes to features for No Flying No Tights. He also uses his Accredited Personal Finance Instructor ℠ credential to provide financial education.
Tamar Evangelestia-Dougherty is the director of the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives. The recently integrated Smithsonian Libraries and Archives contains nearly 3 million library volumes and over 44,000 cubic feet of archival materials chronicling the history of the Smithsonian. Evangelestia-Dougherty oversees 137 employees, a national advisory board of 15 members, an annual budget of over $16 million and 22 library branches and reading rooms located in Washington, D.C., New York City, Maryland, Virginia and the Republic of Panama.
Previously, Evangelestia-Dougherty was an associate university librarian at Cornell University where she initiated Cornell RAD, a new research hub for rare and distinctive collections. She is also a faculty member of the UCLA California Rare Book School. As director of collections and services at New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture from 2013 to 2014, Evangelestia-Dougherty led collection and programmatic development of five curatorial divisions. At the University of Chicago’s Black Metropolis Research Consortium, she served as executive director from 2011 to 2013 and as consulting archivist from 2007 to 2011. There, she successfully led initiatives to discover and make accessible archives related to the African American diaspora.
In addition to her extensive work with rare and distinctive collections, Evangelestia-Dougherty is a published author and public speaker who has presented nationally on topics of inclusivity and equity in bibliography, administration and primary-source literacy. She currently serves on the boards of Digital Scriptorium and the American Printing History Association.
Evangelestia-Dougherty holds a Master of Science in information science from Simmons University’s School of Library and Information Science in Boston and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Houston.
Tracie D. Hall was the American Library Association’s 10th executive director in its 143-year history, and the first African American female in the role. She resigned in October 2023. Her work in library and arts administration has been recognized with the National Book Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award and by Time magazine. Hall was the 2023 recipient of the medal for Freedom of Speech and Free Expression by the Franklin D Roosevelt Institute.
Circulating Ideas 