ALA MEMBER ALERT
Do you agree that a library degree is essential for the Executive Director of ALA? Please sign the petition to reinstate this requirement. The degree required includes an ALA-accredited Master's Degree or a CAEP-accredited Master's Degree with a specialty in school library media.
Click on the link below to sign. Please re-post widely.
The great thing about this is that having this question on the ballot all ALA Members will have the opportunity to officially express their opinion on this subject.
After you login the page may seem a little odd. Go ahead and click on that you want to sign the petition. When you do this the full petition appears. You will then need to write out your full name and hit another button to finish signing the petition.
https://tinyurl.com/ybyqpyw7
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Earlier discussion on this subject may be found here: http://connect.ala.org/communities/community-home/digestviewer/viewthread?MessageKey=74d7b72f-c0b6-4c79-9bb5-6df707f1b451
A little background:
Last month, in a rushed, unprecedented online vote, ALA Council voted in favor of removing the requirement for the ALA Executive Director to hold the MLS degree. ALA Council had just reaffirmed the 2000 Council decision that the ALA Executive Director must have an MLS at the 2017 Midwinter Meeting. Just months later they changed this position to preferred instead of required.
And for you bureaucracy junkies membership petitions are allowed according to the ALA Constitution, Article VI, Section 4 c (http://www.ala.org/aboutala/governance/constitution/constitution). Yes, because this is a membership organization we can overturn Council decisions.