Hello all, I just received this update from Melanie Welch at ALA regarding current plans for Sesquicentennial events:
I want to start by acknowledging and thanking the members of the 150th Commemoration Steering Committee, co-chaired by Martin Garnar and Courtney Young, for their important work over the course of 18 months to identify commemoration ideas, content themes, and key constituencies. Staff have been working hard at operationalizing these ideas, which include the 150th webpage, an online, interactive history timeline that will eventually live on the webpage, and an in-person evening event at the 2026 annual conference. Staff are also working on an oral history podcast series under the banner of ALA's "How I Library" podcast and a special 150th anniversary issue of American Libraries for May 2026.
I am pleased to say staff have made progress towards these milestones and are ensuring opportunities for members to make important contributions. Member committees are also incorporating 150th Commemoration Steering Committee's ideas in their work for 2026. I'm reaching out now with an update on current opportunities to engage.
150th Anniversary Webpage Blog and How I Library Podcast Oral History Episodes
We are seeking contributions from ALA members for the ala150.org blog and inspiration for the oral history "How I Library" podcast episodes. We want stories from members that reflect their experiences with ALA, its legacy, and its history; stories about the people, policies, and pivotal moments that shaped the Association, its core values (Access, Equity, Intellectual Freedom & Public Good, Sustainability), and our country's libraries.
These can be personal memories and/or researched stories that reflect the following themes:
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- Pivotal people and moments in ALA history-past, present, or future
- Policy and impact: What has changed for libraries or communities
- Member milestones: How ALA shaped your work and vice versa
- Lessons learned: A reckoning with constructive next steps for ALA and its future
More information and submission guidelines can be found here.
ALA Annual Conference Programs
The ALA 2026 Annual Conference & Exhibition, June 25–29, 2026, in Chicago, Illinois will be a milestone event marking ALA's 150th Anniversary. The Annual Conference explores key challenges and opportunities facing libraries, with professional development rooted in timely research, innovation, and best practices. For the 2026 conference, programming will include a broad variety of perspectives that celebrate, commemorate, or educate about the impact that ALA and our affiliate partners have made on the profession and on libraries nationally and internationally over the last 150 years – or will make in the next 150 years. An ALA 150th tag will be used to designate programs that fall into this content category. Opportunities to contribute to Annual programming include proposing education programs or posters, organizing preconferences, coordinating President/Chair programs, and more.
More information on current opportunities can be found here.
ALA History Trivia Night at Annual Conference
An evening trivia game at the 2026 annual conference is also planned. GameRT and RUSA will showcase the ALA 150th Anniversary and ALA history as the theme for their regular Trivia Championship. As soon as more details are known about the event, GameRT and RUSA organizers will contact interested members about helping with ALA trivia.
American Libraries Magazine
American Libraries has been compiling content for its special 150th anniversary issue in May 2026, including interviews with several ALA member leaders. As the magazine's editors and/or writers identify additional needs, they may be in touch to request sources or quotes for these stories.
We are certainly free as members to volunteer to be involved in these events, and I encourage everyone to express interest as your schedule permits. In addition, I think we as the Library History Round Table need to propose our own programming at this point. I believe the deadline for education program proposals closes September 22nd. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to be sponsored by LHRT, please contact me or anyone on the LHRT Board. Thank you!
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Jennifer Bartlett
Chair, Library History Round Table, 2025-26
Oral History Librarian
University of Kentucky Libraries
jen.bartlett@uky.edu------------------------------