In This Issue

President's Corner ~ Congratulations to This Year's RILA Award Winners ~ NELLS Tier 2: Emerging Leaders ~ National History Day ~ RILBA Committee Seeking New Members ~ News from the Rhode Island Library Community

This will be a lot of thank-you’s, so get ready…

I’d like to start off with a heartfelt thank-you to all conference attendees. This year’s conference was well-attended and received. In spite of the weather, we had over 140 attendees on each day! I was happy to hear positive comments. We’re glad you enjoyed the new location - URI’s Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences building - and all attendees should have received a survey to further express their thoughts about the conference. We look forward to hearing from you!

A big Thank-You to RILA’s intrepid conference committee! As co-chairs Beatrice Pulliam and I could not have done it without you. We thank you for your energy, hard work, and dedication. There were so many facets to the conference - especially in a new location - and you all tirelessly helped and worked to make it happen.

Thank you to our conference sponsors: OLIS and URI GSLIS. An additional thank you to URI - our host this year! Thanks to all the vendors and exhibitors for coming to RILA. It was a pleasure to meet and chat with you.

We had two amazing keynote speakers: authors Vanessa Lillie and Cathy G. Johnson. An enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma living on Narragansett land in Rhode Island, Vanessa Lillie spoke about her recently published suspense novel, Blood Sisters, and reflected on her connection to the library community as well as the current times. Artist, award-winning cartoonist, printmaker, educator and scholar in Providence, Cathy G. Johnson discussed her graphic novel, The Breakaways, as well as the controversy around its inclusivity of marginalized people. Cathy further talked about graphic novels as a powerful reading tool and medium for expression.

At the annual business meeting, we announced the recent election results. Congratulations to the following RILA members: Kiki Butler, Assistant Director of Jesse M. Smith Library, as Vice President/President-Elect; Catherine Damiani, Director of Tiverton Public Library, as ALA Councilor; and Kim Usselman, Director of Middletown Public Library, as NELA Representative. I would also like to welcome aboard the new SLRI President, Esther Wolk. I look forward to working with you all! 

I would also like to thank the RILA board members leaving this year. Thank you to Ed Garcia, Nomi Hague, Meredith Bonds-Harmon, and Mary Moen. You were all exceptional in your roles and helped make RILA better year after year.

I especially would like to thank outgoing President Beatrice Pulliam (now Past President) for her outstanding service and dedication to RILA and the membership. Your leadership and efforts are truly appreciated!

At RILA’s May Executive Board meeting, the Cornucopia of Rhode Island (CORI) Section was dissolved. CORI has served the library community of color since 2005. The decision to dissolve was considered with great care and consideration. I would like to take this opportunity to thank CORI and all of its members for their years of service and efforts. There is discussion for a celebration later this year, so keep your eyes open!

And finally... a little bit about me. My name is Ben Hanley and I am thrilled to be the President of RILA. I am the Head of Information Services at Barrington Public Library, where I have worked since 2015. I previously served as RILA’s Web Administrator and as the Membership Chair for NELA. Although we’re living in uncertain times, I’m excited to come together and support each other through this next chapter. An organization is only as strong as the sum of its parts, and you, RILA members, are that sum. I look forward to working with you and serving as your president!

Ben Hanley, RILA President

president@rilibraries.org

Congratulations to This Year's RILA Award Winners

The Rhode Island Library Association (RILA) presented its yearly awards at its Annual Conference, which was held May 21 and 22 at URI’s Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences. The theme for the conference was “Anchored in Resilience.”

We had an exemplary group of honorees this year with great support from their libraries and communities. Since we had several excellent submissions for the Library Paraprofessional Award, we gave out two honorable mentions. You can find a more detailed description of each winner and honorable mention on our website.

The 2025 RILA Award winners are:

Library Champion Award: U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI)

Lifetime Achievement Award: Dorothy Swain, Former Library Director, Greenville Public Library

Outstanding Library Paraprofessional Award: Cheryl Parent, Circulation Assistant at George Hail Free Library in Warren

Outstanding Library Paraprofessional Award - Honorable Mentions: Liz D’Amore, Deputy Director, North Providence Public Library and Lisa Haley, Children’s Assistant, Cumberland Public Library. 

NELLS Tier 2: Emerging Leaders

Congratulations to the RI librarians who were selected to attend NELLS (New England Library Leadership Symposium) Tier 2: Emerging Leaders from May 12-15 at the Von Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, VT.

Katherine Boden, Cranston Public Library

Emily Coxe, Fleet Library at RISD

Susana Gardner, Island Free Library

Kelly Parlin, East Providence Public Library

Tier 2 is designed for mid-career library professionals (3-15 years experience in or with libraries) and the program focuses on the application of leadership theory to real-world library issues. Participants reflect, consider best practices, plan for practical applications to their own environment, and connect with their peers. Congratulations to you all!

National History Day

Each year, one educator in both the Junior Division and the Senior Division are nominated by each NHD affiliate for the National History Day Teacher of the Year Award. This Award is given by the National History Day organization to those educators who demonstrate a commitment to excellence in teaching the History Day curriculum in their classrooms and schools.

This year, the Rhode Island Historical Society is honored to nominate library media specialist, Patricia Shawcross Buffington from Toll Gate High School, as the Rhode Island nominee for the Senior Division.

She will be eligible to win the national award, which will be announced at the National Contest in June.

RILBA Committee Seeking New Members

The Rhode Island Latino Books Award Committee, part of Rhode Island Latino Arts, is seeking new members to serve a 2-year term beginning September 2025. Each year, the RILBA committee selects the nominees for grades K-12 for the award. Rhode Island students are encouraged to read from the booklist and vote for their favorite book. For more information, please visit our webpage.

New Members should:

• Be a Public Youth Services/Teen/Children's Librarian in Rhode Island, School Librarian or Educator
• Commit to reading 5 to 10 books each month including chapter books, picture books, graphic novels, and more
• Have experience working with school age children or teens
• Have an interest in children's or teen literature or both
• Virtual meetings on the 1st Wednesday of every month starting September 2025, 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., September to May

If you are interested in joining the committee or have any questions, please feel free to email mcotto@pawtucketlibrary.org

Libraries Transforming Communities: Brownell Library

Brownell Library receives national grant for small and rural libraries. The Brownell Library has been selected as one of 300 libraries to participate in round three of Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities, an American Library Association (ALA) initiative that provides community engagement and accessibility resources to small and rural libraries to help them better serve people with disabilities. We will be using the $10,000 grant to upgrade our entryways to make them more accessible for all Little Compton residents. We are delighted to have been chosen for this opportunity.

Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities is an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) in collaboration with the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL).

Project Linus Makes a Difference at William Hall Library

On March 29, over 200 patrons and volunteers packed the William Hall Library auditorium throughout the day on behalf of the Rhode Island Chapter of Project Linus. The goal of the day is to make as many blankets as possible to donate to youth undergoing traumatic circumstances. The event, called Project Linus Blanket Day, is an offshoot of the weekly Knit and Crochet Drop-In that has been taking place at William Hall Library for several years.

Martha Sholes, a long-time member of William Hall’s weekly knitting group, coordinates efforts for the Rhode Island Chapter of Project Linus, and works with William Hall Branch Librarian Zach Berger to schedule two Blanket Days per year, one in the spring and one in the fall. But this important work is not done only on the two designated Blanket Days. Volunteers work all year long to produce blankets. Sholes delivers approximately 125 blankets per month to Hasbro Children's Hospital and 625 blankets quarterly to children in RI.

Amidst Trump Admin Attacks, RI Delegation & Local Librarians Highlight

Importance of Public Libraries

The Trump Administration is targeting the main source of federal funding for public libraries across the nation, putting interlibrary lending, adult education, summer reading, workforce development, and many other essential programs and community services in jeopardy.

As public libraries continue to grapple with an uncertain future due to the Trump Administration’s attacks on the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and U.S. Representatives Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo are teaming up with Ocean State librarians and advocates to underscore the important role libraries play in the state’s communities and to urge robust federal support for the nation’s public libraries.

In Rhode Island, IMLS cuts proposed by the Trump Administration would eliminate roughly 45 percent of the Office of Library and Information Services’ (OLIS) budget. OLIS is Rhode Island’s state library agency and provides support and services to libraries across the state.

Today, the Rhode Island congressional delegation joined Rhode Island Chief of Library Services, Karen Mellor, Director of Cranston Public Library, Ed Garcia, and library directors from across Rhode Island to discuss the Trump Administration’s latest actions and work being done in congress to protect IMLS and strengthen federal funding and support for libraries.

Rhode Island Legislators Show Support for Libraries During National Library Week

Rhode Island legislators and advocates for freedom to read stopped by the State House Library during National Library Week on April 8, 2025. Legislators were invited to come by to pose for photos to promote the Freedom to Read bills and enter RILA’s free raffle for a Free People Read Freely gift basket. The mood was joyful as guests visited tables and representatives from RILA, as well as advocates for school librarians (Peter Quesnel and Tasha White) and the Freedom to Read Coalition (Cheryl Space). State Librarian Kate Wells co-hosted the event with RILA, and created a fun, engaging board display.

During the legislative sessions that day, both the House and the Senate read and passed resolutions proclaiming April 6-12, 2025, to be National Library Week in the State of Rhode Island. Representing RI libraries were Ed Garcia and Aaron Coutu-Jones for House resolution H6196, and Cheryl Space and Julie Holden for Senate resolution S0961.