Jan Sanders

Library Education: Facing New Realities

Jan Sanders, Director of Information Services for the City of Pasadena, has been in libraries for more than 30 years. Jan has always been an advocate of free expression and access and was one of 100 people named to the Intellectual Freedom Hall of Fame in 1999. She is active in the American Library Association, where she has served in a variety of roles including national chair for Federal legislative action, membership chair and currently sits on the governing Council for this 67,000-member organization. She has also long been affiliated with the Public Library Association of American, where she serves as national Vice President-President Elect.

"As a practicing public librarian, I bring a slightly different view to the discussion. I think what we really must do is to teach these new librarians the importance of advocacy in their career. As we begin, none of us surmise the high political activity that goes with the job. We need to constantly sell our profession and our services. We also must impart the mandatory acceptance of the values of librarianship re: freedom of access. The arena of intellectural freedom and the role of open access in preserving democratic thought cannot be slighted. These tenets make us who we are and ensure the continuation of the profession and the institution."