Leadership Assemblies

Four leadership assemblies with representation from four areas of the association will be convened both in-person and virtually multiples times throughout the year. Leadership assemblies have a hand in ALA’s governance and are direct, open lines of influence to the Board of Directors. Members of the leadership assemblies will share information, influence priority setting, and make recommendations to the Board of Directors. Recommendations may include the creation and appointment of working groups or advisory groups or focus on a strategic area. Convenings of the leadership assemblies will be open to all interested ALA members, and agendas will be set and determined by core members.

The four leadership assemblies and their members are identified below. Member numbers are determined as of October 2019 except for the divisions which assumes a successful merger of LLAMA, LITA, and ALCTS into CORE: Leadership, Infrastructure, Futures.

1. Chapter Leadership Assembly: Approximately 80 members. All ALA chapters (including of regional chapters), AASL affiliates, and ACRL chapters would have a representative.
2. Round Table Leadership Assembly: All 21 round tables would have a representative.
3. Division Leadership Assembly: All 9 divisions would have a representative.
4. Affiliates: Up to 30 representatives, including all ALA affiliates.

Each leadership assembly will be led by two co-conveners with staggered year terms. These co-conveners are selected by their members and formally appointed by the Board of Directors upon receipt of the recommended appointments. Members will determine the process of appointment or election of the conveners. This may include an election, rotating appointment, or another mechanism. The process for appointment recommendations are intentionally left up to members of the leadership assemblies because each one functions uniquely and their needs and relationships with each other vary. In-person participation would not be required for meetings convened at conferences and members would be able to designate who their representative is for each meeting. Members may select one or a few individuals to represent their interests. Each leadership assembly will have a liaison from the Board of Directors and ALA staff.

The functions of these leadership assemblies build upon the strengths of current groups like ALA Council, the Chapter Leaders Forum, and the Round Table Coordinating Assembly by maintaining a place for discussion and influence, by opening membership to wider representation, and by creating a direct path to recommending change. The groups of each assembly, while directly participating in ALA’s governance, also can facilitate information sharing, partnership building, and networking between each other, and, ultimately, between the assemblies themselves. The open nature of these assemblies to be shaped by the groups represented allows for the unique cultures of each to set the agenda and topics for discussion while coming together to strengthen the association.