American Library Association

American Library Association (ALA), oldest and largest library association in the world, founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1876, and comprising mainly librarians, library trustees, and persons and organizations interested in the improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship. The objectives of the association include promoting professional library training, improving library service, encouraging the use of books and libraries, and protecting intellectual freedom and public access to information.

Activities of the ALA include making awards for distinguished service in librarianship, administering awards for outstanding literature and other media, publishing books and periodicals relating to the library field, and sponsoring National Library Week every year in April. The ALA also establishes standards for education for librarianship and accredits graduate library schools. The activities of the ALA are carried on by various divisions, each of which is concerned with a particular phase of library work. The Association for Library Service to Children is one such division.

The ALA has contributed considerably to the evolution of the modern library movement. Throughout its early years it advocated public access to library collections; circulation of books for home reading; extension of library service to rural areas; and municipal, state, and federal aid to libraries. In 1939 the ALA adopted the Library Bill of Rights, endorsing the right of libraries and readers to freedom of choice in reading materials.

The publications of the ALA include the association's monthly membership magazine, American Libraries;Booklist, a selection guide to printed and nonprinted materials; Choice, a materials selection guide for college libraries; and Book Links: Connecting Books, Libraries, and Classrooms, a magazine for parents and educators of children from preschool through eighth grade. The ALA has more than 64,000 members worldwide; headquarters is in Chicago, Illinois.

Reviewed by: American Library Association