[Libs-Or] State Library response to EDIA petition

[HOOVER Nancy * SLO]

Oregon library community,



We at the State Library of Oregon appreciate seeing the support for the recent petition, "Break the Library Institutional Reliance on Unpaid BIPOC Labor!"<https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/break-the-library-institutional-reliance-on-unpaid>, calling us to create an Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Antiracism (EDIA) consultant position to assist Oregon libraries. The sentiments expressed in the petition complement the widespread additional feedback we've received from the Oregon library community about the need for more support on EDIA topics.



Currently we are reviewing our Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) 2018-22 Five-Year Plan<https://www.oregon.gov/library/libraries/Documents/LSTA/2018-2022LSTAFiveYearPlanFinal.pdf>, which is how we heard so much feedback to prioritize EDIA. Thank you to everyone who participated in that process. The LSTA Five-Year Plan guides us on allocating the $2.5 million we receive annually in federal LSTA funds, and where staff in our Library Support & Development Services division<https://www.oregon.gov/library/libraries/pages/default.aspx> focus their time.



Over the next few months, we'll be writing the new 2023-27 Five-Year Plan based on the feedback we've heard, including through this petition. We feel confident saying now that EDIA will be an important part of our new plan, particularly considering its complete absence from the current plan. The new plan will be finalized by the end of June 2022 and implemented starting in July 2023.



Hiring an EDIA consultant is under serious consideration in our planning process. The additional uncompensated burden placed on library staff of color to fix the EDIA issues in our profession is a very real problem. We sincerely thank the incredible work Marci Ramiro-Jenkins, the Oregon Library Association's (OLA) EDIA Committee, and other Oregon library staff of color have put into educating and pushing back on those of us in the white dominant culture in librarianship. A statewide paid EDIA consultant would help alleviate some of that extra weight placed on our colleagues of color and hopefully inspire local libraries to focus more attention on EDIA issues.



Creating a new position in a state agency such as ours requires us to follow certain policies and procedures. If we create an EDIA consultant position, it wouldn't happen until July 2023 at the earliest, corresponding with our new LSTA 2023-27 Five-Year Plan and the State's 2023-25 biennium budget. Creating a new permanent position also requires legislative approval, which occurs as part of our regular budget process in the 2023 state legislative session. We would use federal LSTA funds to pay for the position. The EDIA consultant would be hired per State of Oregon guidelines, as an open, competitive process. We'd welcome applications from Marci, as suggested in the petition, as well as other candidates interested in supporting the Oregon library community's EDIA needs.



We also want to be thoughtful and careful in this process, creating a position that is maximally beneficial to the wide variety of libraries, library staff, and library supporters that we serve as the State Library, especially the people of color who work at and use Oregon libraries. In addition to you in the Oregon library community, we also anticipate seeking advice about this position from the State of Oregon's Chief Cultural Change Office, other state agencies doing EDIA work, and our colleagues in other state libraries. The State of Oregon's recently issued Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Action Plan<https://www.oregon.gov/das/Docs/DEI_Action_Plan_2021.pdf> will also help guide us.



Again, thank you to everyone who has expressed feedback, whether through the petition or other channels, on how we can better serve Oregon libraries' EDIA needs. We hear you and will keep you aware and involved as our planning progresses. In the meantime, if you have comments, suggestions, or questions, please direct them to Buzzy Nielsen at buzzy.nielsen at slo.oregon.gov<mailto:buzzy.nielsen at slo.oregon.gov> or 971-375-3486.



Sincerely,

Nancy Hoover
Acting State Librarian of Oregon



Buzzy Nielsen
Program Manager for Library Support & Development Services

State Library of Oregon

Nancy Hoover (she, her, hers)
Acting State Librarian
State Library of Oregon
nancy.hoover at slo.oregon.gov<mailto:nancy.hoover at slo.oregon.gov>
Office: 503-378-4367| Mobile 971-283-6681
www.oregon.gov/library<http://www.oregon.gov/library>
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[Title: State Library of Oregon]

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