CFP: Chapters/Essays on Best Practices or Resources supporting APA communities, or Perspectives from APA Librarians

We are looking for essays for this exciting new book! This edited volume is tentatively titled Asian Pacific American Librarians and Library Services Today (in contract with Rowman & Littlefield.) The book will bring together contributions from librarians who are of Asian and Pacific (APA) heritage and their work experiences, and librarians who support APA communities and their best practices in the United States.

For consideration, please submit an abstract proposal no more than 150 words (1-2 paragraphs) and a brief professional bio to APAlibrarianship@gmail.com by June 15, 2016. The book is scheduled to come out in 2017. We are seeking abstract proposals that address the topics below.

To start this discussion, this edited volume explores ways that libraries and librarians support APA communities through services and resources. 

• Who are the APA communities that these libraries serve? 
• What do these APA communities need from their libraries? 
• How do libraries serve these communities? 

We approach these questions by considering the diversity of APA communities thriving in the US, the different kinds of libraries and archives (academic, public, school, special), their functions in relation to these APA communities, and the successes and challenges of these efforts. The volume would conclude with a discussion of what's ahead for serving the needs of the diverse and vibrant APA communities in the US.

In this volume, APA is defined broadly: heritage from East, Southeast, and South Asia, and Pacific Islands including Hawaiians. The book will aim to cover and provide resources to support different APA communities: from Hmong, Laotian, Burmese to Chinese, Japanese, Nepalese, Bengali communities, etc., and in the contexts of language, religious, cultural and social diversities. We will also include experiences about APA librarians with mixed heritages and adoption experiences.

The following is a list of sections that will be included:

Section 1: Who is the APA community and what do these communities need from their libraries? Several chapters covering case studies of the diversity of communities we serve, layered by different types of library settings (academic, public, school, special).

Academic

• Information literacy
• International students 
• Campus engagement
• Staffing and Retention
• Celebration of APA heritage and other cultural programming 
• Collections Building

Public

• language resources, community center, ESL resources, children's programming, etc. 
• Outreach and advocacy. 
• Staffing and Retention. 
• Collections Building
• Celebration of APA heritage, other cultural programming (Lunar New Year events, etc.)

School

• Children's programming
• Staffing
• Collections Building
• Celebration of APA heritage and other cultural programming

Special

• Health/Medical resources and services
• Government and Legal resources and services 
• Museum/NGO Digital Collections 
• Underserved or emerging sectors: adoptees, elderly, at-risk youths and new immigrants
• Celebration of APA heritage
• Archives of culture and history (oral histories, digital archives, curation of history and heritage, etc.

Section 2: Current issues/Gaps/Challenges ahead.

• Recruitment/retention/mentorship (best practices, systemic problems, library school student perspective-recent grad).
• Sustained structural integration of diversity in collections, resources, services, programming.
• Ongoing assessment of communities' needs/agility to meet evolving needs.
• Cultivating APA library leaders (on social justice, diversity, inclusion, impacting the profession).
• Strengthening professional networks with strategic partnerships (ethnic caucuses, other partners in ALA--SRRT, IRRT, IFLA, JCLC, LBGTRT, etc.).

The volume will be edited by Janet H. Clarke (Stony Brook University), Raymond Pun (Fresno State), and Monnee Tong (San Diego Public Library).

If you have any questions or would like further information, please email us at APAlibrarianship@gmail.com