ALA Congress on Professional Education

Reported by BJ Fox, DTIC, Ft. Belvoir, Virginia

The American Library Association's Congress on Professional Education was held April 30 and May 1, 1999, at the Loews L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, DC. The Congress focused on the improvement of graduate professional education for librarians and other information professionals.  One hundred fifty delegates--representing national and international associations of library and information studies educators and ALA divisions and roundtables--gathered to seek consensus on the values and core competencies of the profession as well as strategies to address common issues and concerns.  At the end of two stimulating and productive days, delegates recommended the following: 1) Define the scope, content and values of the profession; 2) Establish and apply improved standards for accreditation; 3) Develop a coordinated approach to post-MLIS certification/credentialing; 4) Market librarianship as a 21st century profession with the same level of effort used to promote libraries; 5) Continue the dialogue between library and information studies educators and practitioners begun at the Congress; and, 6) Recruit, educate and place students from diverse populations as professional librarians.

"The Congress focused on the improvement of graduate professional education for librarians and other information professionals."

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