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ARL Supports Nomination of Carla Hayden as Librarian of Congress

Carla Hayden, image courtesy of Enoch Pratt Free Library

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) applauds President Obama’s nomination of Carla D. Hayden as the 14th Librarian of Congress. Hayden is currently the CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland, and a member of the US National Museum and Library Services Board. The Library of Congress—an ARL member—is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution, the research arm of Congress, and one of the largest libraries in the world, with a rich and enduring collection open to all.

President Obama said in a statement released by the White House on February 24, 2016, that, if Hayden’s appointment is confirmed by the Senate, “As Librarian of Congress, she’ll work in close partnership with Congress, support the copyright office that serves our nation’s creative communities, and explore new ways to share the information housed within our library through innovative technologies.” He noted that she would be the first woman and the first African American to hold the position, “both of which are long overdue.”

ARL president Larry Alford said, “The Association of Research Libraries is pleased that President Obama has nominated Carla Hayden to this vital post at a critical time. Now more than ever, the Librarian of Congress ensures the broad access to information that is essential to teaching, learning, and civic engagement.”


About the Association of Research Libraries

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 124 research libraries in the US and Canada. ARL’s mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, facilitating the emergence of new roles for research libraries, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is on the web at https://www.arl.org/.

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