Oberlin Group of Libraries - Resources for Furthering Efforts for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in our Libraries

Oberlin Group Statement on Diversity Equity and Inclusion
Approved by the Oberlin Group Board of Directors

June 10, 2019

Statement of Purpose
The Oberlin Group of Libraries believes strongly in the values of equity, diversity, and inclusion and the benefits of working in environments that foster and honor a wide array of perspectives, thought, and experiences. We are committed to overcoming cultural, historical, and divisive biases recognizing the importance that diverse perspectives bring to our society. As leaders, we are committed to creating and sustaining diverse and inclusive communities in liberal arts college libraries and the library profession. We value different ways of knowing.  As an organization we acknowledge our history in regard to marginalizing underrepresented individuals and groups. As a result, we are committed to challenging  oppressive systems and eliminating barriers to services, spaces, resources, and scholarship within academic libraries.

Action items and declaration of intent

As leaders in our organizations, we will:
1. Raise our awareness and that of our staff of the importance of and opportunities provided by creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and community space, recognizing that this endeavor requires an ongoing commitment of effort.
2. Facilitate the development and continuous improvement of processes and procedures that are hallmarks of culturally competent librarians.
3. Actively recruit and hire underrepresented staff and mentor them to ensure their success.
4. Regularly audit and assess our spaces and programs to determine levels of inclusivity and make needed adjustments.
5. Consider ways in which our collections, and how we describe and make them available, foster inclusivity.
6. Create programming that expands opportunities for underrepresented communities to participate in the learning environments of our libraries.
7. Partner with institutional groups to support and advance diversity, equity, and inclusion.
8. Develop ways to measure our progress, and review progress on a regular basis.

Consulted/Adapted from:
EDUCAUSE: https://www.educause.edu/about/cio-commitment
ALA statement and resources: https://www.ala.org/advocacy/diversity
RBMS: https://rbms.info/about/#diversity
ACRL Core Commitment: https://www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl/strategicplan/stratplan

Oberlin Antidiscrimination policy - https://www.oberlingroup.org/node/17491

The Oberlin Group’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Working Group endorses the American Library Association’s goals and strategies (PDF) related to advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion in libraries, and will work to refine and apply these goals and strategies within the context of our network and our individual institutions.

Photo by Brittani Burns on Unsplash

• ACRL's Diversity Toolkit - resources for each of the 11 standards developed as part of ACRL's framework.  The standards are intended "to support libraries in engaging the complexities of providing services to diverse populations, and recruiting and maintaining a diverse library workforce.The standards may also serve as a starting point from which libraries can develop local approaches andgoals in the context of their organizations’ mission and situation."

Suggest a resource using this Google form  If you have a suggestion for an addition to this guide, please use this form. Include as much information as possible. Please include contact information.