CURRENT POSITION Deputy Director of County Library Services, Marin County Free Library, CA DEGREE MLIS, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2015 FOLLOW linkedin.com/in/raemonalittletaylor Photo by Isaura Ochoa

Evolving Inclusion

Raemona Little Taylor is not satisfied with libraries’ success as spaces of inclusion. “I feel like the first step is acknowledging the long history of libraries as segregated spaces,” she says. “Until libraries and librarians grapple with their history as gatekeepers for white-dominant culture, they will struggle to create welcoming and inclusive workplaces where diverse workers feel like they truly belong. It can be a real challenge to work within institutions as the one and only Black, Indigenous and people of color [BIPOC] staff member. We need to move beyond being tolerated to being celebrated.”

She has taken her concerns to leadership at Marin County Free Library and worked tirelessly to develop successful initiatives that are widely inclusive, stepping up to serve people in need and in marginalized populations. Projects include offering services to incarcerated youth, developing school partnerships, providing direct tutoring services, and overseeing the day-to-day operations of the Learning Bus, a “green” vehicle that brings literary and education outreach services to children and their families. She also piloted a Reading Buddies program and implemented blueprints for safety around children working with adult volunteers.

During the COVID shutdown, Little Taylor moved Reading Buddies online. She then led efforts to create a licensed day care center for children of healthcare and essential workers at one branch and worked with the library to offer 500 Wi-Fi hotspots for schools.

Little Taylor “is a unicorn employee,” says nominator Washington State Librarian Sara Jones—“a rare and very special being.”