UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Brett Spencer, reference and instruction librarian for the Thun Library at Penn State Berks, received the 2024 Innovation and Advocacy in Library History Award presented by the Library History Round Table (LHRT) of the American Library Association (ALA). The award acknowledges those who have made recent substantive contributions to LHRT or the wider library history community by promoting library history in exceptional or new ways or by reaching new audiences.
One of two recipients of this year’s award, Spencer was recognized for his work with LHRT News and Notes, the official blog of LHRT, for which he has served as editor since 2016. As blog editor, Spencer shares information about important events and deadlines related to library history awards and events. He led the initiative to expand its scope, adding items about library history culled from other media. Most important, he made the blog a forum for publishing student research in library history, works in progress, LHRT member profiles, digitized primary sources, podcasts and virtual tours of library spaces.
By providing a welcoming and inclusive outlet for budding writers in library history as well as those not inclined to pursue formal scholarly publication — and through patient encouragement and outreach — Spencer “helped them gain the confidence to do the historical work, and then the confidence to publish it,” said one library school professor.
“By providing platforms for brief contributions, Brett enables all LHRT members, and even non-members, to develop their writing and join the conversation,” said nominator Bernadette Lear, reference librarian at Madlyn L. Hanes Library, Penn State Harrisburg, and former LHRT chair. “Besides cultivating a wide variety of innovative content, he provides a home for diverse authorship and a vital space for library historians and library history enthusiasts that does not exist elsewhere.”
Spencer also serves as book reviews editor for the journal “Libraries: Culture, History, and Society,” published by Penn State University Press. In 2020, he was part of a three-person team (also including reference and instruction librarians Alexandra Chisholm and Sarah Hartman-Caverly) at the Penn State Berks Thun Library that received the Innovation in College Librarianship Award from the College Libraries Section of the Association of College & Research Libraries, a division of the ALA. His efforts to pilot sensory rooms — accessible and supportive spaces for neurodiverse students — at Libraries locations led to the Libraries receiving national recognition from the ALA in its 2024 State of America’s Libraries report.
The purpose of the LHRT is to facilitate communication among scholars and students of library history, support research in library history, and be active in issues (such as preservation) that concern library historians. The LHRT sponsors conferences and presents awards to promote excellence in library history research.