Disabled and Neurodiverse Staff

Keren Dali, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the Department of Library & Information Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, the Catholic University of America, USA.Kim M. Thompson, Ph.D., is a Professor in the School of Information Science in the College of Information and Communications at the University of South Carolina, USA.

Disabled and Neurodiverse Staff: Towards inclusion in the LIS Workforce tackles a major gap in library research and practice. The editors of this extremely timely volume note that our society is precariously balanced between stronger policies in favor of 'inclusive and fair educational and workplace practices,' and very public challenges to those same inclusive values. In this environment, LIS research and practice have both become more deeply interested in issues of inclusion when it comes to neurodiversity and disabilities among our patrons, but very little thought has been given to library staff working under such invisible (or even visible) diversities. Disabled and Neurodiverse Staff fills that gap, and does so with a remarkable breadth of content. The essays, scoped literature reviews, and own-voices reflections in these pages harmonize contributions from different classes of authors: researchers, practitioners, and the self-identified disabled and neurodiverse. The book thus offers a wide variety of both theoretical conclusions and practical recommendations for researchers and librarians, and should appeal to LIS students and faculty, librarians and managers, researchers, and even HR professionals. Two chapters even provide complete and research-supported aspirational frameworks for the evaluation of an organization's policy documents, and for fostering equitable transitions into the workplace for disabled and neurodiverse LIS graduates. Deeper understanding and support for recent (and future) library students will be one of the book's most powerful legacies.

• AcknowledgementsIntroduction: Disability, Neurodiversity, and Employment: Where We Are Now, Keren Dali and Kim M. Thompson1. Working Side by Side with Disabled and Neurodiverse Colleagues: Models, Frameworks, Approaches, Keren Dali, Kim Thompson, and Yi Wan2. Employment Experiences of Disabled and Neurodiverse MLIS Graduates: In Their Own Voices, Keren Dali and Kim M. Thompson3. Managing the Diverse Workforce: The State of Research, Cameron Gillespie, Keren Dali, and Kim M. Thompson4. Supervising for Inclusion: Academic Library Managers’ Perspectives on Supervising Disabled and Neurodiverse Employees, Keren Dali and Kim M. Thompson 5. Perceptions of Disabilities and Neurodiversity: The Voices of Peers and Colleagues, Kim M. Thompson, Keren Dali, and Yi Wan6. The Framework for the Policy Evaluation of Organizational Documents in the Context of Accessibility, Disability, and Neurodiversity, Keren Dali, Kim M. Thompson, and Cameron Gillespie7. Transitioning from School to Work: The Models and Antecedents from Different Fields, Keren Dali and Kim M. Thompson8. The Equitable Workplace Transition Program for Disabled and Neurodiverse LIS Graduates: An Applied Framework, Keren Dali and Kim M. Thompson9. Reversing the Gaze: Finding the Friction Points in Accommodation, Heather Hill and Kevin Oswald10. Employment Outcomes in Libraries for Library Personnel with Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Importance of Work Situations, Mirah J. Dow, Erika Cooperman, and Maghen Farris11. Manager Support for Employees with Disabilities: A Current Review and Needs Assessment, Susan Rathbun-Grubb12. Other Distractions as Assigned: On the Perceptions and Experiences of Academic Library Employees with ADHD, Tessie Holliday, Clayton Copeland, and Dick Kawooya13. An Annotated Bibliography of Literature 2015–2024 Reporting the Perspectives and Experiences of Academic Library Employees with Chronic Illness, Disability, or Neurodivergence, Merinda McLure14. Universal Design for a More Supportive Workplace, Carli Spina15. Physical Requirements: Must Be Able to Lift 40 Pounds, Michelle Ganz16. Reducing Stigma: Perspectives and Strategies for Mental Health Inclusion and Neurodiversity for Public Library Staff, Andrea Cecchetto17. Reimagining Librarianship: Crip Knowledge, Disability Justice, and the Fight Against Neoliberalism, Leah T. Dudak and Rhys Dreeszen Bowman18. The Canadian Library Workplace Environment for Disabled Librarians, Nancy M. Waite19. Addressing Burnout Among Neurodivergent Library Workers: Confronting Ableism for an Inclusive Workplace, Elizabeth Novosel20. Switching Back and Forth: Structuring a Librarian with ADHD’s Hybrid Schedule, Lara Lasner-FraterEpilogue: Disability, Neurodiversity, and Employment: Where We Are Going, Kim M. Thompson and Keren DaliIndex