The nominating committee for the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2016 election has named San José State University distinguished faculty member Patty Wong as a candidate for the three-year position of ALA treasurer. 

The nominating committee for the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2016 election has named a San José State University (SJSU) distinguished faculty member as a candidate for the position of ALA treasurer.  Patty Wong, who teaches courses in the Master of Library and Information Science program at the SJSU School of Information, is running for the three-year position. Wong also works in Yolo County, California, as a librarian and chief archivist and has a long history of holding leadership positions in library associations.

Wong has served as ALA councilor-at-large several times since joining the association in 1984, and she has also served as California chapter councilor and on the ALA executive board. She has held several committee positions with ALA and also held both executive and committee positions with other organizations such as the California Library Association, the Chinese American Librarians Association, the Public Library Association, and the Association for Library Service to Children.

Wong’s financial skills are legendary; she has managed multi-million dollar grant programs, and she teaches a course on grant writing at the SJSU School of Information. She has also overseen major library building construction projects totaling more than $21 million.

In recent years, Wong has also collected a number of prestigious awards. In 2013 she was named the California Library Association Member of the Year, and in 2013 she received the ALA’s Equality Award. She was named a Library Journal Mover and Shaker in 2007, and she was named the 2012 Outstanding Lecturer at the SJSU School of Information. This year, she was honored with the 2015 Distinguished Service Award by the Chinese American Librarians Association. In a letter of support for that award, Dr. Barbara Stripling, ALA president from 2013-2014, stated that Wong “makes a difference because she puts her beliefs into action.”

According to an ALA press release, Wong’s vision for the ALA is “a financially sound, progressive and responsive organization that engages our members, builds community, forges partnerships that further our mission, and advocates for the value of libraries and library workers.” Wong stated that she is committed to “working as a team, fiduciary stewardship, transparency, and honest and effective communication to ensure growth and prosperity so together we can achieve those goals.”

The voting will be held online and will open on March 15, 2016, and close on April 22, 2016. The ALA election rules state that “to be eligible to vote, individuals must be members in good standing of ALA as well as applicable divisions and round tables as of January 31, 2016.”