The Global Literature in Libraries Initiative (GLLI) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Vashalice Kaaba as our new Executive Director. She brings substantial international experience to the position. Dr. Kaaba recently completed a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Kenya, working to enhance library access and student engagement. She previously worked as an English teacher and community librarian with the Peace Corps in Uganda. Her doctoral dissertation at Florida State University focused on children’s literature: “Decoding Anti-Blackness in Children’s Literature: A Century-Long Content Analysis of John Newbery Medal Award Books, the Underrepresentation of Black Authors and Its Implications for Critical Librarianship.”

“I love how Vashalice will bring a greater awareness of the global Black diaspora to GLLI,” said
Katie Day, a GLLI Board member and international school librarian who is based in Singapore.

As you probably know from reading this blog, the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative is a nonprofit that brings together translators, librarians, teachers, editors, and others dedicated to helping librarians identify and raise the visibility of world literature for children, teens, and adults. Our activities include sharing ideas for selecting, evaluating, and promoting world literature for all ages; administering the GLLI Translated YA Book Prize; and managing the American Library Association Carnegie-Whitney grant-funded project, “Building a Global Youth Literature Collection 101,” a resource-rich site for children’s librarians who wish to incorporate translated books in their collections. We regularly showcase and review world literature for all ages on our blog.

We look forward to working with and learning from Dr. Kaaba!

Contact Information: Annette Goldsmith, Secretary, GLLI, agoldsmith.fsu@gmail.com