About PuLL

Over three years, from 2014-2017, the MU-SISLT Public Library Leadership Fellows (PuLL) Program will educate a total of 24 students to become Missouri public library leaders.

Each year for the three-year funded period, 8 students with an aptitude for public library leadership will be selected to participate in 12 credit hours of coursework, including three classes and one three-hour practicum.

The classes, Community Leadership, Leadership for Diversity in Public Libraries, and Public Library Administration and Management, will be team-taught by SISLT faculty and public library managers. They will focus on issues such as working with library boards, legal and financial elements of public libraries, diversity, human resources, and community relations.

The practicum will place students in a partner library where they will shadow and work with experienced public library administrators and mentors.

There is a national need for public library leadership which is made evident through the American Library Association’s creation of the Public Library Administrator Certificate for librarians who already have experience. However, the need for strong public library administrators is felt critically in small libraries who cannot afford to hire experienced professionals. Our program helps Missouri libraries fill that need.

The primary goal of the MU-SISLT Public Library Leadership Fellows (PuLL) Program is to educate the next generation of public library leaders in Missouri through classwork, mentorship and networking. Outcomes will be measured through student portfolios and students’ demonstration of leadership traits as judged by both faculty and partners/mentors. The program will prepare 24 students prepared for library leadership and a curriculum for public library management ready for a certificate program.

Funding for this program was generously provided by the Institute for Museum and Library Services. IMLSLogo

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