Who will serve the children: recruiting and educating future children’s librarians

The paper identifies some desirable traits for children’s librarians and presents strategies for recruiting people to the profession. Library school curriculum is discussed in terms of learning outcomes based on the “Competencies for Librarians Serving Children in Public Libraries” developed by the Association for Library Service to Children. Limitations of current graduate library education in the United States are acknowledged and examples of professional development opportunities for children’s librarians are given. Finally, suggestions are made for possible actions to advance the education and ongoing training of children’s librarians that the IFLA Section on Libraries for Children and Young Adults could take.