Brief Description: Subject File of the Adult Education Board, including correspondence with chairmen about elections, conference and meeting arrangements and agendas, minutes, budgets; memoranda to board members; project proposals; publications and annual reports (1924-34, 1941, 1953-54). Correspondence concerns ALA cooperation with the Adult Education Association, adult education projects in libraries, ALA policy and standards for adult education, Library Service to Labor (1948-49), Survey of Adult Education Activities in Public Libraries (1952-54), Joint Commission for the Study of Adult Education Policy, Principles and Practices (1946-51), Study of Adult Education in Rural Areas (1951-52) and the work of the Subcommittees on Family Life (1944-45), Job Opportunities (1947-49), Library School Curricula (1942-45) and Readable Books (1940-44). Correspondents include Helen Ridgeway, Richard Sealock, Marion Hawes, Ruth Rutzen, Sigrid Edge, Florence Craig, Ruth Warncke, Grace Stevenson, John Cory and David Clift. In December 1953, ALA established and Office for Adult Education at Headquarters to work with the Adult Education Board on grant projects.

Record Series Number: 30/5/6

Created by: Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), Reference and User Services Association (RUSA). Adult Education Board

Volume: 2.0 Cubic Feet

Acquired: 4/26/74; 5/02; 2/4/2021

Arrangement: Alphabetical then chronological

Biographical Note for Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) :

In 1926, the Council established the Board of Library and Adult Education to promote interest and activities in the area of library service to adult education, to act as advisor and as an information center, and to implement and assist in library related projects of adult education (1). To accomplish these goals the Board sponsored roundtables and workshops and published reports, findings, and the quarterly magazine, Adult Education and the Library, which was incorporated into the ALA Bulletin in 1930. As the Board grew in scope, it became the Adult Education Board in 1937, the Adult Education Section of the Division of Public Libraries in 1946 (2) and the Adult Services Division in 1959 (3). In 1972, Adult Services Division joined with the Reference Division to form the Reference and Adult Services Division (RASD), establishing the new goals of "stimulating and supporting full access to library services which are user oriented. The Division seeks actively to foster the fullest use of all media in meeting the educational, research, information, recreational, and social interests and needs of users of all types of libraries in every subject field" (4).

RASD maintains standing committees and sections reflecting the scope of adult services including the Interlibrary Loan Committee, Adult Library Materials Committee, Committee to Advise Publishers of Reference Books and Indexes, Catalog Use Committee, and Machine Assisted Reference Services (MARS). RQ, RASD's quarterly journal, began in 1960 and the Division also authors annual book lists such as Notable Books and Outstanding Reference Books. The Division annually awards four different medals and citations to foster excellence in reference publication and librarianship.

Subject Index

Languages of Materials