SJLibrary.org, a collaboration of San Jose State University and San Jose Public Library system.

Facts: Minorities in Libraries

• In the United States, minority populations currently comprise 32.5% of the population, and they are projected to reach 47% of the nation's population by 2050.
   
• In contrast, Library and Information Science (LIS) schools report that only 11.2% of their students are from minority populations. As an example, in practical terms, this means that for every Latino librarian, there are about 9,177 Latinos in the population. By way of comparison, for every white, non-Latino librarian, there are only 1,830 white non-Latinos in the population.
   
• A recent American Library Association (ALA) study titled Diversity Counts places this within a library context, noting that one of the most crucial issues facing the library profession is the lack of diversity among holders of MLIS degrees. This must change if libraries are to be welcoming institutions to all. Lack of diversity is especially important in light of the upcoming shortage of librarians.
   
• Immigration and high birth rates continue to shape overall demographic trends for the county, and the demand for targeted services for foreign-born adults and children of immigrants continues to rise. The racial/ethnic composition of Santa Clara County will continue to reflect an increasingly diverse community in the coming decades.
   
• It is estimated that by 2020, Santa Clara County will be home to 2 million residents. The number of Caucasian residents in the county will drop to 36% by 2020, with Latinos making up 30% of county residents and Asian individuals representing 29% of residents.

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