Daniel J. Montgomery, announced in June as the incoming executive director of the American Library Association, started his new role November 10.

A hefty slate of priorities awaits Montgomery at ALA’s Chicago headquarters, from federal appropriations and state funding for libraries, to partnerships with civic organizations, to generational change in the workforce, to concerns around AI and censorship.

“One of my primary jobs will be to reaffirm our forward fight in support of librarians, library workers, and libraries themselves,” he told PW. “You don’t do that by signaling. You have to help libraries navigate budget fights, book bans, and attacks on public institutions.”

ALA leadership, members, and others express “a real thirst for extremely strong advocacy for libraries in this environment,” he added. “ALA has been at the forefront, but members and the public want to see an even more visible advocacy.”

Montgomery has been a champion of workers’ rights and organizational stewardship for decades, as a member and then president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers. In mid-October, Montgomery completed his fifth term as IFT president, having held that position since 2010. At his send-off, held at this year’s IFT Convention, October 17–19, guests included Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker.

“I talked to J.B. about libraries at the convention,” Montgomery said. “He’s certainly been standing up strongly for civil and human rights in this state, and I said, I want to continue the conversation.”

Montgomery reminded Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson that ALA’s 150th anniversary would be celebrated in June 2026 in Chicago. “I put a pin in it for them,” Montgomery said. “I would expect both would want to come. Political figures, including Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and others, are concerned about libraries and the freedom to access information.”

Current ALA president Sam Helmick has been looking forward to Montgomery’s first official day on the job, adding that Montgomery has been showing up to ALA events for weeks to meet his constituency.

“Dan has been time-release-capsuling his onboarding since he was hired,” Helmick told PW. “We’re excited to be with somebody so deeply experienced with lifelong learning, literacy, and organizing, who understands the value of building community, bringing people together, and making sure our organizational structure is sound.”

Nick Buron, chief librarian for the Queens Public Library and an ALA board member, linked the timing of ALA’s leadership change to the off-off-year U.S. election. In his New York borough, “the mayor-elect mentioned numerous times that libraries should get a percentage of the city budget,” Buron said. “While I don’t believe libraries are neutral, they are not political: libraries are there for everyone.”

At the same time, “ALA is experiencing a new chapter, with an executive director from the field of labor,” Buron continued. “There’s an opportunity for ALA to uplift the idea of libraries in general and the people who are connecting their neighbors with the programs and services they need.”

‘Difficult but necessary’ decisions

Montgomery arrives in a year when ALA has acknowledged and acted upon its financial challenges. “We’ve got to be leaner budgetarily, and that process is underway,” Montgomery said. “I’ve learned from not only my union work, but other organizations I’ve been in, that can’t do anything if you have a deficit—you can't exist. I'm confident that we’ve got financial stewardship in place to be much more secure and to thrive.”

That process has been at times painful, he acknowledged. In July, the association released a three-year strategic plan meant to re-establish firm footing. It also announced on October 21 that it had made “a series of difficult but necessary workforce changes as part of its ongoing ALA Forward initiative,” that involved buying out or laying off approximately 30 staffers. Among those let go was Office of Intellectual Freedom director Deborah Caldwell-Stone, a startling reduction in force from a core area of strategic concern. The OIF is now being led by deputy director Sarah Lamdan.

In addition, prior to Montgomery’s hire, Leslie Burger led ALA as interim ED. Burger came to the role in November 2023, after former ED Tracie D. Hall’s unexpected resignation in October of that year. Burger completed her service in July.

According to ALA president Helmick, Burger was “instrumental in a time of transition and significant budget challenges,” with a “steady, clear, calm voice” of leadership. Helmick added that Burger recently facilitated James W. Lewis’s $25 million bequest to ALA, staying “hyperfocused on creating access and supporting members with education through the design of that grant,” which will diversify the workforce by supporting library school scholarships for students with demonstrated need.

Montgomery said it was essential for ALA to move from an interim to a permanent ED. “In the philanthropy world, they want to give to organizations where they see security and stability,” he observed. “ALA has had an interim for a long time, and that’s concerning to donors. Now we’ve got a full-time executive director and a vision for the future, and we’re doing the things we have to do financially to make the organization sound and viable, so those are all positives.”

He's also focused on membership growth and partnerships with literary as well as civic organizations, such as PEN America and Authors Against Book Bans. “Drawing from my union experience over the last 10–15 years,” he said, “unions who are successful don’t go it alone. They build partnerships with all sorts of community organizations, and the same is true of ALA.” Since being announced as incoming ED, he said, he’s heard from librarians and non-library advocacy groups eager to work together, “and there's a real will of the board to do that, by the way. It’s a huge country, and we need all hands on deck.”