José Aponte is the director of the San Diego County library system which has 32 branch libraries and two mobile units. He has actively promoted library services to Latinos/as for years and his efforts earned him the honor of being named the 2004 Trejo Librarian of the Year by REFORMA, a national affiliate of the American Library Association.

Mr Aponte has been a tireless organizer, creating councils to represent low-income areas, expanding library hours, creating literacy and cultural programs, and spearheading efforts to build branches in traditionally underserved areas. He has also provided guidance to high school students who formed Latino clubs, and worked with various networking, leadership and advocacy groups.

Mr. Aponte also has a White House appointment to the Laura Bush Foundation for America's Libraries Advisory Council.

Read more about Mr. Aponte by following these links:
Biography: - http://www.nclis.gov/about/aponte.html

Reforma article about Aponte
Article from NC Times - (NC Times is a newspaper representing San Diego and Riverside County)
Article from REFORMA - (REFORMA is an affiliate of the American Library Association that promotes library and information services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking

See School of Information Sciences News page for more details.