ABA to Hold First-Ever Children’s Institute Town Hall

The American Booksellers Association will hold the very first Children’s Institute Town Hall on Thursday, June 27, at the seventh annual Children’s Institute (Ci7) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This event will provide booksellers with the opportunity to express their opinions and concerns and to share ideas with ABA Board members and staff in a less formal setting. The Town Hall will take place from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., in the Oakmont Ballroom in the Ci7 host hotel, the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Pittsburgh-Green Tree. The association has only ever hosted bookseller Town Halls at Winter Institute and BookExpo, but has chosen Ci7 in Pittsburgh to host one for the first time at Children’s Institute.

ABA Board President Jamie Fiocco of Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, will facilitate the meeting, and members of the ABA Board will respond to questions and comments from booksellers. Participating board members will include Kris Kleindienst of Left Bank Books in St. Louis, Missouri; Christine Onorati of WORD Bookstores in Brooklyn, New York, and Jersey City, New Jersey; Jenny Cohen of Waucoma Bookstore in Hood River, Oregon; Tegan Tigani of Queen Anne Book Company in Seattle, Washington; Kenny Brechner of Devaney, Doak & Garrett in Farmington, Maine; and Kelly Estep of Carmichael's Bookstore in Louisville, Kentucky. All ABA members are encouraged to attend the Town Hall for an opportunity to discuss industry and association issues.

To provide an opportunity for as many members as possible to speak during the Town Hall, a sign-up sheet will be prominently displayed at the ABA Welcome Desk on Wednesday, June 26, in the hotel lobby, and on Thursday at the Ask ABA Desk in the hotel’s Ballroom Rotunda. Booksellers will be called upon to speak at the Town Hall in the order in which they sign up.

Questions about the Ci7 Town Hall should be addressed to [email protected].