ABAA Mentorship Program Applications Open
The 2023-2024 ABAA Gender Equity Initiative has announced the ABAA Mentorship Program which furthers the ABAA’s mission to promote ethical standards and professionalism in the antiquarian book trade, to encourage the collecting and preservation of rare and antiquarian books and related materials, and to facilitate collegial relations within the trade.
The goals of the scheme are to provide dealers early in their careers with the opportunity to advance their professional development, improve the diversity of new members, give mentees the opportunity to build a relationship with an ABAA member, and generally educate potential candidates about a career in the trade. Mentees will be provided with complimentary passes to all ABAA Book Fairs.
Mentors and mentees will be paired according to specific requests, specialization/area of focus, and business structure. Location could also be a point of consideration but need not be a requirement.
Once paired, they will begin a one year period of mentorship (May 15, 2023 - May 1, 2024) with face to face communication for a minimum of 1-2 hours each month (which could be completed electronically). They are also encouraged to meet at least once in person. They will set out their goals and expectations together with the help of ABAA guidelines and suggested topics e.g. developing relationships with institutions, suggested resources, business accounting practices.
Requirements for mentors and mentees, plus details on how to apply, can be found on the ABAA website. The application period runs until May 1, 2023.
