Member Spotlight - Alex Towers

October 27, 2025

This week's ILA member spotlight shines on Alex Towers. Alex is a Library Assistant at the Joseph Sears School in Kenilworth and a Children's Shelver at the Glencoe Public Library.

Alex is also a member of the ILA Reporter Advisory Committee and the Reaching Forward North Committee. 

We asked Alex to answer a few professional and amusing questions. Continue reading to find out more about Alex. 

A little background on Alex

My name is Alex Towers and I currently work as both a Library Assistant at the Joseph Sears School in Kenilworth and a Children's Shelver at the Glencoe Public Library. Additionally, I've had brief volunteer stints at the Champaign and Rolling Meadows Libraries. The best parts of my job are reading aloud to children and keeping the library organized. As someone on the autism spectrum, I strongly believe that libraries should consider the value of neurodiverse applicants. Outside of the library, I enjoy listening to music, watching YouTube videos, and taking walks. 

How did you get your start in libraries?

I have loved libraries ever since I was a kid, and that love continued into my high school years when I volunteered at the Glencoe Public Library. After attaining my MSLIS from the University of Illinois in 2021, I began what was to become a tiresome and heartbreaking job search (which I wrote about in my first article for the ILA Reporter). After numerous rejections, I joined the Joseph Sears School as a Library Assistant in 2022, and it has been a pleasure serving the school's students every time I walk in the door.

Best Advice you've received since starting your career in libraries?

Make plenty of connections early on-you never know when they'll come in handy.

Any advice to newcomers working in libraries?

If possible, see if your supervisors can provide you with a structured, visual schedule.

When and why did you become a member of ILA?

At the suggestion of my then-supervisor at Sears, Lynette Bromiel, I wrote an article for the ILA Reporter about my experience as a neurodiverse person finding a job and the benefits that such employees bring to the library workplace.

After the piece was published in the June 2023 issue of the magazine, Cyndi Robinson, the ILA's Executive Director, asked me if I would like to join the ILA Reporter Advisory Committee. I thought that being in such an organization would open up plenty of new connections, so I joined the ILA and I'm very happy to be a member.

How has being a member of ILA helped you professionally?

Since I joined the ILA, I joined the Reaching Forward North Planning Committee and co-wrote a second article with Lynette about the Library of Things Movement. Additionally, I've met lots of wonderful people from all around the state through the ILA.

What is your proudest professional moment to date?

When my first article was posted on the social media pages of my alma mater, the University of Illinois iSchool of Information Sciences.

Hardcover, paperback, e-reader, audiobook, or all?

Hardcover or paperback. I'm not against digital forms of books, but physically holding a book in your hands is a joyful feeling that no technology can ever replicate.

Favorite authors?

Meg Eden Kuyatt, John Canemaker (author of several amazing books on Disney animation), and Vera Brosgol.

If you were stuck on a deserted island, what five books would you want with you to pass the time until being rescued?

Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt, Be Prepared by Vera Brosgol, Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen, any of the Geronimo Stilton books, and Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs.

Cat or Dog?

Considering I'm allergic to cats, dogs far and away!

Favorite film, podcast, or television show? 

My favorite movie is Fantasia 2000 and my favorite TV shows are Veep, The Simpsons, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Seinfeld.

One person you would like to meet, dead or alive why?

I'd love to meet Bill Watterson because Calvin and Hobbes is one of my favorite comic strips. However, it may be challenging considering he's very private, but if he somehow emerges, I'd be the first to tell him how much of my childhood was spent becoming absorbed in his amazing world.

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