Collections Care in Academic Libraries (external site)
A draft portfolio of techniques, examples, and helpful sources for the continuing care of a library collection. Created for 690: Independent Study.
As educators, librarians use instructional strategies to help information users become independent learners. Instructional strategies develop into learning strategies when an information user selects the appropriate strategy and employs it to accomplish a task. Well-formulated instructional strategies:
- motivate,
- help learners organize information to apply to an immediate task as well as future tasks,
- and assesses learning.
During LIS 690, an independent study, I had the unique opportunity to be both educator and learner at the same time when I proposed coursework in collections care. I began by first identifying my own instructional needs and then designing and proposing a learning plan to my advisor. The proposal included learning goals, timelines, and deliverables.
Once the proposal was approved, I compiled a list of resources from which to learn and determined a delivery method for sharing my digital portfolio. Through regular updates with my advisor, I have been able to reflect on what has been successful during the semester, and redesign my approach in those areas where I’m not meeting the objectives established in my proposal.
Ekman Library LibGuide (external site)
Academic library collection development team project. Personally curated American Literature collection. Created for LIS 610: Collection Management.
A library’s collection cannot meet the needs of a community unless it is reliable, current, diverse, and engaging. I explored curation in LIS 610 by creating an individual collection that eventually became part of a large academic library collection LibGuide project. I curated a collection of American Literature materials in a wide variety of formats. I included titles that provided access to voices from the Indigenous, African-American, and LGBTQ+ communities so that my collection would meet the needs of a diverse community group like those found at universities.
Academic library database selection team project. Created for LIS 623: Principles of Database Information.
I was part of a team of 3 that selected databases for Johnson and Wales University’s (JWU) Charlotte campus. We began by reviewing the university’s mission and vision, to be sure that our selections would support those statements. Then we created an assessment of the JWU student body and faculty demographics, to represent all university groups in our selections. After those evaluations, we chose our initial group of core databases according to an annual budget. We made our initial decisions individually, and according to the majors we decided to represent, to ensure equity and diversity in the selection process. Finally, we met to curate the final list organized by core: supporting at least two-thirds of JWU majors; supplemental: supporting one or two majors; and special: supporting equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives.