Category Archives: Communication

Communication, Programs

Spotlight Program: Citizen Science Partnerships

At CMLE, we so enjoy all our different types of libraries, archives, and other members! Seeing all the work you are doing is so inspiring; and we want to return the favor by helping you to find some of the great programming going on around the profession.

Each week we will share an interesting program we find. It may inspire you to do exactly the same thing; or to try something related; or just to try out some different programming ideas. (On November 9, 2017, we will drop a podcast episode on Library Programming; you can tune in here to check it out! Or, of course, subscribe or stream to enjoy any of the episodes!)

Citizen Science Program

As a mulitype system, we are always enthused about partnerships and sharing across different types of libraries. This program sounded really fun – and a great way to share resources and skills across academic and public libraries.

Citizen science programs can be great ways to bring people into your  public library, and to get them involved with your resources. Adding in the expertise of an academic institution to bring in expertise just builds the interest! (Note that this is funded by an IMLS grant – yet another great program from this organization!! Tell your federal representative and senators to keep funding for libraries!)

Can you do some science? Are you interested in exploring this? Let’s talk! We can help you to find a member to partner with, and you can offer some new, exciting programs to your community!

 

ASU Citizen Science grant project ASU’s 2016 Citizen Science Maker Summit: (from left to right) Narendra Das, a research scientist at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Dan Stanton, associate librarian for academic services at ASU Library and co-investigator on the grant; Darlene Cavalier, professor of practice in ASU’s School for the Future of Innovation in Society and principal investigator on the grant; Catherine Hoffman, managing director of SciStarter; Micah Lande, assistant professor and Tooker Professor at The Polytechnic School; and Brianne Fisher, former ASU graduate student. Download Full Image

“Arizona State University aims to position public libraries as key facilitators of citizen science, a collaborative process between scientists and the general public to spur the collection of data.

Through a new grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), researchers from the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and ASU Library will develop field-tested, replicable resource toolkits for public libraries to provide to everyday people contributing to real research, from right where they are.

Despite growing interest from public libraries to incorporate citizen science programming into their role as go-to community hubs, Dan Stanton, associate librarian for academic services at ASU Library, says there are no documented road maps, best practices or models to follow.

“Our project team is well equipped to address this need, as there is substantial expertise in the area of citizen science here at ASU,” said Stanton, co-investigator on the grant.

Led by Darlene Cavalier, a professor of practice in the School for the Future of Innovation in Society, the grant brings together an interdisciplinary team of faculty and librarians to build on previous work around citizen science — a practice rapidly gaining in popularity, particularly at ASU.

In 2016, ASU hosted the Citizen Science Maker Summit, organized by Cavalier, who is also the founder of SciStarter, an online platform and ASU research affiliate, where more than 1,600 citizen science projects are registered online and open for support and participation. The projects include everything from observing or recording natural phenomena to developing software or instrumentation.

Cavalier also serves on the National Academy of Sciences committee on citizen science and is the co-founder of the Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology (ECAST) network.

“We know from previous research that too frequently the lack of access to low-cost instruments, coupled with an unmet desire to feel part of a community, creates a barrier to entry for would-be citizen scientists,” Cavalier said. “We are grateful to IMLS for supporting our effort to understand how the characteristics and capacities of librarians, their local communities and the scientists who need help from those communities can be supported through public libraries.”

As part of the grant, ASU will partner with six Arizona public libraries representing a mix of urban and rural and youth and senior populations.

The toolkits that will be developed for the libraries will offer multiple entry points that acknowledge varying library capacities and diversity of patrons.

Risa Robinson, coordinator of the grant and the assistant director of learning services at ASU Library, says libraries are ideal conduits for citizen science.

“Citizen science represents the kind of low-cost but impactful programming public libraries have always provided,” she said.

“With the increasing demand for science literacy, the growing interest in citizen science and the library’s strong community anchor, this partnership makes sense.””

Advocacy, Communication, General

Learning About Library Associations: Library and Information Technology Association

Library science is an enormous field, home to every interest you could imagine! This means that there are many organizations out there for you to join, in order to connect with other people who share your professional interests.

So even if you work alone in your library, there are other people out there doing work similar to yours! Each week we will highlight a different library association for you to learn more about, and depending on your work, potentially join! You can also check out our page dedicated to Library Associations.

This week we are learning about the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) which is a division of ALA. According to their Wikipedia page, “LITA became a division of ALA in 1966 in response to the changing technological environment in libraries. LITA advocates for equitable access to information and technology, placing a focus on providing an environment that fosters investigation and enables the implementation of new technology within libraries. LITA is headquartered in the Chicago ALA offices.” You can find out more about membership to LITA and ways to get involved here.

According to their website, LITA’s vision is: “As the center of expertise about information technology, the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) leads in exploring and enabling new technologies to empower libraries.  LITA members use the promise of technology to deliver dynamic library collections and services.”

LITA publishes an open access e-journal called Information Technology and Libraries which can be accessed here. They also offer several awards and a scholarship each year.

To learn more about LITA’s work with advocacy and the issues they promote, check out their page!

Communication

Linking to Library News!

Web foundations word cloud

There is a whole world of news happening across the profession. Below are a few links to get you started with some of the exciting things happening in the world of Library Science!

Communication

Learning About Library Associations: Minnesota Academic and Research Libraries (ARLD)

Library science is an enormous field, home to every interest you could imagine! This means that there are many organizations out there for you to join, in order to connect with other people who share your professional interests.

So even if you work alone in your library, there are other people out there doing work similar to yours! Each week we will highlight a different library association for you to learn more about, and depending on your work, potentially join! You can also check out our page dedicated to Library Associations.

This week we’re learning about the organization Minnesota Academic and Research Libraries, also known as ARLD. It’s a division of the Minnesota Library Association.

“ARLD is a forum for and an advocate of academic and research librarians and library personnel, and all other information professionals that serve academic and research institutions.”

Their purposes include:

1) To contribute to the professional and career development of all academic library personnel by conducting workshops and arranging programs including Dialogues and our annual ARLD Day conference (in April).

2) To enhance the capabilities of Minnesota academic libraries to serve the needs of their users.

3) To promote and advocate for the interests of academic libraries.

4) To promote the study, research, and dissemination of information relevant to academic librarianship.

5) To promote and foster cooperation and communication among the members of ARLD, the academic community, other library organizations, and other associations.

6) To support and protect intellectual freedom in academic libraries.

7) To acknowledge and honor the achievements of academic library personnel through the innovator award.

If you are interested in their objectives, you can join ARLD by joining the Minnesota Library Association (MLA) and selecting ARLD as your division.

The ARLD site contains information like their Leadership Roster, past agendas and minutes, and an Events and Materials Archive. You can also look at their Annual Reports, find out about any upcoming events, and learn about ARLD Dialogues.

CMLE, Communication, Training

Leadership Training Bites: What are your BHAGs?

CMLE is here to help you with all kinds of information and ideas!  This series provides weekly small bits of training on leadership, management, and supervision skills. We have heard from our members that this is an issue they would like to have more training to meet. And I have been a researcher and trainer for many years, focusing on library management, leadership, and administration.

Follow this series using our tag (see end of the article!); and if you want to talk about your own leadership development, or to set up some training in your library, we are here for you!

This week we are looking at BHAGs!

ChupacabrasWhat are your BHAGs? How are your tracking them? Do you have regular BHAG meetings?

If this is not a term you are using regularly – don’t worry! You don’t need to visit a doctor with a BHAG (though, I guess you can? if that’s part of yours??), and it’s much less scary than it sounds. (Few, if any, actual monsters are involved!)

BHAG stands for Big Hairy Audacious Goal.

You know when you start making plans for the future, and make those plans that are maybe juuuuusssstttt slightly out of reach? Those are BHAGs! This is dreaming big, having exciting goals for yourself and your library! It’s the big time!

We just had our Fall planning meeting this week here at CMLE HQ, and we are filled with BHAGs!! We love setting scary-level goals, and then trying to hit them. Things do not always work out perfectly, but it’s good to try! We are starting an online training series, a daily book newsletter, and a second, book-themed/Reader’s Advisory podcast. I’m terrified! Will we be able to actually do these things? Will they turn out great (or at least useful/fun)? Will our members like them?? I don’t know! And that is the excitement of BHAGs!

BHAGs let you push beyond the ideas people expect from you. They give you permission to try new things, to go a new way, or to radically ramp up what you are already doing. Failure is an option – but it’s not fatal. BHAGs are, by their nature, tough to achieve. Sometimes it’s the journey, not the destination.

Making the effort to dream big, to do great things – this is what gives you the chance for huge successes!!

It’s okay to play it safe sometimes – but if you want to improve, and to become better than you are today, a BHAG may be just the thing!

Fall, and back-to-school time in general, is a  good time to set some goals for your library.  If you have not yet had a chance to think about your goals – for yourself, for your department, or for your whole organization – now is the time. And if you want to throw in a few audacious goals, CMLE supports you!

Here are a few readings, if you want to explore a little more:

Go dream big this week!

Do you have BHAGs to share? Tell us below!