Collection Development Policies in Community College Libraries

Verdin, Andrew

AV

Mesling, C. F. (2003). Collection development policies in community college libraries. Community & Junior College Libraries, 11(2), 73-88. doi: 10.1300/J107v11n02_07

             Community college and other academic libraries need collection development policies, if one is not already in place, for reasons including communication between those involved internal and external to the library. While the process of creating a new policy might seem daunting and troublesome, this article provides insight on policy components and developing the policy, as well as excerpts of policies to facilitate the drafting process.

LGBTQ+ Collection Policies in the rural southern United States by Steven E. Kirby

 

Dawn Betts-Green (2020) “We Could Do Better”: Librarian Engagement in LGBTQ Collection Development in Small and Rural Public Libraries in the Southern U.S, Public Library Quarterly, 39:6, 510-536, DOI: 10.1080/01616846.2020.1737493

 By Steven E. Kirby

 

This article discusses an important aspect of the LGBTQ+ community as it pertains to libraries; Their representation and engagement within rural counties in the Southern United States. Though I have not studied the issue in detail it is a generally held belief that the southern United States is not a bastion for inclusiveness and tolerance. They explain this as : “Although it is certainly not relegated to only rural areas of the southern US, this region has higher rates of anti-LGBTQ sentiment, actions, and violence. This can be partially attributed to the notably higher instances of religious fundamentalism (Pew Forum 2008, 8) in these states, but generally conservative political views also contribute” (pg. 911)

The article goes over LGBTQ+ representation in libraries and how there is a fair amount of information on their community in terms of libraries because of a libraries need and focus on studying their community and the needs that they have. The writers strain that though there are negative connotations to the South and other peoples it is not necessarily how all LGBTQ+ peoples view those areas nor do they reflect on all of their experiences.

The article tries to gather a collection of data that reflects the collections of libraries as they pertain to LGBTQ+. They used key terms to determine what is in those collections such as: “Lesbian* (lesbian, lesbian couples, lesbians, lesbians’, and lesbianism), Gay (gay, gay men, gay couples, gays, and gays’), Homosexual* (homosexual, homosexuals, homosexuals’, and homosexuality), Bisexual (bisexual, bisexuals, bisexuals’, bisexual men, bisexual women, and bisexuality), Transgender etc.

The librarians that consented to the interview were very enthusiastic about discussing their collections, and all of them explained that it was a work in progress and that there was much to be done to improve. There was only one respondent that said that their collection policy had language for collecting materials and resources for diverse populations. Only two of the librarians interviewed said that there was not any community opposition to such materials. One respondent stated that there were no barriers to adding to the collection while the other stated that the only barrier was a financial one.

One of the things that were discussed was the relatively low participation of the libraries in the areas they were studying. The interviews that were conducted accounted for only ten percent of the respondents that were asked. This is important in having context for the article. So be aware that there was a relatively small portion of respondents that were hoped for.

Much of the information they received also came from interviews with individual librarians of their respective libraries to discuss the topic. This can be troublesome only because many people would be reticent on the subject of LGBTQ+ considering they are being recorded, though anonymously.

Either way I believe that this is an interesting look at the representation of LGBTQ+ people within one of the most contentious areas of the United States on this topic.

Rural Libraries and LGTBQ Collection Development

 

Carrasquillo, Marisol

“We Could Do Better”: Librarian Engagement in LGBTQ Collection Development in Small and Rural Public Libraries in the Southern U.S.  By Dawn Betts-Green

Out of all the material that I have read this semester, this article is one that impacted me the most. This article discussed the hostility that LGBTQ youth face in areas of the Bible Belt, being careful to express the higher instances of intolerance in the region can be related to other ideals outside of religion, but noting that there is a “higher instance of negative experiences in this area”. Giving everyone a safe place to gather and feel welcomed is what libraries symbolize and if a certain group within the community cannot or does not feel safe to explore then how are they being reached? This is the question that is asked throughout the article with emphasis on how library staff should try to avoid traps that lead to the assumption of who lives in their area and what materials to offer. The author expresses that there is still work to be done in gathering the experiences of those searching out and requesting information from rural libraries.

The research questions that were asked included:

• To what extent do the librarians and/or library staff of small and rural libraries in Alabama have an accurate conception of their library’s LGBTQ collection?
• How do librarians and/or staff actively promote and build the collection?
• What barriers does the library face in building the collection perceive to exist?
•   How are the barriers addressed?

Lack of funding and the inability to hire professionals to better add to the collections and programming was a noted factor. But in the end, the author expressed the invisibility of the LGBTQ community should push librarians to add books to the collection to “advocate for their patrons”.

Betts-Green, D. (2020) “We Could Do Better”: Librarian Engagement in LGBTQ Collection in Small and Rural Public Libraries in the Southern U.S., Public Library Quarterly, 39:6, 510-536, DOI: 10.1080/01616846.2020.1737493

 

Reviewing Library Collections

 Lambert, D. K., Atkins, W., Litts, D. A., & Olley, L. H. (2002). Guide to review of library collections: Preservation, storage, and withdrawal (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press, Inc.

A library collection is subject to different kinds of review. This book opens by discussing some elements common to all kinds of reviews, such as the need for collection policy and staff training for collection reviews. It also addresses a few specific types, such as preservation, storage, and deselection review. The different review processes may have varying goals (i.e. identifying what materials should be stored, preserved, or deselected), but all should ultimately seek to align the collection with the library’s collection development policies. 

I thought this book provided an useful and much-needed overview of the collection review process that was complete, if not very detailed. I felt that this makes it a particularly good resource to consult when just starting to learn about collection management. It provides a summary of the necessary steps for the process of reviewing the library collection; at the same time, it does not overwhelm the reader with information.

 ALA Survey and Resources for COVID-19

American Library Association (2020). ALA Survey Shows Effects of Pandemic on Library Services. Retrieved From: https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/blogs/the-scoop/ala-survey-shows-effects-of-pandemic-on-library-services/

 

Plagman, Emily, (2020). Libraries Respond: COVID-19 Survey. American Library Association            (ALA). Retrieved From: http://www.ala.org/tools/covid/libraries-respond-covid-19-survey

 

Reed, Felipe E., (2020). Pandemic Preparedness: Resources for Libraries. American Library   Association (ALA). Retrieved From: http://www.ala.org/tools/atoz/pandemic-preparedness

            These articles are from the new American Library Association (ALA) and are a survey of US libraries, Libraries Respond: COVID-19 Survey, which documents a shift in services to support students, faculty, and communities at large during the crisis and phased preparations for the months ahead. Also provided is an article made up of a list of resources for Libraries and librarians to use during COVID-19 and an article describing the survey. While virtually all libraries report limited access to the physical building, survey respondents shared leaps in the use of digital content, online learning, and virtual programs. More than 3,800 K–12 school, college and university, public, and other libraries from all 50 states responded to the survey May 12–18. Survey responses show that libraries are involved in community crisis response, cautiously planning for reopening facilities, working to meet the educational needs of students and researchers, reporting increased use of digital services, and anticipating future demands. ALA As a follow up to PLA’s March 2020 Public Libraries Respond to COVID-19 Survey, a new American Library Association (ALA) survey of U.S. libraries documents a shift in services to support students, faculty, and communities at large during the crisis and phased preparations for the months ahead.

            A pandemic is an outbreak of a disease that occurs over a wide geographic area and affects an exceptionally high proportion of the population. (Merriam-Webster Online). This article provides information and resources about preparing for a pandemic, including library-specific policy suggestions and more universal resources on pandemic education, prevention and preparation. Some of the resources are specific to seasonal influenza outbreaks and the 2019/2020 COVID-19 pandemic but can be used more universally to help educate and inform decisions on pandemic prevention and preparedness. 

Egbert, M. (2016). Creating makers : How to start a learning revolution at your library. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral.proquest.com

Summary:

Makerspace materials have not typically been part of a library’s “collection”; however, programs that allow for the creation of various types of media are playing a vital role in attracting new patrons to the library. To utilize grant money for a library makerspace, the author approached its creation by studying human-centered design-thinking, that is, “what motivates makers, what  kind of learning takes place, and how can we help enhance their experience,” (Egbert, 2016, p. xiv).  She begins her book defining “makers” as separate from “crafters”--crafters are usually working in a solitary manner, focused on an end result, whereas makers are social innovators: collaborating, learning through mistakes, and gleaning new ideas from others. The goal of the makerspace should support the type of learning that leads to patrons taking risks and creating something entirely unique, or for a unique purpose. Through trial and error, the author realized that families are the most effective target audience to keep projects available to all ages and levels of expertise.  Older makers can support and encourage new ones, sharing their experience and most importantly, the maker mindset of learning by doing. In contrast to formal learning that expects a “correct” answer or result, makerspaces provide an informal learning environment that can lead to innovative thinking and empowered creators.  As stated in her title, they can start “a learning revolution at your library,” (Egbert, 2016).

Evaluation:

This book guides librarians to "dive deep" into the why of makerspace, before they begin rolling up their sleeves and spending money. Having a vision for the makerspace will help guide decisions about who will be reached, how they will be engaged, and the types of learning that will take place. If the library is to become a "learning commons," learning should be the cornerstone of all maker programs and expenditures.

COVID-19 Is Forever Changing How Students Experience Libraries

 COVID-19 is forever changing how students experience libraries . Retrieved 2020, from https://www.edsurge.com/news/2020-11-19-covid-19-is-forever-changing-how-students-experience-libraries

This article takes a look at how covid-19 has changed school libraries. While librarian’s duties have not changed much, instead of allowing students to look at shelves and pick new books that way and  converse about them, they have to do it all virtually.. Many school libraries are currently closed. The East Baton Rouge Parish School System (EBRPSS) had previously aimed to have only 10% of their budget designated to online resources, but of course with covid-19 online resources are seen as being more beneficial,.  EBRPSS library director Susan Gauthier said that it has permanently changed how she sees collection development, saying she doesn’t want to be in a situation where she panics about all students having access.

One interesting thing to note was that Gauthier observed that it was high school students who had the most resistance to using e-books, but also thought that was due to the system’s priority of purchasing books that they can keep in perpetuity vs ones where the license expires. It is often the popular new titles that have those restrictions, vs older books with expired copyrights. For example, access would be lost to The Hate U Give after 26 borrows. Many places only license out books for 1-3 years so school districts have to continually repurchase items. This is a struggle between what students are interested in reading vs what libraries want to use their budgets for, and not a problem faced with physical books where people have that book until it falls apart. Another problem with the 1-3 year license is that if it's based on curriculum, there is only a short amount of time during the year that students need access to that book. These are challenges that are unique to the digital collections, and something that libraries and e-book sellers are still working out. 

The article notes that it is still a work in progress, and that there are some things that have changed, such as devoting time to Makerspace. Even so, Tampa school librarian Diana Rendina is hoping to add makerspace to the virtual curriculum in the future. Some schools are also still trying to give physical books and figure out how to make that work. 

This is a good article to read when wanting to see how covid-19 has changed school  libraries, how librarians think, and the use of digital books. In some ways they are useful because students can access them at any times, but there are still many unique legal challenges with them. It is also good to think about what to improve for future programs, such as how to incorporate makerspace and activities. The article mentions how useful Zoom has been, so incorporating Zoom workshops would be a good idea. It would be good to have a follow up article updating how these libraries have further adapted to digital spaces as the pandemic continues, and how much of a pivot to e-books there are as a result. 

A Guide to Starting an ESports Program in your Public Library

Koster, A., & Haines, C. (2020). Esports, a guide for public libraries. Webjunction. https://www.webjunction.org/content/dam/WebJunction/Documents/webJunction/2020-08/EsportsGuidePublicLibraries.pdf

Summary:

This guide, created by two MLIS students, outlines in detail the Pottsboro Public Library’s successful Esports program, a term that refers to video games played competitively by scholastic, club, and professional teams.  Funding for 10 gaming computers, as well as a part-time project manager to supervise team business, came from an IMLS grant.  The library worked collaboratively with the local high school, a nearby college (whose Esports club members acted as mentors), and the North America Scholastic Esports Federation (NASEF). Important factors are covered such as technical requirements, how to record and share game footage, as well as privacy considerations. A glossary of terms for video game dummies (like myself) is included, along with suggested games for Esports, and numerous reading resources to educate oneself about the connection between gaming and literacy.

Evaluation:

For anyone knowledgeable about gaming, this provides a clear guide to creating a successful Esports program. Those less “techie” will need to share this information with someone who has more experience and can guide them in their endeavor. I appreciated that this guide also included suggestions for simpler ways that libraries can include gaming as part of their outreach to youth, since not every library will have the resources for such an involved program.  Unfortunately, no ideas were given on how to run such a program virtually during this time of covid closures, but libraries can be planning ahead for the time, hopefully in the near future, when library doors will be open and people of all ages will be eager for social interaction.

Assembling Selection Criteria and Writing a Collection Development Policy

Bridget Sievers

Schleicher, M. C. (2010). Assembling Selection Criteria and Writing a Collection Development Policy for a Variety of Older Medical Books. Journal of Hospital Librarianship, 10(3), 251–264. https://doi.org/10.1080/15323269.2010.491424

In this article, Schleicher explains how the Cleveland Clinic Alumni Library created a framework for selection criteria and collection management for the library’s medical texts. These texts differed from the general collection in that many were historical texts or first editions, eliciting the need to create a new organization system. This was, some could be shared and not just kept in a storage closet.

By evaluating the books in the special collection, the library could potentially fill gaps left in the general collection, share resources with their consortium, and free up physical space in a building where that can be a precious resource. A unique factor in rare and special book collections that was considered in the creation of the criteria was, if the book was already available in the region/consortium, sale of the book to a collector or another organization. This is interesting to compare this to public and school library collections, where profit is rarely a consideration in selection criteria. The article gives a great insight into the considerations that need to be made for collection management of a special or academic library.

Collection Assessment and Management

Gilley, Morgan 

APA Citation:

Kachel, D. E. (1997). Collection assessment and management for school libraries: preparing for cooperative collection development. Greenwood Press.

Summary:

Inside this book, it goes into detail about the stages of collection development. Ms. Kachel goes through the stages of a collection and how to keep the collection circulating. Several appendices cover in more detail collection codes and when to weed out a collection. This is a highly informative book, which is nice because it covers the steps of a collection and how to maintain it. I thought the coolest in this book was how Kachel took the reader through the steps of a collection in order. It was nice to have a book that details a collection and how to get the most out of it.

Evaluation:

This book has so much information about collections and the assessment of them. It shares information about managing a collection specifically for school libraries, but it can also be used to an extent for public or private collections. The author also has an evaluation survey at the end for the librarian to use to see what they should weed out or not. There is so much information inside this that it could also be used as a desk reference book for any library.

Making Spaces for STEM in the School Library

Chambers, Louise

APA Citation:

Woods, S., & Hsu, Y.-C. (2019). Making spaces for STEM in the school library. TechTrends, 64(3), 388-394. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-019-00460-9

Summary:

In this paper, Woods and Hsu share a vision for how K-12 school libraries could address the inequality of STEM or STEAM education within the United States. They discuss the history of both the STEM/STEAM education and makerspace movement, and propose that the library is the perfect place to democratize and offer balance opportunities for STEM/STEAM education. Woods and Hsu offer practical advice for how school librarians will need to adjust their practice in order to achieve success, considerations for how to structure the library as a makerspace environments, and a clear discussion of what types of activities support the maker mindset and philosophy.

Evaluation:

Libraries offer a unique opportunity to integrate all subject areas within K-12 education, and this article shares a concise and clear roadmap for librarians to consult if they are interested in shifting their practice and purpose of the school library. The list of possible materials to include and ideas for learning activities to consider sharing with students is extremely helpful. The reminder to include tangible materials and creation opportunities is excellent as much of the literature and attention within the LIS community is focused on technology within makerspaces. This article emphasizes that makerspaces are at their core about the act and mindset of making, rather than the use of technology.

Reinventing Book Browsing

Chambers, Louise

APA Citation:

Kletter, M. (2020). Reinventing book browsing: Bitmoji classrooms, virtual libraries, and digital book displays engage children. School Library Journal, 66(10), 10.

Summary:

This article discusses a variety of tools that librarians are using during the coronavirus pandemic to continue connecting students with library resources. The movement to create virtual spaces to showcase books and other library materials comes out of the realization that students respond and engage with interactive visuals much more than traditional online library catalogs. These virtual spaces can also be used to provide a streamlined method for communication and connection opportunities between librarians and students, teachers, and families.

Evaluation:

One of the most popular, Bitmoji virtual libraries, is discussed in depth along with professional development resources to help librarians get started. However, other ideas for connecting students with library resources are also discussed, including using online catalog software display tools, Canvas, blogs, and animation. While there are many articles and blog posts published focused on Bitmoji virtual classrooms, this article was useful for considering alternatives that may better suit a particular student population and community.

BIPOC Collection Development

 Corrinne Abbott

266 Fall 2020

BIPOC Collection Development

Elrod, R., & Kester, B. (2020). Diverse BookFinder: BIPOC collection development for children’s and young adult collections. College & Research Libraries News, 81(10), 481–485. https://doi-org.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/10.5860/crln.81.10.481

    The University of Florida's Education Library listened to feedback and sought to increase their Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) collection. The Diverse BookFinder tool designed by researchers at Bates College was the only tool that provided data on who (race/ethnicity) is depicted but also how (context of representation). They use nine categories to describe "dominant messages conveyed": 1. Any Child; 2. Beautiful Life; 3. Biography; 4. Cross Group; 5. Folklore; 6. Incidental; 7. Informational; 8. Oppression & Resilience; 9. Race/Culture Concepts. The Collection Analysis tool helps develop a deeper understanding of the current collection and reports which gaps the collection needs to develop.

Pros:

1. The Diverse BookFinder contains other categories as well as BIPOC, including: disability, diverse family, economic struggle, LGBQ, STEM, gender, religion ; 2. As of Summer 2020, DBF is adding more titles (picture books, middle school, and YA) ; 3. Free and seemingly easy to use.

Cons:

1. Currently, the DBF only includes 3,210 titles (since 2002). (If the grant is no longer funded, the collection might cease to get updated) ; 2. The titles are not included in the analysis ; 3. No information available on intersection of topics in metadata.

Excellent collection-mapping resource

 

Bushing, Mary. (2006). Collection Mapping and Conspectus. Retrieved November 21, 2020 from www.varastokirjasto.fi/kokoelmakartta/julkaisut/esitelmat/Mary_Bushing_Conspectus.pdf.

By far the most useful resource I encountered this semester regarding collection evaluation and mapping is a PDF of a slide presentation by Dr. Mary Bushing. In it, she lays out an organized procedure for evaluating library collections. Bushing’s collection map system, called a conspectus, has 24 large categories, with subjects like biology, philosophy, language & literature…etc. These 24 large categories have nearly 4,000 cumulative subdivisions. Music, for example, is subdivided into dramatic art forms, non-dramatic art forms, music for mixed voices, women’s voices, men’s voices, and so on (8). Bushing suggests using a scale of 0-5 to evaluate each large category in a library collection. A score of 0 indicates that the library has not made conscious efforts to collect items on the subject, rendering it “out of scope” (11). A score of 5 indicates that the collection is exhaustive and well-maintained (23). In addition, her system has indicators for languages in which materials are available, current collection level vs. the goals of collection development and its preservation. Over all, she makes an argument that the conspectus is a tool that enables librarians to make daily decisions and policies around their collections (especially about budgets), explain their resources to library patrons, and track changes in the collection. This resource is clearly laid out, practical, and extremely helpful for any librarian who may need to make decisions about collection management in their careers.

Moulton, Kristina. 

Wiersema, J. (2020, November 17). 'Get Lit!': Virtual book club to focus on racial equity. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from http://www.therepublic.com/2020/11/17/get_lit_virtual_book_club_to_focus_on_racial_equity/

I wanted to highlight this article as it is particularly relevant to the discussions we've been having not only in class, but every day. The Bartholomew County Public Library saw a massive and sudden increase in usage and requests for books on racial justice after the death of George Floyd earlier this year. As a result, the library was gifted a grant from Indiana Humanities. While other libraries in the system used the grants to purchase physical and digital resources on this topic, the Bartholomew County Public Library decided to purchase materials that would help create a virtual book club on racial equity called "Get Lit!" The project is aimed at young adults, with the goal being to promote literacy and boost minority voices. 

While reading this article I thought that this was a very effective way to engage younger adults during a pandemic. It promotes the library and its services by reaching out to people on a topic that is important and timely. Creating the time and space for having these discussions can often be tricky, doubly so due to COVID. This is a great example of how, thinking creatively, we can still manage to do this. Considering the collaborative nature of a club like this, I thought this was especially relevant!  

  

Donabedian, D., Carey, J., & Balayan, A. (2020). Collection Development at Two Armenian University Libraries: A Conversation with Librarians and Faculty. LIBER Quarterly, 30(1).

 

Donabedian, Carey and Balayan address the restrictions that two academic libraries faced in Armenian. The universities were American University of Armenia in Yerevan, Armenia and Yerevan State University.  Faculty at both universities talked about having to get material online and at times illegally from Russian websites because the libraries were not filling their request for items.  Librarians talked about having e-resources that are never used or that only 100 students used the rare book collection.

The American University librarians addressed the fact that they are not just an academic library, but they also function as a de facto public library,  “Legally we are not a public library, but we act like a public library.” (Donabedian, Carey and Balayan, pg 11, 2020)  Because of difficulties getting books, AUA orders books from Amazon.

The faculty discussed their view that they do not have a say in what is ordered, even though some departments like the History Department send a list of books over to the library requesting new material be added.   The breakdown in communication between the librarians and faculty makes it difficult for the library’s collection to be useful to its patrons.

 Proctor, J. (2020). Representation in the Collection: Assessing Coverage of LGBTQ Content in an Academic Library Collection. Collection Management, 1-12.
 
Julia Proctor, examines the Penn State University library (PSUL) system to find out about the holdings of material related to LGBTQ+ people. Proctor points out that collections have been evolving for decades and some for centuries.   She discovered that for the PSUL system 37% of the material in the collection was Lesbian related, and that it had 5,606 holdings with the term Gay.  The article addresses the youthfulness of the area of LGBTQ+ academic scholarship coming unto its own in the 1990s.   In the end Proctor states, “assessing the collection for content relating to under-represented groups should not be a one-time effort. Building and shaping library collections requires ongoing, evolving assessments.

Charles Ludwig 

CL 

Kolendo, J. (2019). Reference analytics as an unexpected collection development tool. Collection Management, 44(1), 35–45. https://doi.org/10.1080/01462679.2018.1555069 

This article offers a way for librarians to employ an already-existing tool, RefAnalytics, for use in the collection management sphere. Kolendo shows the readers how the Gwendolyn Brooks Library at Chicago State University adopted this practice, using the program in a study to reorder missing items, update books related to various topics, and order new books on issues/topics the library had not yet purchased. 

RefAnalytics is part of Springshare’s LibAnswers, designed to track various statistical datasets. However, after training their team on the ways to use the program for its unintended purpose, the library staff found the program to be an easy and inexpensive way to collect collection development data by using the “Internal Note” field. It was here where they would record the need for a new book on a particular topic, a replacement item on the shelves, etc. They used the acronym “cd:” to begin any note related to collection development. 

In the end, the system was used to success, with the team at the library being able to record their collection development issues while not having to learn a new program, saving time that would be used with a familiarization process. This also made it likely that the team members would enter collection development data while staffing the reference desk. Issues still exist as of this articles printing (how to download data, etc.), but the early results from this study were promising.

Zine Digitization Project

Patrick Sperry

PS

Bossaller, Jenny, Martin, Dylan, & Smith, Seth. (2018). Digitizing Local Zines in Public Libraries. Public Libraries, 57(6), 23.

This article is focused on a specific digitization project (called the Community History Archive, or CHA) at Daniel Boone Regional Library (DBRL) a Missouri library system. The focus of the project is to digitize and preserve local do-it-yourself (DIY) magazines, or "zines". What differentiates a zine from a tradition magazine is that a zine is often created by a single person and printed, stapled, and distributed independently. Zines can be of any topic, but often have a local focus in subject matter. Many libraries have zine collections. The New York Public Library possesses 136 zines in their collection, and explain "Collecting zines in libraries is important because they document contemporary popular culture, making them important primary source material for future scholarship, plus they’re a lot of fun!” ("Zines at the New York Public Library," 2020). 

The digitization project was undertaken without a grant and items were catalogued with an open-source software platform called Collective Access, which was easily integrated into the library's website and was also mobile-friendly. Although the software was free, some of the stumbling blocks outlined in the article concern knowledge, hardware and project time horizons. Working knowledge of HTML/XML is needed to produce a professional-looking database, scanners and photo-editing software are required, and a time horizon of 3-5 years to complete the project is a realistic projection.

Reference

Zines at The New York Public Library. (2020). Retrieved from https://www.nypl.org/about/divisions/general-research-division/periodicals-room/zines

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2019–2020 Technology Trends in Libraries

Maw, Laura

LM

Marcotte, A. (2019, March 1). Library tech leaders recommend their favorite tips and tools. American Libraries. Retrieved from https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2019/03/01/tech-trends-libraries/

Access to immersive technology in libraries is becoming more important as learning tools and even books enter virtual, mixed, and augmented reality platforms. With immersive tech also comes boundless learning opportunities for empathy as patrons can enter places they may have never been before, such as refugee camps and natural disaster zones. Further, as patrons increasingly look to libraries for tech training, including web and app prototyping, and digital citizenship guidance, more is expected to be done with open educational resources (OERs) in libraries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of OERs in libraries across the world as patrons, young and old alike, struggle to adapt to our new virtual reality. Parents, teachers, and students are all reaching out to libraries to access online learning resources and how-to tech training more than even before. I expect this trend to continue in the future, even after the pandemic ends, because people will have become more comfortable with online learning.

Digital Collections Management Guide

Maw, Laura 

LM 

The Signal. (2019, October 11). Launching the digital collections management compendium [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://blogs.loc.gov/thesignal/2019/10/launching-the-digital-collections-management-compendium/

With the goal of improving access to the Library of Congress’s digital collections, a team has worked across the organization to develop a digital collections management guide. The development of policies in the guide were directed by community best practices. This guide can help librarians across disciplines to manage digital collections. 

I think this guide is a valuable tool for digital collection managers as it can act as a starting document for developing individual library guides.