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Find reports about conferences, workshops and other events attended by OSU library faculty, staff & students.

2016 Designing Libraries for the 21st Century Conference Summary

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The Designing Libraries for the 21st Century conference held in Calgary, Canada in September 2016 was attended by Margaret Mellinger, Beth Filar Williams and Victoria Heiduschke. It included a pre-conference day on Learning Spaces and one on Data Visualization.  

Overall key takeaways:

  • All space design must be purposeful and intentional
  • When doing even minor redesigns of space it’s most helpful to bring in outside consultants to help with the process and planning
Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning (TITL)

The Learning Spaces pre-conference was held in the brand new Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning (TITL)

Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning (TITL)

Key Highlights:

  • When designing spaces think first of the intention and purpose, not the furniture and arrangement. It’s all about the LEARNING–not the things in the space.  What are the gaps on campus? Should be intentional, but note duplicating a space might really have a new intention or group or bring together multiple disciplines as like the real world.
  • Foundational design  characteristics to consider
    • Flexibility – Versatility such as all movable furniture so the space can rearragned for a new intent.  For example, the TITL had a large lecture hall room which could be pushed back like bleachers to make any sort of active learning classroom
    • Transparency such as rooms with glass walls or open spaces to see learning in the process
    • Collaboration
    • Technology  – the backbone- a critical aspect for 0918161020all space.  For example, TITL has the tech boxes throughout the space in the floor.
  • System architect – create blueprints for students workflow and instructors workflow while in the design process. (hint: this is service design thinking)
Reflection Loft area

Reflection Loft area

Conversation Pods hang from up high!Key highlights:

Conversation Pods hang from up high!Key highlights:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Core values of design concepts within a space and with partners:

  • Intention —Everyone need think “how does my work contribute positively to student learning?”
    • Think about regular practitioners, and the occasional practitioners, and the students…but also the consumer – those who will not do these big research projects, but chat, connect with others on campus, etc.
    • Offer  “Seeding SoTL” initiatives – (http://www.ucalgary.ca/taylorinstitute/seed-SoTL) – form a reading group, a teaching square, a community of practice, hosts a small unconference. Note: often instructors learn in small, informal conversations, than big former presentation settings.
  • Flexibility/Versatility —  Adapt to specific context and recognize that quality and effectiveness are informed by these contexts: existing experience, local context, knowledge catalysts (networkers and connectors) … and connect these networks and groups by providing resources and meaningful opportunities to connect these networks.
  • Transparency — Share process and products with other out of respect, trust, and desire to contribute to knowledge growth. EX: the teaching academy (highlighted on the wall of honor) goal is to make teaching and learning open and shared.  EX: open classroom week, where 20 instructors allowed over 200 observers to come to their classroom, to see the real authentic learning and teaching in process – not for telling these people what they did wrong but to simply observe. Teaching is tough, let’s share with each other.Core Values image
  • At VCU they classify their spaces into three areas:   Destination space, study space and campground spaces..

Ideas to consider at OSULP:

  • Photo diary interviews with our users.  Here is an example:   Understanding user in our Learning spaces, by Susan Beatty U of Calgary Studying students on their perceptions of library learning spaces. Why do they choose specific spaces to learn? They learn in different spaces and different ways.  Have them photograph specific types of spaces, then interviewed them about photos such as “what are the features, what would help you learn, how top you use them”  Recruited by asking “do you study in the library?”  gave $25 gift card for the interview. Used social media to recruit along with posters. Hoped for 20 and got 50 interested, all types and levels.  Results: learning awareness, even if they did not use the space they knew what it was best used for. (See my photos) Though she didn’t ask the value of the library, they told her — functionality, they want to be able  to move to various spaces and access various services, in one place….also a sense of belonging or Ownership, and key to academic success. (see her slides for details) Also mood and motivation – comfort zone, not necessity comfy seats,  but safe, space to be open to learn and achieve their goals.
  • Student Videos: Ask students to a 1-5 min video on why they love the library. Give a prize to winner. Use these to show the trustees! (Purdue libraries); and  make use of stairwells, for quotes, poetry, of students or former students, or art by students; helps students make this space, their space. Could be a great partnership with SMS. 
  • Visiting Libraries: Bring a student or multiple students with you when visiting other libraries for ideas on creating intentional spaces.  
Data Viz wall

The Data Visualization pre-conference was help in the Taylor Family Digital Library  (http://tfdl.ucalgary.ca/faqs)

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Key Insights | application to OSULP:

  • Because screen technology is changing so quickly, Edmonton Public Library will wait until 2019 to finalize hardware decisions.  
  • The programming that will happen in the space is more important than the space – it is also the more difficult part. While we have been talking with faculty about the data vis space, we also need to interview students, analyze curricula and frame the need for this space in broader digital and data literacy terms.
  • What I liked about the Auraria Library was the examples of low cost applications that could be employed and displayed when curriculum or research based content was not available. Good for keeping content fresh and for attracting tour groups to interact with the wall.
  • Hire a part-time, dedicated project manager (outside of the contractors, vendors, facilities people) –  someone to represent the libraries’ interest and schedule.
  • Form a group to prior to installation
  • SANDBOX VR in public spaces  – this would be a fabulous event for us to do with Ecampus people  (NCSU is doing this)

Closing Panel: Rethinking the organization as you redesign space

Organizational Change:   For major renovations or organization structure changes, Murray-Rust suggest these important lessons:

  • Actively manage and socialize change  – protect people’s self esteem and minimize fear and anxiety.  
  • Seek out and accept outside help. There are reasons for change and outsiders can help
  • Offered Mindfulness training for staff 12 – 1:30 once a week.

University of Rochester New Service Model in Old Spaces

  • New space includes:  New desk called   “Q&I” (questions and information); Computing and Tech “Sandbar” ; Very few fixed workstations; Research consults throughout the space “YOU ARE THE REFERENCE DESK” ;  Popup programming; 3 digital screens
  • Process for organizational change over 3 years: started with strategic plan and a facilities master plan; Created a series of working groups to arrive at a service models for access and reference (hired Brightspot for this); THEN did the space design
  • Key points: staff drove the changes, which were a series of incremental ones – renaming spaces, creating new services, making service desks smaller

Important Lessons:

  • Gained important lessons from Leading Change by John Kotter.
  • Everyone has to see themselves in their roles and understand the narrative.
  • Moved from “my library” to “our library” learned to work in groups (not always in consensus – there are gradients)

University of British Columbia, Barber Learning Center

  • How does the organization respond to space changes and when are spaces no longer viable?  They consolidated a bunch of libraries and service points.  
  • Process for organizational change was a “seismic shift”  There was a strong initial vision, but they also have staff who work in community-driven ways.  They have a governance council.
  • Staff organized a community of practice to take charge of their own development and this was particularly effective.  

Important Lessons:

  • If you are the person with the drawings, you must go beyond communicating change and socialize change.  
  • Make your first teams as big as possible – people support what they help build
  • Imagine the project as a chapter in the library’s story
Studio Bell - National Music Center

Studio Bell – National Music Center

Studio Bell Music Makerspace

Studio Bell Music Makerspace

Mount Royal University Library - reclaimed skateboard wall

(new) Mount Royal University Library – reclaimed skateboard wall

Mount Royal University - Taylor Centre for the Performing Arts

Mount Royal University – Taylor Centre for the Performing Arts

Bryan’s OLA-SSD Conference 2016 Report

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Hello.

Just wanted to share a brief summary of this year’s OLA-SSD Conference “Coming to a Crossroads: Intersecting Roles in Library Service and Community” in Wilsonville.

First off, the food was excellent and everyone was stuffed by the end of the day. A nice venue.

Also met one of our former student employees from the early 90’s, Tallie McWilliams. Her husband, Jeremy, also worked for us during that time and is now the Digital Services Coordinator at Lewis & Clark College. Tallie also works at the L&C library.

Keynote – Oregon Library Passport Program – Eva Calcagno, Chair of the OLA Resource Sharing Committee and Director Washington County Cooperative Library Services.

Gave an historical background of the Library Passport Program – she spearheaded the development and implementation in 2013 – which opened up free, direct patron borrowing at libraries across the state. She also shared experiences being involved in resource sharing during her career and the Passport Program has been a positive resource for some metropolitan libraries and rural ones as well throughout Oregon. The program has not been that influential at Oregon State University Libraries as our Oregon Resident Card already provides access for all Oregon residents.

Session #1 – One of These Things is Not Like the Other: The Joy of a Diverse Environment. – Sandra Valenti, Emporia State University

Discussed individual approaches to topics of diversity. Many examples from the presenter and audience of how the best-intentioned comments or statements can be perceived as offensive to some. How you say something does matter and we all need to be aware of sensitive topics including gender, sexual orientation, race, religion and disabilities among others. Welcoming diversity and being respectful is the goal. Think before you speak. Explaining yourself afterwards is a very awkward and uncomfortable situation and can be easily avoided.

Session #2 – Responding to and Assisting People with Unique Needs – Elise Thompson, Clackamas County Behavioral Health Division

Because most libraries are open to the general public, “we see the entire unique and wonderful range of humanity at the library, and that can present some interesting challenges to staff concerning how to keep that shared space as comfortable and welcoming as possible for all who use it.” The presentation gave some tips on how to engage effectively, professionally – and compassionately – with all of your patrons and their unique needs.

Elise discussed different situations and shared a handout for a guide. She stressed that if a situation appeared dangerous to always call security or the police for help.

The handout Responding To and Assisting People with Unique Needs covered topics like Behavior vs. Cause? Behavior is the primary area of concern for staff, not the cause of that behavior. Be cautious about assuming that you know the reason for someone’s unusual behavior – it can be caused by any one or a combination of factors. For your purposes, it is probably not relevant what the cause is. Instead, your concern is about the client’s ability to interact with you and get their needs met in a way that:
• Maintains safety for all involved
• Is satisfying to the client
• Causes a minimum disruption to your work
• Causes a minimum disruption to other clients

It also covers observational skills, communication skills and other general guidelines. Very useful.

Session #3 – Tips of the Trade: Training Guides and Techniques for Libraries. – Suzy Coleman (Tualatin Public Library), Shanel Parette (Willamette University), and Michael Farris (Pacific University)

The panel shared their student training materials and techniques. Software used included Google Docs and Libguides. The training materials were by topic and questions were answered about navigation, ease of use, and some training styles. Another question that came up was how best to communicate with students/volunteers that come and go and are not stationed at a desk. Everyone has tried notes, bulletin or whiteboards, etc. Several libraries also use gift boxes, candy and other rewards for their students. Also gained some ideas for interview questions based on a student’s personality and goals.

Amila and I mentioned that we base our training not on topics, but on the level of overall training using modules. We also use a wiki to manage the materials. Initial training is focused on allowing students to begin working at the desk quickly doing basic tasks and their level of overall skills and knowledge progresses as the training progresses. All staff participate and contribute to the training as we are open 24/5. We also discussed the use of training level badges – both digital and physical. There was much interest in our techniques and Suzy sat down with us afterwards for a discussion.

Overall an informational and pleasant day. Did I mention the great food?

– Bryan

Beth’s ALA 2016 Summary

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flying

Window views: from Portland, to Phoenix, to Orlando!

atlas rocker

…got to see an rocket launch from my Aunts porch!

After taking vacation on the front end to see family….

ocean

West coast beaches are beautiful but you can SWIN in the Atlantic!

…I headed friday to ALA in Orlando!  As I have been rotating off many of commitments and committees this past year, it was nice to wrap up many things and enjoy ALA networking with new and old friends.  My main focus this year was seeing the ALA Sustainability Round Table (of which I was a founding member & published an article on) finally have a real presence at ALA. Check out these   to hear more and read about two of the sessions SustainRT hosted in American Libraries Magazine:

Carribean Libs at ALAAlso, a panel of Caribbean Librarians spoke about The National Library of Aruba: Promoting, Enhancing and Embracing Green Education  0701161555

Did you notice the name badges had no plastic sleeve, thank  SustainRT folks for pushing back on that!

atwood

Margaret Atwood was hilarious  – so witty – I found myself laughing out loud. I cant wait to read her book this fall as part of the Hogarth Shakespeare project!

browns posters

I also got to see my former colleagues from UNCG as we celebrated the much deserved award to one of my favorite folks at UNCG Brown Biggers as LJ’s Paralibrarian of the Year.

I enjoyed small group discussion at the Heads of Public Service DG meet up where we discussed space allocation and staffing with no miraculous answers but nice to connect with others in similar roles.  The  ACRL ULS Taking Our Seat at the Table: How Academic Librarians Can Help Shape the Future of Higher Education was a little disappointing in content  – hmm or maybe we are already doing many of the things discussed – though I did hear some large libraries say they are stopping their Gov Docs collecting (!), and much on affordable textbook initiatives. I did really like this slide quizzing us on what we should know/be able to answer about our schools.

2 min quiz on your school

and this humorous one on how to earn your seat at the table!

earn a seat at the table how

 

 

Destination Krakow, Poland

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My first trip to Eastern Europe led me to the beautiful city of Krakow, Poland. Dianna Fisher, the20160416_102628 director of Open Oregon State, and I were presenting on the OSU Open Textbook Initiative at Open Education Global 2016. OSU is a really new member of Open Education Consortium, the global network for open education.  Attendees from all over the world were in attendance.  Most U.S. participants are from community colleges since in our country they are at the forefront of open education adoption. This is not a library conference so there weren’t a lot of us in attendance.  That said, it is clear that faculty outside libraries are looking to academic librarians to be partners.

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AGH Library interior

The host institution is AGH University of Science and Technology, obviously a technical university, established in 1913.  Other campus libraries always interest me so I did peek into AGH’s but you’d have to have an ID to get much further into the building.

Conference Highlights:

  • All the plenary panels were excellent; these sessions demonstrated not only the global nature of the OE movement but the huge successes across Europe. Both the opening and closing panels were strong. The opening keynote panel on “Opening Up Poland” had reps from across government, higher education and IT; the closing keynote featured Jarosław Lipszyc, the President of the Modern Poland Foundation—quite a charismatic guy.
  • Learning about the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), the first open and distant learning institution in the West African region;
  • A lab/workshop on advocating for open education through the Open Government Partnership;
  • Caleb Green’s report on the Creative Commons 2016-2020 Strategy and their 2015 annual report; this is a session that I could likely expect to hear in the states but I don’t get to the more focused conferences as I often as I once did.
  • Another terrific lab/workshop on the Open Research Agenda—this was not on how to “open up” research but where the research energy investigating OE issues ought to be focused. It occurs to me that this is a pretty good approach to leveraging your efforts and FTE so you aren’t spending time investigating dead ends.

Dianna Fisher and I had good attendance at our session (about 20-25 in attendance); we were joined by a couple of other presenters. After our presentation, someone came up to Dianna and told her he liked our presentation. This person also told her that we weren’t nearly as pompous as most Americans. At some point, I hope to put our presentation in ScholarsArchive.

Other Trip Highlights

Krakow as a destination exceeded my expectations. Compared to other places I’ve visited in Europe, it is quite inexpensive. My partner and I rented a great 1-bedroom apartment for about $75 a day. Polish cuisine is wonderful and a meal that would cost you $50 in Portland is about $25. Of course, I am not afraid to try new tastes:  delicious soups: borscht (beet soup), horseradish soup, sour rye; pierogi or filled dumplings; fried lard with fresh baked bread. Bagels originated in Poland and you can find them for sale all over the city. Even the conference food was outstanding. The opening conference reception offered a feast with various Polish dishes and we were entertained by a young Polish folk dance group.

My sightseeing included:

  • Rynek Glowny or Grand Square, the main square in Krakow with loads of activity;

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    Rynek Glowny at night

  • St. Mary’s Basilica, the location where a trumpeter plays five-notes from a Polish anthem from the church tower;
  • Kazmierz or the Jewish District where thousands of Krakow’s Jews lived before their forced move by the Nazis just a bit south across the Vistula River to Podgórze;
  • Podgórze, which became known as the Jewish ghetto, is the location of Schindler’s Factory; we also visited the exhibits here made famous in the Spielberg movie Schindler’s List.
  • A guided tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau, one of the concentration camps located about an hour from Krakow.   I am not sorry I did the tour though I am not sure I need to expose myself to another one in my lifetime. Both my partner and I agreed that going with a guide was the best option. I am not sure how we would have gotten through the tour without the guide pushing us along.  Scenes below include belongings of the camp’s victims like shoes and dinnerware.
  • Wieliczka Salt Mine which is actually pretty close to Krakow. The mine features lots of statutes and chapels carved out of rock salt by the miners themselves. This mine and its sister mine as well as Auschwitz-Birkenau are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
  • Wawel Castle–the amazing residence for Polish kings for centuries; it’s difficult to photograph because it encompasses multiple structures (cathedral, residence, state rooms), courtyards, gardens.
  • Nowa Huta, a suburb of Krakow which the Soviets planned after they occupied Poland in the post WW2 era. Nowa Huta was planned with the idea that folks from surrounding rural areas would move there to work in the steelworks. Given the Communists’ dismissal of organized religion, they did not plan for building churches. This was apparently a critical mistake and the local workers’ push for churches was a significant underpinning of the Solidarity movement. Karol Wojtyla, whom we know best as Pope John Paul II, was then archbishop in Krakow, and he was a big supporter of the trade union as well.

Richard Sapon-White had suggested I read A Long, Long Time Ago, and Essentially True by Brigid Pasulka.  I am glad I took him up on this suggestion.  Often in my travels, I endeavor to read a book set in the location where I am headed. Much of Pasulka’s novel is set in Krakow right after the communist regime has fallen. There is a parallel and interlinked narrative about a young couple set in the inter-war years leading up to WW2 and through the period just after the Nazi occupation of Poland. Pasulka really brings the city to life. I would recommend this book even if you aren’t planning a trip to Poland anytime soon. Since I am a fast reader, I also read a short book on a black German woman who discovered that her grandfather was the commandment overseeing Podgorze. He was the evil sadistic character Amon Goeth that Ralph Fiennes portrayed in Schindler’s List. The book is My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me: A Black Woman Discovers Her Family’s Nazi Past by Jennifer Teege. Teege’s book was an interesting look at how descendants of Nazi war criminals have dealt with their ancestors’ horrific crimes against humanity. Since I’ve been home I have also read a terrific short young adult novel, Anna and the Swallow Man.  Highly recommended.

My first ACRL WA/OR … in the Pack Forest!

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On the way to the Pack Forest for the ACRL WA/OR joint conference, Uta and I visited a few academic libraries  — slide show will be forth coming.  But this post is about my first visit to the amazing retreat center, in the woods at the Center for Sustainable Forestry at Pack Forest.

 

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There were about 90+ people in attendance, from a variety of academic libraries including research libraries and community colleges, for this 2 day event.  OSULP had about 7 of us in attendance (including our ACRL OR President Uta!).  Susan Barnes Whyte was the keynote to open up the day  “Your ACRL: An Update from the Board” so she mainly talked about ACRL nationally – its mission,  goals, demographics in the association etc. There was some discussion on ACRL nationally, should it be a part of ALA or its own entity (I feel strongly it should stay in ALA as we can learn from each other regardless of what type of library we are working in currently and we NEED to work together not in silos!) . Another short discussion was on if ACRL is supporting/recruiting  more paraprofessionals and offer more continuing ed leading to certification (not much time to discuss and this could be a great small group discussion at another time).  An interesting note in the national ACRL membership trends shows membership drop off after 5 years  is this perhaps until they get tenured?  What can ACRL do to keep people involved regardless of tenure?  Susan also noted that the  ACRL Plan for Excellence might be adding a 4th goal relating to how libraries effectively navigate changing landscapes.  She mentioned some upcoming library themes  (external pressures)  ACRL was researching:

  • credentialing/badges – might relate to non MLSers
  • curriculum/assessment
  • changing roles of librarians
  • future roles of conferences?
  • academic library as publisher
  • other HE organization
  • budgets!!!
  • professional ethics and large corporations and privacy

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Session 1: BLURRING THE LINES:  Encouraging Undergraduate Student Success Through Partnerships  (U of W librarians)

Key themes:

  • odegaard library  — focuses on UG/student learning focused
  • partnerships – for diverse viewpoints + collaboration –but be prepared to collaborate DEEPLY (more than colocation); sharing cultures, do not underestimate culture clashed, rethink what you want to assess together.
  • holistic view of the student – student support must transcend divisions
  • A need to support the “Hidden Curriculum” – understanding scholarship and inquiry which use to be the expectation by college – and includes subject content, college prep, working with new populations (1st generation, transfers), no GED curriculum —  so, how to transfer skills across courses?

odegardresearchwriting They created the OWRC (Odegaard writing and research center) 70+ tutors, 5 LIS students, 4 librarian tutors. both writing and research tutors collaborate: key:  “writing is where research issues come out, librarians need to be in the midst of that process”   … metalanguage for processes of inquiry – threshold concepts, joint writing and research librarians, recursive process employing reading, writing and discussion to create knowledge.

Other collaborative programming ideas from UW:

  • Health and wellness programming:  peer health educators in the library
  • Music Programming: 1 hour pop up performances such as a campus String Quartet.   “take a study session with a soundtrack”   Quiet areas for students too. Assessment show it calmed students and made them feel good while studying; Also it  connected them to the space and was a shared experience.
  • The gallup purdue index 2014 states  “feeling supported and having deep leaning experiences mean everything when it comes to long term outcome for college graduates” 

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Session 2: Let Your Love Open the Door To – Student Development Theories  (OSU Librarians!)

Their presentation will be better than me summarizing… and since they are local, just go ask them about it! https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_xclEG6DYt7Rng1SVgyOVJoOEE/view

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LIGHTENING ROUNDS

1 – Emma at Pierce College discussed opening doors to work with adjunct faculty in teaching and working at the ref desk.  Spend time on boarding, allowing them time to share ref desk questions and project work, give them a chance at co-teaching,  integrated reflective practices, and host an in-service. Adjuncts need to be part of and understand the culture of the library, they need time to debrief on ref questions etc.  See more:  goo.gl/1FimYU 

2 – Beyond Academia “what happens after I graduate?” AND #3 – University of Western States in PDX  both spoke about similar ideas:   why not teach a workshop/class for those getting ready to graduate. They will not have access to library resources so show them Open Access resources, ILL options, where is your local public library, information through their prof organizations, etc .  One library now offers a class the last quarter of their study  “so you are graduating now what?”  Students are surprised they can’t access literature after graduating!  It’s about managing vs meeting expectations.  Offer them options to help guide them once they graduate. She actually shows them a license agreement contract that says “no alumni”  (so they know we arent just being mean 🙂  She also shows how to set up alerts for TOCs and RSS/Feedly and of course open source and government stuff.

DAY 2

Library as a Lightning (talk) rod for Cross Campus Collaboration (Poppy, UW Tacoma) 

  • determine the gaps saw in grad students
  • created TAC  talks (as in Tacoma – aka “TED talks”
  • like Scholars Studio at UW Seattle
  • one topic 10 lightening talk events, 20 slides, 15 sec each, timed
  • gives grad students a chance to practice presenting
  • why the library? already the connecting to research, neutral territory, interdisciplinary
  • refreshments and reception afterwards
  • materials added to the IR
  • then integrated a peer review process as well

Reference in your Pjs (Nano Burling WSL)

virtual reference – after hours references study what was asked during the night. found they asked a lot of high level research questions

Bringing the stacks to Buzzfeed (Emily, UW)

Taught 5 sessions of a course that was in both jewish & Spanish departments that was everything from stacks to spec collections.  Cool idea – had them do a browsing activity instead of scavenge hunt – send to a general section in the library to review books related to their specific area. She also asked them : where are you actually doing your reading (buzzfeed, blog, facebook, etc). She let them posted their final work on Blogs or Buzzfeed.

Library as Open Education Leader Grant Summary (CC librarians)

LSTA grant  for CC in WA – a need to put librarians within the Open Ed process; a need to create open education advocacy plans by librarians . These librarians  created a course to teach how to talk to people and create your advocacy plan (beyond what is OER).  They used Press Books for it. Suggested best practices:  envio scan and find your support networks;

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Trivia Night was also a lot of fun!

 

34th Annual Conference on the First-Year Experience

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This was the third Annual conference I have attended, and my last as ACRL Liaison to the National Resource Center for the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, the sponsoring group.  This year’s conference was held in downtown Dallas, Texas.

This was the best coffee I found.  It was very good.

Iron sculptures depicting a herd of Texas long-horned cattle being driven across a creek bed

Cattle drive art in Pioneer Plaza, next to the conference hotel

I facilitated a discussion on the new ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education on the last day of the conference, but I forgot to take a picture of the room.  In small groups, we focused on designing course and class activities.

Here’s the handout summarizing the Framework (PDF on Google Drive)

Group 1’s Daily Show activity.

Group 2’s first-year seminar focused syllabus investigation activity.

Group 3’s 21 Questions activity.

The conference never has a specific theme limiting the scope of the presentations, so there’s a wide range of talks, posters, workshops and discussions focusing on all kinds of issues of interest to those who work with first-year students.  The attendees are teachers, students, student affairs professionals, program administrators, institutional administrators and more.  Some sessions are designated as research-focused, while others synthesize information on rising trends.  A few things I took away from this conference:

  • Common Reading Programs are still a very important part of the first-year experience on many campuses. There is a significant publisher presence on the vendor floor at the FYE conference, and it’s clear that these programs have become a major industry. There were Common Reading sessions in every timeslot – some examining program logistics, and others focused on effective ways to build supplementary programs around the common book. I did not attend many of these sessions, but it is also clear that there is still not a lot of assessment data about the impact of these programs.
  • Peer Leaders and peer-to-peer learning is a major theme. There were sessions on training, recruiting and working with peer leaders in a variety of contexts (including one from librarians at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, who brought some of their peer leaders as co-presenters).
  • Financial literacy is an increasingly important topic. Always a part of the conversation, there were more standalone sessions on this topic than I remember before. In addition, there were more products and services on the vendor floor focused on this area.   Given that this was also a priority for ACRL in recent years, there is an interesting point of convergence there.
  • Many of the sessions continue to be focused on the logistics of creating, implementing and running specific programs: orientations, seminars, bridge programs, etc. There are always a significant population of FYE administrators who attend this conference, and a noticeable group of faculty members recently tasked with building FYE programs.
  • First-year study abroad programs continue to grow. There are a few schools with long-established programs, but many of the programs presenting here were created in the last few years. There were no library-specific examples of these, but in out of session conversations I met multiple librarians who have partnered with FYE trips abroad. Here’s some sample programs:
  • There is also a sizable group of faculty who teach in FYE programs who attend this conference and as a result, there are always sessions focused on pedagogy and teaching practice. Two of the sessions I attended illustrate the diversity of approaches you can find in these sessions:
  • I had worried that the library and information literacy sessions would be down this year because of ACRL, but that was not the case. There were a variety of sessions focused on information literacy and inquiry. Librarians talked about their collaborations with First-Year Seminars and Common Reading programs and new student orientations. They discussed student publishing and Open Textbook projects. Attendees learned about Kansas State’s library-created Alternate Reality Game, and the University of Toronto’s Personal Librarian program.

AAAS Annual Meeting 2015

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By Laurel Kristick

February 12-16, 2015

San Jose California

Summary:

This was an excellent conference for librarians interested in science, communication, policy, education and related issues. The theme of the meeting was Innovations, Information, and Imaging. The sessions I attended were focused on research integrity, diversity in STEM, outreach and engagement, and science communication. I was able to attend three sessions where OSU faculty were speaking or moderating: Francis Chan (Integrative Biology), Paul Farber (History), Anita Guerrini (History). There were also a number of sessions that I would have liked to attend but conflicted with other sessions.

Key Takeaways:

  • Outreach and engagement are important for academics and other researchers. If you want involvement from others there are 3 models from citizen science: contributory (citizens contribute data), collaborative (citizens take part in planning or analyzing), Co-created (2-way learning process between scientists and citizens)
  • In scientific outreach and communication, the LIVA strategy can help with addressing the biases of the audience: LIVA = Leverage scientific credibility and Involve the audience in Visualizing scientific evidence and making sense of an illustrative Analogy.
  • Research Misconduct is a systemic issue, not just a few bad apples, and organizational change and mentoring may be needed to fix systemic problems (SIDENOTE: on the flight home, I was readingMistakes Were Made (But Not By Me), which reflects many of the ideas I heard at the conference about research integrity)
  • The “leaking pipeline” analogy related to diversity in STEM education is flawed as it only considers the path from doctoral student to full professor in a research university; need to include alternative career paths (policy, science communication, liberal arts schools, community college, industry) – are the graduates utilizing their education and experience; are they doing what they want

Further Reading

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Articles:

Websites:

The 40th annual conference of the International Association of Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers was hosted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community in Noumea, New Caledonia. (September 14-18, 2014). That is a long ways from Newport and I got there via New Zealand.

The SPC was founded in 1947 to assist the Pacific Island Region stabilize after WWII. It works across many sectors to achieve economic growth, sustainable natural resource management and utilization, and healthy human and social development. Members include the 22 island states and territories plus four of the original founders – New Zealand, USA, France and Australia. The headquarters has a lovely meeting hall that is shaped like an upside-down canoe.  We met here and the picture below gives you an idea of the grandeur of the setting.

For a more detailed daily description of the conference, my colleague, Kris Anderson from the University of Hawaii, blogged the meeting. She has a readable and enjoyable style that gives you a flavor for the meeting.

Here are a few of the things I learned or impressed me the most.

  • The Pacific Islands Region is vast – 5000 km x 10000km.  There are over 9000 islands.  Travel is difficult with few island to island flights.  1% of the islands have reliable internet connections.  13 of the 22 capitals of the state and territories have cabled connections; the rest are via satellite.  This makes communication challenging and delivery of information formidable.
  • SPC has the Fisheries, Aquaculture and Marine Ecosystems (FAME) Digital Library.  The Pacific Islands Marine Portal (PIMRIS) adds records from the region to the Aquatic Science and Fisheries Abstracts and the Aquatic Commons.  The resources are impressive and unique but both organizations are challenged by staff turnover (when people are trained in IT they tend to move on from the libraries), inconsistent internet access, very limited budgets and professional capacity. Collaboration is not just nice – it’s essential.
  • Conservation of the ocean is part of the DNA of Pacific Islanders.
  • Library Box offers a possible solution to limited internet access and inconsistent electricity.  Steve Watkins from CSUMB demonstrated this digital distribution tool that uses a solar powered, battery operated portable wireless router to serve out content.  In this case, he downloaded the contents of Aquatic Commons on the flash drive.  Two of the devices are now being tested at IAMSLIC member institutions in the Pacific Islands Region.
  • The Vietnam Institute of Oceanography finally has plans to set up a rare book room to protect its valuable collection from the vagaries of high humidity and temperature.  The staff has started digitizing items in the collection to save them from continued use in the labs by staff needing taxonomic verification. The Institute has digitized the complete HMS Discovery Reports.
  • Daryl Superio from SEAFDEC in the Philippines headed an excellent session on disaster planning.  His presentation of library preparedness and response to Hurricane Yolanda highlighted the level of complacency we all fall victim to.  Kris Anderson distributed a very useful Pocket Response Plan template – fill it out and carry it with you.  She also had the tip of having your emergencies supplies in a rolling garbage can so you can take the tarps to the spot needed.

Of course there was more shared and learned.  Part of what makes this particular library association and its gatherings so intriguing is the mix of people and cultures.  We are bound by an interest in providing access to information.  How we do is shaped by where we are and who we serve.  The challenges are shared – communication, professional development, budgets, recalcitrant management, leaking buildings, confusing standards and more.  IAMSLIC moves its annual conference to a different region every year so those in the region have a better chance of attending and working together.  That was the case in Noumea.  We have members from 95 countries; 12 of those countries were represented this year including 8 from the Pacific Islands. This is the first time since 2006 that many of the librarians in marine libraries in the Pacific have had a chance to talk, exchange ideas and just get to know each other better.

Besides the days we spend inside listening and asking questions, we had fun as well.  This included a cool train ride around Noumea,

 

a visit to the beautiful Tjibaou Cultural Center

and a 40th birthday party for IAMSLIC. 

Accommodations were great.  I shared a two bedroom apartment for the week for about the price of one night in Chicago.  Here’s the view from our balcony that looked onto Lemon Bay.

What did I contribute?  I presented the results of a membership survey that will help us steer a course for our association.  Working in an international group gives you a much deeper perspective on what libraries mean to communities of scientists, students, managers and more.  When I picked up my rental car in Portland on returning home, the agent praised US libraries.  He was from Turkey and had just finished his business degree; he thought it was just miraculous that we could materials from any where and that we would.  At OSU, I’m fortunate to be able to contribute to my library community and be part of the conversation across the waters.

Leadership Lincoln 2013-2014

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Traveling Lincoln County
by Judy Mullen
August 15, 2014

The most mind-boggling and interesting day I experienced as a participant in the 2013-2014 Leadership Lincoln Program was the day our class met at the Georgia Pacific mill in Toledo. The immense power and size of it mesmerized me–a steam-billowing colossus with its own bevy of boxcars and trucks clustered before it like miniature toys. My classmates and I donned protective glasses before descending into the belly of the whale. This place had a palpable force; I sensed a great aliveness to the enterprise, as though the mill were breathing. My colleague, who grew up in Toledo, told me that as a child she thought of the mill as a great cat crouching near the edge of town.

The mill is owned by the Koch brothers, employs 400 workers and is the fifth largest employer in Lincoln County. It manufactures a product called “container board” which is shipped out in rolls and is later transformed into boxes. The mill pumps four million dollars in wages and benefits into the miniscule town of Toledo (3500 residents) and eventually those dollars disperse across our county. My county, the one I’ve lived in for twenty years but about which, I discovered, I knew little. Now I know something about this mill.  It expands my sense of my county and my place in it.  I learned something.  But what has this got to do with Leadership?  And with OSU Libraries?

Georgia Pacific Mill

Georgia Pacific paper mill, Toledo Oregon
Photographer: Roger Hart / Date taken: May 1960
Oregon Digital: Unique Digital Collections from OSU and UO Libraries
http://oregondigital.org/u?/lchsa,478

“Leadership and Learning are indispensable to each other.”  -John F. Kennedy

What is Leadership Lincoln?
The Leadership Lincoln program has trained over 600 Lincoln County residents over the last twenty-two years. It’s a program that survives because it is vital, interesting, useful. Here’s the way I’d describe it: Twenty-seven county residents from all walks of life trekked around together, one day a month for ten months, traversing the county from stem to stern. We attended class in a different location each month, including a grocery store, the performing arts center, the recreation center, the Angell Job Corps campus, two Oregon Coast Community College sites, the Casino’s hotel, NOAA’s Marine Operation Center, the Georgia Pacific Mill and a hospital.

We met those who are leading the county and asked them how they were doing it. It was a chance to ask what the problems were and what was needed to do the job– to ask what is and isn’t working. These leaders displayed a panoramic view of differing yet effective leadership styles. The topics ranged broadly: education, media, communications, healthcare, human resources, business climate, law enforcement, the legal system, government and what the notion of “quality of life” in our county might actually mean. Whew! See how all-encompassing this was?

What I learned…

“Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand.” -General Colin Powell

I had lunch with a cop, the county’s D.A., a business instructor at the community college, and cooks from the hospital and the jail. These were unusual lunch partners for me. I learned that cops have to study in an ongoing manner, that the D.A. has a body bag in her trunk, that those developing small business in our county are interested in 3-d printers, and that the food is excellent at both the hospital and jail. I learned that we have twelve county parks and that there were twenty-seven different tribes on the Siletz reservation in the 1850’s. What I am trying to say here is that this whole thing was turning out to be fascinating.

But more importantly, I learned that my classmates and the leaders to whom we spoke had common concerns about our county; poverty, unemployment, hunger. Everyone thinks about how to make more jobs here, and about how to make sure our educational system does not falter, about how to keep the environment healthy and how to stay safe. I was thunderstruck to learn there are a staggering number of children in our county who are homeless. So we have work to do in this county.

But we saw many rays of light, too, and many programs at work addressing real needs: Homeless Connect (a program which provides direct help to the homeless), Habitat for Humanity, training at the Angell Job Corps site in the trades (like carpentry, masonry, plumbing), a new health education building going up at the hospital, a commitment by the county to develop Newport as a hub for ocean related industry, and programs for seniors and veterans through RSVP. And there are many more. But we found that communication and collaboration between these groups was difficult and that more connection among them is needed.

“Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” -Peter Drucker

The model for this class is like a double-helix; one strand offers a variety of local venues to visit and learn about–replete with leaders in action. But the other strand introduced us to the concepts and skills embedded in leadership. Dr. John Baker cleverly and often humorously sprinkled this information throughout our class meetings, using real examples born from his own experience. So I learned about places in my county, but I also pondered the rudiments of leadership and management. The two strands twisted neatly together and I think it was a brilliant framework for this class.

There is no one style of leadership. What exactly makes a good leader is illusive. But leaders are not born, they can be made by practicing skills. Personal qualities of leaders that often get reiterated include: honesty, focus, passion, good communication skills, ability to simplify, good listener, confident, energetic, intelligent, fearless, vision, persistent. There are many other qualities and really no way to nail down a formula.

It’s easier, however, to recognize a skill set which leaders practice and use: keep the mission first; keep everyone focused on the goals, provide training, talk like an adult (not like a parent or a child), hold others accountable, keep a positive outlook and maintain positive relationships, provide structure, understand the costs to organization and to staff, lead by example, be flexible, lead with conviction, be decisive. This list is a tall order for anyone; it takes some practice.

How did Leadership Lincoln change me?
What will I do with this information? Looking at the broad sweep of my county and seeing its needs made me want to do something to help, however small. Our class planned to support the Fall 2014 Project Homeless Connect, so I have volunteered. This class inspires its students to commit an act of public service. And maybe, to do it again and again.

How does my experience with Lincoln Leadership serve the library?
-Guin Library gained exposure in this county; twenty-seven classmates now know more about it and what it can offer them. They will take that information back to their agencies and workplaces.
-Guin Library will host a Leadership Lincoln class on site next spring.
-OSU Libraries & Press will collaborate with the community college on a 3-d printer seminar.
-Class networking brought new patrons to Guin Library from our own neighborhood; we were able to supply resources about tsunami preparedness to the nearby motorhome park.
-I am better at referrals now; I can point patrons to local groups and agencies.
I was reaffirmed in the belief that everyone has something to contribute, and that acts of public service accumulate into worthwhile change.

I am grateful that OSU Libraries and Press supported my attendance; I want to say thank you and to say that I genuinely looked forward to each monthly class. I believe attending and working with the Leadership Lincoln group reflected the Library’s core values; it put into action the collaboration, service, civililty and diversity we uphold.