Audrey Barbakoff and Noah Lenstra

Working Hand in Hand

March 1, 2024

Community-led planning is a method for making decisions that puts power in the hands of the community rather than the library. They have real responsibility, authority to make decisions, and accountability for the outcomes. Librarians serve as conveners and facilitators, providing access to library resources and support. The library cannot and should not try to … Continue reading Working Hand in Hand


Cathryn M. Copper

Purpose and Productivity

January 2, 2024

First, leaders should create a clear sense of purpose for their teams. For example, if you have decided that you’d like to increase risk-taking and experimentation in your organization, that should filter down through everything you do. You must realize the impact you can have on an organization and remember that your actions motivate and … Continue reading Purpose and Productivity


Dispatches by Ann Medialle

Cultivating Creativity

November 1, 2023

Acts of imagination include both play and creative endeavors. While play may appear to be merely a pleasurable activity, it serves an important role in human development. Creative endeavors, such as projects or everyday forms of problem-solving, give purpose and meaning to human existence. While libraries can be places for quiet contemplation and intense concentration, … Continue reading Cultivating Creativity


Care and Consideration

September 1, 2023

Physical space. All library staffers should have an ergonomic work station. If you have access to an external ergonomics evaluation, arrange for your library to have one. Be prepared to purchase the equipment and furnishings necessary to meet the resulting recommendations. Ideally, this would come from the library budget, but you may need to consider … Continue reading Care and Consideration


A picture of Jackie Kruzie smiling.

Listen and Learn

June 1, 2023

An estimated 4 million Americans cannot communicate using speech and rely on other forms of communication like AAC. These modalities may include gestures, sounds, written communication, pictures, photographs, body language, sign language, communication boards, and speech-generating technology devices. For my daughter, we chose to purchase a small tablet and designate it as her talker, a … Continue reading Listen and Learn


Gabrielle Griffis

Fix It Yourself

May 1, 2023

Sustainable living involves making changes in your everyday life to ensure that you leave the planet a better place after you’re gone. These changes can include recycling and reducing waste, of course, but also repairing rather than replacing. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain shortages, interest in sustainability and self-reliance topics … Continue reading Fix It Yourself


A Measured Method

March 1, 2023

First, bear in mind that service models will depend on existing structures at your institution, but they are also fluid and can evolve. Your organization will have to consider both immediate and long-term needs. Second, be aware that bibliometrics services often take a long time to establish and even longer to become integrated into the … Continue reading A Measured Method


Dispatches - Kate Hall and Kathy Parker

Covering Your Bases

January 3, 2023

Public liability insurance. This covers the building and grounds, the contents of the building, library vehicles, and any accidents involving patrons on library property. It’s important to have adequate coverage in the event of a major claim. It’s also important that a library not be under- or overinsured. If underinsured, the library will have to … Continue reading Covering Your Bases


Mending Broken Links

Mending Broken Links

November 1, 2022

Like most labor performed in technical services, the work required to maintain e-resources and resolve access issues is largely veiled. We hope that highlighting the breadth and depth of e-resource access issues will help nontechnical services staffers better understand them. We also hope library administrators will reconsider what support—especially staffing—needs to be allocated to maintaining … Continue reading Mending Broken Links


Dispatches - Yvonne Mery

Busting Brain Myths

September 1, 2022

Focus on andragogy when teaching adult students. Pedagogy centers on how children learn, while andragogy is about how adults learn. Activating our adult students’ prior knowledge allows them to reflect on what they may already know about a topic and build on that with new information. Allow adult students to choose different paths and skills … Continue reading Busting Brain Myths


June Dispatches by Frank Donnelly

Crunching the Numbers

June 1, 2022

Total population counts for the states and the nation were released in March 2021 and launched the apportionment process to redistribute seats in Congress. Public redistricting files followed, released in August 2021. This dataset consists of six tables that include population by race, ethnicity, age above 18, group quarters (the population living in college dorms, … Continue reading Crunching the Numbers


Taming the Wild Web

May 2, 2022

Whether or not a library wants a specific element on its site may be irrelevant; the web design and user experience fields are now based on the science of usability, not subjective judgments. Back in the early days of the web, a fair amount of design work happened in a vacuum, lacking real guidelines and … Continue reading Taming the Wild Web