One of my areas of expertise is user-centered design. A main tenet of this systematic way of thinking is accepting that every user has different preferences, information needs, and ways of doing things. Although this can present challenges, the great news is that the digital and information age has created new opportunities to respond to … Continue reading Same Mission, New Opportunities
“Settlement, Slavery, and Empire, 1624–1832” is the first of three modules and will be published this year. “Colonial Government and Abolition, 1833–1849” and “Economic Change and Indentured Labor, 1850–1870” are forthcoming over the next two years. “This digital initiative will allow users to explore and research the economic and social conditions across the islands and … Continue reading Deciphering Colonial History
Reading Plus is a comprehensive online program that provides students in grades 3–12 with tools to enhance their reading skills. The program includes online adaptive assessments that offer a full diagnostic profile of each student’s ability. Kerry Mescallado, managing editor at Reading Plus, said the program increases vocabulary as well as interest in and motivation … Continue reading Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Why Content Matters
“We’re surrounded by so many wonderful people who care about our kids and our community,” says Jennifer Sutton, teacher librarian at Lake Park High School in Roselle, Illinois. Sutton organized LPC-2 with Mariela Siegert, former librarian at Westfield Middle in Bloomingdale and Sia Paganis, former librarian at Spring Woods Middle in Hanover Park. (Siegert is … Continue reading Partnering for Success in the School Library
Last year saw unprecedented increases in digital lending. Digital collections aren’t new to libraries, but coronavirus precautions have led many library users to try out ebooks, digital audiobooks, and other online offerings for the first time. Shannon Lichty, vice president of partner services for OverDrive, moderated a panel of academic, public, and school librarians in … Continue reading Meeting Digital Challenges
Given concerns about entering library buildings, interacting face to face, and handling physical materials, libraries have found ways to meet changing community needs. With varying levels of success, many have tried some form of curbside pickup, in which physical materials are reserved and retrieved from the library parking lot or drive-through, or a table outside … Continue reading Defining and Defying the “New Normal”
Her longstanding commitment to equal rights and making LGBTQ material more available to educators, students, and researchers led to Johnston herself becoming part of an archive a few years ago. She shared experiences about her involvement with the Rainbow Round Table with members of the ALA Emerging Leaders Program for their oral history of the … Continue reading Promoting LGBTQ Resources
Library workers and patrons who have experienced job loss can lean on special enrollment coverage options as part of the ACA, check their eligibility for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and familiarize themselves with reliable health resources. Libraries can support their communities with promotional efforts to increase awareness of health insurance coverage … Continue reading Health Tools for Library Workers, Patrons Facing Job Loss
Through the Public Library Association’s (PLA) second annual Libraries Connecting You to Coverage initiative, libraries can access a suite of turnkey resources to start or increase efforts to educate and build awareness of health insurance coverage options, especially with the evolving workforce landscape. With the outbreak of COVID-19, many patrons may experience job cuts and … Continue reading Libraries’ Next “Act” in Health During COVID-19
In this special bonus episode of the Dewey Decibel podcast, sponsored by Gale, a Cengage Company, American Libraries Associate Editor Sallyann Price speaks with a librarian doing just that. Kimberly M. Gay, head of reference and information services and academic reference and instruction librarian at Prairie View (Tex.) A&M University, shares how she uses the Women’s … Continue reading Dewey Decibel Podcast: Exploring Gale’s Women’s Studies Archive
The “book” was available for one day only during a Human Library event at Torreyson Library on the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) campus in Conway. The forum offered “readers” the chance to check out more than two dozen flesh-and-blood human beings, who served as books, to tell their stories about living with the challenge … Continue reading Human Libraries: Turning the Page on Discrimination
In this multipart series, American Libraries presents case studies and interviews with thought leaders looking at research trends in academic libraries. We’ll be covering the topics of social justice, information literacy, digital archives, faculty outreach, and new technology. This is the sixth story in the series. It’s been more than two years since the university chose … Continue reading A Monumental Debate: Addressing Controversial Namesakes
