Meeting Researchers Where They Are: A #UserDriven Manifesto

25 June 2015 | RBMS 2015 | Oakland, CA

Thanks

The Bancroft Library

#UserDriven

Speakers

Leah Richardson, GWU Sarah M. Horowitz, Haverford

Elizabeth Call, Columbia/Burke

Robin M. Katz, moderator

#UserDriven

Speakers

Leah Richardson @rareleah Sarah M. Horowitz @bibliowitz

Elizabeth Call @spywocket

Robin M. Katz @robinmkatz

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto We urge special collections librarians and archivists to prioritize users across all functions, including collection development, description, and, of course, public services.

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto While we recognize that truly putting users at the center of our work may conflict with other priorities, we will do our best to investigate what users do and do not care about, and to learn what is and is not working for them.

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto   We know that assessment is key to both internal evaluation and outward-facing advocacy, and we will be careful about shaping user expectations and influencing how they perceive of their needs.

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto Why create a user-driven culture? Because it is inherent to our mission, and because it is vital to our survival. Even with limited resources (namely, time and money), it is imperative that we write related activities into budgets and job descriptions.

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto We urge special collections librarians and archivists to prioritize users across all functions, including collection development, description, and, of course, public services.   While we recognize that truly putting users at the center of our work may conflict with other priorities, we will do our best to investigate what users do and do not care about, and to learn what is and is not working for them.   We know that assessment is key to both internal evaluation and outward-facing advocacy, and we will be careful about shaping user expectations and influencing how they perceive of their needs. Why create a user-driven culture? Because it is inherent to our mission, and because it is vital to our survival. Even with limited resources (namely, time and money), it is imperative that we write related activities into budgets and job descriptions.

#UserDriven

Agenda

Speakers 15 min each

Interactive Component 30 min

Small Group Activity Discussion / Q&A

#UserDriven

Leah Richardson Public Services and Outreach Archivist George Washington University leahr@gwu.edu

#USERDRIVEN

READING ROOM ASSESSMENT @ UCHICAGO

#USERDRIVEN

#USERDRIVEN

SURVEY RESPONSES

#USERDRIVEN

HOW CAN WE ASK BETTER QUESTIONS?

#USERDRIVEN

DIFFERENT APPROACHES

#USERDRIVEN

GWU STUDENT ASSESSMENT: REFLECTIVE ESSAYS Issues and questions raised by the

students: ! Copyright ! Funding: issues faced by libraries ! Digitization: robots and humans ! Humans are needed ! Digitization impacts the ideas and work in the digital humanities

#USERDRIVEN

GIVE THEM WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW THEY WANT

MEETING RESEARCHERS IN THE CLASSROOM: FACULTY OUTREACH Sarah M. Horowitz

Haverford College

CAPITALIZING ON INTEREST: GOALS

! Find out what faculty most wanted from special collections

!  Increase the number of classes !  Incorporate faculty into other things going on in

the library/special collections ! Counter the “I don’t know what we have”

problem

STRATEGIES

! Capitalizing on library and campus culture !  Indicate how you can help them ! Different ways of talking about the collections

ASSESSMENT AS OUTREACH

!  “[Archives] are opportunities to consider the meaning of such places in the first place--how histories are constructed, and by whom; what gets included in the archive, what gets left out, and what this teaches us about power, privilege, and identity; how material objects and ephemera produce meaning; what it means to touch the past in the present.  To be able to bring students into direct contact with archival materials it to bring them into a larger conversation about the politics of knowledge.”

!  “By analyzing materials in Special Collections, students would learn to think critically about how the encounter with an object of study—the way in which its historical or intellectual value is framed, in part through the archiving process—shapes our understanding of it. I think students were fascinated by the materials, and excited to consider how encountering (for example) a photograph as an object (rather than simply as a visual representation) transforms the kind of interpretive work we can do with it.”

!  “Students in both of my classes have reported that these sessions were some of their favorite so far this semester; that they are still mulling over the materials we encountered and the questions we asked about them; and that they hope to work with some of these materials for their final projects. My sense is that they also feel less intimidated by the idea of working in Special Collections, and thus more likely to work with these materials in the future.”

STUDENT CURATED EXHIBITS

! Team includes a faculty advisor and librarians

! Almost all our exhibits follow this model

EVENTS AND PROGRAMMING

! Student presentations as part of our “Dig Into the Archives” series

! An assignment based on their final paper

KEEPING FACULTY INFORMED

! Know that we are being responsive ! New materials of interest

!  Also consult about purchases

! New subject guides

THANK YOU!

! Contact: shorowitz@haverford.edu

To#Every#Book#Its#Reader:##Meeting#Researchers#Outside#of#the#Classroom#and#the#Reading#

Room###

Elizabeth#Call#Public#Services#Librarian#Burke#Library#at#Union#Theological#Seminary#Columbia#University#Libraries#elizabeth.call@columbia.edu#

#UserDriven#

From#2010L2014,#only#2#out#of#1,475#researchers#to#the#archives#were#from#Union#Theological#Seminary#(UTS).#

“Special#Collections#cannot#survive#merely#

as#a#prestigious#ornament#to#the#university;#we#will#

need#to#articulate#the#centrality#of#our#collections.”##

–John#Overholt#

“Never#forget#that#justice#is#what#love#looks#like#in#public.”##

–Cornel#West#

StudentLCurated#Display#Cases#

Collection#Development#

bit.ly/Love_In_Action#

Educational#Tools#

Public#Programming#

Challenges#

Sustainability#Not#tied#to#a#course#or#money#

Not#all#components#worked#out#

Thank#you!##

Contact#me#if#you#have#any#questions:#

#Elizabeth#Call#

elizabeth.call@columbia.edu#

Small Group Activity

case study discussion

groups of 4 – 6 people

#UserDriven

A #UserDriven Manifesto We urge special collections librarians and archivists to prioritize users across all functions, including collection development, description, and, of course, public services.   While we recognize that truly putting users at the center of our work may conflict with other priorities, we will do our best to investigate what users do and do not care about, and to learn what is and is not working for them.   We know that assessment is key to both internal evaluation and outward-facing advocacy, and we will be careful about shaping user expectations and influencing how they perceive of their needs. Why create a user-driven culture? Because it is inherent to our mission, and because it is vital to our survival. Even with limited resources (namely, time and money), it is imperative that we write related activities into budgets and job descriptions.

#UserDriven

Meeting Researchers Where They Are: A #UserDriven Manifesto

25 June 2015 | RBMS 2015 | Oakland, CA