Webinar: Getting the Most Out of Your MSLIS Program

In November 2017, I gave a webinar on how to get the most out of your MSLIS program.  After the webinar, one MSLIS student, Allison Keough, listened to it and create a blog post with all of the resources, etc., I had cited.  So if you are in an MSLIS program or considering entering an MSLIS program, this one-hour webinar recording and companion blog post have good information for you!

Webinar Description: 

In our November [2017] webinar, join Professor of Practice Jill Hurst-Wahl for advice on how to make the most out of your time in an LIS program. This webinar is for both current and future LIS students at any university.

Congratulations, you are now in a Master’s of Library and Information Science program and working quickly towards becoming a professional librarian.  The time you are spending in your MSLIS/MLIS/MLS program will go by quickly. What do you need to be doing to ensure that you get the most from it? 

This webinar will give you actions to take to position yourself for success in your program and afterwards as an LIS professional.  By the end of the webinar, you will have a series of tried and true steps on which to embark.

JKWD Podcast Episode 85: Talking libraries with Jill Hurst-Wahl

Kelvin Ringold and Josh Shear interviewed me on the topic of libraries for their weekly podcast named "JKWD" (Josh and Kelvin World Domination).  We talked mostly about public libraries and the episode is choked full of information that would be of interest to library staff and library advocates.  In addition to the audio, Kelvin and Josh put links on the episode's web page to information mentioned in the podcast.  You can listen to the 68-minute episode on the JKWD web site or through iTunes, Spreaker, SoundCloud, and other places where podcasts are served.  I'm also embedding it below from Stitcher.

Kelvin and Josh, thanks for the conversation!

Libraries as a Third Place

Vancouver (BC) Public Library

Two weeks ago, I was asked to give a 10-minute presentation on "libraries as a third place" and was given a short amount of time to figure out what to say.  Having done it, I don't want my notes to go to waste, so I'm sharing them with you. (And I'm translating my bullet points into longer text.)

Everyone has a place besides home and work that is a social place.  It could be a coffee shop or some other physical place.  In 2018, that social place is likely to be online and likely to be Facebook.

We want libraries to the place people see as their third place, but what stops them?  What are the challenges?

• Size - Let's be honest, if everyone in a library's service area came to the library, they all would not fit in the building.
• Availability - Public library buildings es aren't available at all hours, which means that people can't use them whenever they want.
• Limited online presence - While libraries do have an online presence, it is not a presence that allows for a truly social space for library users.  In other words, that library online space is not like Facebook.
• Not a social space - Some libraries are not built to house social activities or loud discussions.  And some staff and library users are not tolerant of social activities in a library.
• Coolness - The library may not a cool hangout spot for everyone.
• Acceptance - While I might accept the library as my third place, do my friends?

The overarching challenge is that the library needs to be a place where each person values and accepts the other people in the space.  Those people who need to be accepted include:

• Immigrants and refugees
• Children and teens (who tend to be noisy)
• Those who lack stable housing
• People who aren't interested in "learning"
• People who prefer media that is not books

To be that place where each person is valued and accepted, library staff need to:

• Be more welcoming
• Create and facilitate space that accommodates and is safe for everyone - both physically and virtually.

That will require:

• Training - This could include listening skills, dealing with difficult people, understanding social service resources, and more. 
• Experimentation - Staff need to be willing and able to experiment on activities that will help the library become a third place. 
• Long-term efforts - The third place efforts can't be short term, but rather the library and its staff need to continue these efforts for the long-term.

It will mean learning from coffee shops, homeless shelters, and Facebook.  And recognizing that a library may not be a third place for everyone.  It may also require working with IMLS on a national digital platform for libraries to be virtual third places.

---

Oct. 2, 2019: The article I linked to above on being a third place still exists (What Is a Third Place and Why Do You Need One?). However, the original author has updated it on a different website (Why You Need a Third Place (And How to Find One)).

Podcast: The cost of a dream

Memorial to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks (Dallas)

The Marketplace Morning Report did a brief story on the fact that Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech is still protected by copyright.  The story is within the first two minutes of the seven-minute episode.

Years ago, I used to sleep with the radio on.  I have a fond memory of waking up early in the morning on his birthday in 1982 and hearing the entire "I Have a Dream" speech on the radio. Yes, all of it.  That was back when the family had not wrestled control of the copyright status and stopped it from being shared openly.  What a joy it was to hear the entire speech in his voice! I wish everyone now could have that same joy and the same experience of hearing the speech on the radio, TV, Facebook, etc. 

At this moment, that is my dream! Let's hope that the family (or whomever now controls its use) will make it so soon.

Recorded Webinar: Roam Your Community and Meet Them on Their Turf

On Wednesday (Jan. 10), I gave a webinar for the Southwest Florida Library Network (SWFLN) entitled " Roam Your Community and Meet Them on Their Turf."  SWFLN makes their webinars available through YouTube, so this one is now available for you to view, if the topic is of interest to you.

Webinar Description: We’ve heard the refrains of eliminating the reference desk, embedded librarians, and the like. We also hear of the need to get out into our communities. Yet meeting our community members where they are – not where we are – is still a challenge. If we are free to move about our communities, and deliver services outside of the library, what might that look like? What innovative or imaginative twist can we use, which will spark the community’s attention and interaction?

Learning Objectives: After this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Explain the value of roaming the community
• Propose activities which move the library out into it community
• Support the activities of other staff, who want to move beyond the physical walls of the library

SWFLN normally has a sign language interpreter during a webinar, but one was not available on Wednesday.  However, this webinar is captioned.

DMCA and Google search results

This is not new, but worth noting because we don't always pay attention to what's on a page.  

I ran a search in Google and at the bottom of the page of search results was this:

In response to a complaint we received under the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act, we have removed 2 result(s) from this page. If you wish, you may read the DMCA complaint that caused the removal(s) at LumenDatabase.org. 

Of course, you don't know exactly what was removed, whether the material truly was infringing, or if the material added anything to the results which you would not find elsewhere.  You can only hope that what was removed wasn't important to the research you were doing.

But then...you'll never know if it was important or not!  

We live in a time when threatening court action is much more common.  It has a chilling effect on many things, including the information available to us.  Let's hope that we can find ways of making (and keeping) more information available, not less. 

Podcast: US Libraries Faced Up to Challenges in 2017

Andrew Albanese

Christopher Kenneally

At the end of 2017, Christopher Kenneally and Andrew Albanese discussed the ‘top ten’ stories of the year for US libraries and librarians ahead of the list being published in Publishers Weekly. According to Albanese:

In 2017, the library community successfully beat back a Trump Administration proposal to eliminate all federal library funding – at least for now. As the American Library Association told me over the summer, the one thing Trump has done for members of the library community is to focus them.

Albanese also gave a preview of some activities which might occur in 2018.  The podcast is under 16 minutes in length, so easy to listen to on your morning walk or during a coffee break.

By the way, besides listening to Beyond the Book on its web site, the podcast can be listen to through iTunes and other podcast services.

Next Steps for a Beyond Horizons (2.0) Community

In December 2017, the world learned that the organization known as the New Media Consortium (NMC) was proceeding through chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings.  NMC was known for its Horizon Project, which created well-received reports on education technology (edtech).  After the shock of the news, the NMC community has begun to regroup.  Lisa Gustinelli, Jonathan Nalder, and Paul Signorelli collaboratively wrote and published a piece about the loss of NMC and the future of the NMC community.  As a teaser, I'm publishing part of the article below.  Please go to Paul's blog to read it in its entirety, if you are interested in how a technology community keeps going in the face of loss. 

Those of us who were part of the NMC (New Media Consortium) global family, tribe, and community of learning for many years were stunned, a couple of weeks ago, by the sudden, completely unexpected news that our NMC friends/staff/colleagues had been suddenly laid off during the holiday season and, as the official (unsigned) statement distributed by former Board President Gardner Campbell via email noted on December 18, 2017, the “NMC will be promptly commencing a chapter 7 bankruptcy case. A trustee will be appointed by the court to wind down NMC’s financial affairs, liquidate its assets and distribute any net proceeds to creditors…” Those who loved the ed-tech reports issued through NMC’s Horizon Project, which documented ed tech projects, developments, trends, and challenges across both formal and informal learning sectors, are concerned that a project with more than 16 years of insights and impact worldwide could die along with the NMC.

 Again, you can read the complete post on the Building Creative Bridges blog. And here is a link to the 2017 Horizon Report.

Article: Copyright in 2018

The December issue of Information Today contained an article by Corilee Christou entitled "Copyright in 2018."  Even if you feel you have kept up on U.S. copyright law, this article is worth reading.  Christou covers:

• Who Will Appoint the Register of Copyrights? 
• Will the CASE Act Pass? 
• What Will Change With Fair Use? 
• What Will This Congress Accomplish? 
• What’s Up With Trade Agreements? 
• More Predictions 

 As Christou notes, 2018 may be both welcome and unwelcome changes.  Start 2018 by knowing what those could be.

January-March 2018: Jill's Presentation and Travel Schedule

Coffee and Beignets

During the next three months, this is where my speaking and traveling schedule is taking me. As always, if you're in the same location as me, I hope you will say hello. If time permits, let's have a cup of coffee together!

• Jan. 10, 10:00-11:00 a.m. ET - Presenting "Roam Your Community and Meet Them on Their Turf " (webinar) for Southwest Florida Library Network (SWFLN).
  Description: We’ve heard the refrains of eliminating the reference desk, embedded librarians, and the like. We also hear of the need to get out into our communities. Yet meeting our community members where they are – not where we are – is still a challenge. If we are free to move about our communities, and deliver services outside of the library, what might that look like? What innovative or imaginative twist can we use, which will spark the community’s attention and interaction? 
• Jan. 31, 2:00-3:00 p.m. ET   - Presenting "Assuring Materials Can Be Used By Your Community" for the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS). 
  Description: Having materials in a library's collection is good; having those materials in the formats needed by the library's community is much better. The act of supplying content in the formats that community members require is critically important to meeting their information needs. This webinar will delve into ways of discerning the format needs of a community, including using the census and other data, along with existing reports, to discern the best way of provisioning material for the community.
• Feb. 7-9 - Attending the ALISE 2018 Annual Conference, Westminster, CO 
• Feb. 21, 10:00-11:00 a.m. ET - Presenting "Putting the Answer Up Front and Advocating for Libraries" (webinar) for Southwest Florida Library Network (SWFLN).
  Description: Since January (2017), more people are writing letters to their federal, state and local representatives. Many of these “letters” are constructed through web sites, which provide letter templates. Other “letters” are comments on sites like Countable or Facebook. While these methods of advocacy are good, it is better to craft your own message/letter which advocates your position using the information that is relevant to you.
• Feb. 28, 2:30-4:00 p.m. ET - Presenting "Understanding and Defending Copyright in Your Library: An Introduction - Part 1" (webinar) for ALA Editions.
  Series Description: Library staffs are often seen as defenders of copyright.  Indeed, copyright touches many things a library and its community do. This two-part copyright webinar will help you understand what copyright is (and isn’t) so you can defend how your library and users/patrons/community use print and digital materials.
  Session Description: The fact that the Office of Copyright exists within the Library of Congress conveys its importance to libraries and the information industry.  Yet we often ignore the details in the U.S. copyright law, because we perceive those details as being too complex.  One area where we show of lack of knowledge is with the public domain.  We are quick to say that something is in the public domain, but do we actually know how a work receives that designation? This session will place the basic rules of copyright law in ordinary terms, and put their usage into context. 
• Mar. 7, 2:30-4:00 p.m. ET - Presenting "Understanding and Defending Copyright in Your Library: An Introduction - Part 2" (webinar) for ALA Editions.
Series Description: Library staffs are often seen as defenders of copyright.  Indeed, copyright touches many things a library and its community do. This two-part copyright webinar will help you understand what copyright is (and isn’t) so you can defend how your library and users/patrons/community use print and digital materials. 
Session Description: Building upon part 1, this session will tackle two important areas to our libraries: Fair Use and ebooks.  Fair Use is a critical part of the U.S. copyright law, yet do you know that there is an actual test to determine if the use is fair?  As for ebooks and other digital materials, it is important to know where they do (and do not) intersect with U.S. copyright law.  Given that digital works are generally licensed and not sold, what should we be advocating for on behalf of our libraries and community members?
• Mar. 27, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. ET - Presenting "Copyright 101: Staying Legal"  (on-site workshop) for for Southwest Florida Library Network (SWFLN).
  Description: We are often quick to make decisions about the use of someone’s content, based on what we believe copyright law states. Unfortunately, most of what we know about copyright is hearsay or guesses, yet everything we do in a library is guided by copyright law. This workshop will provide a firm foundation in the fundamental rules of U.S. copyright law. It will help you stay legal and out of trouble with copyright owners, by helping you understand, explain and use the law in your library community.