What began in a library science course as a collection development project serendipitously transformed into varied learning experiences for students across disciplines and program levels. This article shares the journey of how a singular lesson idea blossomed into an unintentional, multidisciplinary project that led to unexpected learning outcomes…

We live in a time of increasing ideological conflict, when threats to global peace--including climate change, terrorism, cyberattacks, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and poverty--increasingly impact the daily lives of many. This situation necessitates a turn to peace education, which encourages the development of values,…

School librarians often find themselves betwixt two different worlds that come with quite varied expectations. They are seen as the arbiters of traditional learning and academia, with library spaces providing books and quiet places for self-enrichment and study. They are also often given the responsibility of being the building's technology…

Catalyst: Another newspaper article ("Ranks of School Librarians Dwindle in HISD, Statewide" in the October 7, 2013, "Houston Chronicle") detailing another decision by a Houston Independent School District (HISD) campus principal to eliminate the librarian (Mellon 2013). In response to this article, Dorcas Hand, an experienced…

This installment of "Reports from the Field" demonstrates how the building of community-based digital archives in academic libraries can support campus diversity initiatives and spur greater engagement with community concerns. As college campuses rapidly become more diverse along racial and ethnic lines, social issues concerning race and…

In light of recent calls for decolonial approaches to Indigenous language learning, documentation, and reclamation, we describe the creation of a digital archive initiated and sustained by community collaboration. We work with members of the three federally recognized Cherokee tribes to translate and analyze Cherokee texts. Cherokee speakers…

Deaf education in the United States began in 1817 with the bilingual co-leadership of Laurent Clerc and Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet. In 2018, Marianne Belsky and Nicole Sutliffe, a bilingual, deaf/hearing team, were officially appointed as co-leaders of the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center. In this article, Belsky and Sutliffe share the…

This publication helps volunteers identify organizations that can provide books and other educational resources to their communities. It provides contact information and guidance on how volunteers and their community partners can submit requests and receive donations from the organizations listed, and it emphasizes the importance of sustainability…

With the Poetry Center at San Francisco State University, the author has begun to build an open-access digital repository for poetry chapbooks. The repository is essentially a chapbook exchange: a place for poets to share their current works. Users are invited to share their chapbooks via upload and as such gain access to the chapbook repository.…

Collection development librarians have long struggled to meet user demands for new titles. Too often, required resources are not purchased, whereas some purchased resources do not circulate. E-books selected through patron-driven plans are a solution but present new challenges for both selectors and catalogers. Radical changes to traditional…

Community assessment is the concept of using wider professional communities to provide authentic assessment to students. It means using the knowledge available in one's immediate surroundings and through Web 2.0 tools to enrich instructional processes. It means using retirees, experts, and volunteers from professional organizations and…

Technology may not be a magic wand, but innovative technology programming can genuinely help children become adept at navigating our increasingly wired world while also helping them develop deductive reasoning, math, and other vital literacy skills. One of the simplest and most powerful tools for technology-based public library programming is…

This book is for community leaders, librarians, library committees, volunteers, aid workers and others who are interested in the practical aspect of starting and maintaining a successful library. Throughout the developing world, countless dedicated people respond to the pressing need for information in their communities by helping to start a…

This paper details community engagement activity of an academic library coordinated within a broader university strategic plan. The Anderson Library at Indiana University Northwest (IU-Northwest) supports a service called the Northwest Indiana Center for Data and Analysis. Created in 1996 with funding made available from the Indiana University…

In this article, the author shares her experience in assisting seniors and two teachers at Kalamazoo (Michigan) Central High School when they joined a national contest to have the President of the United States deliver the commencement address to the class of 2010. One of the author's favorite memories surrounds the distribution of commencement…