Fresh Shelving Ideas for Spring
Are you tired of the way that your library has always shelved its books? Are you eager to shake things up as the new librarian fresh out of school? Is […]
Institutional Failure and the Undue Burden on Libraries
If you follow the blog, you’ll know I have thoughts about vocational awe. And, as one would expect, Fobazi Ettarh’s concept of vocational awe is playing a large role in […]
A Brief Guide for COVID-19
I’m overwhelmed. I feel sure I’m not the only one. Until this month, a global pandemic is something I only thought of in terms of a distant, sepia-toned past or […]
Work/Life Balance, Mental Health, and Rest for LIS Professionals and Students
These topics of mental health, burnout, work/life balance, and otherwise surviving library school and the profession have been frequent discussions this year. They keep coming up on the blog; Jane […]
Staying Busy During Coronavirus
Coronavirus has caused us to make plenty of changes, from library closures to cancelled events and a shift from residential courses to an online environment. Here are some ways to […]
Why Weren't We Talking About This Back in January?
So, originally, I had planned to talk about how I have observed an observable lack of agency among some of my peers from my days as an undergraduate student to […]
Serving the Public When the Building’s Closed
This past Friday, I was leading a session on Empathy-Driven Customer Service with approximately 20 public library staff members in my county. It had been an interesting day already: I […]
Precarious Labor, Student Workers, and Coronavirus
I’m taking a break from my series “To my fellow LIS Black, Indigenous, and People of Color” to talk about the impact coronavirus has had on the LIS field/students. I’m in Seattle, the U.S. epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. I live near the Life Care Center of Kirkland, where the first U.S. death occurred and now where over 25 people have died. All Washington state K-12 schools have been cancelled for at least six weeks and the University of Washington, along with other higher education institutions, moved online. Museums and public libraries have closed to the public, and buses and the streets of Seattle are empty. There’s no longer traffic at rush hour as many people now work from home. But what are the impacts on student library workers, grant-funded workers, or LIS students working on capstones, practicums, or internships?
Facing Coronavirus as an Information Professional – Implications, Misconceptions, Degradations
If you have ever engaged with a piece of entertainment set during any historical period involving severe social events such as war or sickness, complete with emotionally charged scenes of tragedy […]
Hacking your assignments with business mantras
I asked some of my classmates for suggestions about what to write about this month so here’s a shout out to my friend Olivia S. at the University of Alberta […]
Reflections on Teaching and Learning
I’ll never forget the instructor who gave me a generous week-long extension so I could travel home for a funeral with significantly less stress. I’ll never forget the professor who […]
Other Duties As Assigned
This week, I have been spending a lot of time thinking about all of the many things I do as a library supervisor that are not written into my job […]
5 Things to Know When Taking a Librarian Job Abroad
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Celia Emmelhainz. Originally published on May 2, 2014 When you’re worn out by your studies and dreaming of your future post-MLIS life, […]
Stop Saying We’re Not Qualified
In my program at the University of Illinois, there’s a heavy emphasis on preparing for the library job market. At first, this was welcome and was a major reason why […]
Vocational Awe and Academic Service
Recently in one of my classes, we read the article “Vocational Awe and Librarianship: The Lies We Tell Ourselves” by Fobazi Ettarh. The themes brought up in the article and […]
Libraries Should Take Sides: Breaking Down the Neutrality Myth
This month, the Vanderbilt University Library began an advertising campaign which features a sign that reads, “Libraries don’t take sides.” It’s bright yellow with black block text floating on the […]
Black History for Libraries
Black history is American history, and American libraries are no different. W.E.B. DuBois started Negro History Week in 1925. He hoped to “raise awareness of African American’s contributions to civilization”. […]
#DignidadLiteraria
#DignidadLiteraria is new to the LIS field, but it has already created interesting discussions about publishing, who is represented in library collections, and who gets to speak on behalf of […]
How to Dress for the LIS Career You Want
As I am sure any graduate student can attest to, planning for your career after graduation can be a little daunting. This especially is true for how to dress […]
Avoid the Discussion Board Trap
What I’m about to say may not work for every program, professor, or class, but it’s a piece of advice I wish I had heard before I started my online […]
To my fellow LIS Black, Indigenous, and People of Color [Series]: Emotional Labor
Another quarter, another white LIS student making me question whether I really want to be in this field. It’s often a comment left on a class discussion board, on a […]
Courses, Paraprofessionals, and Information Organizations, Oh My: When an MLIS Starts Coming Together
During the second to last semester of my MLIS program, I can say with some amount of certainty that, however many courses one takes, there is no guarantee that any […]
No one can give 100% effort 100% of the time and that’s okay!
In Canada, we have a regular mental health event sponsored by Bell Canada. It’s called Bell Let’s Talk Day and this year it was on Wednesday, January 29th; which falls […]
Student Librarian Road Trip
Photo by Lisa Ladd Salazar-Ajo Library
What’s the Matter with Missouri?
I am angry. Quite angry. It is unusual for me to feel strong emotions, especially anger. But, apparently, politicians in my adopted home state of Missouri can get my blood […]
How to Pick the Right Library School for You
Do you want to go to library school, but don’t know how to find the best one for you? This list of factors to consider will guide you through the […]
Lessons Learned from My First Semester
“Tips for library school.” “What to expect in your first semester of grad school.” “What is library school like?” Do any of those search phrases sound familiar? If so, you […]
I Don’t Love My Job: Millennial Burnout and the Devaluation of Library Labor
There’s a sign in the cafe attached to the library I work at. It reads, “The UC is making us sick.” I work at the University of California, Santa Cruz […]
The First Step in Preparing for a LIS Education
In a supportive group of professionals that brainstorm together, a potential student recently asked what subject is best to major in prior to pursuing an MLIS. I’m not an expert […]
New Semester Goals
I don’t know about anyone else, but creating New Year’s Resolutions has always been nerve-wracking for me. Personally, it’s daunting to plan something regularly over the course of 366 days […]
Ten Tips for Time Management: Surviving Library School and Life
The new year is here, and with that, a new semester has begun. However, many of us have jobs, relationships, hobbies, and various other obligations in addition to our academic […]
Climate Change and Libraries
As the decade begins, one of the many things to worry about stands out – the warming of our planet and how little time we have to mitigate further heating […]
Microaggressions in Library and Information Science
“You speak excellent English.” “I don’t consider you as Mexican/Black/any other racial minority.” “Where are you really from?” Microaggressions are a reality for many minorities as we go about our […]
Why We Should Talk About Media and Information Literacy
Roughly six and a half years ago, I was introduced to the concept of media and information literacy through a Mass Media and Society course I took as an undergraduate […]
You Can’t Learn Everything in Grad School
All things must come to an end. Although I still have one year left in my degree, I’ve already planned out the rest of the courses I will take and […]
To my fellow LIS Black, Indigenous, and People of Color [Series]: Mentorship
Mentorship – in any form – can be an effective way for LIS students of color to learn more about the field. We learn a lot outside the classroom through jobs, internships, and volunteer experiences, and mentorship is another aspect that can help increase a student’s knowledge. Yet besides learning about the academic hiring process, dealing with negative workplace environments, or where to find job postings, mentorship of LIS students of color by mentors of color can help us see ourselves in the field, learn how to navigate white spaces, and how to advocate for ourselves.
Welcome our New Writers!
Drum roll please! Here they are: HLS’s newest contributors. We can’t wait to hear how they will “hack” library school! Jane Behre Jane Behre is an MLIS student at the […]
The Anatomy of Compromise – Late Stage MLIS Musings
This week marks the beginning of my new library assistant position at an academic library and, in essence, my first legitimate librarian job. On the plus side, this will not […]
Thinking ahead: The next semester, the next year…and then what?
2020 has just started: a new month, a new year, and a new decade. The world is a crazy place right now; so I know that long-term planning might seem […]
Mindfulness
Whether you’re at the very beginning, middle, or nearing the end of your career as a graduate student, library school can be overwhelming. In this often liminal space, the lines […]
One more year to go: a reflection
This week marks the beginning of my final year of graduate school. If all goes well, I will graduate in December and walk the following May. So far, it has […]
The Murky Middle
Much digital ink has been spilled, both on this site and others, about the process of selecting a graduate program in library & information science and starting such a graduate […]
Controversy in the Library
When I was in the fourth grade, I won the first book of the Cranberry Cousins series in a spelling bee. The series is about two cousins with clashing personalities […]
Defending Your Library Degree
Those who are interested in this career path, have started on this career path, or are far into this career path already are familiar with some of the top responses to […]
Reminders for the New Year
The end of the year is almost always a time for reflection, to look at the past and apply lessons learned to the future. For some reason, one past experience […]
