Recently I read an article in Library Journal about a panel held at ALA Annual that encouraged the ALA to do more to promote diversity in the field. I’m certainly not the first blogger to discuss the uncomfortable racial demographics that exists in the information field and I will not […]
RSS Food — by-nc-sa license. See also: Edition 1, and Edition 2. As some of you may know, we were nominated for and won, one of the Salem Press Best Library Blogs awards this year. We are so proud of this honor, and excited to continue to be a resource of good […]
Note: like other posts in the Hack Your Program series, opinions expressed here are mine alone. I have grown so much and enjoyed myself thoroughly at SLIS, so the few items I offer as ‘areas for improvement’ should be viewed as constructive criticism and also understood through the lens of […]
I had actually planned on writing a post about informal networking this week. But then I was distracted. That distraction came in the form of an invite to Google’s new, Google+ platform. A great deal has already been written about the platform so I won’t get into the details of […]
Hi Hack Library Schoolers, We’ve gotten contacted by a few people who have questions about applying to library schools. We can’t really answer those questions for you, everyone’s application process will be different. What we can do is tell you how we approached our applications. In addition to reading this […]
Ahava Cohen has completed her first year in the advanced graduate certification LIS program at Beit Berl. Originally from NYC, she has been living in Israel for over 20 years. When not in school she serves as Information Officer in charge of portfolio companies for a private investment firm. Over […]
There’s been some vibrant and intense conversations concerning LIS ed in the last few weeks, one right here in on HLS. And in the spirit of HLS, in which LIS students feel empowered to take action and agency in their own education, I believe that student organizations are one of […]
Kim Mears is in her final year with the Master of Library and Information Science program at Valdosta State University. She currently lives in Augusta, Ga and works at the Greenblatt Library of Georgia Health Sciences University as a Medical Library Associate. With interests in open access and information literacy, […]
Hi Everyone – Just a quick short note here. We’re very excited to be a part of reshaping ALA, as you can probably tell from some of our recent posts. The first step is getting involved, which we will be kicking off this weekend at the annual conference. Annie, Lauren […]
This post is a shared effort between HLS editor Julia Skinner and Katie DeVries Hassman, Sam Bouwers, and Gwen Persons, who were part of the conference planning team for Unpacking the “Library”: Exploring Works in Progress Across the Field of LIS. Other planners included Melody Dworak, Christine Mastalio, and Julie […]
The debate over the current role MLIS programs can play in the library industry keeps popping up. For a recent example, check out Will Manley’s blog, Will Unwound, which asks some important questions: Are too many graduates being spit out into the shrinking job pool? Are graduate programs, in their […]
Lauren Bradley recently graduated from the Pratt School of Information & Library Science in Manhattan. She is a library assistant at the Leo Baeck Institute. She enjoys costume librarianship, database searching, and government documents. Follow her on Twitter @BibliosaurusRex A number of us Hack Library School readers and writers have […]
Polanka, Su, ed. No Shelf Required: E-Books in Libraries. American Library Association, 2011. I have to be up front with you guys: I don’t have a Kindle. I’m certainly not a luddite and I’ve spent most of my life around computers. I remember first getting dial-up AOL at my house […]
*Disclaimer: These are my personal opinions and are not representative of the student body, the University of South Carolina, or the School of Information and Library Science. I started in Fall 2010 as a full-time, out-of-state student. All criticism is meant to be constructive. When I tell people I am […]
Yesterday Salem Press announced the winners of their Library Blog awards. We had known that we were nominated, and to be honest it had kinda slipped our minds until Turner got an email yesterday telling him that we won the Newcomer Blog award! We have been frantically sending congratulatory emails […]
*note – I’ve deliberately decided to use the word ‘text’ herein because I truly believe this project must be absorbed and interacted with across its dual formats, printed book and web/digital presence. Hows that for meta? Cultural Studies, represent!! Lacon, Barthes, dying authors, and all that jazz. Let me be […]
LHRT is an awesome organization for students to join because it’s fun, vibrant, and a great way to explore libraries of the past and see how they intersect with issues faced by libraries today. Best of all, there are so many ways for students to get involved that include running for […]
Just a quick reminder for any of our readers who might be attending the Special Libraries Association conference in Philadelphia this coming week – Our friend and contributing writer Lauren Bradley has organized a get together for LIS students and n00brarians. See the details below and RSVP to the Facebook […]
UPDATE: John Chrastka, Director of Membership Development at ALA, commented and alerted us to The Conference Tracker from American Libraries Magazine. This is another great way to track the conference, and pulls in a lot of the avenues Nicole mentioned in her post. Thanks John and AmLib Magazine! * […]
ALA is the largest library conference in the nation. It brings together different librarians from across the country, all in one place. It gives everyone the opportunity to meet new people and network. This is pretty fantastic if you think about it, but for a newbie student or librarian who […]
Hello, newly minted and soon-to-be librarians! I’m visiting today from Librarian Wardrobe to give you some ideas on how to dress like a successful librarian without having to spend the large amounts of money that librarians tend to make (joke, of course). I was in your shoes recently, wondering how […]
This post needs no introduction. Written by April Martin – you’ve also seen her here talking information literacy. Find her at ALA and get a high-five (tell her Heidi sent you!) So, you’re going to ALA in New Orleans. Although I am sure that all of you will be very […]
Editors Note: Welcome to Hack ALA Week! We’ve been planning this for quite some time now, and although we’re titling this a “Week” you can bet your bottom dollar we’ll continue writing about ALA generally beyond this week. As the preeminent professional organization in our profession, whose mandates and bylaws […]
Where are they now? [And, yes, this is a deliberate ploy to grab some SEO from X-Men. Ain’t nothing wrong with a little marketing genius, right? 😉 ] Micah Vandegrift is working as a part-time Project Manager on a Scholarly Communications Task Force at his alma mater, Florida State University. […]
The above image is the philosophy of information science of the UT iSchool, one that manifests in its approach to curriculum and preparing students to enter the workforce. I began the program in the fall of 2010 and expect to graduate May of 2012. My decision to attend the UT […]
*Disclaimer: These are my personal opinions and are not representative of the student body. I started in Fall 2009 as a full-time student and graduated this past semester. I hope the below, and the previous posts in the series, will provide a means of discussion and collaboration. I did not […]
Disclaimer: This is a post of my individual perspective on my MLIS program and not representative of the student body or faculty of ESU. I started the program in the fall of 2009 and will finish in December of 2011. Before I get into the nitty-gritty details of my experience […]
You may remember my post asking for help to Save the UW iSchool. Well, the all clear has sounded and the iSchool is safe for another year. Here’s my hack into the program itself rather than the politics that put it into jeopardy. As always, these are my views and […]
Like the other Hackers, this post reflects my perspective, and mine alone, on the UCLA Department of Information Studies, as experienced in my two years as an MLIS student. I am enrolled in the Library Studies track, with a focus on public libraries and a specialization in youth services; I […]
*Disclaimer: These are my personal opinions and are not representative of the student body. I started in Fall 2010 as a full-time, out-of-state student. All criticism is meant to be constructive. I go to the School of Library and Information Science at Indiana University-Indianapolis (a.k.a. IUPUI). It’s a nice campus […]
UA School of Library and Information Studies – Tuscaloosa, AL (Pictured above: Gorgas Library – UA SLIS is located on the 5th floor) Disclaimer: I attended the on-campus UA SLIS program from January 2009-May 2011 as a full time student. These opinions are mine, with the exception of anonymous sentiments […]
Summertime! After a few weeks of sparse updates, the HackLibSchool team is kicking it back into gear. We first wanted to take the time to thank our readers for all the great conversations we have had over the past several months. It is encouraging that our writings have inspired discussions […]
Lindsay Cummings – @lindsaysc shared this with us last week. Add it to your to-read list. There really is nothing better than collaboration with your colleagues – and this is a great example of it. -Heidi I wanted to let you and the rest of the HLS team know about […]
Hi all! Recently, my awesome friend (and fellow Iowa alum!) Diana Symons shared this listserv discussion with me, and after talking to Tiffany Allen, I got permission to share it here. Since quite a few of us are graduating (our ceremony is today, in fact) and moving on either to […]
36 credit hours complete. It felt pretty wonderful to see that on my transcript this past week. After 5 semesters and about 20 months, I have completed my MLIS degree. Still feels a bit surreal. Probably won’t hit me until I walk at graduation next week. It’s exciting, though. And […]
About a month ago I wrote a post titled: Some thoughts from a #n00brarian. The day that post went live, I was offered the position at my dream job as the Library Director of Muir Library in Winnebago, Minnesota. Unfortunately, I couldn’t announce it because it had to be approved […]
I have been working for almost 13 years, and in those 13 years, I’ve worked many, many, part-time jobs. I’ve been a server at a truck stop diner (oh, how I miss those tips!), processed data for an insurance library, taught special education, worked in inner city schools as an […]
Self-assessment is a life long learning tool that helps guide us in identifying what our personal strengths and weaknesses are. Whether you are a working professional or a student, this is a valuable skill to have and to work on. Taking the time to reflect on what you’ve learned and […]
HLS readers: I’m posting this on behalf of our lovely editor, Lauren Dodd, who is in Alabama for her MLS. Earlier today she posted an update on her own blog about the devastation there, and the HLS team wanted to share it here. Lauren is OK (yay!) as are the […]
Hi, Since we are all still students, or very VERY early career LIS pros, this time of year is especially full of things to do. That said, you’ll see new content slow down here, for at least the next week or two. We’ll be planning the summer semester’s worth of […]
I am very excited to introduce our first book review to HackLibSchool. The “residency program” is an interesting step to consider for students looking to make a smooth transition out of school and into a professional job. Welcome Genevia Chamblee, our reviewer. Genevia is an Information Professional working at a Research […]
Please welcome back to the HLS blog, Katie Westlake! Have you ever been afraid to turn on your computer? Until I started my online MLIS through the University of Washington last fall, my answer to that question would have been a resounding nope. My social media experience was limited to […]
Andy Burkhardt is the Emerging Technologies Librarian at Champlain College. He enjoys playing with new tech, information literacy and generally helping students, faculty, and staff learn new things. He is also a dinosaur enthusiast from Minnesota. You can read about most of these things on his blog Information Tyrannosaur. Some […]
Note: I posted this a bit ago on my blog, but since it has a lot to do with how we approach LIS education as students and new professionals, I […]
HackLibSchool is proud to feature this guest post from Ned Potter AKA thewikiman AKA one of the recently named Library Journal 2011 Movers and Shakers! In the spirit of the web allowing us to cross many types of boundaries, its important for us as students to consider growing communities and professional […]
In my Introduction to Library Science class, we were told that a primary goal of the class was to start the process of professionalization. Wikipedia describes professionalization as, “Professionalization is the social process by which any trade or occupation transforms itself into a true “profession of the highest integrity and […]
Micah – Geoff Johnson approached me about posting this survey here, and I thought it reflected many of the types of conversations we’ve had over the past few months, and especially related to Nicole’s post about non-traditional LIS work from yesterday. Actually, because of this post, I did a little […]
Research Analyst. Yup, no “librarian” in that title. Yet, it’s my current job title. And it is the job title of my 6 other colleagues. They all of have MLIS degrees (and very soon so will I!) Now I’ve discussed my role in a previous post on special libraries. So […]
It’s been exactly 2 weeks since I received the “we’ve approved your request for graduation – now wait several months for a diploma” email. That’s right! I’m a #n00brarian! During those past couple of weeks, I’ve been reflecting on where I am, where I’m going, how I’m going to get […]
Lauren Bradley is in her final semester at the Pratt School of Information & Library Science in Manhattan. She works part-time at the Leo Baeck Institute and part-time at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She enjoys costume librarianship, database searching, and government documents. Although her experience is exclusively in technical […]
Editor’s note: This is not your ‘typical’ LIS Blogs to Follow post – this is a list of non-LIS blogs to keep your eye on from Ben Lainhart and the HackLibSchool editing team. -Heidi Ben Lainhart is graduating this June from Drexel with his MLIS with a concentration in digital […]
Carolyn Caffrey is in her last semester of the MLS program at Indiana University Bloomington. Originally from Southern California she relocated to the land of corn where she works in instruction and reference. She is an aspiring instruction librarian, who loves roller derby, office supplies, spring, and critical information literacy. […]
Welcome to the inaugural post of our Declassified series. This series will feature two writers laying out the basics of one class that is similar at two different schools. The point is to allow interested students to get a peek into the coursework that the MLIS offers, and also to serve as […]
Here at HackLibSchool we are big fans of finding ways to stay on top of current events in and across the information professions. One of the best ways to accomplish this, besides subscribing to hundreds of RSS feeds, is to let someone else do it for you. Let’s call it […]
All, Thanks for listening in this week. We had some good shortcasts that we hope you were able to access. It turns out that maybe a blog isn’t the best way to share this type of media, so we’ll be rethinking how/where the TMI series will go from here on […]
Student organizations and student government are a big part of the MLIS experience, mirroring committee work and boards we will be expected to participate in as information professionals. Listen in!
TMI week marches on.* I am so excited to be able to chat with Audrey Watters. Audrey writes (like 100 posts a day) at a leading tech blog ReadWriteWeb.com as well as HackEducation.com. Her posts on both blogs are often center around educational technology, and the interactions of tech and […]
For the second installment in this week’s TMI series, we caught up with our very own Julia Skinner to talk about why library school students should get involved in independent research. Julia has done her own independent research and has presented at conferences. Library history is one of her many […]
Welcome to TMI Week! We are taking a break from blogging to dedicate some brain-time to our coursework, and so we thought we’d beef up our Two Minute Insight shortcast series. Over the next 5 days stop back by to hear some brief thoughts on a variety of topics related […]
1. WordPress has recently released an iPad optimization for all their blogs, and I must say the HackLibSchool theme looks pretttty good in that format. So, if you have the […]
UPDATE: We caught the attention of ALA with this one and Jenny Levine AKA The Shifted Librarian posted the following comment – we encourage everyone to submit ideas and participate in the Civics Class. Hackers, great post. I’d like to encourage you to submit programs for the 2011 Annual Virtual Conference […]
Hi everyone, Micah here. I am incredibly fortunate and honored to be working with my co-editors on this blog. We are in communication and conversation regularly on current LIS events, preparing and sharing our posts before they go up, and generally encouraging one another professionally. In the spirit of that, […]
I had the good fortune of attending the 2011 InfoCamp Berkeley. People there were talking about and coming up with crazy new ways to discuss, think about, and present information. However, I also saw some examples of reinventing the wheel. There were topics where information science seemed to be struggling […]
Dictionary.com defines advocacy as “the act of pleading for, supporting, or recommending; active espousal.” I know I heard and used this term before I began library school but I honestly think my awareness of it has increased tenfold in the last two years of my program.
Thanks to Bronwyn Guiton for this inspiring piece detailing how students at University of British Columbia hacked their LIS education. Last fall, students at the School of Library, Archives, and Information Studies at University of British Columbia were invited to the school’s first ever Cool Tool Day sponsored by the school’s local ASIS&T chapter. […]
It is said over and over, across blogs, professional organizations and probably in your program: real, practical work experience is what will get you a job after school. For students what that means is that seeking out, securing and excelling in an internship is key to the library school experience. […]
Jeremy Bold is currently a full-time graduate student pursuing degrees in European Studies at New York University and Library and Information Science at Long Island University and residing in Brooklyn, NY. After graduating in May, he expects to be at least a part time-employed librarian and a full time-obsessed writer […]
Welcome Geoff Johnson to the HackLibSchool blog. Geoff (on Twitter, or find him on LinkedIn) is a proto-librarian interested in academic librarianship and special libraries – especially news libraries* – attending the Simmons College GSLIS and living in Boston. He’ll finish up his coursework in May. *But really, more than anything, he’s […]
Publish Or Perish. Ever heard that phrase before? It echos through the halls of the university and hearts of grad students around the world, prompting many-a-late night in the library and archives (which is a good thing!) researching, writing, writing, writing. And to what end? Potential recognition for publishing in a […]
This guest post comes to us from Natalie Binder. It was originally posted on her blog, The Binder Blog. Natalie is a master’s degree student at Florida State University’s School of Information and Communication (FSU-SLIS), with concentrations in technology and special collections. She currently works at a public library as a cataloger […]
You’re scanning your program’s course schedule, and see no classes being offered in your specialization. Or you attend a conference, and realize that there is a gaping hole in the way your school addresses this important issue in the field. The good news: you’re an engaged learner who is conscious […]
When you started library school, did you know exactly what kind of librarian you wanted to be? Or — did you have a general idea, but you were open to other possibilities? That’s where I was when I started at SLIS. I knew without a doubt that I wanted to […]
Hack Library School welcomes a guest post from Julia Glassman, who has an interesting perspective on the “theory vs. practice” conversation. Julia is finishing her second quarter of library school at UCLA. She’s interested in information literacy, cataloging and metadata, and incorporating alternative media into library collections, and hopes to […]
“Even the most perfect reproduction of a work of art is lacking in one element: its presence in time and space, its unique existence at the place where it happens to be” -Walter Benjamin I work with digital collections and part of what I do at my job is digitize […]
Justin de la Cruz is in his first trimester of library studies at Florida State University. His professional interests include academic libraries, digital libraries, and emerging technologies. His personal interests include music (listening, writing, performing, recording), internet culture (trends, memes, single-serving sites), and comedy. You can read more on his […]
The title of this post is a question that I have been asked a *million* times (OK, slight exaggeration) over the last year as I’ve filled out applications, done interviews, and talked with friends, family, and colleagues about the process. Everyone has different motivations and experiences that lead them to […]
Disclaimer: I am discussing the very last class, also last required, of my MLIS degree. I may speak with a tad of “senioritis.” One of the required courses in my MLIS program is Evaluation of Information Services. I have been kind of dreading this course because I knew it would […]
Please welcome another guest, Katie Westlake! Katie is a first-year MLIS candidate in the University of Washington’s online degree program. Her future interests currently lie in library administration and/or international librarianship, but she’s staying open to the possibility of being seduced by other areas of study. She writes about everything from […]
For those of you who don’t know, I attend the Information School (iSchool) at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA. And while I, like most students, have had both positive and negative experiences in my education (you have or can read about them here or on my blog), I […]
For this episode of HackLibSchool TMI (Two Minute Insight) I had the pleasure of chatting with Dr. Ethan Watrall from Michigan State University. Dr. Watrall is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology and Associate Director of Matrix:The Center for Humane Arts, Letters & Social Sciences Online at Michigan State University. […]
Thanks to our dear friend Lauren Gibaldi for another great guest post. The role of librarian has expanded from simply helping people find books. But still – a good majority of patrons visit the library for just that – books. While it’s impossible to know every single novel out […]
First Post by Annie Pho, a new member of the HLS editorial team! Stuff about me: I’m in my second semester of SLIS at Indiana University-Indianapolis. I currently work on the digital library team at IUPUI (my university library). My interests are the digital preservation of culture, art librarianship and […]
Welcome and thank you to another guest blogger, Zachary Frazier. Zachary Frazier is in his second term with the University of South Carolina’s School of Library and Information. His focus is Academic Libraries. He’s originally from Seattle and now lives in Columbia, SC. Don’t tell the King County Library System […]
In this edition of TMI (two-minute interview), Senior Los Angeles Public Librarian Maggie Johnson speaks about the budget crisis in public libraries, and how being unable to hire recent graduates will affect the future of the public library. Listening to Ms. Johnson describe the state of librarianship in the public […]
Please welcome Brian Leaf who is graduating with an MSLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 2011. He writes at librarycatalyst.net and tweets from @bdleaf. Brian’s interests include instructional design, library marketing/outreach, and emerging technologies. Someday, he hopes to take a leadership role in library administration and education […]
One of the fascinating aspects of librarianship is the variety of backgrounds represented in the field. The paths that lead us from a childhood love of books, or a respect for sharing knowledge and supporting local communities, are from many disparate points of view, educational and political stances, and personal […]
The internet is awesome. And daily it is getting more and more awesomer. The best part is that a lot of what makes it great are the web-based tools that are being developed to help us users make sense of the vastness of the internet. I think we have gone […]
Please welcome another guest, April Martin! April L Martin is a second year MLIS student at the University of Washington. Her interests include reference, preservation, anti-Googlization, oral history archives, historical research, Facebook scrabble, reading great books, Nina Simone, talking, and long walks on the beach. One of the hot topics on the HLS wiki […]
Inspired by the evermore popular “Librarian Day in the Life” Series, HackLibSchool is proud to welcome guest author Rose Chou. Rose approached us and suggested an article on Time Management, which she included in a section below. As busy as we all are, how does one find time to live […]
Here’s another TMI — this time with Library Journal’s Librarian of the Year, Nancy Pearl (@Nancy_Pearl). She met up with me at the University Bookstore in Seattle, Wa. to give us her thoughts about the importance of booktalking in libraries. Have a listen! TMI – Nancy Pearl by heidifk Want […]
Last semester I took the class, User Instruction, as an elective. For our final assignment we had to create a 15 minute tutorial on anything library-related for any type of audience. Since over the last 6 months or so I have had a love affair with Twitter, especially since it […]
In December, Library Journal posted an article by Andy Woodworth, of Agnostic, Maybe, on “big tent librarianship” in their “Back Talk” column. Big tent librarianship is an idea guided by the belief that librarians, regardless of their chosen information specialization or information institution, like academic librarianship or public librarianship, are all […]
Here’s our first list of Recommended Reads. We’ve got a combination of Library-related blogs and current LIS student bloggers. If you have another lib-blog you can’t live without or if you’re keeping a blog about school, let us know! This’ll be updated frequently, so check LIS Blogs to Follow!
If there’s one thing I know for certain it’s this: you can never know anything for certain. With that in mind, some of us are facing an frighteningly exciting time in our lives — we’re going to graduate and look for a job we will LOVE! Most of us have […]
Our friend and fellow library blogger Andy Woodworth published an Open Thread on his blog today with the topic “Library School.” We thought it necessary to summarize some of the comments that were added to his post here, as we are in the business of writing about that exactly. Generally? […]
