ILA Annual Conference Scholarship Recipient from ILA/ACRL
As a newcomer to Iowa, I was pleased at the chance to network with other librarians from across the state at the Annual ILA Conference. Having often felt dazed and confused, lost and adrift amid the huge crowds at ALA conferences, at Council Bluffs I was delighted to discover how easy it is to get involved in the work of the Association and to meet others with common goals and concerns. Although I did not win any money at the casino, I came away richer and wiser, having shared ideas with other academic librarians about such current issues as library digitization and trends in the reorganization of technical services. I am grateful to ILA/ACRL for the scholarship to attend my first ILA Conference and I look forward to attending the Spring Conference in Grinnell and renewing my acquaintance there with my new Iowan colleagues. --Rebecca Routh, Cataloging Librarian, University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City
Concurrent Session Highlights and Pictures
Creating the Library-Faculty Connection: Cultivating Pedagogical Partnerships - Presented by Elizabeth O. Hutchins, Consultant, Adjunct Professor, Dominican University, St. Paul, Minnesota
Elizabeth Hutchins, Faculty Emerita, of St. Olaf College, gave an informative presentation about the necessity and importance of establishing faculty/librarian connections. Elizabeth was an Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Library Instruction at the St. Olaf College Libraries. Her interests and expertise are related to information literacy, pedagogy, and diverse teaching and learning styles. As an institution, St. Olaf College has made information literacy a priority.
Elizabeth acknowledged that creating strong relationships between librarians and faculty outside of the library requires skill, time, and patience. Early in her presentation, she suggested that there is often a cultural divide between librarians and disciplinary faculty outside of the library. Many times disciplinary faculty do not have a clear understanding of a librarian’s expertise. Elizabeth provided a number of suggestions for creating strong connections between librarian and faculty. She has graciously provided a link to her Powerpoint slides.
For more information:
• St. Olaf College Libraries: http://www.stolaf.edu/library/
• Information Literacy Documents for St. Olaf Initiatives: http://www.stolaf.edu/library/instruction/infolit/index.html
• Scroll to the bottom of the page to view St. Olaf College
Asian Studies Department Documents that incorporate information literacy
concepts.
• Elizabeth Hutchins Powerpoint Slides - Download
Presentation
Take time to review Elizabeth’s presentation. She includes references to several articles related to teaching and information literacy. Towards the end of the presentation, there are several slides that include tips for establishing library-faculty connections. -Submitted by Andrea Dinkelman, Iowa State University
Crossing
the Cultural Divide - Presented by Rachel Crowley, Library Director,
Briar Cliff University, Sioux City; Elizabeth O. Hutchins, Consultant,
Adjunct Professor, Dominican University, St. Paul, Minnesota; and Chris
Neuhaus, Outreach Coordinator, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls
Elizabeth O. Hutchins continued the topic from her session "Creating the Library-Faculty Connection: Cultivating Pedagogical Partnerships” by joining Rachel Crowley and Chris Neuhaus in a panel discussion about library and faculty connections. The panel encouraged the audience's participation as they talked about building partnerships. Some of the questions pondered dealt with handling the fear of teaching, being comfortable with faculty, filling gaps in faculty’s understanding of the library, creating faculty advocates for the library, and marketing.
The panel and the audience addressed those questions by
offering examples on how their respective libraries established faculty
relationships. Some of the suggestions were:
• There are many ways to teach (tours, one-to-one interactions,
web pages, etc). Use the method that is comfortable.
• Establish department liaisons.
• Create customized web pages for faculty that assists them with
their research and classes.
• Be visible outside of the library. Serve on campus committees.
• Ask faculty how their students are doing on a project.
• Build a bank of good assignments that utilize the library’s
services and promote information literacy.
• Provide in-service training.
• Offer workshops on information literacy and bring in an outside
expert.
• Visit faculty in their offices.
• Establish a student connection such as being an advisor. -Submitted
by Veronica McAsey, Briar Cliff University