Link Round-Up: February 2018

“A breakdancing workshop and presentation was part of a recent “Digging in the Crates” event. Another event’s theme was learning about plagiarism through music, and how musical artists credit and respect their predecessors through homage.” *Roanoke Times*

Innovative Library Programming

Going behind the scenes at the library via Petoskey News-Review

February 13, 2018: “Children will be able to get a behind-the-scenes glimpse of what a librarian’s work is really like during an upcoming program at the Petoskey District Library.

The Mini Masters of Library Science program will allow children to work with a librarian to process books, plan events and advise readers on new books that fit their interests.

“They’ll get to put a barcode on a book and catalog it into the computer and do check-in and check-out of books,” said Megan Goedge, children’s and youth services librarian at the Petoskey District Library. “There’s going to be a lot of stuff, so we’ll meet twice. At the end of the (second session) kids will get a Mini Masters degree of library science.”

Students digging monthly hip-h op event via The Roanoke Times

February 26, 2018: “Students have an excuse to be loud at Virginia Tech’s Newman Library thanks to the work of a DJ librarian. The third Thursday of every month, a group of Tech students, faculty and staff gather together to explore hip hop, education and expression through an event known as “Digging in the Crates,” which started last year.”

Opinion Pieces

IMLS’s 2018 – 2022 Strategic Plan Sets a New Tone via LibraryJournal

February 1, 2018: Rebecca T. Miller’s writes an editorial evaluating the IMLS Strategic Plan.

Reflections on a symposium about libraries and capitalism via InsideHigherEd

February 5, 2018: Barbara Fister reflects on the “Libraries in the Context of Capitalism” symposium and the themes of hidden and undervalued nature of library/archives labor that emerged as a result of the meeting.

2018 Midwinter Wrap-Up via American Libraries Magazine

February 26, 2018: “Just over 8,000 registrants came to the Mile High City for five days of presentations, conversations, and innovations, many of which centered on the importance of making sure that people from all socioeconomic backgrounds and walks of life have a voice in our national dialogue.

Artist, activist, and author Patrisse Cullors began the Opening Session by telling the story of her 4th-grade teacher—Mrs. Goldberg at Erwin Street Elementary School in Van Nuys, California—who gave the young Cullors books about the civil rights movement. “This part of education—the part where I get to be curious, get to be engaged—is the part I loved the most,” Cullors told attendees. “This is the foundation for my activism.”

New Projects

Project revives old software, preserves ‘born-digital’ data via YaleNews

February 13, 2018: “Digital preservationists at Yale University Library are building a shareable “emulation as a service” infrastructure to resurrect thousands of obsolete software programs and ensure that the information produced on them will be kept intact and made easily available for future access, study, and use.”

TV News Record: Television Explorer 2.0, shooting coverage & more via Internet Archive Blogs

February 22, 2018: “Simply put, our mission is to build and preserve comprehensive collections of the world’s most important television programming and make them as accessible as possible to researchers and the general public. We will need your help.”

“Preserving TV news is critical, and at the Internet Archive we’ve decided to rededicate ourselves to growing our collection,” explained Roger MacDonald, Director of Television at the Internet Archive. “We plan to go wide, expanding our archives of global TV news from every continent. We also plan to go deep, gathering content from local markets around the country. And we plan to do so in a sustainable way that ensures that this TV will be available to generations to come.”

First Link Round-Up of 2018!

Happy New Year! For this round-up of LIS News, I thought it would be interesting to highlight stories about the construction and conception of the Obama Presidential Library (pictured above). There is a great deal of controversy over the location and what will, or perhaps in this case what will not be included and exhibited in Obama’s library. What seems to be most shocking to some critics is that there are no plans to include physical copies of manuscripts, letters, or documents but will instead have a digital archive. Adam Campbell of Liberty News Now refers to this as “simply host(ing) a digital archive” but as I’m sure many LIS professionals would agree, there is nothing ‘simple’ about digitizing thousands of materials in multiple media formats (paper documents, photographs, born-digital, etc.) so that they are accessible and successfully preserved.

In a column for the Chicago Tribune, Ron Grossman, an Obama supporter, writes that “what brought [him] up short was a space labeled ‘test kitchen.’ Presumably that reflects Michelle Obama’s war on junk food. The museum’s champions similarly suggest it could host yoga classes. President Obama, is that how you want to be remembered? As the healthy-eating and meditation advocating president?” Grossman vehemently disagrees with the concept of the Obama Library and goes on to suggest how he thinks the museum should be designed and what stories it should tell.

I think that this harsh criticism at the thought of a test kitchen and yoga studio being present in a library reflects a larger societal disconnect between how the public and how LIS professionals view the purpose of the institution of the library. For example, the Free Library of Philadelphia (FLP) has a very successful 3-year-old initiative called The Culinary Literacy Center (CLC) located in its central branch. The CLC advances literacy through cooking lessons, nutrition classes, and neighborhood environmental sustainability workshops that are mostly free and available to the entire Greater Philadelphia community.

While the FLP is not part of a Presidential Library and is perhaps not subject to the same scrutiny when breaking from tradition, it is still a major hub in one of America’s largest cities, similar to how Obama’s Library may ultimately serve Chicago. Libraries can be extraordinary centers for community engagement and growth as well as a place of innovation and creation. Rather than following the status quo and more traditional concept of Presidential Museum and Library, the Obama Foundation seems to be more future-focused and it will be interesting to follow this national conversation on what a library should or should not be.

Debate Over Obama’s Presidential Library

Yoga, basketball and a test kitchen: Obama’s Presidential Library Plans via The Guardian

Please, Mr. Obama, skip the test kitchen and make it a museum via Chicago Tribune

University of Chicago faculty tell Obama to move ‘socially regressive’ library via Washington Times

Obama Library Hires Minority-Owned Construction Firms via Next City

Residents Convince Obama Foundation to Remove Garage from Midway via Streets Blog Chicago

Obama Criticized for Lavish Library via Liberty News Now

Librarianship & the Future

Libraries Under Capitalism: The Enclosure of the Literary Commons via Truthout.org
“Our public libraries, our literary commons, are gradually being enclosed — sealed off to the public by a series of acts of our government — local, state and federal — as it bows to the dictates and priorities of corporations. The public library is one of the few settings where people can enter for free, access materials for free and stay without being expected to buy anything. The value of public libraries not only exists in the materials they lend and the non-commercial model they embody but in the commons that they represent: A public area that offers Americans liberated intellectual spaces, the potential for community dialogues and organizing.”

Libraries and Librarians Aren’t About to Disappear via Inside Higher Ed
“Last month a publication called 24/7 Wall St. published an article titled “America’s 25 Dying Industries.” Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the article analyzed how employment levels in various sectors changed between 2007 and 2016. The article, which was recently republished by USA Today, Yahoo Finance and many others, ranked libraries and archives as one of the fastest-declining industries in the U.S., second only to video tape and disc rental. The publication of the article prompted a strong response from librarians, who questioned the validity of the analysis.”

Innovative Programming

To Infinity and Beyond: Skyping with Astronauts via ALSC Blog
“How did one humble library end up with a direct line to outer space? We all know that libraries are about sharing books, movies, magazines, music, and more. In today’s ever-evolving world, libraries have also become a place where people can gather to share ideas, learn about new topics or technology, and expand their skills. These thoughts were what propelled me to apply to NASA for an In-Flight Education Downlink a year before the actual event occurred.”

NC Kids Digital Library: PL Directors Launch Innovative New Digital Reading Program Statewide via Knowledge Quest
“NC Kids is a database of more than 6,000 high-quality, high-interest digital books suitable for grades K-4th that are available for checkout through NC Cardinal. Anyone in North Carolina can access this database with a public library card and any device connected to the Internet.”

Hommocks Middle Students Get Real-Time Data on Reading via lohud.com
“We said to ourselves, ‘How can we learn more about the secret reading life of kids?’ said Rob Andrews, an assistant principal at Hommocks. ‘It was kind of a simple idea in the beginning and it’s grown into this tool that has empowered us not only to give teachers access to the secret lives of kids but promote conversations between teachers and kids.’”

Technology & Projects

2017 Patent Rankings – Hot Off the Press via infoDOCKET
“A record number of 320,003 patents were granted by the US Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) in 2017—a 5.2 percent increase from 2016…The computing, telecommunications, and medical industries are continuing to receive a high volume of patents. New technologies showing rapid growth include e-cigarettes, 3D printing, and autonomous vehicles.”

Michigan State University Awarded Mellon Grant to Build Slave Trade Database via infoDOCKET
“Michigan State University, supported by nearly $1.5 million from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will create a unique online data hub that will change the way scholars and the public understand African slavery. By linking data collections from multiple universities, the website will allow people to search millions of pieces of slave data to identify enslaved individuals and their descendants from a central source. Users can also run analyses of enslaved populations and create maps, charts and graphics.”

University of Washington Reality Lab Launches via UW News
“The University of Washington is launching a new augmented and virtual reality research center — funded by Facebook, Google, and Huawei — to accelerate innovation in the field and educate the next generation of researchers and practitioners. The $6 million UW Reality Lab, funded with equal contributions from the three initial sponsors, creates one of the world’s first academic centers dedicated to virtual and augmented reality.”

Link Round-Up: December 4 – 8, 2017

As always, there is lot going on in the library and information sciences world, so here is a small sampling from this past week! Happy reading!

New Archives Projects

Newcomb adds digital archives to document LGBTQ+ history via Tulane Hullabaloo
Newcomb Institute at Tulane University is diversifying its historical archives by adding its first-ever completely digital-born collection to preserve the history of LGBTQ+ activism in New Orleans. The featured image above is from the Newcomb.

Long Island University (LIU) gets $1M grant to expand project to preserve Long Island history via Blank Slate Media
LIU Post’s Palmer School of Library and Information Science was awarded a $1 million grant from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation to expand an important project to both preserve Long Island’s history and make it more accessible.

Design

10 Questions…with Margaret Sullivan, an Interior Designer via InteriorDesign.net
“With her six-person studio in NYC, Margaret Sullivan is on a mission to design the public library of the 21st century. Libraries, often fated with lackluster interiors, function as gathering spots and learning hubs for local residents of all ages. Sullivan knows a well-designed library will benefit the entire community…We ask the designer to share what she’s doing to keep these public spaces relevant.”

Why Austin’s New Central Library is a Vision for the Future via Austin American-Statesman
“The Austin Public Library recently opened its spectacular facility with much fanfare to respond to a diversity of needs in the Austin community. Transformed from a traditional library filled with books and other sources of information including media, the new open design sets itself apart as a new standard to address user needs in the 21st century. The timing of the opening of the new Austin Public Library is a perfect opportunity to highlight the resurgence of the central role of libraries in their respective communities, whether public, academic or school libraries, as they rethink their relevance amidst fast-paced changes.”

Education

Coding Creativity Reigns During Computer Science Education Week via EdTechMagazine
“Computer science is often top of mind for 21st-century educators, but this week, you’ll likely hear more about it than ever before. From Dec. 4-10, teachers and students across the globe will celebrate Computer Science Education Week. Many classrooms are expected to participate in an Hour of Code, during which students spend at least one hour working on a coding activity.”

What We Know and What They Know: Scholarly Communication, Usability, and Un-Usability via ACRLog
“Over the past handful of years, a lot of digital ink has been spilled on library responses to #icanhazpdf, SciHub, and, most recently, the #Twitterlibraryloan movement. This hit home in my life because in recent discussion with students at my University, we found that students told us outright that they used SciHub because of its ability to “get most things.” How we talk about piracy with our patrons is an important topic for discussion, and places a tremendous amount of emphasis on the ethics of a for-profit publishing model. But it places librarians in a precarious situation defending publishing practices that build barriers to research.”

infoDocket News Roundup via Library Journal
A list of LIS news from the past week.

The Evolving Landscape of the Archives Profession

Examining a Memory-Archive of the Puerto Rican Diaspora in Holyoke, MA

Since the 1990s, archivists have increasingly studied the relationship between archives and collective memory, defined by Barbara Misztal (2003) as “a group’s representation of its past, both the past that is commonly shared and the past that is collectively commemorated, that enacts and gives substance to that group’s identity, its present conditions and its vision of the future” (p. 158). Research includes studies of how communities create and use archives to construct their collective memories. As a Puerto Rican and a scholar, I have been studying the roles of archives in the construction and dissemination of the history and memories of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States.

Discussions about the history of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States tend to focus on Puerto Ricans in New York. However, the significant migration of Puerto Ricans to the United States during the mid 20th century included the establishment of Puerto Rican communities in Chicago, Hartford, and Boston. I also learned that a significant settlement of Puerto Ricans in Holyoke, Massachusetts began in the mid-1960s. Puerto Ricans are the largest Latino group in the city. During the Spring 2014 semester, I began researching the history of Puerto Ricans in Holyoke, and at the same time looked at how the history and memories of Puerto Ricans in Holyoke have been documented. I began my journey in the archives.

The Carlos Vega Collection of Latino History in Holyoke is housed at the Wistariahurst Museum. Carlos Vega (1950 – 2012), who was Ecuadorian, was a social worker and became actively involved with the Puerto Rican community, especially their struggles for improved living conditions, work opportunities, and challenging discrimination.

Immerse yourself into the 44 boxes of the collection and you will encounter a microcosm of the struggles and celebrations of Puerto Ricans in Holyoke, Mass. Newspaper clippings show the difficult early 1980s, when a number of arsons caused significant damages to homes and the loss of lives in South Holyoke. Legal documents and correspondence show discrimination and voting rights struggles. Study the folders about La Familia Hispana Inc. and you will learn about the planning of the annual Festival de la Familia Hispana, which celebrates its 28th anniversary in 2014, and the Puerto Rican Parade of Western Massachusetts, celebrated every year since 1994. The Festival programs serve as a memory touchtone to remember the accomplishments of Holyoke Puerto Ricans the 1995 Grand Marshall, Betty Medina Lichtensen, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to public office in the state of Massachusetts, and the Mariscal Felipe N. Pantoja, the first Latino hired by the city’s public school systems.

While this collection is an invaluable resource for the study of the Puerto Rican diaspora in Holyoke, like all archival collections, this is just one part of a rich history of Puerto Ricans in the city. Furthermore, in the context of memory-making and identity, it is essential to examine how these collections are used for this purpose. In other words, it is significant to acquire and preserve resources such as the Carlos Vega Collection, but perhaps more important is who accesses them and why. Puerto Ricans in Holyoke are still dealing with issues such as discrimination, poverty and segregation. Beyond its value to interpret history, the collection can serve current generations to understand the community’s past in terms of social struggles. It can also serve as a resource for the continuous recognition of Puerto Rican identity. Events such as the Festival de la Familia Hispana and the Western Massachusetts Puerto Rican Parade have played a significant role in the preservation and dissemination of Puerto Rican heritage. These events, along with archival collections, serve as a memory-archive of the Puerto Rican diaspora in Holyoke.

This broader view of archives has been one of the emergent topics examined by archivists today. Furthermore, it has generated a different way of looking at archives and at the work of archivists, although it can be traced back to the 1960s and 1970s. In 2013, Canadian archivist Terry Cook wrote about a new paradigm in the archival profession, called community archiving. It underscores the active role of the archivist in the documentation of society’s experiences, a role that involves the archivist to become a facilitator and mentor to communities. And this role has reached the digital landscape. One excellent example is the South Asian American Digital Archive, an organization that implements a participatory approach in which South Asian Americans document and disseminate their history.

While this kind of initiative has not taken place in Holyoke, it gives a guideline for the future, not only in terms of the use of digital technologies, but even more important, in regards to a participatory approach to archives. This participatory approach is not a simple task. It primarily involves the building of trust between archivists and communities. But it open doors for a closer connection between communities and their records.

By Assistant Professor Joel Blanco-Rivera

Reference
Misztal, B. (2003). Theories of social remembering. McGraw-Hill International.