Lankes, R. David (2010). Innovators wanted: No experience necessary? In Walter and Williams (Eds.), The expert library: Sustaining, staffing, and advancing the academic library in the 21st century. Association of College and Research Libraries.
You Must Focus on Connection Management Instead of Collection Management
“You Must Focus on Connection Management Instead of Collection Management” Allegheny County Library Association, Pittsburgh, PA.
Abstract: A longer presentation of new librarianship
Slides: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/Presentations/2010/Pittsburgh.pdf
Audio: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/pod/2010/Pittsburgh.mp3
Screencast:
You Must Focus on Connection Management Instead of Collection Management from R. David Lankes on Vimeo.
Killing the User and Other Necessary Acts
“Killing the User and Other Necessary Acts” Keynote, Polaris Users Group Annual Meeting, Syracuse, NY.
Abstract: You are not a user, you are not a customer, or consumer – you are a participant in control of your world and able to shape your own learning and environment. So are those we seek to serve. Instead of looking at the members of our libraries as passive consumers we must see them as active constructors. What should our library systems look like to participants, not users?
Slides: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/Presentations/2010/PUG2010.pdf
Audio: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/pod/2010/PUG2010.mp3
Screencast:
Killing the User and Other Necessary Acts from R. David Lankes on Vimeo.
The New Librarianship in the Age of the Ebook
“The New Librarianship in the Age of the Ebook” Closing Keynote, ebooks: Libraries at the Tipping Point, Library Journal/School Library Journal Virtual Summit.
Slides: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/Presentations/2010/eBooks.pdf
Audio: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/pod/2010/eBooks.mp3
Screencast:
The New Librarianship in the Age of the Ebook from R. David Lankes on Vimeo.
Incredible Video on Creativity
Thanks to Alison Miner in my 511 class for the pointer to this outstanding video:
Reference in the Crowd
“Reference in the Crowd” Trendy Topics Online Conference on Digital Reference, http://www.trendytopics.info/
This was a presentation done as part of the outstanding series of Trendy Topics Online conferences. The full archive of all the conference presenations plus past and future confernces can be found at http://www.trendytopics.info/. Special thanks to Tom Peteres and Lori Bell who put on the conferences and are doing a great service to the library community. Please support these and sign up for a future conference.Abstract: Digital reference allowed us to escape the bounds of a building and any single collection. We have every right to be proud of transitioning reference from desks in the library to the desks of our members (and their phones). And yet much of this new digital freedom has carried over assumptions and policies developed in places and spaces. What we have built with software, cooperatives, and a mobilized cohort of reference librarians is not an end, but merely a platform for us to truly revolutionize reference. What does answering questions in an interconnected universe of expertise, members, resources, and freedom from the confines of the physical allow us to do? Can we create a whole new reference unrecognizable by our predecessors and infinitely better?
Slides: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/Presentations/2010/Trendy.pdf
Audio: https://davidlankes.org/rdlankes/pod/2010/Trendy.mp3
Screencast:
Reference in The Crowd from R. David Lankes on Vimeo.
SLA Elections and Leadership
Folks it’s time to elect some board members over at SLA, and I would ask for your consideration of Jill Hurst-Wahl. Jill is a longtime colleague, a friend, and even a contributor to my upcoming Atlas of New Librarianship (shameless plug in the middle of a shameless plug – two points). Jill is one of those rare individuals who gets practice and academia, and is a tireless proponent of librarians and their vital role in business and society.
I should say, that I respect SLA’s no-campaign policy, and Jill certainly did not seek my endoresement, but this one for me is a no-brainer. She is the person I turn to for insight into special librarianship. Better yet, she is a voice I seek out on issues of librarianship regardless of library type. That is because she sees the profession not as some fractured menagerie of buildings, types, and parent organizations. Instead she sees librarianship as a positive social force.
I do a lot of talking about the obligation of leadership and the need for the profession to change. We must all step up and not only accept leadership positions in professional organization, but actively seek them out. We do this not for pride, or ego, but as stewards. Stewards of the profession, and indeed the multi-millennial traditions of librarianship. If we seek change, we must be willing to take on the tasks that come with that. We must be willing to put ourselves up for consideration.
So today I am endorsing Jill because she understands this obligation, and has served tirelessly to make a difference. Tomorrow, I want to endorse you. I have grown tired of people who sit in the back of the room and comment only to themselves. I have lost patience with those who complain loudly in the privacy of their offices, but say nothing in public. And as readers of this blog know I have zero tolerance for anonymous annoyed librarians. Leadership and service are not quiet. They do not come from identifying a need for a change – or even identifying the change needed. True leadership comes from showing up. From putting yourself before your peers, your supporters and detractors alike, and create change.
So vote for Jill, and when the next spot opens up, join her.
Here is some more information on Jill
Video:
http://www.slatv.org/media.cfm?c=758&m=3406&s=133&
SLA blog posts (candidate questions):
http://slablogger.typepad.com/sla_blog/2010/04/jill-hurstwahl-candidate-for-director-question-1-imagine-you-have-just-finished-your-term-on-the-sla.html
http://slablogger.typepad.com/sla_blog/2010/07/jill-hurstwahl-question-2.html
http://hurstassociates.blogspot.com/2010/04/sla2010-me-candidate-for-board-of.html
Trendy Topics online conference on digital Reference September 14
TAP Information Services and the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University Announce: “Trendy Topics: Digital Reference” Online Conference
This will be the 7th in a dynamic series of online conferences on hot topics. Individuals and groups may participate from wherever works best – no need to travel.
Conference Date: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Eastern, 10:00 Central, 9:00 Mountain, and 8:00 Pacific.
Keynote Speakers:
- Alison Miller from the Internet Public Library will provide the morning keynote on “Digital Reference Evolution.” She will address user needs and expectations along with librarian responses and best practices in the digital reference environment.
- R. David Lankes from Syracuse University will provide the afternoon keynote on “Reference in the Crowd.” He will address creating a whole new reference unrecognizable by our predecessors and infinitely better.
Other Presenters:
- Rose Chenoweth on “Virtual Valor”
- Mary-Carol Lindbloom on “Days of Future Past and Digital Reference”
- Samantha Thompson on “Virtual Reference in Virtual Worlds”
- Lori Bell and Tom Schmidt on “Mobile Reference”
Conference Series website: http://www.trendytopics.info
Conference schedule: http://www.trendytopics.info/T2Refschedule.pdf
Register online: http://www.eventbee.com/view/trendytopics/event?eid=65537
(If you prefer to pay by check rather than online via credit card, please contact Tom Peters at tpeters@tapinformation.com.)
Registration Fees:
- $40 for individuals
- $100 for groups (that is, 3 or more individuals currently affiliated with the same organization. Group registration includes participating from up to 3 locations.)
- $30 for students
- San Jose State University SLIS faculty and students may participate at no charge. Please contact Lori Bell at lbell927@gmail.com for a coupon code.
For more information on the Trendy Topics series of online conferences, please contact Lori Bell at lbell927@gmail.com or Tom Peters at TAP Information Services at tpeters@tapinformation.com.
Syracuse iSchool mourns the passing of research professor Joanne Silverstein
7/27/2010
Joanne Silverstein, an assistant research professor at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies and director of research and development of the Information Institute of Syracuse, died July 27, 2010. She was 58 years old.
A dedicated teacher, well-known researcher, and cherished colleague, Silverstein stepped down from active duties in August 2007 to, in her words, “make time for the simpler pleasures in life and give [her] body and mind the time that it needs to heal from a chronic illness.”
“Joanne made many wonderful contributions in the time she was with us, both in her teaching and her active research with the Information Institute,” said iSchool Dean Elizabeth D. Liddy. “Joanne loved and excelled at the lofty aspects of academic research as well as prizing the very real outcomes it could accomplish in the lives of students.”
Silverstein first came to the iSchool in 1991 as a master’s student in the information management program. After earning the master’s in 1993, she then went on to earn a Ph.D. in information science and technology in 1998. She was then hired as a professor by the school and researcher by the Information Institute.
Her research focused on digital literacy, participatory librarianship, ontologies, metadata, and digital reference services. She was interested in the evolving role of the human intermediary in information seeking and retrieval. Her research was funded by such organizations as U.S. Department of Education, the Institute for Museum and Library Services, and the National Science Foundation.
Associate Professor and Director of the Information Institute R. David Lankes credits Silverstein with helping to build the research center. “Her insatiable curiosity, dedication to the school, and invaluable input at the Institute can never be replaced,” he said. “She did some amazing research in the area of digital libraries and the information needs of children. She always sought the best for the school, and she never shied away from a hard problem. She was an heir to the legacies of former iSchool Deans Robert Taylor, Jeffrey Katzer, and Ray von Dran, and she served that legacy well.”
A service will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, July 30 at the Temple Concord, 910 Madison Street, in Syracuse.
The iSchool has also established a memorial site in her honor. Everyone is invited to share a memory, photo, or comment at http://ischool.syr.edu/joanne. These remembrances will be put together and shared with Joanne’s family at a later date.
Joanne Silverstein
This morning Joanne Silverstein passed away after a long and brave struggle with cancer. I could write more this amazing woman and her work in digital libraries, virtual reference, and kids information needs, but right now I just can’t. Right now all I can do is mourn the loss of a dear friend, and send my heart and prayers to Joanne’s husband Paul. We are all living in a better world because of Joanne.