by Kay Kirscht
Quick Summary
Check out this list of library professional development opportunities taking place in April that are available through Level Up!
Level Up!: Your source for library professional development information.
FREE TOOLS AND TIPS FOR GETTING STARTED WITH DIGITAL HUMANITIES
Tuesday, April 6, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Are you curious about the role of digital humanities in your library community? New technologies are transforming the way our patrons and we do research and communicate ideas. This workshop provides an introduction to the field of digital humanities and digital tools for text and visual analysis. We will look at a selection of free tools for creating visualizations, timelines, mapping and image recognition.
PRESENTER: Jenna Rinalducci, Art & Architecture Librarian at UNC-Charlotte
WHO OWNS THAT, WHO CAN USE IT, AND WHO CARES?: COPYRIGHT AND DIGITAL MEDIA IN THE CLASSROOM
Wednesday, April 7, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
"Can I read stories aloud to my students in the virtual classroom and post the video to YouTube? Where can I find openly licensed materials for inspiring, no-worries slides? And who actually owns all this stuff, anyway?" Copyright issues in education could feel complicated even before the pandemic. In this session, we will review the fundamentals of copyright and explore questions about how the law supports your instruction. Bring your tough questions and come ready to talk about your work!
PRESENTER: Will Cross, Director of the Copyright and Digital Scholarship Center at NC State Libraries
INCOMING LIBRARY COLLECTIONS: A UNIFIED APPROACH TO NEWLY ACQUIRED MATERIAL
Tuesday, April 20, 10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
New collections come from a variety of sources. Whether a gift, donation, or acquisition, all incoming material presents challenges to libraries. Collections are often varied and are rarely comprised of one type of material. Their history may not be entirely known to the donor. Curators may not be aware of physical or technology-related issues within a collection. Library staff in different departments each have their own sets of questions regarding incoming material. This presentation will review how one institution unified its process for incoming collections. Special attention will be paid to preservation issues relating to incoming collections. Tonia Grafakos is the Marie A. Quinlan Director of Preservation at Northwestern University Libraries. She is a Professional Associate member of the American Institute for Conservation and earned a MSIS with an Advanced Certificate in Conservation from the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to Northwestern, she was the Harper Inglis Conservation Fellow at the Library of Congress. She gained additional conservation experience working at Harvard University, Harry Ransom Research Center, and the Pinos y Sarriera Archives.
PRESENTERS: Tonia Grafakos, Marie A. Quinlan - Director of Preservation at Northwestern University Libraries
TURNING ON A DIME: REWORKING AN INFORMATION LITERACY WORKSHOP SERIES IN THE COVID CRISES
Tuesday, April 22, 2:00 - 2:45 p.m.
The BRCC Magnolia Library hosted a number of Research 101 information literacy workshops in recent years, and was planning to continue in the spring 2020 semester. With the COVID-19 crisis, this series had to be re-thought, re-worked, and re-imagined to accommodate a virtual setting. How we adapted to this situation, and how we plan to go forward with what we learned from our experience will be discussed.
PRESENTERS: Johannah M White, Instruction & OER Librarian, Baton Rouge Community College and Peter Klubek, Instructor and Research Librarian, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
MEDIA LANDSCAPES: DEEPFAKES AND THE MISINFORMATION LANDSCAPE
Tuesday, April 13, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Registration closes Monday, April 12, 2021
Deepfakes, cheap fakes, and other forms of synthetic media are creating new challenges in assessing what is real and what is fake in the media landscape. This talk will cover what deepfakes are, how they’ve been used, how they work, and what every library professional should know about their future. Rooted in real world examples with an eye towards tomorrow’s developments, this talk shows how misinformation keeps evolving and how libraries can work to combat it through knowledge and expertise.
Presenter: John Mack Freeman
SESSION 1 OF 3 - MANAGING DIGITAL CONTENT OVER TIME: AN INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL PRESERVATION
Weekly on Tuesdays: April 27, May 4 & May 11, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
While many of the traditional resources found in libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural heritage institutions--books, photographs, objects--can survive for years with no intervention, digital content is much more fragile. Managing it requires ongoing care and preservation activities to ensure continued access far into the future. This online course introduces fundamental concepts for managing and preserving your digital content over time.
The course will:
- Provide an overview of digital content management activities
- Describe and identify specific actions to take at your organization
- Recommend additional sources to consult
Session 1: Identifying and Selecting Digital Content for Preservation (April 27, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM)
In Session 1, the presenters address the importance of identifying what types of digital content you have within your institution, introduce steps and techniques to prepare a basic digital content inventory, and prepare you to address digital content that might come your way. The second half will focus on the process of selecting content for preservation from the body of digital content you hold. This process is known by different terms in different domains--what some might call appraisal in archives, selection in libraries, or curation in museums--but there are common principles and outcomes.
Session 2: Storing, Protecting, and Managing Digital Content for Preservation (May 4, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM)
In Session 2 you will develop an understanding of how to store and protect your digital content over time. Methods for understanding your content include capturing, creating, and retaining metadata and are essential for protecting your digital content. Additional concerns include controlling who has access internally and externally to content, assuring fixity of files through error checking, ensuring that confidential information has sufficient access controls, and ensuring digital materials are included in disaster planning. Presenters will wrap up with an overview on the importance of preservation program planning, standards to be aware of, and present a few issues and challenges in making digital content accessible in the future.
Session 3 (Optional): Open Office Hours (May 11, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM)
Do you have any remaining questions after taking this class? Want to see more examples or delve more deeply into a tool or program introduced during a session? Join us for an informal open office hour, hosted by the instructors.
Please Note: Scholarships are available to staff facing budget challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Contact Sara Ring (ring0089@umn.edu) for more information.
PRESENTERS: Sara Ring and Carol Kussmann
MEET ANTHONY SMITH - IMLS ASSOCIATE DEPUTY LIBRARY DIRECTOR
Monday, April 26, 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Grab some coffee, tea, and refreshments, and join us for an interactive discussion with Anthony Smith. Anthony will talk about his life leading up to his current position, along with an insider look at what we should expect from the agency in terms of future priorities and their commitment to DEI-related initiatives.
Anthony D. Smith is the Associate Deputy Director for Discretionary Programs in the Office of Library Services at the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). He provides oversight of grant programs including, Accelerating Promising Practices for Small Libraries, the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program, National Leadership Grants for Libraries, and Native American Library Services grants.
PRESENTER: Anthony Smith, IMLS
SPECIAL TOPICS IN COPYRIGHT: BEST PRACTICES FOR DIGITIZATION PROJECTS
Tuesday, April 27, 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Libraries hold rich and wondrous treasures in their archives and special collections that they may wish to digitize and present to the world for purposes of research, instruction, and user’s personal interests. Often these collections are of mixed or unknown copyright status. During this webinar, participants will learn how the basics of U.S. copyright law and fair use apply to these digitization projects as well as discover best practices to be employed when engaging in digitization of library and archive collections. Permissions and post-digitization licensing and reuse policies will also be covered.
PRESENTER: Christine Fruin, Scholarly Communication and Digital Projects Manager, Atla
AN AFTERNOON WITH ATHENA JACKSON (ARL DEAN - UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON LIBRARIES)
Wednesday, April 28, 1:00 - 2:30 p.m.
Grab your coffee and tea and join us for an intimate discussion with ARL Dean of the University of Houston Libraries, Athena Jackson. Register early to make sure you have your virtual seat. Here are just a few questions that will be asked during the session.
Which professional skills and experiences gained outside of librarianship have been most helpful in your new role as an ARL Dean?
Are there single moments along your career journey that stand out to you as having most tested or shaped your leadership?
What is your advice on how to transform library culture and advance successful DEI Initiatives?
What advice would you give new librarians who are uncertain they will commit to the profession long term?
PRESENTER: Dean Athena Jackson
