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8 colorful plastic origami shapes on a desk

New and announcements

🪨 The Materials Library at the University of Pennsylvania is a collection of around 10,000 material samples ranging from limestone to ultramarine pigments and everything in between. Recently, the library staff explored the potential of bioplastics through hands-on experimentation (pictured above). Inspired by student-led research, staff created DIY bioplastics using recipes no more complex than making Jello-O to better understand sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based plastics. Learning through making! 

🍇 UC Davis continues to expand its wine research collections with a recent gift to help preserve the history of viticulture in San Luis Obispo County. Information gathered from more than 170 interviews, research materials behind 13 documentaries, artwork, wine labels, catalogs, maps, and tools (including historical corkscrews) will become part of the collection, which are being donated by Libbie Agran, founder of the Wine History Project of San Luis Obispo County. File this one under “dream job.”

🩺 Curatorial assistant Elizabeth Arterberry reviews a selection of materials from Indiana University Bloomington Libraries’ Notable Medical Books Collection, including works by Paracelsus, Andreas Vesalius, Gasparo Tagliacozzi, and other lesser-than-household names within the history of medicine. Though, as Arterberry points out, some of these texts were also some of the most plagiarized in that they provided excellent, practical examples for practicing doctors of their time. 

🔥 The University of Chicago Library has created a Banned Books dataset internship to help improve the public’s understanding of (i.e. access to data about) books that have been challenged in U.S. schools and libraries. “The project involves migrating a standalone database to the Wikidata platform and will result in an open and sustainable resource that is widely available for public contribution and community stewardship.” This internship is only open to University of Chicago graduate students, but I love that it’s end product is an openly accessible dataset that will be useful to librarians, journalists, researchers, and educators around the world.

🧩 Students and staff at the Tisch Library at Tufts University recently completed a 60,000 piece puzzle. More than 100 students participated in the academic year-long which began in August 2024 and ended in April 2025. What a lovely simple community-driven student engagement project. I can only imagine what it felt like to unveil the completed 8’x29’ work… or the hesitancy of having to put it back inside the box.

💝 A small act of kindness nearly 30 years ago, i.e. giving a student a key to a study room, sparked a lifelong impact. Now a successful ophthalmologist, Nitin Gupta honored that pivotal moment at NC State’s Hill Library by establishing the Gupta Family Libraries Faculty Development Endowment. The fund will support librarian research, recruitment, and enrichment, recognizing the vital role libraries play in student success. “Gupta hopes to provide Libraries leadership with the means to build outstanding departments and programs through a well-supported staff.” Amen.

Notable mentions

On social

My name is pink. Something to take the edge off. A jet 2 holiday. The Nikki pose. The memes were coming in hot and heavy this month (because what else is there to do when the students and faculty are away), but instead of focused on those delightfully entertaining takes, here are a few oddballs that stood out to me. 

The folks over at Alden Library of Ohio University have created their own socks. I’ve seen a lot of library merch in my day, but custom socks are a rarity and something that I have no doubt will be a crowd pleaser. There’s so much they could do with this: sock puppetry, the Risky Business slide, a library Dobby. 🧦🙌

This Reel from Stockton University‘s Bjork Library providing a construction update on their new learning commons wins for the intro shot alone. I hope they plan to use all that b-roll for some amazing before and after videos once the project is complete.

“Hey, I have a shark costume,” is how I imagine this video from Kansas State University Libraries probably got its start. You can tell they were having fun filming it: the way she almost loses her concentration just at the end.

Ok, I said I wasn’t going to talk about memes, but this one is worth highlighting. University of South Carolina Libraries played on the “This and…” trend with good photography and library moments that any student could identify with. It’s a template that I could see other libraries easily adapting.

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Eleven students in 1860 posing for a photo

News and announcements

🌈 Karmine Beecroft at Illinois State University’s Milner Library is working to grow out the university archives’ representation of the campus LGBTQIA+ community. Over the past few years, Beecroft has overseen 66 oral history interviews, some of which are now available as part of the Alumni Oral Histories project. “I created this project because I wanted to make it clear that queer people have always been a part of Illinois State’s history” says Beecroft. 

🗃️ Also from ISU: This isn’t a library post per se, but it’s a format that any academic library could employ or work with their central MarComm unit to develop. It’s a classic “This Day in History” style post that makes heavy use of the Illinois State University archives, and undoubtedly other primary sources as well. The photo at the top of this post shows the first graduating class of Illinois State Normal University, 1860.

🎥 The University of Washington Libraries has announced this year’s winners of their annual student video contest. #IHeartUWLibraries asks students to create videos that see the library through students’ eyes. The 1st place winner certainly checks all the boxes, but how did the “mom” video not win!?

💻 Project LEND (Library Expansion of Networked Delivery) is a research project led by the University of California Libraries. This two year study “provides new insight into what students, faculty, and researchers want to be able to do with digital books, and how libraries, publishers and distributors of digital books can better meet those needs within the parameters of U.S. copyright law.” Not surprisingly, researchers want all their digital books to be accessible from the same source and they want persistent access. So do we, friends. So do we.

🐆 It was the leopard purse that drew me in. Doctoral students and librarians at Northwestern University have digitized (including 3D images) a collection of items gathered by a white traveler in Africa in the 1950s. To help move the objects beyond the colonizing gaze, the library team added more context, including essays about the artifacts, links to supplementary scholarly readings, and connections to the works of modern African artists.

💰 “When students don’t have to choose between living expenses and their textbooks, they are more likely to have better academic outcomes.” There’s a lot to unpack in that sentence, but it’s not an untrue statement. Which is why Duke University Libraries is hosting an Open Educational Resources community of practice. Open to instructors of any rank, participants are expected to redesign and “flip”  at least one meaningful element of tier syllabus to OER. The stipend is $1,000.

Notable mentions

Wooden boxes stacked together
From IU Libraries: The Soma Cube, designed by Piet Hein
  • Northwestern University Library received a gift of more than 3,000 Hebrew books, some quite rare.
  • Stony Brook has created and hired for a new library position: director of AI.
  • Oregon State has finished its first year pilot testing a library pop-up at its Graduate Research Center.
  • A curator of puzzles? Indiana University Bloomington has one of those and is highlighting some of its holdings. (shown above)
  • CalTech has new University Librarian. So does UC Santa Barbara. (Me: seems like there’s quite a few retirements and leadership changes happening this summer)
  • The J. Willard Marriott Library has a round up of materials related to the theme “libraries are essential.”

Finally, quite a few libraries posted recommended resources for Pride Month. Notable examples include Villanova, University of Utah, University of Dayton (and again), Emory, and DePaul.

On socials

Nothing recently has warmed my heart so much as this video of Utah Valley State University Libraries calling other libraries to tell them they love them. It’s not just the wholesome content, but the fact that it shows libraries interacting with each other, which (in my experience) always gets a positive response from students.

https://www.tiktok.com/@uvulibrary/video/7515279957812186414

If I were hiring for a new student worker (and I am), I would utilize this format from Florida State University Libraries. The comments are enough to show this position is a desirable campus job. I mean, a working fridge should be standard.

This one only works on a mobile device, but I LOVE the various permutations of the “hold the dots and scroll” format on Instagram. Oklahoma State University Libraries used a simple version to highlight their building (and its fountain), but while I was there I noticed something else. Pop on over to their wall and you’ll notice all their recent posts use the OSU orange prominently. The overall effect is professional and shows a careful attention to detail.

I didn’t jump on this trend fast enough, so I was happy to see CSU Fullerton make a parody of the “plant boyfriend” meme to promote Pollack Library’s summer exhibitions. Give me all the wholesome content. You better be nice! (update: I finally jumped on it)

banner image: The first graduating class of Illinois State Normal University, 1860. (Photo/Milner Library’s Dr. Jo Ann Rayfield Archives)

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students playing an Atari game

News and announcements

🕹️ The Hesburgh Libraries at Notre Dame invited students to explore its Legacy Technology Collection, which includes original copies of games from the 1970s through the 2000s, including such games as Pac-Man on Atari 2600, Oregon Trail on Apple IIe, and Michael Crichton’s “Amazon” on Commodore 64. Like working with medieval manuscripts, playing games on the original consoles (vs. digital downloads) offers students and researchers a more nuanced perspective on what it was like (for their parents) to experience these cultural artifacts. 

📺 Start an article with “discovered in an old basement” (or attic or garage), and you’ve got my attention. Stanford University Libraries has acquired the only known prototype of the MingKwai Chinese typewriter, the first Chinese typewriter to possess a keyboard. With support from a foundation, the typewriter will be preserved, with care and maintenance, and available for research, exhibits, and academic programs.

🤖 Yale Library has created a new leadership position: a director of AI initiatives in the humanities. In this role, Ben Glasser, associate professor of English, will help faculty navigate the use of AI in teaching, research, and curriculum development and take the lead on developing university-wide strategies and policies. “Glaser plans to develop group consultations with faculty around AI engagement in research and teaching, explore AI’s role in writing and composition, and develop streamlined access to AI resources for faculty and students.”

👨‍💻 The University of New Mexico Libraries has launched an AI and pedagogy summer program for humanities faculty and graduate students. During the 6-week cohort-based program, “participants will work toward a classroom project such as an AI-informed assignment, open educational resource (OER), or syllabus redesign.” The program also comes with a ChatGPT Plus subscription. I look forward to hearing about the outcomes of this learning community!

🧘‍♂️ Earlier this month, the University of Wyoming’s Coe Library hosted “Coechella: A Wellness and Destress Fest.” For nine days, they provided a variety of activities including goat yoga, foot massages, grab and go breakfast, craft kits, a silent disco, and more. The menu of options available to support students during a notably stressful time in the semester is incredible.

Notable mentions 

Bingo card with reading-themed options

Finally, with May being the traditional end of the academic year for universities on the semester schedule, numerous libraries were celebrating the winners of their respective student library awards, including the University of Texas at Austin, University of Kentucky, University of Southern California, Loyola Marymount University, Yeshiva University, Russell Sage College, Loyola Chicago, Emory University, UMass Amherst, Penn State, DePaul University, and UC Davis.  

On socials

Do libraries actually have books? Or is it all just one big conspiracy theory? That is what Oklahoma State University Library is searching to find out. “Between 2 (in)Terns” is a delightful series currently being produced in the deadpan style of “Cunk on Earth” (the series changes with each new host). I can only imagine the host is doing everything in their power just to hold it together (Note to OSU Library: please release the bloopers. I know they must exist. 😉).

File this next one under “videos I want to make.” Virginia Tech Libraries profiled one of their graduating seniors by creating a short video about their work as an architecture student in the University Archives. It’s a beautifully produced video, with excellent b-roll, that highlights the value of working in the library and connects it to the student’s overall university experience.

“Wait, are they back!?” was the first thing I said when I saw this Instagram post from UK Libraries. A couple years back, UK Libraries posted daily images on Twitter of their library building photoshopped into various famous images, including works of arts, movie posters, scenes from films, and photographs. The collection was a true work of genius. Their X account is now listed as suspended (though, who really cares because X is dead), so I’m eager to see if they’ll bring back the project on IG.

Finally, here’s one more shout-out to Oklahoma State University who took a terrible meme and offered an innovative twist. The AI-generated “X in a box” meme was sweeping the socials earlier this month, where “X” was some profession and the tools that came packaged with it aligned with the profession, often tongue in cheek. The over-saturation of the meme and the use of AI unsurprisingly sparked some backlash. So it’s refreshing to see OSU’s take. It’s human. It’s charming. As one commenter stated: “human art >>> ai ANY DAY”.

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six library staffers dressed as characters from the Clue boardgame

News and announcements

🔍 Let’s begin by acknowledging that to be “chair of the Clue Committee” might be the best service opportunity out there in academia. At UNC Chapel Hill’s Wilson Library, they are set to host their 20th live-action Clue game (pictured above). The classic characters are portrayed by library staff and teams compete using clues that introduce students to various aspects of the library. The student teams even coordinate their outfits! 

📸 “For the past eight months, Sabrina Gunn, the Feinstein Papers Digital Archivist, has pored over 16,000 digital photographs to arrange, describe, and paint a vivid picture of Feinstein’s incredible career as the longest-serving woman in the Senate.” That statement alone made my jaw drop, but then you look at the photographs. We’re all used to seeing the professional shots, but this archive from Stanford University Libraries showcases some of the BTS, informal photography that, for me, allows us to see a side of Feinstein that is more candid and visceral. 

🧵 An internship at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln has enabled one student to explore the ins and outs of archival work through quilts, quilt making, and quilt history. The UNL Libraries actually have 123 distinct collections that make up their quilt research collections. Related: The Woodruff Library at Atlanta University Center is currently hosting an exhibition that includes more than 60 quilts that celebrate historically black colleges and universities, the Divine 9 Black Greek-letter organizations, and other important African American traditions. 

🛳️ Closing an academic library branch is never easy, but it’s especially difficult when the location is off campus at a remote facility. Duke University Libraries has decide to close its library at the Duke Marine Lab, moving its collections and reallocating some of the staffing resources into a new position that has a broader portfolio of climate and sustainability strategy support. It sounds like this move was inevitable, but hastened by recent federal funding cuts.

hardcover book with brown and blue marbled cover that includes image of a rooster on front
Hand-made children’s book “King of the Coop” by Isabelle Pethtel

📕 The University of Kentucky Libraries has a lovely overview of all the benefits of exploring their King Library Press. Founded in 1956, the press still operates, hosting apprenticeships, events, and workshops, as well as producing new works. Earlier this month, they hosted a workshop that gave participants the opportunity to create a small globe. Wood engravings, typefaces, broadsides, cards, and keepsakes are just some of the many materials visitors can explore in addition to books and other printed ephemera.

🛠️ The University of Georgia Libraries, in collaboration with the campus’s Center for Teaching and Learning, has selected nine faculty members to be “Special Collections Faculty Teaching Fellows.” This program, now in its 10th year, supports faculty’s ability to explore, research, and develop courses that feature materials from special collections in ways that advance the learning objectives and interests of their respective disciplines.

📖 The River Campus Libraries at the University of Rochester follows the 500 year history of a book of hours they recently acquired. The library worked with the campus art gallery and Buffalo State University’s art conservation department to assess the book’s authenticity, condition, and provenance. I especially love how this post discusses the finer points of acquiring (and paying for) such a valuable resource, as well as the necessary storage logistics (turning the pages every 3 months!). 

🤓 Over the past year, more than 1200 K-12 students have come to the University of Minnesota Libraries to attend events like “Gopherbaloo,” a history event that helps students explore an academic library and attend lessons about project organization and development, and utilize the library’s print and online collections to find sources for their projects. 

🫦 San Diego State University Library has acquired the archive of Low Magazine, a protest publication that began in 1998 and grew from 100 copies to a circulation of 20K. The library is adding posters, news clippings, and ephemera to the collection as well. The magazine was distributed on college campuses throughout Southern California and Northern Arizona and ran for 27 issues from 1988 to 1997.

🤡 Milner Library at Illinois State University is offering a small fellowship to researchers interested in utilizing its Circus and Allied Arts Collection. The collection includes related arts such as carnivals, carousels, Wild West shows, and vaudeville. It sounds like the fund can be used to offset just about anything related to the cost of conducting research, including but not limited to costs of travel, room and board, and digital scans.

Notable mentions

various colored and patterned beads
  • The University of Delaware launched a new digital collection highlighting the life and legacy of civil rights leader Littleton “Lit” Mitchell (1918–2004).
  • Because we’re all talking about egg prices these days, the ZSR Library at Wake Forest has curated a list of resources for researching commodity markets.
  • In honor of their current exhibition “Textiles Tells Stories: Exploring the African Studies Library Collection,” Boston University Libraries hosted a Krobo beads crafting event. (pictured above)
  • Duke University is inviting students to donate their textbooks at the end of the semester to help future students save money.
  • The University of Southern California received a $2.5 million gift to name and endow the ONE Archives director position.
  • Purdue Libraries hosted its second annual “A Celebration of Books” to honor faculty who published books throughout the past academic year.
  • James Madison University Libraries temporarily took down their construction fencing to facilitate student graduation photos. Love that! Related: UNC Libraries has some advice for photographers in their reading room. 
  • Speaking of graduation, the more than 100 graduating student employees at Yale Library will receive a specially designed bookplate, placed in a book of their choice. 

Finally, some academic libraries have been posting about the recent federal funding and administrative changes (i.e. IMLS, NEH, and ERIC), including Drexel University, Villanova, University of Cincinnati, and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. 

On socials

Over the years, I’ve shifted the balance of my Instagram feed away from graphics and text to instead favor photography and video, but I am still a sucker for eye-catching graphics. The UCSB Library posted a carousel deck (do you call them deck? I call them decks) to promote “Libtopia,” or some of the non-curricular services and collections they provide. (Update: Libtopia is a riff on “Deltopia,” an unsanctioned street party near UCSB’s campus. The post highlights resources that students may be interested in post-Deltopia, e.g. wellness vending machine to buy aspirin. Thanks, Johannes, from USCB Libraries for the insider info!)

You can always tell when someone makes something for the sheer joy of making it. I haven’t spoken with this creator from Northwest Missouri State University, but I’m going to bet this audio was playing in their head for days and they just could not wait to find an opportunity to film it. Or maybe that’s just how it works for me.

The “doing ___ based on how much I like ___” format has been trending for a few weeks now, so I was glad to see a few libraries make it their own. Binghamton University Libraries rated spots around the library using book thickness, while Clemson University twirled for how loud you should be on different floors of the library.

Finally, we have a superbly done video tutorial from Ohio University on how to prepare the camcorder. It uses a simple overhead shot and it’s brief. They’ve just uploaded two other tutorials in this mode, including another for the camcorder and one for microphone assembly. As more academic libraries expand into YouTube Shorts (which we should all be doing IMO), this is a perfect use case.

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moose dressed in a sweater in a library

Social media happens so fast. I mean, just over a week ago, none of us considered making a banana peel part of our morning routine. So in between the monthly “Recently in Academic Libraries” posts, I pull together regular updates on what AcadLibs are doing on social. Please enjoy these recent highlights. 

Always check the calendar

Academic libraries stepped up their game this year for April Fools. Perhaps I wasn’t as attentive in the past, but I noticed more accounts engaging in what was obviously planned content for this internet high holy day. Carroll University Library pulled a blast from the past and decided to shrink all their books. Amherst College Library introduced their campus’s first silent dorm. Cornell University Library took flight with its latest mobile branch.

I honestly had to do a double take and remind myself what day it was with American University Library’s new coffee ad as well as Boston College University’s latest collection development priority (spoiler: it’s dolls).

The most popular trend by far was the inclusion of animals. Both Wash U and William & Mary offered therapy dogs for checkout. Not to be outdone, LSU advertised therapy tigers. And the University of Albany began lending horses. Animals became librarians as well. Catholic University Libraries hired Catalog Mary McCatFace and the University of Idaho hired the first ever moose librarian (seen above).

But the post that shocked me the most was this one from Sacred Heart University. Nope, nope, nope.

Poking fun at ourselves

Recently at my place of work, we’ve been experimenting with creating more engaging content that reminds students about our library’s policies, but in ways that feel non-confrontational (e.g. logging out of library computers, not taking our staplers, and not being too loud in study rooms). So I enjoyed seeing similar tactics employed by University of Wyoming Libraries to recognize difficult wayfinding needs. But it was K-State Libraries who hit the nail on the head with their gentle shaming of students who leave their belongings unattended in the library. So trusting!

I feel pretty

Anytime I am struggling to come up with a piece of content, I know I can always count on beautiful photography and high-quality b-roll to carry the day. This is what makes UNC Greensboro’s “mindfulness moment” work so well, as well as Georgia Tech’s “go to the library.” But it has been the recent “not my house” trend that really gave libraries a chance to re-use some of those stellar shots. Here it is by Mizzou Libraries and Yale Libraries. Similarly, the “get me to god’s country” offers the same opportunity, as demonstrated by UC Santa Barbara Library.

And finally…

Someone had to do it. Not at all surprised to see Utah Valley University be the one to take the plunge.

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man with clip board inspecting a magnetic tape machine

When it comes to communications and outreach work, I think we often fall prey to the availability bias. This is the tendency to favor what is right in front of you, or what is most readily called to mind, and to assume it is the right or best available option. Case in point: Recently I was having a conversation with my team about how to best promote an event. Someone chimed in with “Put in on the homepage. That way everyone will see it.”

Breathe in.

As librarians, we see our homepage every day. It’s where we often start when helping students with their research. It’s how we most readily access our policies documents and forms. It’s where we go to look up another librarian’s contact information (because for some ungodly reason that information isn’t readily available in Outlook). 

Unfortunately, that’s not how non-librarians and staff experience our website. When most users come to our homepage, they immediately click on “Hours,” “Group Study Room Reservations” or the library catalog search. Most never scroll below the fold to see any of the promotional material posted there. Moreover, the 25% of users who access our site on handheld devices don’t see the promo content because it’s hidden in the mobile interface. A whopping 0.02% of users click on the promo material on our homepage.

That promo material has a purpose, but it’s not there to drive traffic (that’s a story for a different post). The point to understand is that the data doesn’t support the assumption that the homepage is a highly visible space. Or more specifically, that high visibility leads to conversion. It’s not like digital platforms such as Spotify or YouTube where users hang out for long periods of time, and which can use banner ads and takeovers: on our homepage, users are on their way to somewhere else and rarely come back in a single session.

The same could be said of fliers posted in the library. We walk by these spaces multiple times a day into and out of work, on our way to the bathrooms, or to a meeting. But that isn’t how most users experiences our spaces. Most users pop in to quickly grab a resource, to print something out, or to meet up with friends in a study room. At best, they might make two passes by a poster or a flier, and usually on the way to somewhere else. There are effective ways to use print media in a library context that might catch a student’s attention, but they don’t include a flier posted to a wall or sitting in an acrylic holder on a service desk. 

This isn’t to say that the library homepage and fliers are not somewhat effective. Perhaps in the “long tail” of library outreach, they do make a difference, especially over longer periods of time. But if we’re using metrics like engagement per visit, the numbers are essentially zero. 

Intentional outreach like email marketing, tabling, word of mouth via faculty, and social media (to an extent) are far more effective methods. The number of people I can get to scan a QR code to register for a workshop by talking to them 1:1 at a tabling event, or to click on an e-resources link in a personalized email, or engage with an entertaining social media post reminding students about a library policy, is far higher than any website embed or printed flier. Again, this isn’t to say those latter methods don’t move the needle at all, but our faith in their efficacy is grossly overestimated, I suspect, due to our overfamiliarity with them. 

I might even go so far as to suggest that passive outreach, like fliers and website posts, is more about making us feel better. We feel we’ve done something. We can brush off ours hands and go home. Promotion achievement unlocked! But the data doesn’t hold up. To effectively connect with students and faculty, you need intention. You need strategy. You need a plan. And you need to follow the data. 

Breathe out.

What I’m reading

🫣🇺🇸✏️ The Erasure of Diverse American Histories by Trevor Dawes. “American history is not a single narrative but a complex tapestry of interrelated stories. When we attempt to simplify this tapestry to showcase only certain threads, we not only do a disservice to historical accuracy but also deny future generations the full understanding of how our nation developed through the contributions of people from all backgrounds.”

🤝👊🏛️ Colleges Face a Prisoner’s Dilemma by David Asch. “If universities can see past the outcomes of any single encounter, and can reawaken the mutual trust they have long operated with, they may reset the terms of engagement between higher education and the state”

Links to the past

  • 1 year ago: At least one of these books is still in my TBR pile.
  • 5 years ago: I was only just beginning to understand what quarantine would do to my work-life balance, but I was coping as best as I could.
  • 10 years ago: I was publishing, presenting, and (most importantly) building a Battledecks competition for ACRL 2015. We should bring those back.
  • 15 years ago: I was reading André Cossette’s “Humanism and Libraries.” Wow, this is the first time I’ve added the 15 year marker to this section!

Overheard online

If they make a John Wick 5, I want it to be set in afterlife and Wick is contracted by the ruler of said afterlife to kill renegade demons/spirits. The payment is to be reunited with his wife and the puppy from the first film. The final scene shows him opening his wallet to look at his newly resurrected identity and it says John Constantine. — @fskornia on Mastodon 

banner image: Atlas Negative Collection Images on flickr

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Bottle of Epiphany 2020 Grenache and wine glass

It’s been a minute since I posted a wine tasting review! I’ve spent the last month experimenting with classic martini recipes and not paying as much attention to my first love, grapes. So it was refreshing to come back to something local with a distinct California flavor.

On the nose, there is raspberry and chaparral. Light to medium bodied, with hints of oak, rose water, and tart fruit. Maybe licorice as well? Good tannin balance and a tight/focused structure and a delicate finish. I would pair this with cheese and almonds. Possibly a light chocolate. Great to drink right now, but you could also hold back for 3-5 years.

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finder touching a printing of The Scream painting

News and announcements

🎶 Musical theatre students at the University of Georgia Libraries curated an exhibition of classic Broadway musical posters and artifacts. The selected items were then passed on to another performance-based class who will perform selections from the musicals at the exhibition’s opening reception. “The concert on March 24 will present standards from familiar titles like Brigadoon, Cabaret, Hair, and Kiss Me Kate. But it will also highlight songs from lesser-known shows such as Dear World, It’s a Bird It’s a Plane It’s Superman, Lost in the Stars, and No Strings.” I love the coordination and collaboration across multiple classes.

🏀 Not sure what library merch is most appealing to students? The University at Buffalo Libraries is hosting a March Madness-style bracket challenge to find out. They are putting 16 potential library merch items head-to-head. What a simple an effective way to see what students really want.

😌 “Sometimes the hardest part about studying is staying focused.” The University of Cincinnati Libraries has created a “Study and Focus Tools” collection of items such as fidget toys, blue light glasses, white noise machines, and more. The collection won’t be available until fall 2025, but they are showcasing the items at upcoming tabling events, which is a great way to pilot test the items before putting them into circulation. 

🇮🇷 The University of Pennsylvania Libraries has received an extensive collection related to the late Iranian poet Nader Naderpour, donated by his close friend Farhad Mafie and his widow, Jaleh Bassiri Naderpour. The collection spans six decades and includes correspondence with literary figures, 400 tapes of lectures and interviews, 45 videos, over 1,600 scanned articles and notes, 1,000 images of handwritten poems, and 200 photographs.

🎤 Berkeley Library has created and released an Oral History Agreement Toolkit, “a collection of templates, guiding documents, and resources designed to help transform how institutions approach oral history agreements.” These resources can help libraries and archivists protect narrators’ rights and address privacy concerns, adhere to best practices, resolve ambiguities in usage permissions, respond to common scenarios, understand legal issues, and standardize terms. 

🖨️ It’s always wonderful to see libraries increasing access to information resources in new ways. At UTA Libraries, they have added Braille and PIAF (Pictures in a Flash) printers (pictured above) to assist visually impaired students. These printers convert digital documents into tactile Braille and raised-line images, respectively. The Braille printer translates PDFs into Braille text, supporting over 100 languages, while the PIAF printer transforms visual content into touchable graphics. 

Notable mentions

Room with potted tree, pillows, and a carpet
The Peabody Library reflection room at Vanderbilt University

Finally, there were two notable themes this month. A handful of libraries celebrated Open Education Week, including The Catholic University of America, UMass Dartmouth, and Emory University. Additionally, a fair number of libraries curated collections for Women’s History Month, including Binghamton University, Berkeley, Wake Forest, Touro University, WashU, and San Diego State. 

On socials

I love that feeling I get when I’m watching a Reel or a TikTok and I just know the folks involved had a great time making it. That’s the vibe I get from a recent University at Buffalo Libraries Instagram post. Maybe it’s just the nostalgia for the TV of my generation, but I watched this at least twice beginning to end just for the feels. If I could convince my colleagues to do this type of content, I would do it all the time.

Speaking of folks having a great time on social, Kay P Maye at Tulane Libraries went around to students asking them basic facts about the library. The results are hilarious and include (because why not?) someone dressed as a crawfish. Unless you read the title of the video, it isn’t until the very end that you get the reveal that it’s a promo for an upcoming book event. And props to leading with the crawfish to hook folks in the first two seconds.

Library reconstruction projects begin with high excitement but then immediately enter a long period of stagnation, frustration, and possibly resentment. So to keep the positive energy looking toward the eventual reopening, it’s important to keep the campus communuty engaged with the library’s progress. James Madison University Libraries did a fabulous job collaborating with their univeristy president to showcase what is essentially a poorly-lit construction zone. They also managed to work in appreciation for their donors. (I honestly think the president was learning about the project as they were filming this, so nice work JMU connecting with that major stakeholder).

As a supervisor, as much as I rely on my student assistants to help with content development, I have to regularly remind myself that they need profession development opportunities as well. Here, Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries had their photography intern tag along with the university’s main marketing team on a photoshoot. I love all the BTS footage. 

Finally, I love the effect that UF Libraries is doing here by aligning faces of students in quick succession. It’s the type of template that could be used to highlight university photographs, buildings, mascots, or faculty and staff. With a title like “100 Years (and faces)” I would have expected to see a wider ranges of images, but the messaging is still the same: the university archives is the place where IHEs preserve their history.

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Social media happens so fast. I mean, just over a week ago, saying that I can’t get anxiety out of my brain meant an entirely different thing. So in between the monthly “Recently in Academic Libraries” posts, I pull together regular updates on what AcadLibs are doing on social. Please enjoy these recent highlights.

The content is mysterious and important

I’m sure we’re not all watching Severance, but it feels like entire world is watching Severance (or maybe that’s just my fyp). Major props to Oklahoma State University Libraries for getting the dolly zoom elevator shot perfect. Over at University of Maryland Libraries, they put together a small set of Severance references to promote locking in at the library. I even jumped on the “outie/innie” trend at my library as a way to subtly poke fun at the things some students do in the library (and yes it’s true that someone actually left an entire bowl of spaghetti once).

Promoting OERs with high-quality content

KU Libraries used both video and still images to celebrate a faculty member who is an open educational resources advocate. The video is a solid interview with engaging b-roll footage, and a good example of what you can accomplish with skilled a videographer. The carousel works equally well, combining good photography with simple branded graphics. Instead of trying to put images and words together in a single slide, KU Libraries posted image, then graphic, then image, giving each its full space. I hope this is part of a series! 

Three pieces of trending content

1. “Last week, I just got two offers for the job that I want.” The J. Willard Marriott Library posted this solidly feel-good video across their socials, encouraging students to find the good in life. It follows on the heels of a trend I’ve seen many universities doing (including my own) but I love the tight camera angle and ASMR-style audio. It takes a familiar trend and makes it more intimate. 

2. The “subtle foreshadowing” meme is a great way to take advantage of the rule that you have to capture someone’s attention in the first 1-2 seconds of a social media post in order to hook them. It’s an obvious gimmick, but the self-referentiality of the format works. CSU Fullerton’s Pollak Library pied their dean and associate dean as a thank you to donors following a Day of Giving. I really hope that was a student worker throwing the pies. 

3. I am always impressed by libraries that have the time and energy to hop onto the awards season bandwagon by posting timely content. The go-to meme is, of course, the juxtaposition of a book cover with a celebrity’s red carpet outfit. So it was refreshing to see a slightly different take by Georgia Tech Library who used high quality photography and Oscar Awards categories to highlight their library spaces.

And finally…

Ok, Chatham University Library, this is hot.

header image: still from the University of Maryland Libraries Severance parody video

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black pub holding a tennis ball chew toy

“Have mercy now, save poor Bob, if you please.” – Robert Johnson, Cross Road Blues, 1936

I am at a crossroads. If I decide to stay in academic libraries, I am well-positioned at this moment to either (1) move into a more administrative/leadership role or (2) move into a more creative, content development role. I have enough experience and have built enough skills in both areas to pursue one or the other more deeply and each offers a path to greater satisfaction at work. Regarding the former, I enjoy managing large, complex projects and supporting a team of skilled employees. Regarding the latter, I also enjoy delving into creating something that is fundamentally unique to my talents. 

In my current position, it seems unlikely that I would have the space or resources to pursue both paths simultaneously. Still, I’ve been thinking about what it takes to be successful in either role: a good manager and a good content creator. What follows is a short list of attributes/habits that I find useful. Perhaps I’ll be utilizing one of these sets more fully in the near future. Or perhaps I’ll continue to cultivate both to the best of my ability. 🤷‍♂️

Tips for being a good manager

  • Your employees don’t support you; you support them. Start every day by asking your team “what do you need?” 
  • Start from a place of curiosity, not criticism. When your team comes to you with an idea, begin by framing it this way: “this could be successful if…”
  • Make your team part of the story. Regularly tell your team how their work fits into the bigger narrative. 
  • And then, give them the space to write it their own way.
  • If you have to say no, try to think of at least one thing that would “get you to yes.” That might not change your answer, but it could change how you both approach the issue.
  • Always assume your employees want to be as successful as you do.
  • Staying informed is a two-way conversation. You shouldn’t rely entirely on your team to keep you in the loop. At the same time, they shouldn’t rely entirely on you to follow up on things. It’s a relationship and it takes both parties to do the work.

Tips for being a good content creator

  • Constantly be learning new skills and closely examine what the best in the field are doing.
  • Block out your schedule so you can have longer periods of uninterrupted work.
  • Keep the number of projects on your plate as small as possible. Three is good rule of thumb.
  • Focus on quality even if it takes more time. This is what will set your work apart from others’… not how “responsive” you are to emails. 
  • Have a standard workflow but be willing to abandon it if you have the option for uninterrupted focus time.
  • Never skip the pre-production stage. Plan, plan, plan.
  • Whatever step in the creative process you’re avoiding, that’s where you’ll find joy. 
  • Take a break if it’s no longer fun. There’s no problem a good walk can’t resolve.

What I’m reading 

🧑‍💻🏴‍☠️🪴 Why Personal Websites Matter More Than Ever by Joan Westenberg. “Personal websites matter – now, more than ever – because we can see, clearly, with our own eyes, what happens when a handful of companies control and own the medium and the message. It gets silenced, suppressed, and subtly reshaped without us.”

🧑🏽‍🏫✊🏽🎓 The Authoritarian Endgame on Higher Education by NYTimes. “For people in higher education, this is a moment both to be bolder about trumpeting its strengths and to be more reflective about addressing its weaknesses. […] University presidents seem to be hoping that if they keep their heads down, the threat will pass — or at least pass by their campus. They are unlikely to be so fortunate.”

Links to the past 

  • 1 year ago: I was singing the praises of using email marketing for outreach to college students. Some folks interpreted this as “libraries don’t need social” but that’s not what I said. Social media, as I’ve shown in recent posts, has a significant impact on how students view the library’s role on campus and how they feel about it. Feelings matter. Even if they can’t be quantified. 
  • 5 years ago: Nothing. It was March 2020. 🦠 I wasn’t focused on blogging at the time, though in hindsight I wish I had been.
  • 10 years ago: I was doing the “Day in the Life of a Librarian” post. We should all do that again.

Overheard online 

This historian gives you explicit permission to delete and destroy each and every bit of data (pun intended) that can put you or others in danger. Lives Saved >>> Historical Record Preserved – @lavaeolus on Mastodon

banner photo: Meet Poppy, the newest member of the family.