Information and Library Science Related Activities
This page contains summaries of my educational experiences outside of school. Where appropriate samples of my work related to these activities have been included.
Conference Attendance
DigiCamp'13, Smithfield, RI
March 11, 2013
I attended discussions called "Storing and Sharing Archival Material," "Creating Connections between library resources: discovery tools, federated searching and next generation catalogs," and "Technology for Ourselves and Our Patrons." It was nice to hear what librarians are doing with technology in college libraries around New England. I took notes on software that I had not heard of before and other concepts that were new to me. I was able to participate in discussions this year after completing more coursework.
I attended discussions called "Storing and Sharing Archival Material," "Creating Connections between library resources: discovery tools, federated searching and next generation catalogs," and "Technology for Ourselves and Our Patrons." It was nice to hear what librarians are doing with technology in college libraries around New England. I took notes on software that I had not heard of before and other concepts that were new to me. I was able to participate in discussions this year after completing more coursework.
Leading the Change: Integrating the Library into the Future of Higher Education, ACRL New England Annual Conference, Worcester, MA
May 18, 2012
See also Resume
I attended lectures titled "Three-year Study of Information Literacy Learning Outcomes in a First-Year Seminar," and "Hey! Great to Run into You: Embedded Librarians Forging Partnerships across Campus." As an MLS student attending the conference I was able to participate in the Conference Paring Program. This allowed me to be partnered with an experienced librarian during the conference. I was able to ask the partner about her work and could talk to her during meals and while looking at poster displays. The conference let me see new ideas and successful projects from college libraries throughout New England.
See also Resume
I attended lectures titled "Three-year Study of Information Literacy Learning Outcomes in a First-Year Seminar," and "Hey! Great to Run into You: Embedded Librarians Forging Partnerships across Campus." As an MLS student attending the conference I was able to participate in the Conference Paring Program. This allowed me to be partnered with an experienced librarian during the conference. I was able to ask the partner about her work and could talk to her during meals and while looking at poster displays. The conference let me see new ideas and successful projects from college libraries throughout New England.
DigiCamp 2012 Unconference, Worcester, MA
March 8, 2012
I addend discussions titled "The Mobile Library," "Perpetual Access," and "Institutional Repositories & Digital Archives." All of the information was new to me so I spent the conference listening and taking notes. I came away with a basic understanding of LOCKSS and CLOCKSS. Also, I was able to meet librarians from colleges around New England.
I addend discussions titled "The Mobile Library," "Perpetual Access," and "Institutional Repositories & Digital Archives." All of the information was new to me so I spent the conference listening and taking notes. I came away with a basic understanding of LOCKSS and CLOCKSS. Also, I was able to meet librarians from colleges around New England.
Group Membership
Friends of the Tolland Public Library, Tolland, CT
February 2012 - Present
I have attended many of this group's monthly meetings. I participate in their votes to decide which museum passes should be purchased and which other library requests should be supported. I staffed a table in the library for an afternoon to encourage patrons to learn more about the group and become members. Through my membership, I have learned how a Friends of the Library group functions and I have also gotten to see some of the workings of a public library.
I have attended many of this group's monthly meetings. I participate in their votes to decide which museum passes should be purchased and which other library requests should be supported. I staffed a table in the library for an afternoon to encourage patrons to learn more about the group and become members. Through my membership, I have learned how a Friends of the Library group functions and I have also gotten to see some of the workings of a public library.
Internships
Africa Regional Services Intern, U.S. Department of State, Paris, France
Research Library Intern, Old Sturbridge Village, Sturbridge, MA
May 2012 - August 2012
See also Resume
I was an intern in the Research Library at Old Sturbridge Village two days per week for ten weeks. During the internship, I accessioned newly donated books and prepared some of them to be incorporated into the collection by adding spine labels to them and making note on the paper catalog cards that two copies of a book were available. I shelved books and archival materials in the library. I retrieved archival materials for the library staff person to use in her presentation. I was introduced to Ancestery.com to find out more about a historical person of interest to the library staff. Also, I used an index of census records from the 1800s to determine if an account book was from New Hampshire or Massachusetts. I searched for books and manuscripts related to quilting using the card catalog. This was a challenge because many of the catalog cards for the manuscripts were quite old and were not written in ISBN format and had very brief descriptions. I ended up making a list of all diaries by women in the hope that some of them would mention quilting.
I wrote original catalog records for three different manuscripts in the archive using Microsoft Word. The printing of catalog cards proved to be a challenge because none of the printers that I had access to could print on catalog cards or perforated cards. I explored other options by starting a discussion thread on LinkedIn to see if any library staff at other libraries had suggestions. That did not provide any options that would work for printing cards and one person recommended making an electronic database. I printed the cards I had written in ISBD format on card stock. With some help from a graphic designer, I was able to cut the cards by hand to the appropriate size for the card catalog. Then I hole punched the cards and filed them into the card catalog. It was a great moment because the card catalog had not been updated in eleven years! After realizing how difficult it would be to create paper cards, I began exploring other options. I spoke with a representative from OCLC to determine if cards could be purchased. The main problem with the paper cards was the amount of time needed to cut them by hand. The library had so many books that needed to be cataloged that this was not a reasonable solution.
Also, I explored electronic options for the catalog. A portion of the library catalog had been digitized and is available through the intranet. I thought that future updates could be added to this, but after talking with the IT staff, I found that there was not interface for the catalog program. No new records could be entered. The library's collection is much too large for an Excel spreadsheet (30,000 items). I suggested using Excel as a stopgap measure for creation of records until another solution could be found. However, my internship ended before I could work on this.
I did copy-cataloging for some newly accessioned books, but was not able to complete the catalog cards. This was because I was unfamiliar with the Cutter Numbers used with the Dewey Decimal System. Near the end of my internship, I found the book that previous librarians had used to assign Cutter Numbers and taught myself how to use it. There was not enough time to finish the cards though.
Each day, I spent at least an hour working on the inventory. Two volunteers had already spent a a couple of years on it and they had created and written down a procedure for the inventory. For the inventory, I selected one drawer of the shelflist and went through the collection checking that all of the books in my drawer were accounted for and in the proper place. While I was doing this, I also straightened and dusted the shelves. When I finished with a shelf it looked very nice.
During my internship, I saw many of the challenges faced by museum libraries. Looking back on it now that I am finishing the MLS program, I also realize that I was seeing the importance of cataloging in providing access to materials and how beneficial subject headings can be. I am aware of the benefits of a computerized catalog. I enjoyed my summer at Old Sturbridge Village, which is one of my favorite museums. It was great to be able to see and handle pieces from their manuscript collection. I wish the Research Library a great future of enabling people to study the past.
See also Resume
I was an intern in the Research Library at Old Sturbridge Village two days per week for ten weeks. During the internship, I accessioned newly donated books and prepared some of them to be incorporated into the collection by adding spine labels to them and making note on the paper catalog cards that two copies of a book were available. I shelved books and archival materials in the library. I retrieved archival materials for the library staff person to use in her presentation. I was introduced to Ancestery.com to find out more about a historical person of interest to the library staff. Also, I used an index of census records from the 1800s to determine if an account book was from New Hampshire or Massachusetts. I searched for books and manuscripts related to quilting using the card catalog. This was a challenge because many of the catalog cards for the manuscripts were quite old and were not written in ISBN format and had very brief descriptions. I ended up making a list of all diaries by women in the hope that some of them would mention quilting.
I wrote original catalog records for three different manuscripts in the archive using Microsoft Word. The printing of catalog cards proved to be a challenge because none of the printers that I had access to could print on catalog cards or perforated cards. I explored other options by starting a discussion thread on LinkedIn to see if any library staff at other libraries had suggestions. That did not provide any options that would work for printing cards and one person recommended making an electronic database. I printed the cards I had written in ISBD format on card stock. With some help from a graphic designer, I was able to cut the cards by hand to the appropriate size for the card catalog. Then I hole punched the cards and filed them into the card catalog. It was a great moment because the card catalog had not been updated in eleven years! After realizing how difficult it would be to create paper cards, I began exploring other options. I spoke with a representative from OCLC to determine if cards could be purchased. The main problem with the paper cards was the amount of time needed to cut them by hand. The library had so many books that needed to be cataloged that this was not a reasonable solution.
Also, I explored electronic options for the catalog. A portion of the library catalog had been digitized and is available through the intranet. I thought that future updates could be added to this, but after talking with the IT staff, I found that there was not interface for the catalog program. No new records could be entered. The library's collection is much too large for an Excel spreadsheet (30,000 items). I suggested using Excel as a stopgap measure for creation of records until another solution could be found. However, my internship ended before I could work on this.
I did copy-cataloging for some newly accessioned books, but was not able to complete the catalog cards. This was because I was unfamiliar with the Cutter Numbers used with the Dewey Decimal System. Near the end of my internship, I found the book that previous librarians had used to assign Cutter Numbers and taught myself how to use it. There was not enough time to finish the cards though.
Each day, I spent at least an hour working on the inventory. Two volunteers had already spent a a couple of years on it and they had created and written down a procedure for the inventory. For the inventory, I selected one drawer of the shelflist and went through the collection checking that all of the books in my drawer were accounted for and in the proper place. While I was doing this, I also straightened and dusted the shelves. When I finished with a shelf it looked very nice.
During my internship, I saw many of the challenges faced by museum libraries. Looking back on it now that I am finishing the MLS program, I also realize that I was seeing the importance of cataloging in providing access to materials and how beneficial subject headings can be. I am aware of the benefits of a computerized catalog. I enjoyed my summer at Old Sturbridge Village, which is one of my favorite museums. It was great to be able to see and handle pieces from their manuscript collection. I wish the Research Library a great future of enabling people to study the past.
- Sample Catalog Cards (The accession numbers have been removed for security purposes.)
Student Programs
See also Conference Attendance
SLA Day on the Job, Boston, MA
May 14, 2012
As part of SLA Day on the Job, I visited with a librarian at the Congregational Library in Boston, MA. She took me on a tour of the library and answered all of my questions about her work. Also, I was introduced to an archivist and was able to talk with her about her work as well. It was a great library to visit. I remember that the librarian showed me the interface that they used for updating their online catalog.
As part of SLA Day on the Job, I visited with a librarian at the Congregational Library in Boston, MA. She took me on a tour of the library and answered all of my questions about her work. Also, I was introduced to an archivist and was able to talk with her about her work as well. It was a great library to visit. I remember that the librarian showed me the interface that they used for updating their online catalog.
Capstone Portfolio
Rosanna M. Longenbaker
updated July 1, 2013
RosannaMLongenbaker"at"gmail.com
Rosanna M. Longenbaker
updated July 1, 2013
RosannaMLongenbaker"at"gmail.com