MLIS Projects and Annotations
Letter to Elected Official/School Library Management
This assignment asked for a letter to an elected official concerning censorship bills. I wrote in condemnation of these bills, citing ALA standards on freedom of speech, protection of intellectual and informational freedom, as illustrated in ALA Core Competency 1B. Given the tenuous funding status of libraries in 2025, I feel that this assignment both prepared me for advocating for libraries and connecting with local officials to advocate further in the future. Those users most in need of library services and librarians alike best understand the societal need for library resources, but only one is well equipped and able to advocate for and protect those services.
Enhancing the Discovery of Tabletop Games/ Cataloging for School Libraries
This assignment focused on finding ways to increase makerspace objects accessibility through cataloging strategies. I chose to focus on tabletop games, a favorite of the teen user base, enhancing visibility of these games in the collection via cataloging strategies. These cataloging practices can also be applied to other non-book resources in libraries, such as video games and 3D objects. This assignment illustrated the many ways in which catalogers can utilize innovative strategies for enhancing the visibility of items in a collection, as well as providing a comprehensive review of proper metadata procedures. Enabling tabletop games in the collection to be discovered more easily can help foster a tabletop gaming community, creating a safe space for play, and connecting patrons with similar interests.
Outreach Assignment/Information Services for Diverse Populations
This assignment asked for analysis of an underserved population of a local LAM with proposed means to enhance service. I chose to write in advocacy for a bookmobile for my hometown library, which has a large population of senior citizens but no bookmobile. This assignment led me to census research, in which I gained a new resource of the census website, and a greater understanding of different population groups in both my city and state. While in the past we may have remained a stationary resource, as community needs change, we have an obligation to do what we can to make our resources accessible to those who may not be able to get to us. Bookmobiles are a proven positive in connecting senior patrons and a fantastic resource for underserved populations in rural communities.
A Comprehensive Review of the Effects of AI Chatbots on Mental Health/ ST: Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Society and Ethics
This assignment was the culmination of a semesters worth of research into AI systems and ethics concerning LAMs. I wrote a comprehensive review on the effects of AI chatbots on mental health, evaluating the social and ethical effects of AI technologies today, as well as addressing potential issues in the future. Many LAMs now utilize some sort of AI chatbot, primarily for FAQ answering online, the development of which must be carefully monitored in order to ensure ethical use. This assignment provided me with key insight into the ethics of AI use and how that use may affect LAMs in the future. The best way to ensure ethical, equitable AI progress is to critically analyze and adjust the trajectory as to best provide supplemental help to society.
Preservation Fact Sheet: Audiotapes/Preservation and Conservation of Heritage Materials
This assignment asked for a professional resource fact sheet on the preservation and conservation of a chosen type of media/medium. I chose to create my resource on the preservation of audiotapes, applying research methods into the information in the fact sheet, evaluating the medium lifecycle and how this factors into long term preservation, complied in a well-organized fact sheet to be used by other professionals in the field. This assignment provided me with key information and valuable resources on preservation practices, while also allowing me to accumulate and disseminate as I saw fit, providing resources for both my colleagues in preservation efforts as well as my fellow classmates.
Supplemental Services for Senior Users in Public Libraries/ Information Services for Diverse Populations
This assignment asked for a review of an underserved population and analysis of potential services and resources to enhance service. I chose to focus on supplemental services for seniors in public libraries, in an effort to incorporate and advocate for inclusive practices that target the underserved senior population. This assignment keyed me into an often overlooked, underserved population and led me to advocating for supplemental services for said population. In particular this assignment helped me to understand the importance of serving the user base both as a whole and on individual, intersectional levels as well.
Memo to Director/ Information Institutions and Professions
This assignment asked for a mock memo to the director, and I chose to advocate for staff work/life balance efforts in the library. In a post-COVID world, the working class understand the need for a work/life balance more than ever, and although we cannot ensure that every workplace operates with an interest in employee work/life balance, we can advocate for our peers and ourselves as needed. This assignment helped me to think not only of the users, but also of my fellow staff members, when advocating for causes I believe in. The values and ethics of learning based institutions are what initially drew me to the LAM field, and will be the driving factors in my future outreach efforts.
Personal Digitization Services Effects on Public Library Membership Rates Research Proposal/Research and Assessment in LIS
This was a broad, research proposal assignment. I chose to focus on personal digitization services effects on public library membership rates, and whether inclusion of these services would be beneficial for library use and membership rates. This research proposal required analysis of existing academic works in order to justify the research proposed. This assignment let me take a personal interest of mine, digitization, and connect it with my MLIS work early on in my degree. This proposal required extensive research on personal digitization services, general library resources, and library resource use. The proposed study could provide institutions with data necessary to improve resources provided to users.