Intersections summer 2017

Intersections

Summer 2017

P e o p l e I I n f o r m a t i o n I Te c h n o l o g y

School of

Information Sciences The iSchool at Illinois

Summer 2017 School of Information Sciences University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Published by the iSchool Communications Office. For more information or to submit story ideas, please contact brya@illinois.edu.

Dean: Allen H. Renear Editor: Cindy Ashwill Managing Editor: Cindy Brya Contributing Writers: Cindy Ashwill, Cindy Brya Photography: Cindy Brya, Christy Glaze, L. Brian Stauffer, Spurlock Museum, Thompson-McClellan Photography Design: Pat Mayer

Intersections

Contents

SKOPE

10

Meet the staff

13

Erin Glasco

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501 East Daniel Street Champaign, Illinois 61820 ischool@illinois.edu www.ischool.illinois.edu Phone: (217) 333-3280

People use information for analysis, inquiry, collaboration, and play—and in so doing, change the world. The iSchool at Illinois is dedicated to shaping the future of information through research, education, and engagement, both public and professional.

Intersections highlights our current work in these areas as well as the achievements of our students, alumni, faculty, and staff.

The University has asked that we discontinue the practice of publishing the names of our donors. As a result, Intersections does not include an honor roll of donors. Our School appreciates the generous support of alumni and friends, whose contributions make a meaningful difference in the lives of our students and in the ongoing excellence of our academic and research programs.

Learning spaces

20

News The student experience: a letter from the dean

2

iSchool at Illinois ranked number one

2

iSchool names program directors

3

Torvik named 2016-2017 Centennial Scholar

4

Brunner joins iSchool faculty

4

Stodden selected for TOP Coordinating Committee

5

New books by faculty contribute to LIS knowledge and practice

5

2016 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award given to Wendy Campbell

6

Diana Stroud, assistant dean for advancement, retires

6

Hinchliffe appointed editor of Library Trends

7

Burch receives the 2016 Polestar Award

7

Cooke honored for diversity work

8

Revitalized recruitment efforts focus on increasing enrollment and diversity

8

K-12 program hires new coordinator, engages alumni

9

Research New SKOPE project helps researchers reconstruct and study past environments

10

Rachel Magee: Advocate for teens

11

Features iSchool student organizations enhance the student experience

12

Meet the staff in student affairs, admissions, and recruitment

13

Students gain professional experience through practicum

14

Duffy’s Kindred adaptation selected as top pick by ICA Reads

14

Master’s Student Showcase

15

BIG projects offer students real-world business experience

16

MS student Leanna Barcelona brings student archives to life through award-winning exhibit designs

17

MS student Jessica Followell wins ChLA essay award

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Interest in archives leads Glasco to take the “Leep” to LIS

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Student snapshots

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Innovative learning spaces

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iSchool in Color fosters community, features alumni experts

20

Students attend BOBCATSSS in Finland

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Weekends with Max and His Dad receives Gryphon Award

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Class Notes Alumni

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Alumna Linda Hofschire (MS ’08) among 2017 Movers & Shakers

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Four iSchool alumni named ALA Emerging Leaders

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Get to know. . . Sarah Faye Cohen (MS ’03), managing director at Open Textbook Network

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Giving Curt McKay (MS ’88) inspired by School’s sense of community

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Honor the past, present, and future of libraries with your gift

29

Emily Adams, Hearsey Scholarship recipient

29

Intersections Summer 2017

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News

The student experience: a letter from the dean

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his issue of Intersections focuses on our students: by sharing the student experience, we are able to tell the stories that make our School unique. Our uncompromising commitment to our students is reflected in everything we do, from ensuring excellence in teaching and engaging in collaborative research to graduating talented alumni who use what they learn to change the world for the better.

Students benefit from the iSchool’s outstanding reputation, including our top-ranked academic programs. When U.S. News & World Report once again named our School number one among graduate schools with accredited master’s programs in LIS, my thoughts immediately turned to our students: the ranking confirms that we have served them well, but it also reminds us that we must continue to evolve our curriculum in order to provide in the future, just as we are providing now, the best education possible for success in a rapidly changing world.

At the organizational level, significant changes have occurred within our School to enhance the student experience. Program directors have been appointed for each of our degrees, allowing better coordination in areas such as curriculum development, recruitment, academic advising, and career services. Our student affairs team has been expanded to provide additional support for advising, preprofessional and career opportunities, and employer relations. And through new recruitment initiatives, we have revitalized efforts to increase the diversity of our student population and thus increase the breadth of ideas, opinions, and backgrounds shared in the classroom.

How is our education unique? Our people make the difference. In this issue you’ll learn more about our faculty, who lead the field with their forward-thinking ideas and research; our staff, whose unwavering dedication produces top-notch student programs and services; our alumni, who serve as trusted mentors and give generously of their time and resources; and our students themselves, who demonstrate intelligence, creativity, and a passion to contribute to improving the world around them.

I hope you will enjoy the pages that follow, which together highlight the hard work, innovation, and success stories that take place each day at our School.

Sincerely,

Allen H. Renear, Dean

iSchool at Illinois ranked number one U.S. News & World Report has named the iSchool at Illinois the top graduate school for library and information studies, based on national rankings of accredited master’s degree programs. The iSchool has held the top spot since 1996.

“Our School is pleased to be acknowledged once again for the excellence of our MS in library and information science (MS/LIS), which has been at the forefront of innovation for years. We look forward to continued success, expanding our course offerings and curriculum to provide the best possible education for students in a rapidly evolving field,” said Dean Allen Renear.

The iSchool’s ongoing commitment to its MS/LIS includes the recent appointment of a program director, Nicole A. Cooke. Nationally recognized for her research in diversity and social justice in librarianship, Cooke is well known for her research in diversity and social justice in librarianship and is the recipient of distinguished awards for her contributions to the field.

In addition to retaining the top position, the iSchool also ranked highly in a number of specialty groups. These include a first-place ranking in Digital Librarianship as well as Services for Children and Youth, and a third-place ranking in School Library Media. The School also placed in the top ten for Archives and Preservation, Health Librarianship, and Information Systems.

The U.S. News rankings are based on the results of a 2016 peer assessment survey sent to deans, directors, and senior faculty in 51 programs accredited by the American Library Association. The last ranking for graduate programs in library and information studies occurred in 2013.

Congratulations to faculty, staff, students, and alumni for their contributions in making the iSchool a national leader among schools of information.

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iSchool names program directors

Nicole A. Cooke

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he iSchool is pleased to announce the appointment of program directors for its highly regarded degree programs. For the master’s programs, Assistant Professor Nicole A. Cooke directs the MS in library and information science (MS/LIS), and Professor Michael Twidale directs the MS in information management (MS/IM). Assistant Professor Jana Diesner provides leadership for the PhD in library and information science.

“Program directors play a critical role in the overall coordination of our academic programs,” said Linda C. Smith, professor and associate dean for academic programs. “The iSchool is fortunate to have such talented faculty in these new positions.”

Cooke holds a PhD from Rutgers University.

She is an expert in human information behavior, particularly in the online context; critical cultural information studies; and diversity and social justice in librarianship with an emphasis on LIS education and pedagogy. She is the author of Information Services to Diverse Populations: Developing Culturally Competent Library Professionals (Libraries Unlimited, 2016) and coeditor with Miriam E. Sweeney of Teaching for Justice: Implementing Social Justice in the LIS Classroom (Litwin Books/Library Juice Press, 2017).

“I came to Illinois because the MS/LIS program at the iSchool is the best in the nation and

Jana Diesner

Michael Twidale

prepares top-notch information professionals.

I am certainly part of this legacy as a faculty member, but I want to be a part of the larger picture and long-term efforts to improve an already great program. I am very much looking forward to helping the MS/LIS program reach the next level," said Cooke.

Diesner holds a PhD from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Computer Science and is an expert in network science, natural language processing, machine learning, and human-centered data science. She is currently a research fellow in the Dori J. Maynard Senior Research Fellows program, which is a collaboration of The Center for Investigative Reporting and The Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education. Her research has been published in academic journals, including the Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology; Scientometrics; Big Data & Society; and Journal of Informetrics.

“In my role as the director of our PhD program, I am focusing on furthering our School’s excellence in research and the impact of our PhD program and scientific discoveries,” said Diesner. “Together with our faculty and research staff, our PhD students advance the knowledge, methods, and tools at the nexus of people, information and technology. I am here to help enable our students to become active and

responsible researchers and colleagues from the day that they join our program.”

Twidale holds a PhD from Lancaster University. He is an expert in computer-supported cooperative work, collaborative technologies in digital libraries and museums, user interface design and evaluation, information visualization, and museum informatics. He holds joint appointments in the Department of Computer Science, Information Trust Institute, and Academy of Entrepreneurial Leadership. He is a frequent speaker at scholarly conferences, and his research has been published in books and academic journals such as the Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology and International Journal on Digital Libraries.

“I am very excited to be involved in the development of this new degree that strongly builds on the intellectual and philosophical traditions of our School. We have a growing number of students keen to learn how to deal with rapidly changing information needs across all sectors: startups, established businesses, nonprofits, education, and every level of government. With all this excitement, we want to help our graduates be able to see the “big picture” in big data,” said Twidale.

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News

Torvik named 2016-17 Centennial Scholar

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ssistant Professor Vetle Torvik was named the iSchool’s Centennial Scholar for 20162017. The Centennial Scholar award is endowed by alumni and friends of the School and given in recognition of outstanding accomplishments and/or professional promise in the field of library and information science.

Torvik expressed surprise and gratitude at receiving this honor. “I am in awe of colleagues who received it before me; their caliber is off the charts,” he said. “I hope to use the award to open new doors—a stamp of approval from colleagues who know you well goes a long way to establish new collaborations necessary to solve the increasingly complex problems facing science and society today.”

Torvik joined the faculty in 2011. His current research addresses problems related to scientific discovery and collaboration using complex models and large-scale bibliographic databases.

He is the author of articles in journals such as Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences; Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology; ACM Transactions on Knowledge Discovery from Data; Trends in Genetics; and Research Policy. He teaches courses on text and

data mining, statistical modeling, informetrics, and information processing.

Torvik’s current projects include: • Innovation in an Aging Society, a multipartner project funded by the National Institutes of Health, for which he has built a suite of bibliographic data mining tools and datasets for studying the relationship between aging and innovation.

• STEM Workforce Training: A Quasi-Experimental Approach Using the Effects of Research Funding, which is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and examines the impact of different research funding structures on the training of future scientists and their subsequent outcomes.

• Computer-assisted text mining across biomedical papers and patents for competitive intelligence, which is funded by Abbott Nutrition.

Torvik also has received NSF funding for Collaborative Research: DAT: From grant to commercialization. For this project, he developed a freely available database to trace, assess, and measure the impact of scientific

funding—linking Medline papers and U.S. patents to investigate how grants enable papers, papers influence patents, and scientific knowledge ultimately diffuses and influences the entire patent record.

“Vetle’s brilliant work is a decisive demonstration of how information science can generate new insights from scientific and medical literature. We are very proud to have him here with us and are eagerly looking forward to equally exciting results from his future research,” said Dean Allen Renear.

Prior to joining the iSchool, Torvik worked as a research assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He holds a PhD in engineering science from Louisiana State University and a master’s degree in operations research from Oregon State University, as well as a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from St. Olaf College.

Brunner joins iSchool faculty

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obert J. Brunner joined the iSchool faculty on January 1, 2017. Professor Brunner holds a joint appointment with the Department of Accountancy in the College of Business. He has affiliate appointments in the Astronomy, Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Informatics, Physics, and Statistics Departments; at the Beckman Institute, in the Computational Science and Engineering program; and at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).

He is the data science expert-in-residence at the Research Park at the University of Illinois and part of the leadership team for the Illinois Data Science Initiative.

From 2003-2016, Brunner served as a member of the faculty in the Department of Astronomy. During this time, his research interests started to shift into the area of data science.

“Around seven years ago, I realized new graduate students did not have sufficient skills to work in my group. As a result, I began adding informatics to the curricula in astronomy to bring them up to speed, eventually creating a new course in which graduate students from a variety of scientific and engineering departments enrolled. This experience led to the eventual creation of two new courses under the informatics rubric, to teach data science more broadly,” said Brunner.

“With the explosive growth in the interest in data science across campus, I feel a natural

home in the iSchool, and I am looking forward to strengthening my existing collaborations while also building new ones.”

Brunner earned his PhD in astrophysics at Johns Hopkins University, working on the development of the science archive for the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. He spent five years as a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology before coming to the University of Illinois.

“A highly accomplished scientist, Robert is a leading figure in data science at the University. In this area, he teaches some of the largest courses on campus, conducts critical research, and provides leadership for major initiatives.

His contributions will ensure that the iSchool remains at the forefront of developments in this critical emerging area. We are delighted that he has joined us,” said Dean Allen Renear.

Intersections Summer 2017

5 Stodden selected for TOP Coordinating Committee

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ssociate Professor Victoria Stodden has been invited to serve on the Transparency and Openness Promotion (TOP) Coordinating Committee. The twenty-member committee, representing a diverse group of stakeholders across disciplines, encourages adoption and implementation of TOP guidelines through education, communication, and outreach.

Published in Science in 2015, TOP guidelines provide a framework for journals and professional associations that wish to increase and promote transparency in their publications. The guidelines are community-driven and are followed by more than 700 journals and 60 organizations.

Scientists recognize the importance of transparency, openness, and reproducibility in communicating their research. The eight standards in the TOP guidelines move scientific communication to greater openness. Two standards reward researchers for efforts spent

engaging in open practices, including citation standards and data transparency. Four standards deal with how research is reproduced and evaluated, in terms of analytic methods, research materials, data sharing, and design.

The last two standards address preregistration, the recording of a study in a public registry.

To permit diversity in implementation strategies, three levels are assigned to each standard, with increasing expectations for published materials. Journals select which of the eight standards they wish to adopt as well as the level of implementation for each standard.

“I’m delighted to serve on the TOP Coordinating Committee. These standards arose from a community effort and are truly transformational in addressing transparency and openness in the publication of findings that rely on data and computation,” said Stodden.

Stodden is a leading figure in the area of reproducibility in computational science, exploring how we can better ensure the reliability

and usefulness of scientific results in the face of increasingly sophisticated computational approaches to research. She co-chairs the NSF Advisory Committee for CyberInfrastructure and is a member of the NSF Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Advisory Committee. She also serves on the National Academies Committee on Responsible Science: Ensuring the Integrity of the Research Process.

Stodden holds affiliate appointments at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NSCA), College of Law, Department of Statistics, and Department of Computer Science. She earned both her PhD in statistics and her law degree from Stanford University. She also holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of British Columbia and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Ottawa.

New books by faculty contribute to LIS knowledge and practice

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rofessor Alistair Black’s latest book, Libraries of Light: British Public Library Design in the Long 1960s, is a sequel to Books, Buildings and Social Engineering (2009). In this new book, Black examines how the architectural style of public libraries in Britain changed in the 1960s to “libraries of light,” a phrase that not only describes the new open-plan, decluttered designs but also serves as a metaphor for the public library’s role as a beacon of social egalitarianism and cultural universalism. An extract from chapter two, “The Long Journey to Libraries of Light,” received an Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities (IPRH) Prize for Research in the Humanities as Honorable Mention for best faculty research.

Assistant Professor Nicole A. Cooke’s book, Information Services to Diverse Populations: Developing Culturally Competent Library Professionals, is based on her course, Information Services to Diverse Populations (LIS 547), and its appendices include a sample syllabus and sample assignments. The textbook intro-

duces students to situations that promote the development of empathy and build cultural competence; examines research in the areas of diversity and social justice in librarianship; explains how social responsibility is a foundational value of librarianship; and identifies opportunities related to diversity and social justice in librarianship.

A new book coedited by Associate Professor Bonnie Mak investigates how archives, archival practices, and the notion of the archive are being explored across the disciplines.

Engaging with Records and Archives: Histories and theories bridges theory and practice to offer fresh perspectives on recordkeeping and archives that will be of interest to those

in the information sciences, digital humanities, art history, social history, data curation, media studies, and communication. Among the wide range of topics included in the collection are the history of data modeling; information management in Malawi; metaphors of archival order; and the experience of artists in the archive.

A book edited by Assistant Professor Nicole A. Cooke and Miriam E. Sweeney (PhD ’13) has been published by Litwin Books/Library Juice Press. Teaching for Justice: Implementing Social Justice in the LIS Classroom is the first in the publisher’s series on critical race studies and multiculturalism in library and information science. Chapter contributors include iSchool alumni Bharat Mehra (PhD ’04), Vandana Singh (PhD ’08), and Sarah Park Dahlen (PhD ’09). The book is based on a workshop organized by Cooke and Sweeney for the 2015 Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) annual conference.

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News

2016 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award given to Wendy Campbell

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n a small town in western Montana, Wendy Campbell turned a difficult situation into an opportunity to show how libraries are vital to communities as safe places for education and communication. For her efforts, Campbell, director of the Darby Community Public Library, was named the 2016 recipient of the Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award. A reception in her honor was held during the American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting in January.

In spring 2016 the Darby Library hosted a series of lifelong learning cultural programs for its service community of 4,000 people. One of the three programs, “Perspectives on Islam,” sparked strong protest. In response, Campbell met with the library board and spoke with several local groups to find a way to hold the program and help expand cultural awareness in her community. Her unwavering resolve paid off: on the day of the presentation by Samir Bitar, lecturer of Arabic language and cultures

at the University of Montana, library officials were forced to turn back the overflow at the door.

“At a time when libraries are seeking greater civic engagement, at a time when many of us are looking for more meaningful and dignified discourse, Campbell’s approach proved to be definitive: the speaker was welcomed warmly, listened to attentively, and questioned respectfully. The library, meanwhile, secured its position in the community as a force for education that neither promoted nor condemned various ideas, but provided a safe and courteous forum for their consideration,” said James LaRue (MS ’81), director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom and executive director of the Freedom to Read Foundation, who nominated Campbell for the award.

Cosponsored by Libraries Unlimited, the Downs Award is given annually by the iSchool’s faculty to acknowledge individuals or groups who have furthered the cause of intellectual

freedom, particularly as it affects libraries and information centers and the dissemination of ideas. Granted to those who have resisted censorship or efforts to abridge the freedom of individuals to read or view materials of their choice, the award may be in recognition of a particular action or long-term interest in, and dedication to, the cause of intellectual freedom.

The award was established in 1969 to honor Robert Downs, a champion of intellectual freedom, on his twenty-fifth anniversary as director of the School.

With Libraries Unlimited, an imprint of ABCCLIO, assuming cosponsorship of the award in 2012, ABC-CLIO has been dedicated to supporting the Downs Award for more than thirty years. As a publisher committed to advancing library professional development and independent critical thought, Libraries Unlimited and the entire ABC-CLIO family are strong advocates of intellectual freedom rights and the dissemination of all ideas.

Diana Stroud, assistant dean for advancement, retires

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iana Stroud, assistant dean for advancement and alumni affairs, retired on April 30, after twenty years of strengthening relationships and securing funding on behalf of her alma mater, the University of Illinois. Stroud worked in the School of Social Work and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement before joining the iSchool in December 2005.

“Diana has formed deep bonds with alumni, worked indefatigably to find support for students, and sought out opportunities for innovative, productive relationships with a wide variety of organizations,” said Dean Allen Renear. “While she has raised over $40 million for our School, her contributions go well beyond advancement and are incalculable. She has been a leader here in many areas, always ready to engage with any hard problem, at any time and under any circumstances. We will miss her very much.”

“My work has always been about people and relationships, and that is what I will miss the most.

During my time at the University, I have had many opportunities to participate in stimulating intellectual activities and meetings with amazing graduates. I am especially proud that I have raised more than $48 million while working for ‘small units’ on this campus during three fundraising campaigns,” said Stroud.

Stroud expressed her gratitude to alumni and friends. “Your sincere appreciation and love of our School made my job easy and at the same time so enjoyable. I will miss each and every one of you, and I hope that you will continue to support our great School at a time when the need has never been stronger.”

Stroud will continue her involvement with the iSchool as a friend and donor.

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Hinchliffe appointed editor of Library Trends

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he iSchool is pleased to announce the appointment of Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe (MS ’94) as editor of its quarterly journal Library Trends, effective January 1, 2017.

A leader in the field of library and information science, Hinchliffe is professor and coordinator for Information Literacy Services and Instruction in the University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She also is an affiliated faculty member and adjunct professor for the iSchool. Her research interests include teaching and learning, higher education, globalization, information literacy, library assessment and evaluation, and library quality.

“Library Trends is one of the most respected and influential journals in the field of library and information science,” Hinchliffe observed.

“My goal is to continue to build on the strong standing and reputation of the journal while exploring new possibilities for enhancing its stature and impact. I look forward to exploring my vision with the editorial board. It is an honor to be appointed editor.”

Among her many professional accomplishments, Hinchliffe was elected 2010-2011 president of the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL), which launched the Value of Academic Libraries Initiative during her term.

She has shared her expertise as a member of numerous committees and groups of the American Library Association (ALA), addressing issues such as international library relations, school library implementation, and digital literacy. Hinchliffe has presented and published widely and conducted workshops and trainings on five continents.

Hinchliffe has engaged in a variety of editorial roles, acting as a board member and/or reviewer for well-known publications such as College & Research Libraries, Communications in Information Literacy, Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences, and the journal she will now lead, Library Trends. Her experience as a journal editor includes service as coeditor and editor for Research Strategies and coeditor for Assessment as Action Research, a special issue of College & Research Libraries.

“We are absolutely delighted that someone of Lisa Hinchliffe’s stature will be at the helm of this great journal. Her uniquely broad and deep understanding of research and practice in library and information science will ensure that Library Trends continues to serve as an essential resource for practicing librarians, scholars, educators, and students,” said Dean Allen Renear.

Hinchliffe succeeds Alistair Black, a professor at the iSchool who has served as editor since 2013 and coeditor from 2009 to 2013.

Since 1952, Library Trends has explored critical trends in professional librarianship, presenting practical applications, thorough analyses, and literature reviews. A thematic journal, each issue addresses a single topic of professional interest and brings readers in-depth, thoughtful articles. Library Trends is published for the School of Information Sciences by Johns Hopkins University Press.

Burch receives the 2016 Polestar Award

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eorgeann Burch’s dedication to the school library profession has earned her the 2016 Polestar Award from the Illinois School Library Media Association (ISLMA).

Burch retired from the iSchool in 2016 after serving 11 years as the K-12 program coordinator. In her position, she supervised the education and licensure of K-12 library information

specialists—identifying suitable placements, recruiting cooperating teacher-librarians, traveling to each placement at least twice to evaluate student performance, and facilitating the working relationship between students and their teacher-librarians.

“The Polestar Award is about having an impact on the school librarian profession in Illinois, and I can think of no one who has influenced more school librarians than Georgeann and her work as the K-12 supervisor for the School,” said Gretchen Zaitzeff (MS ’15) who nominated Burch for the award. “So many practicing school librarians have benefited from her knowledge of the profession that it is really hard to quantify the scope of her influence.”

When Burch joined the iSchool, she brought many years of relevant experience, including 11 years as a librarian at Westview School in Champaign. She used her network of contacts to find students suitable job placements in schools around the state.

“The success of our graduates in securing positions is evidence of the strong preparation and mentoring that Georgeann provided,” said Linda C. Smith, professor and associate dean for academic programs.

At the School, Burch offered biweekly, online student teaching seminars every semester and often taught full-semester courses such as School Library Media Center (LIS 516) and Information Books and Resources for Youth (LIS 445). One of her initiatives as K-12 program coordinator was to secure approval for a set of courses to qualify students to earn a Technology Specialist Endorsement from the Illinois State Board of Education.

Burch has been an active member of ISLMA, making presentations at the annual ISLMA conference and other professional conferences to emphasize the important role of school librarians. Within ISLMA, she has served as a cochair of publicity for the conference and answered members’ questions about licensure.

News

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Revitalized recruitment efforts focus on increasing enrollment and diversity

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Cooke honored for diversity work

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ssistant Professor Nicole A. Cooke recently received two honors for her teaching, mentoring, and research in diversity.

She is the recipient of the 2017 American Library Association (ALA) Achievement in Library Diversity Research Award, which recognizes her contributions to the profession and her promotion of diversity within it. The award is given annually by the Diversity Research Grants Advisory Committee, a subcommittee of the ALA Council Committee on Diversity, and the ALA Office for Diversity, Literacy and Outreach Services. She received the award in June at the ALA Annual Conference in Chicago.

“This is a particularly special award for me, as this is the ALA office that funded my doctoral work and spurred my interest in teaching and conducting research in the areas of diversity and social justice,” said Cooke.

In November, Cooke was honored as the 2016 recipient of the Larine Y. Cowan Make a Difference Award for Teaching and Mentoring in Diversity. The award, given annually by the University of Illinois, honors Dr. Larine Y. Cowan, past director of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Access. There are four award categories, including Advocacy for LGBTQ Affairs, Excellence in Access and Accommodations, Leadership in Diversity, and Cooke’s award, Teaching and Mentoring in Diversity.

At the iSchool, Cooke has led the development of three graduate courses directly addressing diversity: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in the Information Professions (LIS 537), Social

“This is a particularly special award for me, as this is the ALA office that funded my doctoral work and spurred my interest in teaching and conducting research in the areas of diversity and social justice.”

Justice in the Information Professions (LIS 545), and Information Services to Diverse Populations (LIS 547).

“I have had the pleasure of being a student in two of Dr. Cooke’s classes: Information Services to Diverse Populations and Social Justice in the Information Professions,” said doctoral student Cass Mabbott in the nomination materials for the Cowan Award. “I can easily say that she has been one of the most influential professors I have ever had in all of my education. I believe this is because she has a gift for creating trust in the classroom, something that is much needed when discussing diversity and equity.”

"I’m so grateful that my work is being recognized,” Cooke said. “I am very fortunate to teach these courses at the iSchool, and I’ve been blessed with some amazing students who have helped me make them successful.”

hen Moises Orozco Villicana joined the iSchool in August 2016 as director of enrollment management, the new MS in information management (MS/IM) program had welcomed its first class of students, and the recruiting season was in full swing. Orozco Villicana, who holds a PhD in educational policy studies from the University of Illinois, was prepared to hit the ground running, having previously served as associate director for recruitment and admissions for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Illinois.

Since then, the School has held recruitment events in the Midwest, Georgia, Texas, California, and Washington, DC, as well as virtual information sessions. These activities provided prospective students with information about the School’s excellence in academics, research, and innovation as well as about the application process and career opportunities.

Other activities have included a calling campaign to give admitted students the opportunity to engage with current students and learn about their experiences. As a result of this outreach, almost 60 percent of these prospective students ultimately accepted the iSchool’s offer of admission.

The success of these efforts is reflected in student enrollment, which continues to climb.

The MS/IM program is growing rapidly, starting with 42 students in Fall 2016 and 39 students in Spring 2017; program enrollment is expected to be capped in Fall 2017 at 150 new MS/IM students. Enrollment in the MS/LIS program also is growing: a total of more than 140 students (43 MS/LIS Leep and 101 MS/LIS on campus) will begin classes in Fall 2017, which is 20 more than in Fall 2016.

Recruitment and admissions staff also are reaching out to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities to establish partnerships that will increase the diversity of

K-12 program hires new coordinator, engages alumni

Ann Ohms

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“Over the past nine months, we’ve made important strides in marketing to and recruiting talented and diverse applicants to our School.“ the iSchool’s applicants as well as admitted and enrolled students. Recruitment events occurring this spring have included visits to Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, Lincoln University, Fresno State University, and University of California, Merced.

“Over the past nine months, we’ve made important strides in marketing to and recruiting talented and diverse applicants to our School,” said Orozco Villicana. “Our recruitment initiatives are structured around offering outreach events on campus, off campus, and online.

Through these activities, we’ve cultivated strong relationships with academic advisors, senior level administrators, and alumni to inform prospective students of the unique, welcoming, and supportive experience offered at the iSchool. These partnerships and efforts have already generated positive recruitment and admissions outcomes.”

he iSchool’s K-12 Library Information Specialist Licensure program combines top-rated classroom instruction with extensive field experience in school libraries across the state of Illinois. The new K-12 program coordinator, Ann Ohms (MS ’08), is excited to recruit students into the program that prepared her to become a school librarian—and now, its coordinator.

Ohms joined the School as K-12 program coordinator in August 2016. She previously worked as a library/media specialist at Middletown Prairie Elementary School in Mahomet, Illinois. Ohms supports students interested in pursuing K-12 licensure or endorsement as a library information specialist and supervises teacher-librarian candidates during their field experiences.

The K-12 program allows students to meet the requirements of the MS in library and information science or Certificate of Advanced Study, while also pursuing the courses needed for licensure as a school library information specialist in the state of Illinois.

Since her arrival, Ohms facilitated workshops in the fall and spring for students interested in careers in school librarianship. In addition, the K-12 program launched the Twitter handle @iSchoolK12 to connect current students with practicing library information specialists, faculty, staff, and experts in the field.

Ohms encourages alumni to get involved in the K-12 program.

“Alumni can serve as cooperating teacherlibrarians for practicum and student-teaching experiences, guest speakers or panel experts, and professional mentors. They can also contribute ideas for professional development and share current trends and areas of need in the field,” Ohms explained.

“Alumni can serve as cooperating teacher librarians for practicum and student-teaching experiences, guest speakers or panel experts, and professional mentors.“ As the librarian at Jefferson Middle School in Champaign, Kim Anderson (MS ’07, CAS ’09) has supervised a number of iSchool students.

“One of the best sources of inspiration I have as a librarian is the time I spend supervising practicum and student teachers. They keep me young, help me see my job and our library with fresh eyes, and always leave me with lots of new ideas to push the library to be a better space for our students,” she said.

The iSchool now offers K-12 coursework for the Technology Specialist Endorsement, which was approved by the Illinois State Board of Education last spring. The curriculum is customizable, including offerings such as “Media Literacy for Youth.” This coursework allows professionals to leverage the power of technology to create innovative learning environments and to model digital age best practices in teaching and learning. Candidates seeking this endorsement must hold a current Professional Educator License (PEL) in the state of Illinois.

In June, the iSchool hosted Summer Getaway 2017: Professional Development for School Librarians. Led by school library professionals, the popular professional development event featured in-depth sessions, including “Communicate to Advocate,” “Facilitate Dynamic Teaching & Learning,” and “Extend Your Digital Outreach.”

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10 Intersections Summer 2017

Research

New SKOPE project helps researchers reconstruct and study past environments

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hanks to a new online resource for paleoenvironmental data and models under development at Illinois and partner institutions, historian Richard Flint can gauge whether environmental factors played an important role in driving the migration of Pueblo Indians from the Spanish province of New Mexico in the seventeenth century. Using SKOPE (Synthesizing Knowledge of Past Environments), scholars such as Flint and the larger community of archaeologists will be able to discover, explore, visualize, and synthesize knowledge of environments in the recent or remote past.

“We are aiming to support different types of users—from researchers asking fundamental questions in the historical social sciences using climate retrodictions from tree-ring chronologies to developers of new computational models that produce such paleoenvironmental data—who want to build and share their models in a transparent and reproducible manner,” said Professor Bertram Ludäscher, one of the principal investigators of the collaborative SKOPE project.

Based on an initial design and early prototype developed since 2014 by the team from Illinois, Arizona State University, and Washington State University, the SKOPE partners were awarded collaborative grants totaling $1.3 million to develop and deploy the next phase of

the project. As part of the software development effort, researchers from the iSchool have also teamed up with NCSA’s CyberGIS Center, directed by Shaowen Wang, professor at the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Science.

As the SKOPE system is further developed, it will facilitate discovery of and access to additional sources of paleoenvironmental sample data (e.g., pollen for retrodictions) and to other spatial datasets (e.g., soils, surface hydrology, and elevation), while building on the infrastructure to provide researchers with easy access to the model outputs. Scholars in such diverse disciplines as anthropology, archaeol-

ogy, ecology, economics, geography, political science, and sociology can benefit from the level of detail provided by the datasets.

SKOPE is being developed as a dynamic resource, allowing users to rerun models with different inputs and accommodating new models. Data provenance—i.e., the lineage of data products in terms of computational steps and input data—will be exposed and made queryable using YesWorkflow, a modeling approach and associated set of software tools that support authors of script-based scientific workflows in their quest to make their computational science more transparent and reproducible.

Ludäscher, director of the iSchool’s Center for Informatics Research in Science and Scholarship (CIRSS), is a leading figure in data and knowledge management, focusing on the modeling, design, and optimization of scientific workflows, provenance, data integration, and knowledge representation. He joined the iSchool faculty in 2014 and is a faculty affiliate at NCSA and the Department of Computer Science. His current research focus includes both theoretical foundations of provenance and practical applications as well as automated data quality control and data curation. He received his MS in computer science from the Technical University of Karlsruhe and his PhD in computer science from the University of Freiburg.

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Rachel Magee: Advocate for teens

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s a teen and reference services librarian at the County of Los Angeles Public Library, Assistant Professor Rachel Magee was frustrated with the bad rap teenagers unjustly received. “I wanted to promote young people as individuals deserving of respect—as valid members of society,” she explained. This desire to advocate for teens led her to enroll in a PhD program, so that one day she could, as a professor, teach classes that help future librarians better serve young adults.

Since she joined the iSchool faculty in August 2015, Magee has done just that, teaching Literature and Resources for Young Adults (LIS 404), Media Literacy for Youth (LIS 515), Youth Services Community Engagement (LIS 490YS), and Global Contexts and Social Justice in Youth Literature (LIS 590MY).

According to Magee, just as teenagers are often disparaged in social and cultural discourse, young adult literature also doesn’t get the credit it deserves. “Reading is one of the safest ways for young people to engage with topics that might be scary, sad, or hard to process,” she said. “We should make sure young people have access to stories that reflect the things they are concerned about.”

Magee’s research at the iSchool focuses on how young people engage with technology, how technology use impacts youth literacy skills, and how teens’ social relationships and values are important factors in their use of technology. Her current project, which started with a 4H camp in October 2016, connects teens with the research process: teens design the study, recruit participants, and assist in the analysis and presentation of the results.

“The project looks at youth social media use. The young researchers were interested in what their peers thought about their engagement with social networking sites. The seven teens who were involved as researchers in this first phase of the project enjoyed being a part of the research process and getting to know each other,” said Magee.

Magee’s project provides young researchers with the opportunity to build their existing STEM skills and develop new skills in

research literacy and proficiency. The teens presented their findings at a research symposium in April on the University of Illinois campus.

Given today’s climate of “fake news,” the young researchers were admittedly disappointed in some of the answers their peers provided regarding their social media use. “In response to the researchers’ questions about the truthfulness of what was posted in social media, about half of those surveyed said they ‘trusted their gut’ or ‘trusted the person who posted the information.’ A few mentioned checking other sources,” said Magee. “The researchers were hoping to find more analysis of sources. With just a little training on how to think critically, these teens were already looking for their peers to be engaged in the same kinds of analysis.”

Magee plans to expand the project by bringing additional organizations on board to host a series of camps so that more teens can become researchers. She would also like to see more youth from underserved backgrounds gain research skills. “Ultimately it would be great for researchers from all fields to recognize the value of getting teens involved in scholarly research. Teens want their voices and perspectives to be respected and understood,” she said.

Magee is a big believer in youth as creators.

In addition to the young researchers project, she continues her work on the App Authors project with Associate Professor Kate McDowell and Deborah Stevenson, assistant professor and director of the Center for Children’s Books.

App Authors is a three-year project to develop curricula for app-building in school and public libraries. Last summer at the Douglass Branch Library in Champaign, children participated in a free six-week program to create their own smartphone apps. The program will expand this year to the Frederick County Public Libraries in Frederick, Maryland, and the Springfield Public Library in Springfield, Oregon.

A Texas native, Magee holds degrees in English and in radio, television, and film from the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s degree in information resources and library science from the University of Arizona, and a PhD in information studies from Drexel University.

Magee named ALA-Google RtC Faculty Fellow

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ssistant Professor Rachel Magee has been named an American Library Association (ALA)Google Ready to Code (RtC) Faculty Fellow. As an RtC Fellow, she will participate in Phase II of the Libraries Ready to Code project, which ALA and Google launched in January 2017 to help equip librarians with the right skills and tools to encourage kids to code.

Magee and her five RtC Fellow cohorts will collaborate to redesign one of their courses to integrate Ready to Code ideas. After piloting their new courses this fall, they will share their revised syllabi and course models with library and information science colleagues at other institutions.

“For the fellowship, I’ll be working on redesigning the syllabus for Youth Services Community Engagement (LIS 490YSL) to include coding and computational thinking concepts. The new version of the course will be offered in Fall 2017 through the Leep online learning option for MS/LIS students,” said Magee.

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iSchool student organizations enhance the student experience American Library Association (ALA) The ALA Student Chapter at Illinois was founded in 1981 as one of the “Charter Member” student chapters. During this academic year, some of the chapter’s events have included the Banned Books Week sidewalk chalking and photo booth, a nonpartisan election viewing night, iSchool shirt fundraisers, a librarian-themed trivia night, and various professional workshops.

The organization was runner-up for the ALA Student Chapter of the Year Award and raised money to support students attending the ALA Annual Conference in Chicago.

Chinese Student Group The goals of the Chinese Student Group are to establish strong communication and interaction between iSchool Chinese students and alumni, other student groups, and library communities; provide an environment for Chinese students to learn about American culture; and serve as a bridge between the iSchool and China in order to contribute to LIS research, practice, and education in a global context.

This academic year, the group has organized social events, lectures, academic workshops, and outdoor activities such as hiking. At one of the group’s workshops this semester, students were introduced to text mining using the HathiTrust Research Center Portal.

Data Science Club members (l-r) Natalie DeClerck, Henry Grob, and Krystal Cooper, with Michele Plante, the club’s career resources advisor

Members of the Chinese Student Group Progressive Librarians Guild (PLG) The PLG is a student group that promotes the open exchange of radical views on library issues. PLG members often team up with other groups to support progressive and democratic library activities locally, nationally, and internationally. The group offers students the opportunity to interact with one another, community members, and professionals in the field.

Queer Library Alliance (QLA) The QLA is a group for students to explore ways that librarians and archivists can provide better service for their LGBTQ patrons. Social aspects of this group include a monthly book club, cake decorating for the Edible Books Festival in the spring, and general outings throughout the year. For the past five years, QLA has sent a group of students to present at the Midwestern Bisexual, Lesbian, Gay, Trans, Ally College Conference (MBLGTACC).

The Society of American Archivists (SAA) The SAA is a student group that promotes archival awareness and interest within the iSchool community through lectures, seminars, and field trips. In October, SAA held the first event in its “Ask an Archivist” series—Ellen Swain, archivist for student life and culture at Illinois, met with students and answered their questions. SAA has coordinated tours of local

archives, provided members with information on job/internship opportunities and scholarships, helped members plan trips to archival conferences such as the Midwest Archives Conference, and built relationships with professional groups such as the Public History Cluster.

Special Libraries Association (SLA) The SLA is an international association of information professionals who work in special libraries serving business, research, government, universities, newspapers, museums, and institutions that use or produce specialized information. The SLA student group hosts speakers, organizes field trips for tours of special libraries, and encourages participation in the activities of the SLA Illinois Chapter.

Data Science Club The Data Science Club was founded to increase exposure to data-oriented careers through special projects, speaker series about cuttingedge research in data science, and networking events with top data science companies. Beth Ladd, director of the Caterpillar Data Innovation Lab at the University of Illinois Research Park, was among this year’s guest speakers. The club also co-located streaming of the Women in Data Science Conference at Stanford University in February.

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Meet the staff in student affairs, admissions, and recruitment Pictured above are (l-r) Dimitria Johnson, Ann Ohms, Becky Hodson, Colin Van Orman, Penny Ames, Dianne Tellschow, Meg Edwards, Karla Lucht, and Victor Jones.

Penny Ames, admissions and records representative, supports admissions and student records as well as serves as the point of contact for course transfers, degree certifications, and transcripts.

“My favorite part of my job is the interaction with the students, both prospective students and current students. The excitement prospective students generate while they talk about their academic and professional goals is awesome! You become just as excited and want to be part of their path to those goals. Seeing our current students grow through their studies and experiences while in the program is amazing! They develop into leaders, researchers, and information specialists before our eyes.”

Meg Edwards (MS ’04), assistant dean for student affairs, oversees all aspects of academic advising, career services, and student life and development. She also advises MS/IM students.

“If I could choose one word to describe the uniqueness of the iSchool student experience, it would be ‘flexibility.’ Students can design their program with a multitude of electives; choose to develop professionally through practica, internships, or volunteer work; and participate in or even start their own student groups.”

Becky Hodson (MS ’13), career services coordinator, coordinates LIS 591 Practicum and works with students on exploring careers, gaining experience, and conducting the professional job search.

“Students come from many different backgrounds and bring varied experience to the program, so the students really make this place unique. Our staff provides a high level of individualized support throughout the program, which I think distinguishes us from other graduate programs.”

Dimitria Johnson, office support associate, is the primary contact for application inquiries and transcripts.

“My favorite part of my job is receiving an email from applicants who just found out they were accepted into the iSchool. Their excitement makes my day.”

Victor Jones, visiting recruiting specialist, is the primary contact for prospective students.

“As information evolves and the ways in which people are accessing that information changes, it’s extremely exciting and fulfilling to be in a position to recruit the individuals who will set the trends and be the leaders for years to come.”

Karla Lucht (MS ’07), MS/LIS graduate studies advisor and coordinator of continuing education, serves as liaison to the Instructional Technology and Design Office, coordinates with student organizations, and is the point of contact for nondegree student enrollment and Web-based Information Science Education (WISE) courses.

“The best part of my job is meeting with students throughout their time here. I love hearing about their progress and successes—and updates from them out in the field. Since I work with nondegree students as well, I enjoy seeing the names of our alumni pop up during registration. I’m thrilled they want to take advantage of more learning from us!”

Ann Ohms (MS ’08), K-12 program coordinator, supports students pursuing licensure as an Illinois K-12 Library Information Specialist as well as students seeking a Library Information Specialist/Technology Specialist endorsement(s) on an existing Illinois teaching license.

“Our K-12 alumni contribute to the profession long after graduation from our program.

This manifests in multiple means, from a willingness to support future school library pro-

fessionals as cooperating teacher-librarians within their practical field experiences (practicum and student-teaching) to serving as guest speakers in courses and professional panels and facilitating professional development opportunities for and with colleagues.”

Moises Orozco Villicana, director of enrollment management, is responsible for overall recruitment and admissions.

“The best part of my job is making visible to prospective students the wealth of resources available at the School and the collective and individual achievements of our faculty, students, and alumni. We’ve connected with over 700 prospective students and organized over 40 campus visits since last fall.”

Michele Plante, employer relations coordinator, collaborates with employers and alumni in developing strategies to engage student talent.

“I feel very lucky to work with incredibly talented staff, faculty, students, and employers.

Everyone is interested in working together to experiment, innovate, and expand our understanding. I love how the iSchool focuses on problem-solving and creative solutions to accommodate students’ needs.”

Dianne Tellschow, office support specialist, plans events and provides support for student affairs and recruitment and admissions.

“My favorite part of my job is the event planning. I LOVE to plan events!!”

Colin Van Orman (MS ’15), MS/LIS graduate studies advisor, provides academic advising and program planning.

“The responsive and holistic approach we use when working with students is something that is unique to our School. We strive to ensure students have a positive experience here.”

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Features

Students gain professional experience through practicum

Eva Johnson works on the antiquarian collection at Starhill Forest Arboretum

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hrough the iSchool’s practicum course (LIS 591), students can gain work experience and explore career options in a wide variety of professional settings. The course, which is not required but highly recommended, counts as two credits toward the master’s degree. The course is typically taken for one semester and allows a student to spend 100 hours total at the practicum site.

Practicums are tailored to the student, and sites vary according to a student’s career interests—from traditional library settings, where a student may develop library programming or work at a reference desk, to companies where a student’s job may be to design a database or clean a dataset. Becky Hodson, practicum coordinator, meets with students to discuss options and find the best site for them.

“The practicum not only gives students course credit but also practical experience, a professional reference, and something to add to their resume. Most students absolutely love their experience and some even get hired at the site,” said Hodson.

A variety of locations have hosted practicum students during the 2016-2017 academic year, including the Oak Park Public Library, Chicago History Museum, Champaign

Public Library, Caterpillar Data Innovation Lab, Milwaukee Jewish Museum, and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement at the University of Illinois.

Master’s student Eva Johnson completed her practicum at Starhill Forest Arboretum, a privately owned arboretum in Petersburg, Illinois. Prior to starting her degree program at the iSchool, she began a project at the arboretum to create a library catalog and organize their collection. Hodson worked with Johnson to transform this project into a practicum experience.

“So far, I’ve completed the arboretum’s field lab collection and am currently working on the antiquarian collection. I’ve been doing my best to create basic, easy-to-maintain records for the owners, who plan to use this catalog as a shelf list to help them keep track of what they already own. I’m almost finished with my practicum hours, but the project is only about one-third complete, so I plan to continue at the arboretum in order to finish the project in the next year or two. I’ve learned a lot about best practices for small, specialized libraries, about basic cataloging and description, and I’ve gotten to see some really cool books,” said Johnson.

“Practicum site supervisors value the program because our students are on the cutting edge of the field, know the trends, and can inject fresh energy into their site,” Hodson said.

Amanda Raklovits, children’s librarian at the Douglass Branch Library in Champaign, has supervised a number of iSchool practicum students over the past decade.

“Hosting practicum students from the iSchool is, without a doubt, a mutually beneficial arrangement. Students who are interested in immersing themselves in a real workplace setting gain valuable skills, while we benefit from their help and enthusiasm. Their eagerness to learn is infectious, and the quality of their work is second to none. There also is a great deal of pride in helping to mold the next generation of librarians,” said Raklovits.

Duffy’s Kindred adaptation selected as top pick by ICA Reads

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he Institute of Contemporary Art’s “artful book club,” ICA Reads, has selected Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, as its 2017 pick for a book of critical and societal importance. This reinterpretation of Octavia E. Butler’s science-fiction masterpiece, Kindred, was adapted by iSchool alumnus and adjunct lecturer Damian Duffy (MS ’08, PhD ’16) and illustrated by John Jennings. A New York Times bestseller, the novel tells the story of a young black woman’s time-travel between her home in 1970s California and a plantation in the antebellum South.

Self-described as “huge Octavia Butler fans,” Duffy and Jennings answered a 2009 call for entries to adapt the novel but didn’t get the job. By chance, that adaptation fell through, and they were offered the project again in 2012. Duffy and Jennings have been working together for about twelve years, making comics and curating comics art exhibitions concerned with issues of identity and representation.

“We both felt like the critical examinations of race, gender, and representation that permeate Kindred were very much in line with the original comics work we’ve done. Also, we felt that making a graphic novel version provided a chance for new readers to discover her work, as well as a chance for fans to revisit her most famous novel through a new lens,” said Duffy.

Duffy’s interest in comics started at the tender age of six, when he read his first SpiderMan comic. He has been making comics for

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he Spring 2017 Master’s Student Showcase was held on April 7 at the iSchool. The showcase is an opportunity for MS/LIS, MS/IM, and CAS students to present projects, research, or other works of interest to the iSchool community.

Lightning Talks

“I always wish more people thought of comics as a medium of communication, as capable as prose or film in telling many different kinds of stories to many different audiences.” just about as long. His first attempt at becoming a professional comics creator was in 2001, when he and his friend, Dann Tincher, selfpublished three issues of a sci-fi/crime comic series called Whisp. In addition to the Kindred adaptation, Duffy and Jennings have published another graphic novel, The Hole: Consumer Culture, and a horror comic, Urban Kreep.

After working at the University of Illinois Law Library for six years, Duffy decided to pursue an advanced degree in library and information science. “Witnessing firsthand the impact of information access, communication, and preservation as well as the role of LIS scholarship in the growing inclusion of comics in cultural discourses, I felt like the profession had the potential to overlap with my creative/artistic pursuits,” he said. “I always wish more people thought of comics as a medium of communication, as capable as prose or film in telling many different kinds of stories to many different audiences.”

In Spring 2016, Duffy completed his PhD degree and received the Berner-Nash Memorial Award for an outstanding doctoral dissertation.

He is now an adjunct lecturer at the iSchool, teaching Computers and Culture (LIS 390) and Social Media and Global Change (LIS 490).

Jessica Colbert, “Comparing Library of Congress Subject Headings to Keyword Searches Involving LGBT Topics: A Pilot Study” Patrick Harrington, “Visualizing Government Regulatory Activity Using the Unified Agenda” Heather Brown, “Libraries Use of S.T.E.A.M. Focused Makerspaces to Positively Impact Girls’ Attitudes about the Content Area” S. K. (Kayleigh) Van Poolen, “Started with a Hurricane” Mark Dahlquist, “Guided Serendipity and Originality in Student Writing” Hanlin Zhang, “Business Intelligence at Facilities & Services, UIUC”

Posters Hemanth Prabahar Manoharan, “Simulation of Web Based APIs for the Remote Operation of Bugscope” Delaney Bullinger and KayLee Scott, “Censorship in Prison Libraries” Rachelle Brandel, “The Impact of Globalization on International Librarianship” Jon Sweitzer-Lamme, “Making Rare Materials Hands-On: 3D Printing a Possibility for Rare Materials” Kris Murphy, “Reflections on a Practicum in Research and Information Services at the University Library” Cassia Smith, “DMP Quality Assessment: Current Trends in Sharing Plan Quality at UIUC” Alex Kinnaman, “Auditing a Dark Archive: Digital Preservation Auditing Metrics as Design Tools” Brett Jiro Fujioka, “The Selfish Meme: A Japanese View of Information and Narratives” Yuan Cheng, “Real-time Local Event Detection—A Text Mining Approach” Anna Oates, “’The Human Abstract’: Impact of Digital Environments on User Experience” Krystal Cooper, “Virtual Reality Data Architecture: Solving User Interface Design Challenges with Metadata” Emily J. Hoch & Katherine E. Bergen, “More than a Bulletin Board: Using Tumblr for Online Reference and User Services in Academic Libraries”

Delaney Bullinger presents her poster at the Master’s Student Showcase

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Matt Kirk

Master’s Student Showcase

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Features

BIG projects offer students real-world business experience

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n the course Applied Business Research (LIS 590ABR), students gain valuable experience working as research analysts and coordinators for actual companies and organizations seeking assistance with real-world information problems. Students enrolled in this course, created by Adjunct Associate Professor Yoo-Seong Song, become members of the Business Intelligence Group (BIG). With its focus on knowledge management, business research advisory, and information consulting, the course attracts students from several disciplines, such as business, engineering, and the sciences, in addition to iSchool students. iSchool master’s students Scott Smith and Rachel Van Erdewyk served as project managers for two BIG teams in the Fall 2016 semester. Their responsibilities included recruiting team members, delegating tasks, organizing weekly calls and meetings between the team and the client, presenting findings, and most importantly, ensuring their teams were on track. Smith, project manager for “Knowledge Management Solution,” and Van Erdewyk, project manager for “Portable Medical Device,” recount their experiences below.

“Portable Medical Device” For our project, we researched and analyzed potential target markets for the portable medical industry. Our goals were to identify key markets (healthcare, pet care, military, etc.), geographical areas to expand the business, and competitors and/or partners. We examined potential business models, patent information, financial models, and the data, technology, and software aspects of portable medical devices.

Our findings recommended the key market our client should enter and the specific technology and medical sensors needed. We also provided details regarding other possible markets, information about patents, and other business avenues to explore.

Team members (left to right) Yuxiang (Anna) Ling, Sherwyn Koa, Jungyup Lee, Yichun (Ariel) Cong, Hemanth Prabahar Manoharan, Alicia Mang (client), Rachel Van Erdewyk, Max McKittrick, Mingwei (Mavis) Gao, and Di (Freddy) Li gave their final presentation in Chicago.

Team members (left to right) Scott Smith, Yingjun Guan, Swathi Namburi, Yuan Cheng, and Monique Lassere enjoy NYC outside of the United Nations Building.

“Knowledge Management Solution” This project originated from BIG’s previous engagement with the International Consultancy Network (ICON), which consists of students from top tech universities around the world and includes offices at the Urbana campus. We were tasked with analyzing ICON’s current Knowledge Management System (KMS), a system for retaining important information gained during client interactions, including lessons learned, quick tips, and more. We explored tools/software used to store knowledge, met weekly with ICON, and interviewed members to determine their business needs and challenges. We also completed extensive market research to set up a metric guide for evaluating KMS software.

Through these tasks, we narrowed down the KMS software selection from over thirty to three and proposed our solution. In the end, ICON decided to leverage a technology already available to them. We advised that using a currently accessible software was a better option than paying for an alternative, and we created a user manual tailored for ICON covering how to use the most relevant features of the technology.

Song describes these practical experiences as extremely valuable to students. “BIG provides experiential learning opportunities where students are expected to demonstrate their highest professionalism as well as their ability to incorporate the knowledge learned in class to solve actual business problems,” he said. “Our primary goal is to strengthen our students’ readiness for the real world, while delivering innovative and creative solutions to clients.”

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MS student Leanna Barcelona brings student archives to life through award-winning exhibit designs

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aster’s student Leanna Barcelona uses materials from the past to connect with students today in her artistic and awardwinning exhibits.

Since her high school days in the northwest Chicago suburb of St. Charles, Illinois, Barcelona has wanted to be an archivist. As an undergraduate student, she worked at the Student Life and Culture Archives at the University of Illinois, and after earning her bachelor’s degree in history and political science in May 2015, she decided to stay at Illinois for her MS in library and information science (MS/LIS) degree.

“I wanted to continue working at the Student Life and Culture Archives as a graduate student, and financially it made the most sense. It also doesn’t hurt that the iSchool is ranked as the #1 graduate school for its field,” she said.

Barcelona is a two-time recipient of the C. Barber Mueller Prize for Exhibition Design, sponsored by the University of Illinois Library Exhibitions Committee. In March 2015, Barcelona won the prize for her exhibit, “A Snapshot of Women’s History at U of I: 1871Present,” which showcased digitized photographs from the University Archives for Women’s History Month. In February 2016, she won for her exhibit for Black History Month, “Stepping through Time: Black Greek Letter Organizations at U of I,” which featured materials from the Student Life and Culture Archives and highlighted Black Greek letter organizations.

“In March, I had an exhibit in the Main Library titled ‘150 for 150: Celebrating the Accomplishments of Women at the University,’ for a sesquicentennial project. The Library and Gender Equity Council are creating a website that will feature over 150 great women from the University, and I have researched and generated the content for the website,” said Barcelona.

“A Walk Down Memory Lane: Connecting History at the Student Life and Culture Archives”

In addition, she is working on another exhibit using the American Library Association Archives to showcase the centennial celebration of U.S. entry into World War I. Barcelona’s graphic design skills were recognized again this spring when she won first prize in the Image of Research competition sponsored by the Graduate College.

“For the competition, I took a photograph of a storage vault at the Archives Research Center and overlaid the picture with a digitized photograph from the archives of students on the Quad in 1937. I came up with this idea after thinking about how student histories ‘live’ within the Student Life and Culture Archives program. A lot of my research, especially exhibits, focuses on student histories and how their shared histories connect throughout time,” she said.

In her free time, Barcelona loves to read. “I usually try to read a book a week. When I’m not reading, I like to do crafty things like knitting or wood burning. I also enjoy being active and attending group fitness classes on campus,” she said.

Her career goal is to become a university archivist or at least continue working in the archives of an academic institution.

“Universities are hubs of political and social movements, which can be captured and preserved in archives, and this creates rich research materials,” said Barcelona. “I enjoy helping people in their research endeavors and working with collections, so this type of position would be ideal.”

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MS student Jessica Followell wins ChLA essay award

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essica Followell is the 2017 master’s student recipient of the Graduate Student Essay Award from the Children’s Literature Association. Followell won the award for her essay, “Miracle Cures and Moral Lessons: Victorian Legacies in Contemporary Representations of Children with Disabilities,” which examines two plot devices that emerged in children’s literature during the Victoria era to discuss disabilities—the miracle cure and the moral lesson.

“In the essay, I consider disability in contemporary children’s literature as an extension of these Victorian era lessons, established in such novels like What Katy Did (1872), The Secret Garden (1911), and Pollyanna (1913),” Followell explained.

“I argue that the Victorian influence can still be seen in today’s disability literature for children. Specifically, remnants of the Victorian moral lesson on positivity can be seen in children’s biography books. While today’s literature may not promote the miraculous cure, there is still a heavy emphasis on telling stories in which people ‘overcome’ their disabilities and the limits placed on them.”

Originally from Champaign, Followell worked in the museum field before enrolling in the iSchool for her MS degree in library and information science (LIS).

“The LIS program at the iSchool was a perfect fit for me, allowing me to focus my studies on the intersections between libraries, archives, and museums. I wanted a program that would help expand my skills in archival management and also expose me to current issues surrounding digital preservation,” she said.

In the future, Followell would like to continue to work in the museum or archives sector, specializing in community outreach and engagement.

Interest in archives leads Glasco to take the “Leep” to LIS

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fter working for several years as a bank examiner with the federal government, Erin Glasco switched gears to pursue her interest in archives and special collections, enrolling in the iSchool as a Leep student in 2015. While Glasco enjoyed the variety of her work at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, she was frustrated by her inability to help consumers solve their issues with financial institutions until after the damage had been done.

“I changed careers because I wanted one that I could feel passionate about, and one that would allow me to take a more proactive role in repairing harm,” said Glasco. “I best see that happening in my role as an archivist through my commitment to meaningfully diversifying the historical record via archives.”

She chose Illinois after attending an information session in Chicago and discussing the program with an acquaintance who is an iSchool alum. Those interactions, along with the flexibility of the Leep online option, helped cement her decision to apply.

Glasco's research interests include the use of survivor-centered, post custodial archival theory in praxis; exploring the decolonizing power of community-led archives; and government surveillance of the Movement for Black Lives.

Now in her second year of study, Glasco feels she has learned a great deal from her iSchool coursework and forged lasting connections. “My favorite class in the program thus far has been Community Archives taught by Rachel Matteson and Chris D’Arpa. The class was special because it moved beyond being a mere survey course of community archives. We spent a lot of time considering the varied notions of ‘community’ and ‘memory’ and explored the ways in which community archives succeeded or failed in centering the communities they purport to serve,” Glasco said.

The class included an optional trip to New York City to participate in Alternative Spring Break, an experience which was “career-affirming” for Glasco. Students toured

several community archives/historical societies including The Lesbian Herstory Archives; the Interference Archive; and the Weeksville Heritage Center, which is the site of one of the first free Black communities in the U.S. Glasco served as an archival intern at the Center for Black Music Research (CBMR) at Columbia College Chicago from May 2014 to July 2016, assisting with reference and contributing to some of the center’s finding aids. In addition, she conducted research and curated a small exhibit at the CBMR on the FBI surveillance of noted singer, actor, and civil-rights activist Paul Robeson. In August 2016, she presented a graduate student poster about her research on Robeson at the Society of American Archivists (SAA) annual conference.

Last fall Glasco was selected as a 2016-2018 Association of Research Libraries (ARL)/SAA Mosaic Program Fellow. The Mosaic Program promotes diversity in the archives and special collections workforce by providing financial support, practical work experience, mentoring, career placement assistance, and leadership development to emerging professionals from underrepresented groups. Fellows receive up to $10,000 in tuition assistance. As part of the Mosaic Program, Glasco served as an intern at the Roosevelt University Archives in Chicago, helping to process the papers of two former professors and assisting in the library technology department.

“I take the charge of making archival spaces more meaningfully and thoughtfully diverse seriously. I’m hopeful that my fellowship year will allow me many opportunities to discuss and take action in conjunction with my peers as we continue the work of making archives more representative spaces,” said Glasco.

A native of Austin, Texas, Glasco holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and MBA with a concentration in management from Florida A&M University. In her free time, she enjoys reading, watching stand-up comedy, attending concerts, and yoga. She volunteers with Liberation Library in Chicago, “a wonderful organization that sends books (and messages of support) to juveniles incarcerated at various facilities around the state.”

Intersections Summer 2017

19 Student snapshots MS/LIS: Kristina Williams

CAS: Kayleigh Van Poolen

Hometown: Houston, Texas Degree(s): MA in communication, Illinois; BA in communication & media, The Evergreen State College Career interests: I’d like to work at an academic library where I can develop programming that pairs library instruction with improving digital literacies.

I chose the iSchool at Illinois because: While at the University of Illinois, I was deeply impressed by the commitment to community that I observed in so many current iSchool students. Many a weeknight I would find current students volunteering for Books to Prisoners or tinkering at the local Makerspace. You can’t say that about many graduate programs, library and information science (LIS) or otherwise.

Hometown: Roseland, Illinois; although I personally consider Colorado home because that is where I graduated high school Degree(s): JD with a certificate in public interest law, DePaul University; MS/LIS, Illinois; Master of Urban Planning, Illinois; MA in political science, Western Michigan University; BBA in accountancy, Western Michigan University Career interests: I would love to work for a social/economic justice organization, independent or part of a University, to advocate as well as support their research needs. I am also looking for law schools that have active pro bono and public interest law programs where I can support related research needs. The legal field and law schools are starting to grasp data; instead of limiting data science to the benefit of firms, we need to be outward-looking and use data science to determine policy and legislation as well as advocacy that supports our communities.

I chose the iSchool at Illinois because: I took an hourly position in the Main Library and was asked to stay on, working on several projects. I intended to head off to law school, but after some discussions with my supervisor, I was convinced to stay and complete my master’s at the iSchool while working at the Library. Then I headed to law school, and Hurricane Katrina hit the very first weekend of classes. Because of Katrina, I started extensive work related to social and economic justice. However, upon graduation, I found myself still searching and returned to what I knew, the iSchool.

MS/IM: Yingjun Guan Hometown: Tangshan, a small city located in the northern part of China Degree(s): Master’s in civil engineering, Institute of Engineering Mechanics, China Earthquake Administration; bachelor’s in civil engineering, Tianjin University Career interests: I am interested in working at a company or university in a research position related to machine learning, information retrieval, and database management.

I chose the iSchool at Illinois because: I wanted to study information science because of my experience analyzing data as a civil engineering student. The iSchool at Illinois is one of the best information schools in the world, with talented faculty, kind staff, outstanding students, and beautiful scenery.

MS/LIS K-12 Licensure: Ritse Adefolalu Hometown: Washington, DC, and Greensboro, North Carolina Degree(s): BA in English with a minor in music, Harvard University Career interests: I am interested in public youth librarianship and K-12 librarianship. I see the holistic enrichment of children and adolescents as one of the most important and effective ways of improving a community, and I believe the unique position libraries occupy at the intersection of the education system and the wider community gives them significant potential to spearhead positive change. As a professional saxophonist, I also believe that music plays a vital role in community building, and hope to incorporate music resources into library services for children who may not have access to such materials elsewhere.

I chose the iSchool at Illinois because: I decided to come to the iSchool not long after my interest in community service led me to consider a career in librarianship. I was contacted by the recruitment program ASPIRE, through which I was able to visit the campus and receive guidance during the application process. Most significantly, I was fortunate enough to receive a fellowship through ASPIRE that made it possible for me to afford to continue my studies here.

PhD: Jimi Jones Hometown: Zionsville, Indiana, but consider Urbana home Degree(s): MS/LIS, Illinois; BA in film production, University of Utah Career interests: I am interested in audiovisual preservation and archives. Since 2009, I have taught Audiovisual Materials in Libraries, Museums and Archives (LIS 590AV). I’ve enjoyed teaching the course and getting to know my students, and I plan to keep teaching this course for as long as the iSchool will let me! I would also like to continue to work in archives or museums as archivist and/or preservation specialist.

I chose the iSchool at Illinois because: I returned to the iSchool in 2014 to pursue a PhD because I believe that my research into video digitization standards development will make an important contribution to the audiovisual preservation profession. I believe that professionals working in libraries, archives, and museums rarely have the ability to take time to reflect on issues related to the power dynamics in the development of the standards that they employ. As an academic, I now have the time and resources to explore these issues and, in so doing, hold up a mirror to this community, within which I have long been embedded. I have found the school to be very supportive and welcoming, and I am very glad to be back here!

Features

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Innovative learning spaces

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tudents in Entrepreneurial IT Design (LIS 490) took advantage of innovative learning spaces at the Champaign-Urbana Community Fab Lab and Grainger Engineering Library’s IDEA Lab. The course, taught by Professor Michael Twidale, introduces students to design thinking and a range of rapid prototyping techniques to analyze needs, opportunities, and design spaces.

Pictured at left: Jing Du, MS/LIS student, uses the open-source electronic prototyping platform Arduino to create a light box at the CU Fab Lab. Pictured at Right: Nirvik Pravin, MS/IM student; Lucy Chang, an undergraduate in anthropology; and Saajan Dehury, MS/IM student, work on paper prototyping of an interface for a mobile shopping application in the IDEA Lab.

iSchool in Color fosters community, features alumni experts Pictured (left to right): Dean Allen Renear; Victor Jones, visiting recruiting specialist; Jerrod Moore; Liza Booker; Harriett Green; Diana Stroud, assistant dean for advancement; and William Langston.

This spring, the iSchool Diversity Committee fostered a greater sense of community through iSchool in Color, a series of events during Black History Month in February and Women’s History Month in March.

Activities in February included a kick-off event, special seminars, and an alumni brown bag lunch and career panel discussion. Liza

Booker (MS ’13), user experience analyst at Argonne National Laboratory; Harriett Green (MS ’09), English and digital humanities librarian at the University of Illinois; William Langston (MS ’14), digital learning librarian at the Latin School of Chicago; and Jerrod Moore (MS ’15), OCLC solutions strategist, served on the panel and shared their experiences and expertise.

March events included a celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8. The Spring Break Reading Group read We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and participated in a one-hour Twitter chat about the book.

Intersections Summer 2017

21 Students attend BOBCATSSS in Finland

Pictured (left to right) front row: Emily Hoch, Hope Shinn, Anna Lapp, Jaena Manson, and Lo Lee; back row: Jesus Espinoza, Anna Kuure-Kinsey, Katherine Bergen, Shelby Hallman, Lauryn Lehman, and Kathryn Butterworth. Not pictured: Erin Shores

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welve iSchool master’s students attended BOBCATSSS 2017, which was held in Tampere, Finland, from January 25-27. The BOBCATSSS Symposium is organized each year by library and information science students from European universities who plan and implement the content as well as manage the conference as part of their studies. The theme of this year’s symposium was “Improving Quality of Life

through Information” and included the topics of libraries, information, and interactive media.

For the past several years, the iSchool has used donor gifts to the School’s annual fund and endowments to support student participation in this unique library and information science event. In sharing their research with others at the symposium, iSchool students gained an international perspective. “During my poster ses-

sion, I had the chance to discuss my topic— making a food assistance program available in the library—with people from Finland, Poland, England, and Nigeria,” said Anna Lapp.

“The varied perspectives and ideas these individuals had was invigorating and eyeopening, demonstrating how differently countries across the globe operate.”

Weekends with Max and His Dad receives Gryphon Award Weekends with Max and His Dad, written

by Linda Urban and illustrated by Katie Kath, and published

by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, is the winner of the 2017 Gryphon Award for Children’s Literature. The Gryphon Award, which includes a $1,000 prize, is given annually by The Center for Children’s Books (CCB).

The prize is awarded to the author of an outstanding English-language work of fiction or nonfiction, for which the primary audience is children in kindergarten through fourth grade, that best exemplifies those qualities successfully bridging the gap in difficulty between books for reading aloud to children and books for practiced readers.

“Urban’s book is an absolutely classic chapter book, yet it’s also completely contemporary,” said Deborah Stevenson, CCB director. “Third-grader Max is adjusting to the new reality of his parents’ divorce in this story focused on the time he spends with his father, and Urban deftly employs small details and pays careful attention to Max’s emotions as father and son forge their relationship on new grounds. The prose is inviting and cozy, humorous, and respectful, with a smooth flow and careful pacing that will give transitional readers plenty of momentum and frequent rewards.”

Sam the Man & the Chicken Plan (Dlouhy/ Atheneum), written by Frances O’Roark Dowell and illustrated by Amy June, and Wet Cement: A Mix of Concrete Poems (Roaring Brook), by Bob Raczka, were named Gryphon Honor Books.

The Gryphon Award was established in 2004 as a way to focus attention on transitional reading. “These are some of the most important books children will ever read,” said Stevenson.

The award committee consists of members drawn from the youth services faculty of the iSchool, the editorial staff of The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, public and school librarians, and the library and education community at large.

Support The Center for Children’s Books Outreach Endowment Fund The CCB Outreach Endowment Fund provides support for the Gryphon Award. To make a gift to this endowment fund, visit www.ischool.illinois.edu/giving/funds and click on the “Centers” tab to make your selection, or contact the Advancement Office at (217) 333-3280 or ischool-advancement@illinois.edu.

Class Notes

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Decade: 2010s Mary Aylmer (MS ’14) became the director of the Chillicothe Public Library District in November 2016.

Stephanie Birch (MS ’16) is the African American studies librarian at the University of Florida George A. Smathers Libraries.

Meredith Broadway (MS ’15) was awarded the National Digital Stewardship Residency with World Bank Group in Washington, DC, where she will help create the foundation for a digital data stewardship and preservation program.

Emily Brock (MS ’11) became the digital history project manager at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York, in October 2016.

Katie Chamberlain Kritikos (MS ’10), a PhD student at the University of WisconsinMilwaukee School of Information Studies, co-presented “Privacy and Cloud Services in Public Libraries: The Case of BiblioCommons” at the 2017 Information Ethics Roundtable, which was held April 21-22 in Champaign.

Holly Clingan (MS ’16) is the associate director of principal gifts at the University of Illinois Foundation. In her role, she also serves as liaison to President Killeen’s office for advancement-related activities.

Suzanna Conrad (MS ’11) authored the book, Prison Librarianship Policy and Practice, which has been published in print and eBook by McFarland Publishers.

Amber (Castens) Cox (MS ’11), makerspace librarian for Pikes Peak Library District’s East Library in Colorado Springs, was accepted into the fifth cohort of the Colorado Association of Libraries Leadership Institute and began the program in September 2016.

Kaylan (Hutcherson) Ellis (MS ’14) accepted the position of technical services librarian in the Taggart Law Library of Ohio Northern University in June 2016.

Sarah E. Fancher (MS ’10) recently assumed the position of director of the Hamra Library at Ozarks Technical Community College in Springfield, Missouri. Previously, she was the business librarian at Saint Louis University.

Brian Flota (MS ’13) cowrote, with Mark Peterson and Julia Merkel, the cover story for the September 2016 issue of College & Research Libraries News, “Pulp in the Ivory Tower: One University Library’s Development of a Pulp Magazine Collection from Scratch.”

John Gough (MS ’14) became the associate director for data analytics with the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement at the U of I’s Urbana campus and began teaching Introduction to Databases at the iSchool last fall as an adjunct instructor.

Gillian Grossmann (MS ’15) accepted a position as a library technician at the National Gallery of Art Library in Washington, DC. Jason Harvey (MS ’16) relocated his family to Rochester, New York, on January 1 and started his new job as the physics-optics-astronomy (POA) librarian for the River Campus Libraries at the University of Rochester on January 9.

Nicole Helregel (MS ’13, CAS ’15) recently started work as research librarian for science teaching and learning at the University of California, Irvine.

Prema Desai (MS ’15) is the new metadata librarian for South Asian materials at the Stanford University Libraries in Stanford, California.

An article by Elaine Ricketts Hicks (MS ’10), “Digital Citizenship and Health Promotion Programs: The Power of Knowing,” was published in the January issue of Health Promotion and Practice. The article was based on her 2008 review of the book Digital Citizenship: The Internet, Society, and Participation, which she completed for Leigh Estabrook’s LIS 502 class.

On January 3, Carla Dinnocenzo (MS ’15) began her new position as youth services librarian at the Lake County (IL) Public Library, supervising the Youth Services department as well as planning programs and ordering for the juvenile collection.

Sophie Hou (MS ’16) is the data curation and stewardship coordinator at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). She works with the NCAR Data Stewardship Engineering Team to develop services for meeting data management requirements and to

support data stewardship needs for NCAR as well as the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research community.

Rumyana Hristova (MS ’12) accepted a position as catalog librarian at Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri, in November 2016.

Andrew Johnson (MS ’11) received the ACRL Early-career Librarian Scholarship and began his new position as emerging technologies librarian at the University of Georgia in February.

Gerald Jurek (MS ’12) accepted a position as user experience librarian and clinical assistant professor at the Library of the Health Sciences at the U of I at Chicago in summer 2016.

David Kalat (MS ’11) is a director with Berkeley Research Group LLC’s Global Investigations + Strategic Intelligence Practice. He is an expert witness in digital forensics, an eDiscovery specialist, and a senior investigator. In addition, he is a Certified Fraud Examiner, a Certified Computer Examiner, an Access Data Certified Examiner, an Illinois licensed private detective, and a nonfiction author.

William Langston (MS ’14) will start his new job as student success and engagement librarian at North Carolina State University in July.

In January 2017, Urszula (Biegaj) Lechtenberg (MS ’14) began working at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, as an instructional design librarian.

Kayla Leitschuh (MS ’14) started a new job as a librarian at Franklin Middle School in Champaign, Illinois, in August 2016.

Lilyan Levant (MS ’12) is the new vice president of business development for The NewsGazette in Champaign-Urbana.

In October 2016, April Lundberg (MS ’15) began working at the Chicago Public Library as a children’s librarian.

In July 2016, Angela Maranville (MS ’12) accepted a position at West Virginia University Libraries in Morgantown as assistant director of knowledge access and resource management.

In September 2016, Susan Mayer (MS ’14) moved into a full-time position, specialty information services librarian, at Arlington Heights

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(IL) Memorial Library. She provides programing, teaches courses, and offers one-on-one guidance to customers in genealogy, business services, and reference.

Scott Migaldi (MS ’11) joined T-Mobile USA as director of standards and strategy, assisting with the development of fifth-generation wireless systems to improve user experience and usability for customers.

Kristin (Unruh) Nolan (MS ’13) married Alex Nolan on June 18, 2016, in Shelby Township, Michigan. She also was hired at Siersma Year Round Elementary in Warren, Michigan, as the school library media specialist. She will continue to work part time at the Shelby Township Library.

Lindsey O’Brien (MS ’15) has accepted the position of cataloging project librarian at the Newberry Library in Chicago.

Hillary Ostermiller (MS ’13) recently joined James Madison University as the communication and media studies librarian.

Celia Perez (CAS ’12) is an academic librarian at Harold Washington College, one of the City Colleges of Chicago. Her debut middle-grade novel, The First Rule of Punk, will be published

by Viking in August 2017.

Nancy Kim Phillips (MS ’11) recently joined Mount Prospect Public Library as deputy director strategic operations.

Colin Rhinesmith (PhD ’14) has been named a 2016-2017 faculty associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. He will collaborate on projects that promote digital inclusion and broadband adoption in U.S. communities and beyond.

Sarah T. Roberts (PhD ’14) was featured in a segment on commercial content moderation (CCM) on Public Radio International’s “Science Friday” on March 10. She also discussed CCM in the March 8th article, “Social Media’s Silent Filter,” in The Atlantic.

On March 1, Charlotte Roh (MS ’13) was featured in American Libraries discussing the future of libraries. She is a scholarly communications librarian at University of San Francisco’s Gleeson Library.

Alyssa Russo (MS ’14) is the new learning services librarian at the University of New Mexico.

Simone Sacchi (PhD ’15), former head of Scholarly Communication Services at Columbia University Libraries in New York City, recently moved back to Europe (The Hague, The Netherlands) and joined LIBER, the Association of European Research Libraries, as an open science officer.

Renata Sancken (MS ’12) started a new job as a teen/reference librarian at Memorial Hall Library in Andover, Massachusetts, in September 2016.

Devin Savage (MS ’11) was recently named the associate dean for assessment and scholarly services at the Paul V. Galvin Library at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Peace Collection and the Friends Historical Library in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.

Matthew Timko (MS ’16) began working at Northern Illinois University’s College of Law Library as a reference and instructional librarian on January 5.

Kelli Trei (MS ’12) was featured in the March 20th current member spotlight of the ACRL Science & Technology Section e-news. She is a biosciences librarian and assistant professor at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign.

Michelle Urberg (MS ’16) is a metadata librarian at ProQuest in Seattle, Washington, in the part of the company that was formerly Serials Solutions and is now part of ExLibris.

Emilie Vrbancic (MS ’14) started a new job as the undergraduate experience librarian at the University of Washington in July 2016.

Yasmeen Shorish (MS ’11) earned tenure and was promoted to associate professor at James Madison University. She has also transitioned from a subject liaison librarian to the role of data services coordinator.

Kellee E. Warren (MS ’15) is now instructor and special collections librarian for University of Illinois at Chicago’s Richard J. Daley Library.

Jodi Silverman (MS ’16) accepted a position as the young adult librarian at Manville Public Library in Somerset County, New Jersey.

Jamie Wittenberg (MS ’15) has accepted the position of research data management librarian and head of the Scholarly Communication Department at Indiana University Bloomington Libraries.

Stacey Smith (MS ’15) won the APA Librarian Conference Travel Award for fall 2016. She will use the prize to attend the 2016 Librarian Assessment Conference in Washington, DC. Smith is the public services librarian at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology.

Stephanie Sopka (MS ’12) began work as the technical services librarian at Marlboro College in Marlboro, Vermont, in October.

Madison Sullivan (MS ’15) joined the University of Washington Libraries in Seattle as a business research and instruction librarian in February 2017.

Janet Swatscheno (MS ’14) accepted a new position as visiting digital publishing specialist in the Scholarly Communications and Publishing unit at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign Library.

Julie C. Swierczek (MS ’12) accepted the position of librarian for primary resources and metadata services at the Swarthmore College

Lynn Yarmey (MS ’11) received an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Community Engagement Fellowship as part of the inaugural cohort starting in 2017.

Oksana Zavalina (MS ’02, PhD ’10) earned tenure and was promoted to the rank of associate professor at the University of North Texas (UNT) College of Information. Zavalina serves as an associate director of the interdisciplinary information science PhD program at UNT. Decade: 2000s Amy Brokaw (MS ’07) started a new job as the K-12 district librarian for Blue Ridge Community School District 18 in August 2016.

In February 2017, Audrey Chapuis (MS ’06) assumed a new role as assistant director of Institutional Advancement at the American Library in Paris, France.

Class Notes

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Kaitlin Costello (MS ’08) recently completed her first year as an assistant professor in the Department of Library and Information Science at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. She researches health information behavior in online social networks and teaches courses in human information behavior, health sciences information, and social informatics.

Cheryl (Benoit) Harris-Sumida (MS ’03) received her National Board Certification in Media in 2013 and the Illinois State Board of Education’s Award of Recognition in 2016. She teaches educational technology classes for the library and information science program at Olivet Nazarene University. She has been married to Phil Sumida since 2013.

Melissa Cragin (PhD ’09) was named executive director of Midwest Big Data Hub (MBDH), a network of regional institutions created to facilitate collection, management, and use of complex information, creating active partnerships of experts and resources to address issues relevant to life in the Midwest. MBDH is based at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign.

Samantha Schmehl Hines (MS ’03) is now the associate dean for instructional resources at Peninsula College in Port Angeles, Washington. This position includes oversight of the library as well as the Peninsula College Press.

On March 1, Sarah Houghton (MS ’01) was featured in American Libraries discussing the future of libraries. She is the director of the San Rafael (CA) Public Library.

Douglas R. Dechow (MS ’07) was awarded the 2016-2017 Fellowship at the American Library in Paris. Along with his wife and coauthor Anna Leahy, Dechow was in residence at the library in October 2016, where they conducted research on the Concorde.

Jeannette Hulick (MS ’01) was recently hired as the teacher-librarian at Middletown Prairie Elementary School in Mahomet, Illinois. She is working with more than two hundred and fifty students, all in Pre-K or kindergarten.

Eric Edwards (MS ’06) was elected secretary/ treasurer for IACRL. He was also appointed to the CARLI Resource Sharing Committee and the ILA Reporter Advisory Committee.

Lindsay King (MS ’08) is associate director for access and research services in the Robert B. Haas Family Arts Library at Yale University. She oversees public services, including reference, instruction, outreach, and digital services, as well as operations of the main service desk.

Joshua Finnell (MS ’07) was appointed by the mayor of Santa Fe to serve a three-year term on the board of the Santa Fe Public Library in New Mexico.

Jill Gage (MS ’04) was named custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing at the Newberry Library in Chicago.

Esther Gillie (MS ’02) graduated with an MDiv and a DMin from Northeastern Seminary in May 2016 and accepted the position of dean of Regent University Library in July 2016.

Alison (Bolla) Greenlee (MS ’09) started her new position as special collections metadata librarian at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, on February 1.

Paolo Gujilde (MS ’09) was a featured speaker at the ALCTS Midwinter Symposium, “Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Creating a New Future for Library Collections,” during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Atlanta in January.

Laura Leavitt (MS ’04) was elected to the SLA Board of Directors. She is division cabinet chair-elect.

Melanie Lyttle (MS ’03) and Shawn Walsh coauthored the book, Library Service to Tweens, which was recently published by McFarland & Company, Inc. She is head of public services for the Madison Public Library in Madison, Ohio.

After nearly twenty-five years at Wheaton College’s Buswell Library, David Malone (MS ’02) has assumed the deanship of Hekman Library at Calvin College.

Marianne Martens (MS ’06) is the author of Publishers, Readers, and Digital Engagement (Palgrave MacMillan, 2016), which demonstrates how the roles of author, marketer, and reviewer are being redefined as online environments enable new means for

young adults to participate in the books they love.

Rachelle (Ramsey) Miller (MS ’04) received her MBA with a leadership concentration from Bluffton University in 2016. She has been the director of Troy-Miami County Public Library in Ohio for the past eight years.

Robin Miller (MS ’09) earned tenure and promotion to associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, as of July 1.

Roy Saldaña (MS ’08) is the project director for Achieving College Excellence (ACE), a program at Loyola University that serves firstgeneration college students, students with a high financial need, and students with a documented disability.

The Wall Street Journal featured Kim Sigle (MS ’09) in the March 5th article, “The ‘RockStar’ Librarians Who Choose What Your Kids Read.” Sigle is a librarian at Lake Ann Elementary School in Reston, Virginia.

Alec Sonsteby (MS ’05), is editor of the Journal of Web Librarianship. He also serves on the Executive Committee of the faculty of Metropolitan State University and as statewide board member of the Inter Faculty Organization, the union representing faculty at the seven universities of the Minnesota State system.

Besiki Stvilia (MS ’97, PhD ’06) has been promoted to the rank of professor in the Florida State University School of Information.

Janice Wien (MS ’09) was promoted from librarian I-cataloging to librarian II-acquisitions at Santa Monica Public Library in June 2016.

Bei Yu (PhD ’06) is the inaugural KatchmarWilhelm Endowed Professor at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies, where she is an associate professor.

Decade: 1990s Jeffry Archer (MS ’91) started his new position as associate dean, user services, at McGill University, after serving as head of reference and bibliographer for business and economics at the University of Chicago for over 21 years.

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Anthony Cook (MS ’97) accepted a position as a patient education specialist librarian in the Mayo Clinic Office of Patient Education.

CAS classes while working as an associate professor and coordinator of the Central Illinois Nonprofit Resource Center at UIS.

Michelle Glatt (MS ’93) received the School Librarian of the Year Award from the Illinois School Library Media Association. Glatt is a librarian at Chiddix and Evans Junior High Schools in Bloomington-Normal.

Decade: 1980s

Patt Leonard (MS ’93) is assistant metadata librarian at Arizona State University Libraries in Tempe, where she held her first library job as an undergraduate assistant.

Thomas Marsh (MS ’91) became the director of the Johnson County (KS) Law Library in October 2016, after spending the past seventeen years at Dentons US LLP. Steve Oberg (MS ’91) was appointed group leader for resource description and digital initiatives at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, in January 2017.

Brian Quigley (MS ’99) was awarded the Distinguished Librarian Award by the Librarians Association of the University of California, Berkeley, in November 2016.

Lynne Marie Rudasill (MS ’91) was conferred with a Scroll of Appreciation by IFLA at its 2016 World Library and Information Congress.

The Scroll was given in recognition of her exemplary service to IFLA. Pamela M. Salela (MS ’99) recently completed a nine-month sabbatical from her position at the University of Illinois, Springfield (UIS), during which she was a full-time CAS student at the iSchool. She continues to take

Arn Ellsworth Winter (MS ’84) has retired after an enjoyable thirty-five-year career as a library director in West Virginia and New Jersey.

Tina Hubert (MS ’88), director of the Six Mile Regional Library District located in Granite City, Illinois, is the 2016 recipient of the ILA Librarian of the Year Award. The award recognizes a librarian’s distinguished service and leadership in Illinois libraries.

Fred Jenkins (MS ’86) recently published Ammianus Marcellinus: An Annotated Bibliography, 1474 to the Present (Leiden: Brill, 2017).

Sara Tompson (MS ’87) is serving as the 2017 president of the SLA Southern California Chapter.

Decade: 1970s Lynn Cline (MS ’75) retired as head of Content Management & Acquisitions for the Missouri State University Libraries on March 1, after more than forty-one years of service to the University and the libraries of Missouri.

Wm John Hare (MS ’70) and Jill Hare own the largest inventory of books and art by children’s author and illustrator Tasha Tudor. Their website, cellardoorbooks.com, lists hundreds of items. They are the authors of the definitive bibliography, Tasha Tudor: The Direction of Her Dreams (1998), and Christmas Card Designs of Tasha Tudor (2012). John, who lectures on Tudor’s art, addressed the annual meeting of

the United Federation of Doll Clubs in Washington, DC, on July 30, 2016.

Rose Levy (MS ’70) will be retiring at the end of July 2017 as professor of library services at Oakton Community College in Des Plaines, Illinois. “What a great career it has been!”

Louis J. Reith (MS ’76) retired from Georgetown University in 2013 but continues to present papers and write articles and book reviews for several international historical societies and journals. Since retirement, he has completed cataloging of the rare book collection of Concordia University and presented “An Unknown Reformation Prince—Duke Christoph of Wuerttemberg” for the Concordia University Reformation commemoration Series.

Decade: 1960s Mohamed El Hadi (PhD ’64) founded the Egyptian Society for Information Systems and Computer Technology (ESISACT) in 1993.

ESISACT held the 22nd scientific conference on Managing Information Technology last October at the Egyptian Academy of Scientific Research and Computer Technology in Cairo.

In September 2016, Elaine Estes (MS ’60) was recognized for her service as former director of the Des Moines Public Library (IA) at the Des Moines Public Library Foundation Book Ball 150.

Grace E. Shope (MS ’67) is happily retired, traveling, and enjoying the company of her sixteen-year-old grandson, Will, after a rewarding thirty-year career with Abington School District and seventeen years as an adjunct professor with Arcadia University.

Send us your news!

We’d love to hear from you! Send us your updates as well as any employment or internship opportunities, conferences of interest, or other opportunities for iSchool alumni to connect in your area.

Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations School of Information Sciences 501 East Daniel Street Champaign, IL 61820 ischool-advancement@illinois.edu (217) 333-3280 ischool.illinois.edu/people/alumni/mail

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Alumni

Intersections Summer 2017

26

Four iSchool alumni named ALA Emerging Leaders

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our iSchool alumni have been selected by the American Library Association (ALA) to participate in its 2017 class of Emerging Leaders. Minhao Jiang (MS ’15), Casey McCoy (MS ’14), Lucas McKeever (MS ’13), and Heather Thompson (MS ’13) are included in this year’s class of fifty individuals from across the country. Now in its eleventh year, this leadership development initiative provides opportunities for newer library professionals to participate in problem-solving work groups, network with peers, observe ALA structure, and serve the profession in a leadership capacity.

Jiang is a software development librarian for Wayne State University Libraries in Detroit. He maintains and optimizes existing applications, develops new applications to support the library’s digital initiative, and explores innovative approaches to enhancing current workflows.

“During my studies at the iSchool, I was involved in several projects where I was encouraged to explore what’s beyond the scope of classes. This helped me prepare for my current job, which entails continually learning new skills, tools, and methodologies,” said Jiang.

Alumna Linda Hofschire (MS ’08) among 2017 Movers & Shakers Library Journal’s annual “Movers & Shakers” list recognizes professionals who are shaping the future of libraries in a variety of ways. Linda Hofschire (MS ‘08) is among the 2017 class of Movers & Shakers in the “Innovators” category. Hofschire is director of the Library Research Service at Colorado State Library (CSL).

Hofschire was recognized for her work with CSL and the Colorado Library Consortium (CLiC) in launching the Research Institute for Public Libraries (RIPL), a three-day boot-camp-style event for library leaders and others interested in public library data and evaluation.

Thanks to financial support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program, RIPL has expanded to offer two-day regional events nationwide.

“We created RIPL to respond to the increased pressure public library stakeholders have experienced in recent years to demonstrate their library’s value with data. RIPL equips public librarians with the skills and confidence to use data to tell a meaningful story of the twenty-first century library,” Hofschire said.

McCoy is STEAM librarian at San Jose Public Library. She is the lead librarian on board the Maker[Space]Ship, a custom-built 39-foot mobile makerspace that launched in December 2016.

“I create and lead STEAM programs for all ages as we make three to five stops per week at preschools, community centers, apartment complexes, parks, and afterschool programs. When not on board, I primarily work with SJPL librarians, city staff, and other local organizations in providing hands-on STEAM activities outside the library’s walls, whether that is on the Maker[Space]Ship or through other outreach efforts,” McCoy said. “The most influential moment during my time at the iSchool was definitely taking Community Informatics Studio, taught by Martin Wolske, where I worked with a great group of colleagues as we led Demystifying Technology Workshops at a local elementary school.”

McKeever is the head of technical services at Elmwood Park Public Library.

He manages the ordering, cataloging, and processing of materials provided to the community by the library. He works with other department heads to plan and implement collection maintenance projects that allow the library’s materials to remain accessible as patrons’ needs change, and he is in the process of reorganizing and digitizing the library’s local history collection.

“Being at the iSchool afforded me the opportunity to take courses taught by leaders in their field and immediately put the knowledge I gained into practice.

Working in Collection Management Services (CMS) at the University Library provided additional opportunities for independence and growth,” said McKeever.

Thompson works as a youth services programming librarian at the Kenosha Public Library. She develops and implements school-age programs and coordinates departmental offerings to ensure a balanced programming schedule. Thompson also works at the youth reference desk and manages the juvenile collections.

“The iSchool helped me realize that I wanted to be a children’s librarian. The youth services classes I took were not only fun and interesting, but full of practical projects that provided a window into what I would end up doing every day,” said Thompson.

Emerging Leaders displayed the results of their project planning work in a poster session at the 2017 ALA Annual Conference in Chicago.

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27

Get to know...

Sarah Faye Cohen (MS ’03), managing director at Open Textbook Network

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arah Faye Cohen found the perfect fit for her curiosity, people skills, and library experience in her job with the Open Textbook Network.

Where do you work, and what is your role?

I am the managing director for Open Textbook Network, which is housed at the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. Open Textbook Network is an alliance of institutions committed to access, affordability, and student success through the use of open textbooks. After moving to California to become associate university librarian at California Polytechnic State University, I found after a few years that I wanted to do something else. At Cal Poly, I started exploring open textbooks to address affordability and access issues for our students as well as collaborating with the director of the Open Textbook Network. He eventually offered me a job that allowed me to stay in California but work for the University of Minnesota. I always wanted to work from home, especially when we were a young family, but in libraries that is a very hard gig to find.

Open Textbook Network works with over 375 campuses across the country. My job is to build and support our community of institutions that works to make faculty aware of open textbooks, often through our Open Textbook Library, which has more than 350 textbooks and is visited by people across the globe. These books have been reviewed by faculty from a variety of colleges and universities to assess their quality. We provide workshops on campuses to introduce faculty and staff to open textbooks and offer them resources to get started. The textbooks are considered open because they are free to use and distribute, and are licensed to be freely adapted or changed with proper attribution. So, faculty can customize the content to meet the needs of their course objectives as well as simultaneously meet the needs of their students.

What do you like best about your job?

I love my job! I love working with and meeting people from campuses across the U.S. to support openness, education, and libraries. I love learning about the work they’re doing, the relationships they are building, and the impact they are having using open textbooks. My work is at the nexus of libraries, innovation, higher education, and technology, which is why I went to library school. I am studentcentric, and I thought that meant I had to work directly with students. Now I’m working for students in totally new ways and feel like I’m really having an impact on potentially millions of students across the country, with hundreds of libraries.

How did the iSchool help you get to where you are today?

I give a lot of credit to Dean Allen Renear, who was my professor in class and for an independent study. He supported my curiosity and cultivated my belief that I can look across our discipline and find ways to explore it, even if I don’t always have the technical know-how. The most important thing is to be able to ask good questions. I took a wide variety of courses at the iSchool and really did get to apply all of these different aspects in my career—my perspective on information, the role of the librarian in higher education, and the role of the librarian as an educator.

What advice would you like to share with iSchool students?

Recognize how much you get from your iSchool degree. I came to Illinois because I had a love of rare books, and I started my career in rare book cataloguing. I quickly discovered that I was not a cataloguer! I made my way into

the world of teaching and was a proud information literacy librarian for several years at Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont, before moving to Cal Poly. This experience working with faculty, librarians, and administrators definitely has helped me in my current position.

I see so many of my former classmates doing such interesting, diverse work across the field of information. Talk to the faculty—even the ones you don’t have in class. Be curious throughout your career, even when it may become slow or boring. I’ve sat on the boards of multiple libraries because I want to make libraries strong. I couldn’t be prouder of our profession.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

I enjoy taking my six-year-old daughter to the local library; playing the piano and ukulele; hiking and spending a lot of time outside with my husband, daughter, and dog; doing yoga; and gardening.

28 Intersections Summer 2017

Giving

Curt McKay (MS ’88) inspired by the iSchool’s sense of community

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eacher, admissions counselor, program director, volunteer, LGBT advocate . . . Curt McKay has worn many hats in his lifetime.

After graduating from Rockford College in 1967 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, McKay wasn’t sure what he wanted to do.

When a junior high school in Rockford needed a teacher to finish out the school year, he took the job and started his first career, in education. “On the first day, I kept thinking how do I do this? The only real preparation I had was having once been a seventh and eighth grader myself,” he said. Teaching suited him, and he decided to earn his master’s degree in teaching from Rockford College.

Over the course of twenty years, McKay taught students from 1st through 12th grade, primarily as an English teacher.

In 1987 when McKay came out of the closet, he needed to find a new career. “I took my elementary school kids to the library to check out books. The head of youth services at Rockford Public Library, Mary Ann Sarver (MS ’61), said I should become a children’s librarian—I liked books and was good with kids,” he said. “I started looking at library schools and ended up at Illinois purely by accident.”

As a new master’s student in library and information science, funds were tight, and McKay hoped for an assistantship to ease his financial burden. Leigh Estabrook, dean of the School at the time, noticed that McKay had been a teacher and offered him an assistantship in the learning resources lab. “At Illinois, not only did I start learning a new career, but I got carried away by this wonderful atmosphere,” McKay recalled. Instead of completing his degree in one year as he had planned, he decided to extend it to two years; then in April of his first year, a job opened up in the School, and McKay was encouraged to apply.

“At Illinois, not only did I start learning a new career, but I got carried away by this wonderful atmosphere.”

As the assistant to the dean for recruiting and admissions, he worked to increase the enrollment of students from diverse backgrounds into LIS, helped students find jobs, and oversaw the computer lab. “I was often willing to take a risk on a student who might not have met the admissions committee’s standards. The vast majority have gone on to be successful, mostly as librarians but not exclusively,” he said.

His position evolved over the years into the assistant dean for student affairs.

McKay was involved in the Queer community on campus, and when the Office of LGBT Resources needed a part-time director, he was interested in the opportunity.

The iSchool was supportive, and for a number of years, he held a joint appointment with the iSchool and the Dean of Students Office. In 2005 he became the first full-time director of what is now the LGBT Resource Center.

McKay is grateful for the support he received from the iSchool, both as a student and staff member. “It was a wonderful kind of environment. You won’t find a better place to learn and to develop a sense of community,” he said. “It was especially supportive of me as I came out as a gay person in middle age.”

The support he received from the faculty, staff, and students made McKay want to return the favor and give back. He established the Curt McKay Student Need Endowment, which

provides emergency financial assistance for students enrolled in the iSchool. McKay knew that most graduate students survive on stipends from graduate assistantships and personal savings; if a tragedy were to strike, many students wouldn’t have the financial resources to manage the crisis and continue their education.

“I saw the fund as providing a gift and not a loan, but I also hoped that if recipients ever were financially able, they’d contribute to it.

I’ve been gratified at the number of alumni who have added to the fund over the years, even though they weren’t recipients. It shows how our sense of community continues long after completing degrees and pursuing careers,” McKay said.

McKay retired from the University after serving eight years as codirector or director of the LGBT Resource Center. During his tenure, Illinois hosted the Midwest BLGT and Ally College Conference (MBLGTACC) twice.

He has kept exceptionally busy in his retirement, working at the local food pantry and preparing taxes for senior citizens through his involvement with the AARP, reading newpapers for the blind with the Northern Illinois Radio Information Service, working at the Friends of Rockford Public Library’s main library bookstore, serving on the Education and Training committee of the Illinois Safe Schools Alliance, and offering his assistance to Rockford’s Unity in Diversity group.

In his weekly shift at the Rockford Public Library, McKay interacts with a variety of library users. “The iSchool broadened my outlook so that I can truly value what the public library brings to all of us; now I get to see that every week and be a small part of it,” he said.

Support the Curt McKay Student Need Endowment To make a gift to the Curt McKay Student Need Endowment Fund (#770268), use the enclosed envelope or go to www.ischool.illinois.edu/giving/funds.

Intersections Summer 2017

29 Honor the past, present, and future of libraries with your gift

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ur School was one of the first LIS programs in the world to support the study of the history of libraries, information, and society. Help us honor this 120-year tradition by donating to the Endowed Chair in the History of Libraries and the Information Professions.

This Endowed Chair, which acknowledges our School’s longstanding commitment to the study of libraries and librarianship, will provide support for faculty and students to continue to have the opportunity to research, explore, and learn about the history of libraries and the growth of information professions.

An endowed chair is the highest honor the University can confer on faculty members and serves to attract the best faculty and students in the field. We are $340,000 short of the $2 million requirement for an endowed chair in the School. Lionelle and James Elsesser (both MS ’67) will match each gift up to $170,000; your gifts with their match will provide the $340,000 we need.

In this issue of Intersections, you will find an envelope for your donation; the Endowed Chair is listed under the Funds section. You can make a secure gift online at ischool.illinois.edu/giving/funds.

For more information about the fund, please contact Susan Lee, associate vice chancellor for advancement, at (217) 244-3298.

Emily Adams, Hearsey Scholarship recipient

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mily Adams, current recipient of the iSchool’s Herbert R. and Laura Beth Hearsey Scholarship, is a master’s student in the K-12 program. Growing up on a farm close to Sullivan, Illinois, she considered going into agriculture or teaching, but she wasn’t sure which one to choose. After shadowing her cousin Holly Pantle (MS ’09) on the job, Adams decided to become a school librarian.

“As I saw her duties and interactions with students, it was like a light bulb went off in my head,” said Adams. “I also really liked the structure of K-12 librarianship, which gives a lot of flexibility in working with different age groups.”

Adams received her associate’s degree in English from Lake Land College and her bachelor’s degree in English from Eastern Illinois University. The University of Illinois was her top choice for graduate school because of its number-one ranked MS in library and information science, in-state tuition, and her cousin’s strong endorsement.

Her first student teaching assignment was at Jefferson Middle School in Champaign, and

she is currently student teaching at Williams Elementary in Mattoon, Illinois. "I'm having a really great experience," she said. "The part I like best is building connections with the students."

Adams would like to work in either a small, rural school district or possibly at a school abroad.

In her free time, Adams is learning to fence.

“When I started graduate school, I decided I was going to take advantage of being in a town that was larger than I’d ever lived in before and pick up something I’d never had the opportunity to do, so I joined the Fencing Illini,” she said. She also enjoys going for walks in the woods and reading.

Adams is grateful for the financial support she has received from the School and especially donors like Herbert and Laura Hearsey.

“I’ve been able to earn enough scholarships and save enough money that I didn’t have to take out any student loans, so I’ll be graduating from college debt free,” said Adams. “This could not have happened without the scholarships and foundations that were established by many generous people, and I am extremely grateful for their support.”

Support our students Contribute to student success at the iSchool and make an Illinois education more affordable for deserving individuals from all income levels.

Scholarships enable promising students to take advantage of the extraordinary opportunities provided by our School and help attract the best students to our program.

To make a gift, use the enclosed envelope or donate to a scholarship fund online at www.ischool.illinois.edu/giving/funds.

School of

Information Sciences The iSchool at Illinois

Non Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 75 Champaign, IL

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 501 East Daniel Street, MC-493 Champaign, IL 61820-6211

Celebrating 150 years The University of Illinois is celebrating its sesquicentennial anniversary with special events planned from February 28, 2017, through May 12, 2018. The fifteen-month long celebration will highlight our University’s accomplishments and ambitious vision for the future. A land-grant institution founded in 1867, the University of Illinois has a long record of commitment to public engagement and the discovery and application of knowledge. Find out more at 150.illinois.edu.

ischool@illinois.edu I ischool.illinois.edu I Phone: (217) 333-3280