Capstone Projects | Information School | University of Washington

Framework for a YWCA Alaska Archives

YWCA Alaska wants to preserve and share its rich history with the communities it serves by starting and maintaining an archive. To help the organization plan and prepare to engage volunteers and paid interns in beginning the archives, we have created a framework with archival practices and links to additional resources, and recommended first and future actions. Researching and developing the framework has resulted in a guide YWCA Alaska and other nonprofit organizations can use to start an archive and help the Y's new CEO strengthen her relationships with some of the organization's longest-term supporters.

Full S.T.E.A.M. Ahead!

Full STEAM Ahead! was a virtual STEAM camp designed for children 6-12 that ran between April 5-9. Everett Public Library (EPL) originally had a STEM program for ages 0-3 that was taken over by the local school district. Our team saw the opportunity to fill a gap in programming, especially since engaging ages 6-12 is vital for maintaining interest in STEAM. We developed five 1-1.5 hour activity sessions. Our program had an average compared to the attendance of similar programs EPL offered during April 2021. Our attendees were very engaged and had an overall positive response to our program.

Generally Readable Informative Documents (GRID)

Oftentimes, those with the most important messages to share have neither the time nor money to create the most effective media for communicating their messages to others. Research has been done on this topic; however, it is largely inaccessible in both cost and writing. GRID is a free, readable, research-based web guide on how to write more readable documents, aimed at those working for social good. It takes research-based guidelines and professional industry practices and makes them easy to digest and implement for any screen-based document.

How to Know What You Don't Know: An OER for Information Literacy

In many cases, information literacy instruction in academic settings is something that occurs piecemeal and predominantly in the first year. I set out to design an Open Educational Resource that will help ensure students towards the end of their academic careers have a solid foundation in information literacy by reminding them of earlier lessons and filling in any blanks. With the help of the instructional librarians at Occidental College, I have produced the course plan for this resource, which will supplement the instructional efforts of librarians and ensure our students reach their senior year and beyond as information literate individuals.

IIIF and Mirador at UW Libraries

In IIIF and Mirador at UW Libraries, I sought to understand how the International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) functions and how the IIIF-compliant Mirador Image Viewer can be used at UW Libraries. All images in the UW Libraries Digital Collections are IIIF-compliant and viewable in Mirador, but this function is underutilized by staff and researchers. After interviews with Libraries staff and my own extensive research, I created three mini-tutorials on accessing and using Mirador. The tutorials take the viewer through using the Mirador Classic Image Viewer features, loading two or more images, and loading images from other IIIF-compliant institutions.

Improved Interface and Alignment between the Pima County Public Library and Friends of the Library

This project applied insights gained from surveys, focus groups, interviews, and meetings with library administrators, managers, and staff, and volunteers from several Friends of the Library groups. The goal was to inform a new Library administrative liaison role between the Friends and the Library. We began to create training materials, a toolkit for library staff and friends. Next steps involve revision and refinement of existing Friends agreements and charters to support a fruitful partnership. The project team involved collaboration with a library administrator and a consultant on non-profit organizational success, as well as Friends volunteers.

Improving Metadata with NLP Tools

I researched improving metadata with natural language processing for libraries. I finished my research with a Python script for extracting named entities from text and another for analyzing the sentiment of a text. This project helps spur interest in using natural language processing for library metadata. It also shows how easy and scalable it can be as a baked-in feature of integrated library systems.

Indigenous Representation in Subject Headings

Internationally used systems such as LC Subject Headings, LC Classification, and Dewey Decimal Classification use misrepresentative or offensive language, marginalize Indigenous topics, and categorize them as things of the past. Through research, interviews, and consultations, our project focused on developing alternative subject headings. The ultimate goal is to reflect the identity of Native students, faculty, and staff at UM and increase their ability to access resources. The project team developed an annotated bibliography and provided the library with recommendations for immediate changes and strategies for continuing the project as part of the library’s commitment to an inclusive library experience.

INFO 101 Research Essentials: Re-imagined & Re-designed

INFO 101: Research Essentials is a 2-credit course taught by librarians at Pierce College that introduces students to research skills, ranging from building a topic to locating and evaluating information. For this project, the librarians were interested in assessing and updating the current course shell or set of foundational modules to see how they could build a more inclusive, anti-racist course. Through a survey of librarians, research of anti-racist teaching tools, assessment, and revision of the course, we were able to pinpoint ways to better support students and highlight their unique perspectives.

Inside Civil Commitment

After receiving copious mail in recent years documenting abuses experienced by those incarcerated at Illinois civil commitment facilities, Black and Pink Chicago sought to create an archive to shed light on this little-known issue. This project involved digitizing nearly 100 documents from incarcerated individuals, establishing appropriate metadata standards, populating an engaging Omeka site, and creating guidelines for project continuance. The archive is now a tool Black and Pink Chicago can use to share stories from inside with researchers, activists and the general public to facilitate rehumanization of the incarcerated, advocate for measurable changes and ultimately abolish the carceral system.

iSchool Capstone

2021