Conducted for the International Student/ELL Subcommittee of the UW Libraries’ Teaching and Learning Group, this mixed-methods study examines international students’ perception and use of the UW-Seattle Libraries. International students have been identified as a group that need unique support on campus, and Libraries staff are concerned international students are not engaging with Libraries resources and services as fully as they could be. International student enrollment jumped from 6.5% to 15.2% of the total UW-Seattle student population from Fall 2006 to Fall 2015, according to the Office of Planning & Budgeting. How can library services and resources be more attuned to these students’ information needs? What can the Libraries do to support international students’ sense of inclusion and belonging? Triangulating undergraduate and graduate focus group, wayfinding, and survey data, this project offers an initial set of recommendations to address the diverse needs of the local international student community.

Collection development policies guide the evolution of library collections while considering the needs of the populations served. The existing University of Washington Libraries’ subject policies for astronomy and physics were last updated in 1986 and never ratified. The procedures outlined therein are woefully out of date and, in particular, have nothing to say about electronic resources, which are cornerstones of modern academic work. In order to bring these policies into the 21st Century, our group examined existing collection policies at the University of Washington, interviewed the astronomy and physics collections’ users, and studied astronomy and physics policies from comparable institutions. The resulting documents, including a formal policy statement and a public-facing LibGuide, will direct collection acquisitions, maintenance, and evaluation in these fields for years to come while providing the flexibility to adapt to the fast-paced environment of research science.

The Beaverton Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an-all volunteer community ensemble in Beaverton, Oregon. In more than 30 years, the organization has amassed a collection of more than 220 separate works, with dozens of parts for each. The sheet music library lacked any digital cataloging or inventory system, making it difficult for the music director to select works and for the volunteer music librarian to keep track of the collection. I assessed and weeded the collection, researched cataloging systems and recommended a free online option (musiclibrarian.net), established metadata schema, developed unique identifiers for parts and works, and cataloged a sample selection of music. This new system provides better management and access of the collection at no cost to the orchestra, which will assist with future programming, allow easy addition of future works, and support the BSO’s mission of providing quality, affordable classical music and outreach to the community.

A growing number of institutions are creating digital collections of historical costumes, but the same cannot be said for theatrical costumes. This form of non-traditional academic scholarship continues to go unmarked in the world of repositories with the exception of small collections of production stills. While a joint effort, there are separate elements of theatre (scenery, costumes, etc.) that should be documented with context for study and recognition to their corresponding designer(s). Constructed garments themselves are often altered and reused for subsequent performances making these pieces quite ephemeral in nature. This collection marks the beginning of Boise State University’s digitized costume collection that brings recognition not only to the designer, but also to the institution’s contribution to the theatre arts. The repository provides a means of officially publishing these records, which include not only photographs of select finished garments, but also renderings created by the costume designer himself.

Seattle Art Museum’s Dorothy Stimson Bullitt Library has a collection of print annual reports dating from 1932 to the present. To digitize the collection, we scanned each report, assigned metadata, and uploaded the documents to a Shared Shelf webpage. We then built an online exhibit to showcase the collection using the web platform Omeka. Finally, we worked with marketing and communications to promote the new digital collection. By digitizing the entire set of reports, we empower users to access these materials independent of library staff, and we free valuable physical space in the library. This collection is also unique because while other museums nationwide do make some reports available online, their collections only include the prior 10-15 years. We believe through the promotion of these reports and the stories they tell, we share an important part of Seattle history, and help further SAM’s mission to Connect Art to Life.

This project took place within a rural public library that serves approximately 6,500 city residents, as well as visitors and out-of-town patrons. The library’s non-circulating collection includes local archives and government documents; the weekly newspaper on microfilm; reference books; and maps and atlases. The purpose of the project was to improve the relevance and accessibility of these library holdings for patrons and staff. A collection assessment was followed by the drafting of development and maintenance recommendations, and implementation of proposed changes. As a result of these activities, missing and out-of-date items were removed from the collection and replaced with current, useful titles for general and geographic reference. In addition, cataloging and classification practices were standardized and documented within each sub-collection in order to better facilitate user access, with a particular focus on improving records and classification for archives materials, both in the catalog and on the shelf.

Kitsap Regional Library, as part of its Vision 2020 Strategic Plan, seeks to build community through a series of community conversations where participants will be given the opportunity to share their aspirations for their communities and identify community needs. This project will operate within the spirit of this initiative by identifying the needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer-identified (LGBTQ) youth population in the area, a population that has historically been underserved in our broader society and whose needs have not been overtly sought after and met by this institution, and determine what existing or new library services might help to address those needs. A combination of surveys and personal conversations will be administered to gather input from youth on their various information needs. From there, an intervention will be designed to address an identified information gap, which will be available for future use and implementation by Kitsap Regional Library.

Tasked with re-envisioning the access points of Seattle Public Library Special Collections’ resources, we first accessioned the the newly acquired O'Hanrahan Estate letters and photographs using SPL’s current standards. We then re-evaluated these standards and made recommendations for increasing the discoverability of SPL Special Collections by a broader audience. Finally, we built a multi-media book to showcase the O’Hanrahan collection. This online book serves as a conceptual model of enhanced bibliographic access for Special Collections as SPL approaches an upcoming website re-design.

The instruction librarians at Gonzaga University’s Foley Center Library provide learning opportunities to students on campus in classroom settings. Since 1988, they have extended those services to distance students. More recently, they have aligned themselves with programs offered online by the university to provide asynchronous and synchronous instruction opportunities for students attending school online. With these desires in mind, this project has focused on investigating web conferencing technology and developing a webinar template for the instruction librarians to use in conjunction with online library orientation activities in order to better serve the distance students at Gonzaga University. This enables distance students to connect with each other as well as the library and librarians. The program allows students to tailor their own learning experience, adding another layer of unique interaction to their education. Using this innovative program method, instruction can occur online in a community-oriented setting.