Reading this book after our first couple of weeks, the biggest concepts that tied Mr. Palfrey’s ideas to those we have been discussing were his thoughts on how librarians and libraries should approach change, build community, and transform for our digital future. Here are some of the main threads that Read more…
The idea of leadership has (unsurprisingly) come up in my class on library management, and it’s reappearing this fall in my class on academic libraries. It’s a common question, What makes a good leader? And there’s usually not one universal answer, as leadership is often defined by how someone reacts Read more…
As I have been working on my MLS, several themes have come, and gone, and returned again. How to structure a reference interview. Why communication is important. The importance of strong leadership. This month’s theme seems to be change management. I first noticed it at the beginning of the month: Read more…
With all of the sitting we’ve been doing while working from home — and without much walking once the temperatures started to soar in Texas — I’ve definitely noticed an increase in back pain and stiffness over the last five months. Writing this post was a great reminder of things Read more…
On the day I was celebrating the 1st year anniversary of working at Southern Methodist University, I presented the culmination of the largest project I worked on during the spring semester, at the Cross Timbers Library Collaborative Conference, with my supervisor at SMU, Jonathan McMichael. One of the things that Read more…
This pandemic has affected everyone in the healthcare industry, whether or not they are on the front lines, directly fighting the disease. Our member physical therapists have been declared essential, but they’re not surprised that patients are wary about returning to the clinic in person. The good news is that Read more…
And I thought March and April were difficult. Here in Texas, the COVID numbers are soaring after two and a half months of a reopening that included two weeks of protesting in June. Dallas doesn’t seem to be as bad as Houston (yet), but it’s difficult to measure the level Read more…
As my digital libraries class comes to a close and my project management class starts to build, I find that both are looking at project management as a series of tasks to complete, regardless of where the project resides (the library, the university, or elsewhere). Surprisingly, I found some of Read more…
While I have never (rightfully) been described as an “outside person,” even I’m starting to get stir crazy after months of quarantining at home. But now that I live in Texas, I’m highly aware of the dangers of heat stroke and heat exhaustion if I go outside. Our member clinics Read more…
Recent events have prompted many of us who are white to learn more in order to do more and to be better. At SMU Libraries, we posted two different blog posts about anti-racism resources; I wrote our piece on the juvenile literature collection as I’ve been working on a diverse Read more…