Projects at the Out on the Shelves Library at Qmunity
As the Library Coordinator at the Out on the Shelves Library at Qmunity from September 2013 to October 2014, I worked on many projects to help increase the visibility and usability of the library. A sample of some of the projects I was involved with at the library are below.
Koha Transition Project
(click below to view more information)
(click below to view more information)
Community Star Award
(click below to view more information)
(click below to view more information)
Out on the Shelves Library Reader's Advisory Manual
I created this manual as a final project for a course at SLAIS. While working at the Out on the Shelves Library, I noticed that many of our volunteers, especially those who were not library students, had trouble providing effective reference services and searching for specialized books within the queer community. This manual provides a starting point for volunteers to find ways to search for items more effectively, and covers areas such as:
Providing effective reader's advisory services, especially within the LGBT community, is a major area of interest for me. As a follow-up to this manual, I also wrote an article for the British Columbia Library Association Reader's Advisory Interest Group blog here.
I created this manual as a final project for a course at SLAIS. While working at the Out on the Shelves Library, I noticed that many of our volunteers, especially those who were not library students, had trouble providing effective reference services and searching for specialized books within the queer community. This manual provides a starting point for volunteers to find ways to search for items more effectively, and covers areas such as:
- How to conduct an effective reader's advisory interview
- Using social media such as book review blogs, tumblr, and goodreads
- Using library-specific technology such as Novelist
- Using book awards to find relevant and recent items
Providing effective reader's advisory services, especially within the LGBT community, is a major area of interest for me. As a follow-up to this manual, I also wrote an article for the British Columbia Library Association Reader's Advisory Interest Group blog here.
Library Wishlist
The Out on the Shelves Library relies heavily on donations from the community to operate. It's important, therefore, to provide an easy way for our donors to see what items the collection needs. In the Spring of 2014, I implemented Libib as a platform for showcasing the library's collection development needs. We maintain two lists on Libib: one for books, and one for DVDs. These lists are updated regularly based on assessments of our patron and collection needs. |
Out on the Shelves Library Survey
One project that I initiated at the Out on the Shelves library is a regular library assessment to ensure that library resources are relevant to our patrons. I created this bright survey box and developed the survey form. I also created an excel spreadsheet to track the survey results.
This box was first displayed for one month in September 2013, and we hope to use the display periodically in the future as a way to track trends over time and stay in touch with our patron base.
One project that I initiated at the Out on the Shelves library is a regular library assessment to ensure that library resources are relevant to our patrons. I created this bright survey box and developed the survey form. I also created an excel spreadsheet to track the survey results.
This box was first displayed for one month in September 2013, and we hope to use the display periodically in the future as a way to track trends over time and stay in touch with our patron base.
Out on the Shelves Library Map
Every good library has a map to help patrons navigate the stacks! Even though the Out on the Shelves Library is small, there are a lot of different subject areas to navigate. I created this map in August 2013 to help patrons orient themselves in the space.
Every good library has a map to help patrons navigate the stacks! Even though the Out on the Shelves Library is small, there are a lot of different subject areas to navigate. I created this map in August 2013 to help patrons orient themselves in the space.
Mystery Book Fundraiser
I proposed this fundraiser in August 2013 as a way to combat a limited budget and a need for library outreach. As a donation-run library, the Out on the Shelves often receives many of these campy vintage queer books. These books are really cool to look at and laugh at with friends, but not so popular as check-out material.
I created several of these "mystery" book packages to sell at Pride 2013 and 2014 with the Qmunity table in order to advertise the Out on the Shelves library to the community, get rid of several of these campy books, and hopefully add a bit of vintage camp to the Pride Celebrations.
I proposed this fundraiser in August 2013 as a way to combat a limited budget and a need for library outreach. As a donation-run library, the Out on the Shelves often receives many of these campy vintage queer books. These books are really cool to look at and laugh at with friends, but not so popular as check-out material.
I created several of these "mystery" book packages to sell at Pride 2013 and 2014 with the Qmunity table in order to advertise the Out on the Shelves library to the community, get rid of several of these campy books, and hopefully add a bit of vintage camp to the Pride Celebrations.
Additional Projects
In addition to some of the fun projects above, as the Library Coordinator, I have also worked on many others! Here's a sampling of some of the work that I routinely do at the Out on the Shelves Library:
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