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SLO8, ARTIFACT 4: Public Library Collection
Link to collection page: https://lmefrom.wixsite.com/kannapoliscollection Link to adult fiction collection page: https://lmefrom.wixsite.com/kannapoliscollection/stacy This is a mock library collection that my classmates and I did for Dr. Kevin Washburn’s collection management class. I am including it here to show how our group worked together to select resources in response to a community’s expressed needs. After doing an environmental scan of a city based on real-world data, we selected collection focus areas (adult fiction, young adult, large print, Spanish language, and career resources) and identified resources for each area. We made a group decision to use the Wix website-building platform to showcase our collection and then began building our individual collections independently. Because our resource choices had to be vetted, we used book reviews, websites, and “best of” lists to guide our decisions. We then wrote the introduction page text before submitting the project to the professor. This project was my first experience building a website with a group. We ran into technical difficulties initially due to simultaneous saving and publishing by multiple group members, which we resolved by scheduling our work at different times of the day. The introduction page required some back-and-forth discussion, as we each had slightly different ideas regarding how it should be worded. Navigating these challenges was a good experience in group problem solving and consensus building, skills which will serve me very well in my career as a library and information professional. Participating in this project taught me how challenging it is to build a vetted collection that reflects a range of genres and literary tastes. When developing the adult fiction collection, I tried to keep my own biases in check while keeping in mind the demographics of the community being served and the materials being offered in other group members’ collections. Deciding which “best of” lists and reviews to use was a difficult process that I handled by consulting a variety of scholarly, mainstream, and alternative review sources. In the end, I gained a much deeper appreciation for the thought process and the time that go into selecting library materials for even the smallest of collections. As a public library outreach professional, I will be providing reader advisory services and selecting which materials to take to offsite events, such as popup libraries. My recommendations and selections will need to be informed by professional best practices, which require that I rely on user needs data and professional literature, in addition to my own judgement, when making book suggestions and purchasing decisions. This group exercise gave me experience in applying best practices and provided a starting point from which to grow my collection development skills. |