Instructional Technology

“Librarian Roles” Information Services Task Force

Examples of How Other Institutions Support Technology

by Neal Baker
26 February 2006

Here are a few snapshot examples of how other institutions support technology in ways that differ from Earlham. In some instances, librarian roles have changed to various extents. In others, librarian roles remain the same. These snapshots are by no means intended to be exhaustive; they simply demonstrate a small range of technology support models. Others on this task force could undoubtedly supply additional models.

Carleton College

http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/its/support/acad/support/

Librarians possess the standard-issue superpowers of reference and library instruction but nothing more. However, the separate Information Technology Services unit has four Academic Computing Coordinators who are assigned a division (e.g. Sciences, Humanities). Each Academic Computing Coordinator is the personal and single point of contact for all computing needs in a division: computer delivery and setup, general computing assistance, computer training, instructional design, etc. Each Academic Computing Coordinator has a division-applicable academic background and experience in teaching and research. Each Academic Computing Coordinator works with a number of student Academic Computing Assistants.

Grinnell College

http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/instructionaltechnologies/

Here too, librarians are “just” librarians. Faculty technology support resembles the Carleton model but is more project-oriented. Grinnell’s three Curricular Technology Specialists are not a single point of contact for their respective divisions, but are instead project-based technologists with a background in curricular development and pedagogy.

Kenyon College

http://lbis.kenyon.edu/about/documents/
http://lbis.kenyon.edu/staff/reflibns/

Reference and Instruction Librarians at Kenyon have morphed into “Librarian and Technology Consultants” and are assigned liaison duties to departments for which they develop the collections, provide desktop computing support, and offer research instruction. The overall “Library and Information Services” unit has four departments that merge computing and the libraries:

1. Information Access (Circulation, ILL, reference, computer helpline, computer labs and classrooms, and facilities management).
2. Information Resources (Special Collections and Archives, Multimedia Collections, collection development, acquisitions, cataloging, and technology and information consulting for faculty).
3. Information Systems (planning, design, and management of technology infrastructure and administrative information systems).
4. Institutional Research (organization and leadership of a distributed institutional research function).

University of Kansas

http://www.lib.ku.edu/instruction/
http://www.lib.ku.edu/instruction/it/

Instruction Librarians and IT trainers merged into an Instructional Services unit within the Library. This umbrella training organization provides individual consulting for faculty and students and teaches everything from course-integrated research instruction to GIS, Flash, Mac OS X, Dreamweaver, creating video for instruction, etc. A representative position title is “Information Technology Trainer & Instructional Outreach Coordinator.” Reference Librarians also contribute to the workshop schedule.

Hamilton College

(PowerPoint presentation attached)

Reference Librarians and Instructional Technologists are separate, but collaborate by focusing their attention on sophomore seminars, a College mission-statement-driven curricular development. The collaboration is called Hamilton Information and Learning Liaisons (HILLgroup), managed by four coordinators (two Reference Librarians and two Instructional Technologists) who rotate roles. With buy-in from the Dean and President, they work with faculty to produce large posters and video assignments in sophomore seminars (these are basically alternatives to the research paper).

Bucknell University

http://www.bucknell.edu/Library_computing/About_ISR/index.html

Their ISR is like our IS, what I call a “federal” model where units retain functional autonomy but are coordinated at a higher-level à la Brussels, Strasbourg, and the European Union. However, Earlham’s ITAM functions are divided into two separate units at Bucknell: (1) “Instructional Technology Enhancing the Curriculum”; and (2) “Learning Spaces” which provides AV support AND manages computer labs and information commons-type areas. Consensus management is a hallmark of the ISR organization and forms part of their conference circuit dog-and-pony show. We could flex our marketing muscles and take our Quaker governance model on the road!

DePauw University – Instructional Technology Associates Program (ITAP)

http://www.depauw.edu/it/itap/
http://www.depauw.edu/it/itap/projects.asp

Admittedly, this initiative does not involve librarians per se, but it is an interesting model for linking the liberal arts to technology support. Students undergo a highly-selective admissions process to become ITAP Associates, which involves a four-year rotation where they work with DePauw IT professionals and end up aiding the curriculum and the administration in various ways while receiving academic credit.

Posted by markp at February 27, 2006 12:57 PM