Katz, Robin M., Leah Richardson, Sarah M. Horowitz, and Elizabeth Call. “Meeting Researchers Where They Are: A User-Driven Manifesto.” Rare Book and Manuscript Sections (RBMS) Preconference. Oakland, CA. June 25, 2015. Seminar moderator.

1. Meeting Researchers Where They Are:
A #UserDriven Manifesto
25 June 2015 | RBMS 2015 | Oakland, CA

2. Thanks
The Bancroft Library
#UserDriven

3. Speakers
Leah Richardson, GWU
Sarah M. Horowitz, Haverford
Elizabeth Call, Columbia/Burke
Robin M. Katz, moderator
#UserDriven

4. Speakers
Leah Richardson @rareleah
Sarah M. Horowitz @bibliowitz
Elizabeth Call @spywocket
Robin M. Katz @robinmkatz
#UserDriven

5. A #UserDriven Manifesto
We urge special collections librarians and
archivists to prioritize users across all
functions, including collection
development, description, and, of course,
public services.
#UserDriven

6. A #UserDriven Manifesto
While we recognize that truly putting users
at the center of our work may conflict with
other priorities, we will do our best to
investigate what users do and do not care
about, and to learn what is and is not
working for them.
#UserDriven

7. A #UserDriven Manifesto
We know that assessment is key to both
internal evaluation and outward-facing
advocacy, and we will be careful about
shaping user expectations and influencing
how they perceive of their needs.
#UserDriven

8. A #UserDriven Manifesto
Why create a user-driven culture?
Because it is inherent to our mission, and
because it is vital to our survival. Even with
limited resources (namely, time and
money), it is imperative that we write
related activities into budgets and job
descriptions.
#UserDriven

9. A #UserDriven Manifesto
We urge special collections librarians and archivists to prioritize users across
all functions, including collection development, description, and, of course,
public services.
While we recognize that truly putting users at the center of our work may
conflict with other priorities, we will do our best to investigate what users do
and do not care about, and to learn what is and is not working for them.
We know that assessment is key to both internal evaluation and outward-
facing advocacy, and we will be careful about shaping user expectations and
influencing how they perceive of their needs.
Why create a user-driven culture? Because it is inherent to our mission, and
because it is vital to our survival. Even with limited resources (namely, time
and money), it is imperative that we write related activities into budgets and
job descriptions.
#UserDriven

10. Agenda
Speakers 15 min each
Interactive Component 30 min
Small Group Activity
Discussion / Q&A
#UserDriven

11. Leah Richardson
Public Services and Outreach Archivist
George Washington University
leahr@gwu.edu

12. #USERDRIVEN
READING ROOM ASSESSMENT @ UCHICAGO

13. #USERDRIVEN

14. #USERDRIVEN
SURVEY
RESPONSES

15. #USERDRIVEN
HOW CAN WE ASK BETTER QUESTIONS?

16. #USERDRIVEN
DIFFERENT APPROACHES

17. #USERDRIVEN
GWU STUDENT ASSESSMENT: REFLECTIVE ESSAYS
Issues and questions raised by the
students:
! Copyright
! Funding: issues faced by libraries
! Digitization: robots and humans
! Humans are needed
! Digitization impacts the ideas and
work in the digital humanities

18. #USERDRIVEN
GIVE THEM WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW THEY WANT

19. MEETING RESEARCHERS IN THE
CLASSROOM: FACULTY
OUTREACH
Sarah M. Horowitz
Haverford College

20. CAPITALIZING ON INTEREST: GOALS
! Find out what faculty most wanted from special
collections
! Increase the number of classes
! Incorporate faculty into other things going on in
the library/special collections
! Counter the “I don’t know what we have”
problem

21. STRATEGIES
! Capitalizing on library and campus culture
! Indicate how you can help them
! Different ways of talking about the collections

22. ASSESSMENT AS OUTREACH
! “[Archives] are opportunities to consider the
meaning of such places in the first place--how
histories are constructed, and by whom; what
gets included in the archive, what gets left out,
and what this teaches us about power, privilege,
and identity; how material objects and ephemera
produce meaning; what it means to touch the
past in the present. To be able to bring students
into direct contact with archival materials it to
bring them into a larger conversation about the
politics of knowledge.”

23. ! “By analyzing materials in Special Collections,
students would learn to think critically about
how the encounter with an object of study—the
way in which its historical or intellectual value is
framed, in part through the archiving process—
shapes our understanding of it. I think students
were fascinated by the materials, and excited to
consider how encountering (for example) a
photograph as an object (rather than simply as a
visual representation) transforms the kind of
interpretive work we can do with it.”

24. ! “Students in both of my classes have reported
that these sessions were some of their favorite so
far this semester; that they are still mulling over
the materials we encountered and the questions
we asked about them; and that they hope to work
with some of these materials for their final
projects. My sense is that they also feel less
intimidated by the idea of working in Special
Collections, and thus more likely to work with
these materials in the future.”

25. STUDENT CURATED EXHIBITS
! Team includes a
faculty advisor and
librarians
! Almost all our
exhibits follow this
model

26. EVENTS AND PROGRAMMING
! Student
presentations as
part of our “Dig
Into the
Archives” series
! An assignment
based on their
final paper

27. KEEPING FACULTY INFORMED
! Know that we are being responsive
! New materials of interest
! Also consult about purchases
! New subject guides

28. THANK YOU!
! Contact:
shorowitz@haverford.edu

29. To#Every#Book#Its#Reader:##
Meeting#Researchers#Outside#of#
the#Classroom#and#the#Reading#
Room#
#
#
Elizabeth#Call#
Public#Services#Librarian#
Burke#Library#at#Union#
Theological#Seminary#
Columbia#University#Libraries#
elizabeth.call@columbia.edu#
#UserDriven#

30. From#2010L2014,#
only#2#out#of#1,475#
researchers#to#the#
archives#were#from#
Union#Theological#
Seminary#(UTS).#

31. “Special#Collections#
cannot#survive#merely#
as#a#prestigious#
ornament#to#the#
university;#we#will#
need#to#articulate#the#
centrality#of#our#
collections.”##
–John#Overholt#

32. “Never#forget#that#
justice#is#what#love#
looks#like#in#public.”##
–Cornel#West#

33. StudentLCurated#
Display#Cases#

36. Collection#
Development#
bit.ly/Love_In_Action#

37. Educational#Tools#

38. Public#
Programming#

51. Challenges#
Sustainability#
Not#tied#to#a#
course#or#
money#
Not#all#
components#
worked#out#

52. Thank#you!#
#
Contact#me#if#you#have#any#
questions:#
#
Elizabeth#Call#
elizabeth.call@columbia.edu#

53. Small Group Activity
case study discussion
groups of 4 – 6 people
#UserDriven

54. A #UserDriven Manifesto
We urge special collections librarians and archivists to prioritize users across
all functions, including collection development, description, and, of course,
public services.
While we recognize that truly putting users at the center of our work may
conflict with other priorities, we will do our best to investigate what users do
and do not care about, and to learn what is and is not working for them.
We know that assessment is key to both internal evaluation and outward-
facing advocacy, and we will be careful about shaping user expectations and
influencing how they perceive of their needs.
Why create a user-driven culture? Because it is inherent to our mission, and
because it is vital to our survival. Even with limited resources (namely, time
and money), it is imperative that we write related activities into budgets and
job descriptions.
#UserDriven

55. Meeting Researchers Where They Are:
A #UserDriven Manifesto
25 June 2015 | RBMS 2015 | Oakland, CA