IACRL Journal Article Discussion Club: Two Years and Going Strong

Illinois Association of College & Research Libraries Forum (IACRL)

March 20, 2020

by Krista Bowers Sharpe, Western Illinois University

During the summer of 2018, Vice President/President Elect Eric Edwards sent out an email looking for IACRL members who would be interested in joining a journal article discussion club. At that point, he suggested that the club could meet online, possibly once a month, to discuss journal articles of interest to academic and research librarians in Illinois. Club members would choose the articles before each meeting and also decide on questions to discuss, related to the topics of the articles. Articles would come from any scholarly publication covering topics relevant to academic librarianship, but open access titles would make the process easier for participants.

Edwards stated that “the club would be an excellent opportunity for IACRL members to engage with colleagues from across the state, while staying current on the latest trends and issues affecting academic and research libraries. ACRL chapters in other states have had success with similar groups.”

The Fall 2018 IACRL newsletter noted that Edwards had received sufficient response to his call and therefore “IACRL recently formed a journal discussion club that will meet virtually once a month starting in October.” Since the Fall of 2018, the IACRL Journal Article club has not met every month--due to members’ busy schedules--but has hosted many interesting discussions on a variety of topics and articles. In Fall 2019, the CARLI Instruction Committee also started a journal article discussion club, so since then we have partnered with them rather than compete.

Be sure to sign up for the next event, April 23, 2020, about virtual reference (very timely!) and led by Emily Gilbert of Rasmussen College:

Past discussions: [Date: topic (discussion leader)]:

 Nov 26, 2018: demonstrating the value of libraries to administrators (Eric Edwards)

 Jan 24, 2019: fostering collaboration between libraries and other departments on campus (Eric Edwards)

Feb 26, 2019: Implicit bias and microaggressions in the workplace (Pattie Piotrowski)

Mar 28, 2019, continued May 24, 2019: Decline of traditional reference transactions and new options of services (Nestor Osorio)

  • Chisholm, A., & Spencer, B. (2019). The displaced librarian: Providing research services to your campus without a library. College & Research Libraries News, 80(2), 92–99. https://doi.org/10.5860/crln.80.2.92

  • Keyes, K., & Dworak, E. (2017). Staffing Chat Reference with Undergraduate Student Assistants at an Academic Library: A Standards-Based Assessment. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 43(6), 469–478. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2017.09.001

  • Meert-Williston, D., & Sandieson, R. (2019). Online Chat Reference: Question Type and the Implication for Staffing in a Large Academic Library. Reference Librarian, 60(1), 51–61. https://doi.org/10.1080/02763877.2018.1515688

  • Farrell, B., & Leousis, K. (2017). Integrated Reference à la Carte: Evaluating, Selecting, and Implementing the Best Features for your Library. Journal of Library Administration, 57(5), 548–562. https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2017.1326727

  • O’Neill, K. L., & Guilfoyle, B. A. (2015). Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign: What Does “Reference” Mean to Academic Library Users? Journal of Academic Librarianship, 41(4), 386–393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2015.05.007

  • Yang, S. Q., & Dalal, H. A. (2015). Delivering Virtual Reference Services on the Web: An Investigation into the Current Practice by Academic Libraries. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 41(1), 68–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2014.10.003

  • Chan, E. K. (2014). Analyzing Recorded Transactions to Extrapolate the Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities of Reference Desk Providers at an Urban, Academic/Public Library. Journal of Library Administration, 54(1), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2014.893113

Jul 16, 2019:  Marketing library services (Leslie Starasta)

Several articles from the Summer 2018 issue of Marketing Libraries Journal http://journal.marketinglibraries.org/MLJ-v2i1.html:

  • Marketing Academic Library Usage: A Connecticut Case Study

  • Hooking Your Audience: Tailored Instruction Marketing

  • A Disciplined Brand Approach to Marketing Libraries

  • Ask a Catbrarian: Marketing Library Services Using a Cat

Aug 20, 2019:  Inclusive design (Michelle Nielsen-Ott)

Oct 31, 2019: The topic of collaborations between libraries and writing centers (Nestor Osorio)

November 6, 2019 (With CARLI Instruction Committee): critical and equity-based librarianship (CIC Members)

February 26, 2020 (with CARLI Instruction Committee): post-fact information literacy (CIC Members)

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