Building Reflective Collections...Always Teens First

In this four-week eCourse, participants will explore building reflective, responsive collections that represent their teen communities. We will discuss ways to learn about patrons—both users and “not-yet” users, in addition to assessing current collections. In the process of acquiring materials, we will discuss #ownvoices, problematic reviews, counter stories and the need for diverse professional networks. The framework threading through this course will be that diverse collections are only one step in building inclusive libraries.  

Course themes:

• 1. Learning about your Community
     • The Basics: Who is it...really?
     • Data
     • Surveys
     • “Soft” Data
     • Users + “Not Yet” Users
  2. Our Current Collections
     • Assessment
     • Identification of Gaps
     • Reaching out to your End Users / Stakeholders [teens, teachers, parents]
     • Weeding
  3. Acquiring New Materials
     • Librarians Reading Widely
     • The Nature of Reviews
     • Importance of #ownvoices
     • Counterstories
     • Collecting Beyond the Big Four of Historical Fiction, Social Issue Books, Award Winners, and Biographies
     • Digital Collections
     • Diverse Networks: Social Media, Conferences, Authors, Colleagues
  4. Reflective Books are Only the First Step
     • Libraries ≠ neutral: Collection Development as Social Justice
     • Using Diverse Collections to Build Inclusive Libraries
     • Programing
     • Design