My Professional Goals and How They Relate My e-Portfolio Items
I currently hold the position of Library Assistant with the Phoenix Public Library system in Arizona. It is a large system with seventeen branches including our main headquarters downtown. Because of its size, Phoenix Public has a lot of room for growth and fully supports the academic aspirations of its employees. I am personally acquainted with several people who began as part-time employees with Phoenix Public and are now managers of departments, branches, or one of our five districts. Personally, I started out as a Circulation Attendant in October of 2015 and was promoted to my current position after I had been in the system for a year. The promotion came with a transfer to a different branch and the encouragement to run my own programs and be as creative as possible with ideas that would make our libraries more enjoyable for the thousand of patrons we receive daily. Since becoming a Library Assistant I have created a Tween Book Club for ages 9-12 from the ground up, planning and executing all aspects by myself. I have also taken over weekly BabyTime and BabyTime with Sign Language programs, working with children from birth to age two on early literacy and language recognition. Aside from the regular programming I am constantly presented with the opportunity to assist with special events, craft projects, community outreach, and book recommendations for children and adults.
My most prominent career goal at the moment is to do what I am currently doing more often and on a larger scale. I chose the path of public services librarianship in school, meaning I followed the map of classes suggested for a future career in public libraries. My unofficial concentration was young adult services. I enrolled in several classes on the subject of programming and materials for young adults ages 12-18, and used self-guided coursework in several other classes to focus on this subject as well. I would like to work in public libraries as a children and teen services coordinator. This position involves involves the ability to plan and market programs, understand the basic principles of collection development and classification systems, and conduct and evaluate research projects whose results make the library more successful in serving the community. The position also involves a firm grasp on technology and the ability to keep up as the digital world grows and becomes more all-inclusive. It absolutely requires successful communication in all forums, and a strong belief in the foundational principles of intellectual principles. The items in my e-portfolio support all of these career requirements, and give substantial reasons why my understanding of each of them proves I am ready to step into the world of public services information professionals.
My Conception of Librarianship Relating to Public Youth Services
The essential job duties I mentioned above are arguably more important in youth services than in the rest of the public library. Adolescents are in transitional phases for years on end. Many of these phases are confusing, depressing, and strange. They might not have an outlet for their extra energy, or might not have someone to talk to about the fact that they have no energy at all. They might be curious about drugs, sex, or other taboo topics and be too embarrassed to ask the adults in their lives. They might not have the ability or money to participate in extracurricular activities at school. They might not be in school because of expulsion, dropping out to work, or attending homeschool. In all of these situations and hundreds more, young adults are in need of a public library that takes special care to include them.
My professional philosophy is largely based on the little-known necessity of encouraging young adults to visit the library or use our digital resources by appealing to their interests. Before they visit, entice them by advertising programs like a community Minecraft day or coding workshops. While they are in the library, make them feel at home with unique furniture that will fit their changing bodies more comfortably than tables and chairs. When they leave, send them with pamphlets on how to access the library’s e-materials and flyers for future events and services. While they are scrolling Facebook and Instagram, make sure they see the library’s social media presence in the form of announcements and pictures.
The public library is a place where everyone should feel welcome. It is open to the public and all people who enter the facility have an equal right to access information. The library staff makes themselves available to answer questions and provide that information, regardless of subject matter, because of an understanding and belief in intellectual freedom. The “right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction” applies to everyone who enters the library, not just those over eighteen years of age (Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q & A, 2017). Many people, even information professionals and parents, sometimes forget that young adults are entitled to intellectual freedom and freedom from censorship as well. As a public services librarian specializing in youth services, I plan to make sure my library is doing everything they can to offer equal service to patrons of all ages.
My Understanding of Competency O
SJSU’s Core Competency O states that a student must “identify ways in which information professionals can contribute to the cultural, economic, educational and social well-being of our global communities.” I attended INFO 281: Colloquial and Contemporary Issues in the Fall 2016 semester, which helped me understand library issues from a global perspective. That particular section of INFO 281 focused on global library issues with an emphasis on Guatemala and the Librarians Without Borders (LWB) organization.
Through the lectures, videos, and assignments in this class my eyes were opened to the differences between the privileges afforded to American libraries compared to those in developing countries. I learned how to speak about other cultures’ library practices and suggest alterations within their capabilities while remaining respectful to the culture. I also got inside the mind of a teenage Guatemalan girl in my Persona Sketch assignment. This combines my chosen field of study, youth services, with insight on the professional traditions in practice elsewhere that serve the youth of the community. I did this by researching the region’s library services and narrowing that research to how the youth of the community utilize the library services available to them. During the execution of this exercise I was able to compare what libraries offer teens in America with the services offered abroad, demonstrating my appreciation of this relationship.
During INFO 281 our final project was to examine a technological aspect of libraries in depth and then compile a professional White Paper with findings on how Guatemalan libraries could adopt a version of this technology with the help of LWB. My group reported on cataloguing and automation systems, brainstorming ways for rural libraries with unreliable internet connection and low budget for computers could support such systems as self-checkout and a digitized OPAC system. My role in the group was that of note taker at meetings, editor as sections were completed, the main scaffolding of the “Solutions” section, and making an explanatory video about our project on FlipGrid. Completing this project demonstrates my ability to consider issues from a global perspective as well as my appreciation of diverse languages and cultures because I heavily researched the rural areas of Guatemala in order to find out what their technological capabilities are, how their citizens currently use the library, and what other services the locals would like to see in their libraries. It also shows my ability to apply international standards and practices within the discipline of public services librarianship because I reported on exactly what the rural libraries’ limitations were in terms of budget and technological capability, and then helped design a cataloguing and automation plan that would benefit the area’s public libraries based on those limitations.
Conclusion
My professional goals are wide open because I do not know where this diverse career is likely to take me. I would love to work with children and young adults in some capacity. I have researched early childhood literacy, the best shape of chairs to make teens comfortable, and ways to interest the next generation in what the library has to offer. I have also researched the way libraries operate in other countries, especially as they relate to their younger patrons and what those patrons would like to see in the libraries closest to them. All of this exploration into public librarianship, specifically concerning youth services, is a direct offshoot of my personal librarianship philosophy that everyone, regardless of age or circumstance, should have equal access to the information they choose to explore. My most prominent professional aspiration is to advocate for libraries to the youth community, and to advocate for the youth community inside my library. If I am able to form a stronger bridge between these two communities during my time as an information professional, I will feel successful.
Intellectual Freedom and Censorship Q & A. (2017). ALA: American Library Association. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/censorshipfirstamendmentissues/ifcensorshipqanda
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