Wednesday, December 2, 2020

2020 - The year where both everything simultaneously happened and stood still

I was going through my Twitter feed as a way to jog my memory about all that's happened in the last 12 months. I realized with the onset of the global pandemic and the privilege of a work-from-home world (for me), I've relied more and more on Twitter and the voices I follow there for a sense of connection. I definitely have moments of doom-scrolling, but also moments of hope (typically brought on by my sweet pup or others who are genuine, hard working, good humans working to help those around them for the sole purpose of helping them). Here are the highlights (and low-lights):

The year started out on a great note! 

A cold note... 

But a great note, nonetheless!  

I continued to be a librarian for the whole person, just just the student or faculty aspects of a person! 

And then things got a little busier...

But also, the best part of my job is empowering students, so if it's busy with a purpose, it's worth it!  

There were some informative speakers.  

And then things started to turn all kinds of covid-y (which is now a term I'm submitting to Merriam-Webster, because, why not?!)... 

But the students, as always, were awesome and resilient. And none of us were truly ready for what was to come just 10 days later...

I was able to squeeze in contest solo and ensemble judging, wearing my undergraduate-major hat as a music educator! 

Have I mentioned that students are great?! 

And then things started to shift (and they've really not shifted back since).  

Oh, I got a new office! Moving offices and unpacking everything right before you start work from home means all I have to do when I return (whenever that may be...1 year, 2 years...) is dust! I'll return to a tidy space. (My work from home office on the other hand... that's taken the brunt of the functional, daily clutter that is librarianship.)  

And then my brain did the things brains normally do, but now on heightened pandemic-worry brain.  

And sometimes you can't help but be simultaneously fatalistic and find the humor in the chaos.  

But my officemate is the best. She'll be making several appearances as we go along in this journey together...  

We're all in this together, the ups, the downs, the intermittent internet connectivity... 

First and foremost, we're humans. We don't always do the best job of acknowledging that.  

Warm weather made for some calming lunch hours with excellent company.  

And we can still encourage our colleagues to grow (while also acknowledging that it's not necessarily a time to reinvent all the things or the whole idea of "now that you're working from home, you should take on 12 new projects and learn 4 languages" because sometimes the energy spent simply existing is enough in terms of productivity or growth during a global pandemic, also living in a time with racial trauma.)

This pup keeps me going! 

Due to recent leadership practices within the library, I've been reflecting a lot on what I've valued in the most effective leaders I've seen or been fortunate to work with. I continue to deeply appreciate balance, consideration, the ability to project forward and backward the necessary steps for a given idea as well as the consequences that ripple from decision making, and clear & thoughtful communication. 

And despite the circumstances, we're still able to find ways to safely and enthusiastically cheer on student and colleague accomplishments! 

Oh, and this year was the year I went up for promotion. 

Students continue to energize me and my role in this work!  

I've continued on as a managing editor for IJIDI and have enjoyed engaging with colleagues and others from around the USA, Canada, and beyond in this role!

As a private citizen, I struggled with feeling stuck in the pandemic but also wanting to help empower those in my community to be able to vote. Before decisions were announced regarding mailing out absentee ballot request forms, I decided to print off those request forms and distribute them around to little free libraries in our community, so that it could serve as one less barrier for folks (because not many people have printers at home). 

I finally submitted my promotion materials in July, on the first date I was eligible. 

I continue to appreciate the good ones around me...

I also continue to wish Twitter had an edit button for my typos, but the sentiment still stands!  

(This sentiment also still stands...) 

And we worked together to try to support the needs of our community while staying as safe as possible. 

For some reason, I decided to try my hand at sewing. More on that later... 

And then Iowa experienced a derecho (the equivalent of a strong inland hurricane, for those not familiar). I was fortunate to only have been without power for a few days. Others in harder-hit parts of the state went weeks. 

In my past life as a public school educator, I made many hard-working friends who had to venture into a world of simultaneous online and in-person instruction, school districts being forced by the state administration to return to in-person instruction against the district's established return-to-learn plans. Essentially, it's been really hard for teachers and anyone working in education, but particularly K-12 public schools. Their kids are traumatized, they're losing loved ones, they're fearing for their well being, and there has been increased racial unrest. All of this coming to a head when many homes have caregivers worried about work and paying for food as a result of the pandemic, economic strain, and more. 

And then you find silly little nuggets that can provide a moment or two of distraction.  

So, masks. I'd not sewn since middle school, when I made a banner... (A banner is a rectangle. My rectangle had pockets....that didn't function... so let's just say this was a steep learning curve). At the time this blog entry is posted (the end of December 2020), I've sewn and distributed over 300 masks for friends and family.  

I'm always an advocate for health and listening to your body!  

And we have great colleagues doing amazing things for our students.  And great students exploring amazing things! 

And we're all working together to figure out how to do this whole mess of life with the fewest hiccups along the way.  

Every once in awhile I feel actually productive and proactive. It's nice to remember what that feels like.  

And sometimes I'm just a whole lot of nope.  

And I voted early! There's proof, and a sense of relief that at least that's one thing that has worked right lately.  

Have I mentioned I have the greatest work-from-home officemate?  

And then there are times when I trip over my own tongue and have to laughingly pick myself up and keep going.  

We had our first ILA conference that was completely online! Hybrid in the future would be quite difficult with budgets, technology, and venue connectivity limitations, but entirely online worked really well!

But also, trying to keep it real.  

Checking in with quality colleagues always helps me feel more connected and grateful to be on the same page! 

If I'm making a bunch of masks, I might as well continue to advocate wearing them! Iowa's cases continue to rise...  

Oh, and there's the good news that my promotion in rank from Librarian II to Librarian III was approved! Here's where you can explore my essay and CV (based on ISU's Academic Librarian promotion criteria), if interested. I'm grateful to those who served as internal reviewers (anonymous to me), and external reviewers (I recommended a slate, but don't know who all was selected) - their time and thoughtful contributions were invaluable, and the summary of their feedback I got was so kind and complimentary. I work with some amazing folks! 

Shortly after I got notice my promotion was approved, I got notice that our book chapter was (as Dr. Frankenstein would say) ALIIIIIIIIIVE! 

I worked to support some stressed faculty and graduate students in the School of Education. 

I sought out the bright spots when things got a bit heavy -- I mean, who doesn't love singing the praises of their local public library? 

I want to take a moment to recognize that this year has had extraordinary challenges, but honestly, so have the last four years. Prior to starting at ISU, my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer. I had assumed a new role as Coordinator of Information Literacy Instruction and User Experience Librarian at Grand View, and was teaching a reading/writing-intensive 4-credit first-year seminar in the fall. I began serving on the ILA Exec Board 3 months after learning of my dad's diagnosis. I applied for this job while sitting with my dad in the hospital. I interviewed for this job while his health declined and he was in and out of doctor appointments, treatments, and had just recovered enough to return home from a care facility for the final time. I negotiated for this position while there were medical caregivers coming and going, while living between my apartment and my parents' home to try to help with care and spend as much time as possible with family. I began at ISU a week and a day after my dad's funeral. I had still not had an opportunity to clear out my old office at Grand View (I did that over the weekend, two days after I started my new job). 

Within my first year in this new role at ISU my supervisor changed, I moved offices (what would wind up being five offices over the course of five years, between GV and ISU), I moved homes, I took on additional duties not originally outlined in my job description, and my brother was killed in a freak work accident. And somehow I still managed to submit all of my promotion materials on time, while serving on the state library association executive board and the state academic library association executive board, chairing several internal and external committees, serving as a member on others, leading state- and regional-level workshops, presenting at conferences, receiving a national advocacy day travel scholarship, writing a book chapter, and being a managing editor for an international journal. 

Seeing it all laid out in one place like that helps me take a big breath and realize just how much I pushed through to make it happen. It also helps me realize that it's okay to take time in the future to spread things out more and better prioritize how I choose to spend my time for both greatest impact and fulfillment. I'm taking stock in what being a good librarian means to me. For people who read this far, I do not recommend all of the choices I made or those that were made for me, and certainly not all of them all at once. 

We often forget that librarianship, when it really comes down to it, is about humanity and helping. It's okay to remember that being a human and being a librarian are not mutually exclusive, and it's okay to attend to your own humanity. In the end, that helps us better serve those around us. 

Posted by Cara at 12:12 PM 0 comments
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Tuesday, January 28, 2020

Year in Review 2019

Dear friends,
I have been quite lax in updating my blog, so here goes nothing! We have a lot to catch up on. 2019 was jam packed - Here's a (hopefully) easily skimmable list of some of the notable, or just fun, things I've been fortunate to be involved with in the past 12 months:

  • Wrote a book chapter with Grand View University colleagues (forthcoming...whenever the date next gets pushed back. Hopefully 2020?)
  • Made great progress with the Curriculum Group in revamping the Library 160 curriculum to make it more accessible and student-friendly, both in terms of content and technology. (This is ongoing as we start our 2nd full round through the text.)
  • Got really excited when my Grand View colleague became my Iowa State colleague, helping make strides to improve accessibility across campus! Their work is going to impact so many students, faculty, and staff!
  • Worked with some fantastic colleagues from the Iowa Library Association Executive Board on the Iowa Libraries Transform task force to develop tutorials and customizable templates for Iowa librarians to use in their advocacy and community outreach efforts.
  • Continue to serve on Iowa State University's Project Search Steering Committee. I had the honor of working with colleagues who are so people-focused, ensuring the Project Search interns get valuable work and social skills guidance throughout their time in the program (and beyond). Hearing the students and their internship supervisors speak about their experiences at PS Graduation was a highlight of my spring!
  • Wrapped up my service on the Iowa Library Association Executive Board. We are so fortunate to have amazing folks serving throughout the state and I'm grateful to have had this role to connect me with librarians across Iowa, including but not limited to those who served on the Exec Board with me. Iowa has a vibrant librarian culture, full of caring helpers! 
  • Celebrated receiving the 2018 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award with the ILA Executive Board.
  • Part of my service on the ILA Exec Board was to continue on as Chair of the Committee for Diversity & Inclusion (CD&I). What an amazing crew of folks I worked with this past year! We accomplished so much! We became a full standing committee, continued to send out regular updates with DEI resources, facilitated an unconference session at the fall conference, hosted two cohorts of the 21-Day Racial Equity and Habit Building Challenge, established a membership award to fully fund membership funds for someone with identities that have been traditionally underrepresented, and crafted, proposed, and had the ILA Exec Board approve the Iowa Library Association Statement on Social Justice, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. I'm so honored to have been a part of these efforts and am excited to see it continue on. 
  • Was elected vice-chair in 2018 and assumed leadership in as Chair of ISU Library's Librarian Assembly in 2019. I also continued on Librarian Council, a group of folks who meet regularly with the Dean of the Library to discuss a wide range of topics.
  • Began serving as a Managing Editor and work on the social media committee for the International Journal of Information, Diversity, and Inclusion. 
  • I am always excited and honored to be invited into classes on campus to work with students and faculty. This year I was able to visit more classes in Education (an area near and dear to my heart) and I love working with our international students in their International First-Year Experience Seminar! 

  • Took part in an early pilot for new Travel & Hospitality procedures ahead of a shift on campus to Workday for managing HR and finances, which was fully implemented in August. 
  • Speaking of travel, I was fortunate to have been able to attend several great professional development opportunities. I attended ILA Advocacy Day in Des Moines, the White Privilege Conference in Cedar Rapids, the Illinois Information Literacy Summit in Palos Hills, IL, the CALL Conference in La Crosse, WI, ILA ACRL in Cedar Rapids, the Joint ILA/NLA/NSLA Conference in La Vista, NE, the School Library Journal Day of Dialog in St. Paul, MN, ILA Planning Day in Johnston, and regular meetings of the ILA Exec Board in Grinnell! It's amazing that all of that was packed into a single year (one of my New Year's resolutions may be to go to fewer things this year)! It's amazing just how much travel money you can save when using Airbnb!



  • Served as facilitator for AAUW Start Smart Salary Negotiation workshops across campus. I love that Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE) and the Margaret Sloss Center for Women and Gender Equity, along with other campus partners, led the efforts to purchase a multi-year license to continue these workshops!
  • Appreciated the experiences I had growing up and celebrated 100 years of orchestra in my hometown schools!
  • I've been fortunate to continue having regular meetings with my library mentor. It has been so helpful to have this time set aside for professional reflection and connection!
  • Survived the polar vortex...
  • Supported and advocated for Iowa's teacher librarians against harmful proposed language changes in state government. 

  • Was a cheerleader on Twitter for our students AND our faculty.
  • Enjoyed being part of the Central Iowa Symphony community.
  • Began coordinating pup volunteers for Barks@Parks (comfort animal event each semester) as part of my service on the ISU Library Events Committee.


  • And I did some fun reading, some hard reading, and some professional reading throughout the year.
  • Helped with both spring and fall Commencement - Congrats Cyclone Grads!


  • Made my dog part of my bad "dad jokes" in my Library 160 instruction.
  • Wished our Dean well on her new adventures.
  • Explored updates to the front spaces of our library.
  • Took advantage of several training opportunities on campus including CPR, Mental Health First Aid, and Suicide Prevention, in addition to library professional development and meetings. 
  • Began taking American Sign Language classes this fall, taking advantage of ISU's tuition reimbursement benefit. I'm excited to learn more about Deaf culture and American Sign Language grammar, vocabulary, and storytelling!
  • Welcomed many new students to the ISU family during summer new student orientation and library tours.
  • Collaborated with folks in SCUA to provide 4-H workshops in June focusing on preserving your heritage and family artifacts. 
  • Served on the Jean E. Coleman Library Outreach Lecture working group for ALA.
  • And loved on my pup, all year long. 




How was your 2019?

Posted by Cara at 5:30 PM 0 comments
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