Along with Mark Armstrong, former archivist and records manager, and Kate Boylan, former director of archives and digital initiatives, I developed this required course for the Galleries, Libraries, Archives, & Museums program at Wheaton College MA. It first ran in spring 2022 as an experimental course (INT 298). Subsequently it was approved as a permanent course scheduled to run every other spring.
The course focuses on the fields of library science and archives. Topics include history of information, history of US libraries and archives, organizational structures and missions, community engagement, and contemporary challenges and opportunities in libraries and archives. The course has a particular focus on social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion in libraries and archives.
Assignments include:
- a reflective personal essay
- a persuasive privacy project
- a presentation on a library core value
- a supervised experiential project in a library or archive
- a weekly reading log
Guest lecturers, field trips, and panels with alumni and MLS graduate students expose students to libraries and archives – and the workers in them – beyond Wheaton College.
