I never know how to start off a blog. So this is how I'm going to start it.
I have now been in the Library Science program at Indiana University for 3 months and I couldn't love it more. I came to Bloomington for the first time on the day I moved in. It was a very nervous time for me seeing as not only was I going to be living alone for awhile until my roommate came for the fall semester, but I was starting all over. But the excitement of starting at SLIS helped make this a lot easier.
This summer, I took Reference, a computer technology class that is required of all SLIS students, and Representation and Organization. First off, reference was a great class to be able to really understand how to make the most effective searches. Our professor, Dr. Meho, was an excellent professor. He was so knowledgeable and passionate about what he did- it was contagious. I dived in, excited to make a pathfinder for the class. Dr. Meho was always able to help whenever I had questions and made this course accessible to every kind of library science student, whether they are planning to be a reference librarian or not.
Representation and Organization was the "alternate" Cataloging class. I am very happy I took this because, it approach cataloging in a very different way. We were able to explore the different ways that people classify and catalog materials. From the classic Dewey Decimal System to Folksonomy, we learned it all.
The computer class was more helpful than I ever thought. Librarians are taking on the world of technology more and more each day. In this class, I was able to prepare myself for what I'll be expected to do in any library. I was able to design my own website which was pretty cool. After taking this course, I plan on enrolling in the free workshop courses that IU has to offer. They have classes for Photoshop, Perl, Illustrator, Endnote, and Dreamweaver are all valuable skills I intend to develop.
Now it is the fall semester and more people are on campus. I seriously didn't think that this town would look the way it does-the sidewalks are like city streets at points. Bicyclists weaving through the walking crowd, traffic backing up on 10th Street for the whole length of campus, and people EVERYWHERE! After going to Millikin University for my undergrad where there was 1200 kids total....this is different. But I love it!
Right now, I'm enrolled in Collection Development and Management, Manuscripts, and Rare Books. Needless to say, I am really enjoying this semester.
Collection Development is with Dr. Debora Shaw, or as we call her 'Ralf' and her PhD assistant professor, Shannon Oltmann. I wasn't too sure what to expect from this class. However, I am really enjoying. I am very thankful that I had my internship at the Decatur Public Library to prepare me for this class. A lot of what we discuss are things that I encountered while at this library. Our final project for this class is to create a potential collection list of new items for one of 4 library collections Ralf gave to us. One of them is the Naperville Public Library's Folklore Collection! This is my childhood library. I am excited to explore their collection and pick out new items to add to the collection.
Manuscripts was actually a last minute addition to my schedule. I was planning on getting the required courses out of the way first so I could have time to explore different areas of Librarianship, but one of the classes I enrolled in was cancelled. When I went to the course offerings, this was the only one that really worked with my schedule. But I am very happy that I was able to take this class. Prof. Cherry Williams is an amazing professor to work with. She is not only extremely knowledgeable, but she is excited about what she does. This infectious attitude can only do good things for me. She loves getting our hands in contact with the materials we discuss. She has brought in manuscripts from the 9th and 10th century for us to examine and TOUCH! I don't know how common it is to allow people to touch this old documents, but I still feel very privileged to be able to work with such extraordinary materials. And our big assignment for this class is putting together our own exhibit at the Lilly Library. I about died when I found out we would be able to make our own exhibit in the Lilly, but it only got better. This is a collection of donated manuscripts from Willis Pyle. Pyle was a Disney Animator in the very early years. He recently celebrated his 97th birthday too! I already geek out about Disney and Libraries separately, but when they merge together like this, I can hardly contain myself! I was able to go into the Lilly Reading Room and look through his collection. Let's just say, I had to hold back a few tears of joy as I held drawings of Bambi and film from Pinocchio in my hands. Utterly Mind Blowing.
Lastly, I'm taking Rare Books with the brilliant Joel Silver. I am constantly amazed by his plethora of knowledge. He comes in with no notes and just discusses. I always look forward to going in and listening to his discuss the appeal and "madness" that is book collecting. I only hope one day to be as knowledgeable and valuable as Joel.
Yesterday I was able to have coffee with a new friend and fellow SLIS student, Brianna. She was actually the one that inspired me to start this blog. She and I had a wonderful time discussing our ideal futures in the Library World and how we can help one another out. I must say, this blog has already been a wonderful place for me to share my life here at IU. I look forward to working with her more on the many exciting ideas we threw around.
I woke up early this morning for class at the Lilly and was upset to remember that there was no class today for Rare Books. So I went for a stroll through campus and then went for a run around my neighborhood. After that and a nice long blog post, I'd say a cup of tea in order.
Cheers.
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