My personal educational goals for completing a Post-Master’s Certificate in Library Leadership and Management are closely linked to my career pathway over the next ten years. I see the role of the academic outreach & instruction librarian (my current title) as an ambassador of educational technology–assisting teaching faculty in adapting new ways for students to engage in course content. Encouraging faculty to assign student projects that go beyond being textual in nature is critical in developing a 21st century skill set. College students graduating today require skills in digital technology and multimedia regardless of the career they choose. Academic libraries can act as the laboratory where students can create their projects using multimedia tools that they may not have had the opportunity to learn elsewhere. I came upon this idea after reading an Educause report titled, Libraries as Enablers of Pedagogical and Curricular Change by Lippincott, Vedantham and Duckett. Since then, many other examples of integrating digital technology skills into the curriculum have come to light including the development of digital media labs and maker spaces within libraries. The Horizon Report 2017 Library edition calls this trend “patrons as creators” (p. 14).
I know that having management and leadership skills will be critical in convincing my institution to try these new pedagogical changes. The first step was to create a Technology Lending Program which will be unveiled in fall 2017. The library will beta test this program with digital media classes and then roll it out to the general college population in spring 2018. Phase II of this project will be the creation of a digital media lab in the library where students can collaborate on their multimedia projects.
Another desire to attain the Post-Master’s Certificate was to prepare myself for my college library’s renovation to take place within the 2019-2022 time frame. Having a curriculum-based education in library management as part of my repertoire will be important as the library prepares for this eventuality.
To my SJSU advisor, faculty and staff reading this program assessment outcome — I am confident that you will see that I have met the following Program Learning Outcomes of the Post-Master’s Certificate Program:
- Demonstrate proficiency in identifying, using, and evaluating current and emerging information and communication technologies
- Use service concepts, principles and techniques to connect individuals or groups with accurate, relevant and appropriate information
Respectfully submitted,
Maryanne Mills
Candidate for the Post-Master’s Certificate in Library Leadership & Management, San José State University, iSchool