Diversity Status Report:

1
Diversity Status Report

• Presented by Kenneth Burhanna
• 30 March 2005

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Libraries Media Service And DiversityAn
Overview of Todays Presentation

• Mission Commitment to Diversity
• Diversity of LMS Faculty Staff
• Diversity in Collection Development
• Diversity in Access to Resources
• Outreach to Diverse Communities
• LMS Diversity Programming
• LMS Diversity Goals

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Librarianship and Diversity

• The profession of librarianship is deeply
  committed to diversity
• Guiding Documents
• - ALA Code of Professional Ethics
• - ALA Library Bill of Rights
• - ALAs Statement on Diversity in
  Collection Development

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Librarianship and Diversity

• ALAs Key Action Areas (guiding principles)
• Diversity
• Education and Continuous Learning
• Equity of Access
• Intellectual Freedom
• 21st Century Literacy

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Librarianship and Diversity

• Diversity Initiatives in Librarianship
• ALA Office of Diversity (key resource)
• ALA Spectrum Scholarship (recruitment)
• Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Diversity
  Program (recruitment retention)
• ACRL Racial and Ethnic Diversity Committee
  (recruitment programming)

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LMS Commitment to Diversity

• Libraries Mission Statement
• The Libraries are an essential force in the
  intellectual life and mission of Kent State
  University.
• To provide services responsive to the
  increasingly diverse information needs of the
  University Community.

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Gender Diversity of LMS Staff
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Diversity of LMS Faculty Staff
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The Recruiting Retention Challenge

• Library schools annually graduate approx. 10
  minority students.
• Of that 10 only about 10 (or 1 of graduating
  librarians) will seek careers in Academic
  Librarianship.
• The Result Fierce competition for small pool of
  candidates.

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LMS Recruiting Initiatives

• To advertise openings widely, reaching out to
  minority publications identified in Minority
  Recruitment Resources, created by Leela Balraj.
• Collaboration between LMS SLIS and Central
  State University to create an assistantship for a
  Central State student to study Librarianship at
  KSU.

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LMS Retention Initiatives

• Travel support for Professional Development.
• Reappointment Workshops for tenure-track faculty.
• Faculty mentoring program.
• Bi-weekly professional development sessions.

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Diversity in Collection Development

• LMS collection development supports
• Pan-African Studies
• Womens Studies
• Ethnic Studies
• Gay/Lesbian/Transgender (Sociology)
• Globalization World Cultures (Geography)
• Speech Hearing Impaired (Speech Pathology)
• Diversity Issues in Education (Education)
• Diversity in Media (Media)

13
Diversity in Access to Resources

• Adaptive technology workstations in the
  Information Commons for students with
  disabilities (screen magnifiers, screen readers,
  onscreen keyboards).
• All Information Commons workstations are wheel
  chair accessible.
• Current study of collaborative learning spaces.
• Ongoing efforts to make library web site ADA
  Compliant.

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LMS Outreach to Diverse Groups

• International Student Orientation
• Adult Services Orientation
• Living/Learning Community Outreach
• Informed Transitions Outreach to high schools.
• ILILE Initiatives
• Outreach to McNair Scholars

15
2003 Black History Month Program

• LMS Pride! co-sponsored a screening of Brother
  Outsider The Life of Bayard Rustin.

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2004 Black History Month Program

• A presentation by Bob Moses
• 1964 Mississippi Voter Registration Project
• Algebra Project, to teach math to poor children.
• Sponsors LMS, History, Pan African Studies,
  Office of Diversity and Acad. Initiatives, and
  PAFSA

17
2005 Black History Month Program

• William B. Allen, Political Science Professor at
  Michigan State University, presented
• Radicals and Librarians Finding Inspiration in
  Black History.

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LMS Diversity Goals

• Draft a formal diversity plan, incorporating our
  current programs and creating a strategy for the
  future.
• Improve communication of Diversity initiatives
  and programs within LMS.
• Further our commitment to Diversity in the
  upcoming revision of LMSs mission statement.
• Establish the Central State Assistantship
  (recruitment).
• Continue to recruit widely (update Recruitment
  Document).
• Increase outreach efforts, targeting diverse
  groups.
• Continue to explore opportunities to establish
  Resident Minority Librarian position.
• Contribute to Diversity efforts of ALA and ARL.