Two faculty members from the College of Applied Sciences and Art’s School of Library and Information Science (http://slisweb.sjsu.edu/) at San José State University are partnering with scholars from Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles to develop and implement a professional development program, the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship.  Dr. Lili Luo and Dr. Michael Stephens’ program is funded by a three-year grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and aimed at helping academic librarians become skilled researchers who engage in research, share findings and mentor peers.

Approximately 60 academic and research librarians will attend the institute during a three-year timespan. In addition to onsite instruction, institute participants will receive ongoing mentoring and support throughout the year, as they complete research projects. Dr. Lili Luo, an expert regarding research methods education for information professionals, serves as one of the project’s lead instructors, responsible for developing, delivering, assessing and refining institute curriculum. Additionally, Luo’s in-depth knowledge regarding online learning helps the team explore options for delivering some of the institute curriculum virtually, including learning activities that take place before participants attend a nine-day onsite summer institute. Dr. Michael Stephens serves as an institute instructor and will help the planning team explore options for delivering institute curriculum online. He will also identify and develop ways to provide ongoing support to institute participants. The participants will learn how to build personal learning networks, so in the years ahead, they can receive ongoing mentoring and remain motivated to conduct research and share findings.

For more information about the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship, visit http://irdlonline.org/. The first institute will be held from June 16 to 26, 2014 at LMU Library in Los Angeles, California.