Presentation Title: Community as information source: Meeting the professional development needs of rural librarians

Presenter(s): Rebecca Joy Clower

Abstract: This presentation grew out of my INFO200 final research paper, which explored the information behavior of librarians working in small and rural communities. Although much has been written about rural libraries and the vital services they should be providing (such as technology access, job training resources, science education for adults and so on), very little has been said about the librarians who must make that all happen. In fact, many of the librarians in these positions do not hold MLIS degrees.

This presentation will explore available resources for professional development, showing how many are geared toward a general audience of public librarians. There is currently a dearth of resources tailored just to small and rural librarians. Therefore, to meet the needs of their communities, these librarians are primarily turning to their colleagues and library patrons for information.

Link to Recorded Presentation: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fv843d5hfDPRJO0Rt3vVirPdttEGucA1/view?usp=sharing