LIS Conversation: Strengthening our ties to Hawai’i and the Pacific
Tuesday, May 7th, 2013, 9:30am-11am, Hamilton Library 2K
Summary of Group Discussions
1. Experience: Reflect on your own experiences meeting the information needs of
people researching Hawaii/Pacific related topics. What were some of the challenges
and opportunities you faced? Reflect on your own experiences as a researcher, what
were some of the challenges and opportunities you faced with Hawaii/Pacific
topics? Or as an LIS student, what are some of the gaps you see and experience in
your classes around the information needs of Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and
Indigenous people?
Challenges in the Information Profession
 Need for mentors and mentoring
 Lack of awareness and knowledge amongst Native Hawaiian community
about Native Hawaiian materials in and out of the library and how to access
them.
 Lack of reviews of Hawaii-related materials
 Need a central Web portal to feature information resources for Native
Hawaiian community, like bibliographies, websites, reviews, finding aids,
organizations, etc.
 There is a steep learning curve when learning about the Hawaiian and Pacific
collections
 The library field does not see the bigger picture that Hawaiian and Pacific
information provides
 Need for more health-related materials for health information needs of
Pacific Islanders and Hawaiians
 Not knowing what to digitize
 Getting people and the community into the library
 Building a more open, welcoming space to connect Native Hawaiians and
Pacific Islanders into the library
 Addressing the language barriers
 Lack of raw data that needs to be broken down by tribe, groups, islands
 Lack of publications on indigenous issues and by indigenous people
 Ethics, copyrights and intellectual freedom: handling diversity of views and
translations, respect materials in different languages, understanding of who
creates and controls Hawaiian and Pacific materials and how do we provide
access, especially in this “Digital Age.”
Gaps experienced in LIS courses
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Lack of Hawaii/Pacific content/connections in courses
Lack of community, culture and language focus in the courses
No grant writing in courses
Opportunities in LIS courses
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Build ties with Center for Pacific Islands Studies and Hawaiinuiakea School of
Hawaiian Knowledge, Pacific/Hawaiian serving libraries in Hawaii and the
Pacific
Look at examples of indigenous serving Library and Information Science
programs
Create new classes focused on Hawaii and the Pacific.
2. Courses: What can we do in our LIS courses that can better prepare our students
to meet those challenges, and act upon those opportunities? What can we do in our
LIS courses that address some of the hose issues faced in researching Hawaii/Pacific
related materials, and how can we better fill the gaps in classes around meeting the
information needs of Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and Indigenous people?
Culture Competency
 Discuss the role libraries have in Hawaii/Pacific/Indigenous/Minority
communities as a way of universally teaching our students the importance of
connecting with one’s community.
 Create more community learning spaces in the classroom that allow students
to reflect, relate and share their own community and own experiences
 Grounded in ones identity/values and cultural connections to family and
community
Service Learning
 Provide more Hawaiian/Pacific exchange, internship and practicum
opportunities to have more community engagement and outreach
Incorporate more Hawaii/Pacific/Indigenous topics/courses/research
 LIS 605: Indigenous ways of understanding and describing records
 LIS 610: Incorporate more discussion about the information environment in
Hawaii/Pacific
 LIS 611: Intellectual freedom issues for indigenous people, such as cultural
protocols and exploitation
 LIS 663: Evaluate Native Hawaiian/Indigenous databases and digital libraries
 Increase awareness of Hawaii/Pacific Indigenous professional associations
 Incorporate more Hawaiian values in courses, such as aloha, kuleana, etc.
 Make LIS 687 and LIS 688 a required course of indigenous librarianship or
offer it more regularly, including the Fall and Spring semesters for those who
can't enroll during summer for financial reasons.
 Offer more online courses to reach other indigenous people
 Cross-list courses with other departments such as Center for Pacific Islands
Studies, Hawaiinuiakea, English, History, Political Science, STEM etc.
 Need more indigenous professors, voices and faces
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Foster indigenous views of knowledge, information, and working with
communities in courses.
3. Programming: What can we do in our overall programming to better service
Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islander students in the program? What can we do to
encourage them to enter our field, and what sort of learning opportunities can we
create to bridge the gap between the program and the community? What skills
would you look for in an employee who would successfully serve Hawaiian/Pacific
information needs?
Partnerships with UH Community
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Build partnerships with Hawaiinuiakea and the Center for Pacific Islands
Studies to create dual degree with LIS and to foster more cultural exchanges
and joint initiatives.
Expand interdisciplinary opportunities in other department to cross list
courses that are relevant to LIS and Hawaii/Pacific
Collaborate with Hawaiinuiakea, especially on Hawaiian Language
Partnerships with Local Community
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Recruit new students, especially high school students from the Pacific and
areas with a high density of Native Hawaiians to demystify and promote
library science
Increase LIS representation at Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander community
events
Work with community partners to increase service learning opportunities
for students here in Hawaii and in the Pacific
Connect students with international indigenous organizations and initiatives,
such as IFLA, PIALA, WIPCE.
Increase outreach scholarship between faculty/students and community.
Recruitment
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Start recruiting in high school, like at career day
Student/alumni/staff mentor incoming students and outreach to high
school/community and undergraduates
Native Hawaiian Libraries Association to mentor students and create an
online portal with resources: reviews, subject headings, best practices,
library bill of rights in olelo Hawaii, and other content to work together
Outreach to students and the community
Create slots for Pacific Islander students from the countries and territories in
the Pacific region to increase the diversity with students
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Consider the IFLA outreach plan which seeks to “develop concrete ways to
reach out to and involve indigenous librarians from around the world.”
Programs
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Capstone option: professional project including service learning (125 hours
of work), create a product, practicum, master’s report or master’s thesis
During student orientation/graduation ceremony include: cultural protocol
by which Hawaii and Hawaiian culture is authentically shared, honored and
celebrated.
Promote opportunities for more research based work, especially for students
inclined to pursue the thesis option
Workshops, courses, or projects which utilize grant writing and grant writing
skills
LIS mentorships with indigenous professionals and faculty
Provide space and opportunities for service learning projects
Funding Opportunities
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Consider OHA as an opportunity
Connections for long-distance internships in the Pacific through grants with
IMLS
Build partnerships with the East-West Center based on funding for students