Stop, Collaborate & Listen: Tools for Solo
Librarians
Presented by:
Rebecca Durney, MLS
Jessica Kiebler, MLS
David Golann, MLS
Who is Jersey College?
 Jersey College is an associate
degree granting nursing
institution with 5 campuses in
NJ and FL.
 We offer programs for
Practical and a Bridge Program
for Registered Nursing.
 Our Librarians work in 3 of
our 5 campuses to provide
resources & support for
students at all campuses.
Jessica Kiebler
 - Graduated Rutgers University with an MLIS
 -Worked at Jersey College as Library Director until
2015
 - Moved to NY and started at Berkeley College
 - Currently works to provide reference and instruction
support to students and faculty at the White Plains and
NYC campuses
 - Favorite part of her day: When students realize the joy
that can be found in learning - even the smallest light
bulb of knowledge.
Rebecca Durney
 Graduated from the University of South Florida with an
MLIS degree in December 2013.
 Began working for Jersey College in March 2014.
 Acts as librarian for Tampa campus and satellite librarian
for Jacksonville and Fort Lauderdale campuses.
 Works with students and faculty to ensure library is
meeting their needs.
 Main focus as a librarian is user experience. The most
satisfying part of the job is making the library as easy to
use and accessible to students and faculty as possible.
David Golann
 Graduated Rutgers with an MLIS
 Has worked at Ewing, NJ campus of Jersey College
since 2012
 Performs cataloging, circulation, and reference tasks
 Teaches Composition course
 Enjoys giving library instruction to students
Be Empowered! Why Being Solo is Amazing!
 You’re in charge!
 You are the go-to person for faculty.
 You are frequently the only person on campus trained in information literacy (Wheeler,
2007).
 In many schools, you are an equal with faculty (Wheeler, 2007).
 You are not alone.
 “Although no solutions were apparent all felt a little better after sharing their viewpoints
and realities” (Butler, Andrews & Boyett, 2001).
 Students often feel a connection with you (Wheeler, 2007).
Literature Review
 Seems to be an abundance of articles on solo media specialists, but a lack
of articles on other types of solo librarians.
 Despite this focus, the articles are still useful for solo librarians.
 Collaboration and networking among solos was a common theme among
the literature.
 If you are working in a school – collaboration with faculty is also
important.
 Solo librarians in small or rural libraries may want to connect with
consortiums.
 Can organize information by tab just like an actual binder.
 There are different “packages” that you can use depending on the type of
LiveBinder you would like to create.
 Allows for collaboration among a group of people as many individuals
can access the LiveBinder.
 Can be accessed by more than one person at once.
Librarian Uses:
 Use the LiveBinder as a go-to resource for patrons & faculty for
information about the library.
 Organize library policies and related information for staff in one easyto-access location.
 Create subject specific binders for courses or topics
 Provides online reference to patrons through live chat, text messages, or
e-mail.
 Administered by the Tampa Bay Library Consortium (TBLC).
 The hours of Ask a Librarian usually extend beyond normal library hours
which is sometimes more convenient for patrons.
Librarian Uses:
 Chat services like this are a great collaboration opportunity. Librarians
can chat with patrons across the state to see what their needs are which
can help them improve their own library services.
 Librarians can also collaborate with one another. It is not uncommon to
reach out to other librarians to help answer a difficult question.
 Is an easy-to-use survey generator for businesses (can be used for
libraries, too!).
 There are different types of survey templates for varying survey needs.
 Requires a subscription (affordable options available), but there are free
survey companies like: SurveyMonkey and KwikSurveys.
Librarian Uses:
 Use surveys for library service evaluations. This can range from the
customer service you provide to the amount and quality of materials
made available to your students.
 Surveys can also be used among staff members to better understand
their needs or to allow them to give anonymous feedback.
 Can also be used as assessment tools in the classroom if students are at
computer terminals.
 Provides the ability to share and control screens.
 Perfect for training because of the ability to see each other’s actions.
 Simple to install & connect to computers.
 FREE!
Librarian Uses:
 Train new employees from a distance
 Get help from someone or tech support company with little issue
 Teach students, faculty or staff new concepts or policies from afar
 Maintain computers from afar
 Web conferencing allows for instruction (video & document sharing)
 Recording rooms allow sessions to be recorded
 Can be costly but there are many college functions that could make it
worth the cost to a school
 Can be integrated with Polycom phones & conference systems for a
cohesive communication process
Librarian Uses:
 Record instruction sessions & classes (although there are cheaper
alternatives if not meeting with others)
 Have meetings in real-time
 Teach students, faculty or staff new concepts or policies from afar
 An online recording product that allows you to host & record meetings
 Record training sessions to edit & play later
 Manage recordings & make offline FLV files for sharing
 Not free – there is a subscription cost
Librarian Uses:
 Make training videos either solo or with a group of people (you can view
your screen or use a Powerpoint
 Host live meetings & workshops for students who can’t stay for them in
person (and record them!)
 Host live instruction sessions
 Can be used to share or create documents of all types
 Simple to use & only requires a Google email account (Multiple Librarians
can use a single Yourlibrary@gmail.com account together)
 There is a desktop option to use to connect to your online account
 FREE!
 Caveat –Watch share settings if you don’t want things shared on the web
Librarian Uses:
 For simple project management – solo or as a team
 Share documents with faculty or staff that you don’t want on a website
 Can be accessed from anywhere so you can work from off-campus
 Create shareable checklists – new employee training, book lists,
comparison sheets for vendors
 Allows recording of videos, and easy posting on Youtube
 Videos give instruction on searching the catalog, writing and formatting a
research paper, creating APA-style references, and other research and
library tasks
 FREE!!
Librarian Uses:
 Gives librarians across campuses an easy way to direct students to answers
to frequently asked questions
 Videos can be used in library orientations (as well as by Composition
instructors in the classroom)
 Can be used for a “flipped classroom” – students view videos before class
& then do activities in class
Literature Resources












Cherry, W. R. (2011). Working Independently: One librarian’s experiences flying solo in an independent school’s
library. Knowledge Quest, 40(2), pp. 60-64.
Bishop, L. (2013). The solo act. Knowledge Quest, 41(5), pp. 30-35.
Butler, B., Andrews, M., & Boyett, J. (2001). Solo librarian: Jack-of-all-trades. In J.W.Markham & J.L. Duda
(Eds.), IAMSLIC 2000 – tides of technology: Proceedings of the 26th annual conference of the International Association of
Aquatic and Marine Science Libraries and Information Centers (pp. 109-112). Fort, Pierce, FL : IAMSLIC.
Plutchak, T. S. (2012). Breaking the barriers of time and space: The dawning of the great age of librarians. Journal
of the Medical Library Association, 100(1), pp. 10-19.
Sugnet, C. (2009). Collaboration – no better time for libraries: An interview with Dr. Camila Alire, President
Elect, 2008-2009, American Library Association. Collaborative Lib5rarianship, 1(1), pp. 13-17.
Tucker, C. (2011). Library Collaboration – exploring new business models: An interview with Marvin Pollard.
Collaborative Librarianship, 3(4), pp. 217-220.
Wheeler, A. (2007). Information literacy, technology, and forgotten barcodes: The life of a solo librarian. College &
Research Libraries News, 68(6), pp. 368-369.
Bishop, L. (2013). Managing the school library with an army of one and learning from one another. Knowledge
Quest, 41(5), pp 49-52.
Boyd, E. E., Casey, O., Elder, R., & Slay, J. (2013). Collaboration at the Troy University Libraries. Cataloging &
Classification Quarterly, 51, pp. 202-213.
Nickel, R. (2011) Solo librarians working collaboratively. Knowledge Quest, 40(2), pp. 40-43.
Norman, M. (2013). Collaborative libraries: Can we do and measure “things” differently? Public Library Quarterly,
32, pp. 223-239.
Pleviak, P. and Karabush, C. (2011) Talk me off the ledge: Surviving solo librarianship. Knowledge Quest, 40(2), pp.
49-52.
Resources for Paddling Along:
ARTICLES:
 (Google) DriveYour Library by INALJ.com http://inalj.com/?p=80765
 Creating an online library catalogue with Google Drive - by Andreas Hofer
http://glearningblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/creating-onlinelibrary-catalogue-with.html
BLOGS:
 The Proverbial LoneWolf Librarian
 https://lonewolflibrarian.wordpress.com/
Resource Websites
 LiveBinders:
http://www.livebinders.com/welcome/learn_more
 AskALibrarian:






http://info.askalibrarian.org/about/faq/?Source=Standard_
SurveyGizmo: http://www.surveygizmo.com/
TeamViewer: http://www.teamviewer.com
Screen Cast O’Matic: http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/
GoogleDrive: https://support.google.com/drive/?hl=en#topic=14940
Polycom: http://www.polycom.com/products-services.html
AdobeConnect:
http://www.adobe.com/products/adobeconnect/faq.html
Questions?
We have answers!