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The skills, experience and knowledge needed to achieve excellence in librarianship are myriad. These skill sets may range
from customer service to budgeting and management skills (just a spoonful of sugar makes the taxes come ‘round,
in the most delightful way); from information organization and collection development to reference services
(Dewey or don’t we have biographies); from marketing to needs assessment (Oh, for a readership,
and a survey to steer her by).
This project is a culmination of coursework completed throughout the MLS program at SCSU, and although it is difficult to
attribute to specific classes all the skills I have drawn upon, each class enriched my understanding and capabilities in distinct
ways.
• From ILS 501, I not only gained insight into the explosive expansion of knowledge and acceleration of technological
change, but I also acquired essential experience in search techniques and evaluation of web resources. This experience was
valuable in gathering and analyzing demographic information for community analysis, creating a workshop for search techniques,
and building a webpage.
• ILS 503 and 514 gave me an extensive introduction to the library profession, the legal and ethical issues we face
and the many aspects involved in library operations. The Foundations work provided substantial background for the organization
of the paper overall, as well as many of the web resources used in the final project, and the research conducted for a community
assessment assignment in 514 provided excellent practice for this project.
• The reference skills I gained in ILS 504, and the benefits of networks and resource sharing I came to recognize in
ILS 535, helped tremendously in the creation of this project. With the guidance of knowledge gained in bibliographic research,
I compiled an annotated bibliography which became another topic for a news article promoting library awareness.
• ILS 506 gave me an abiding fascination with the foibles of cataloging and classification, and a great sense of respect
for those who excel at detail. The skill sets learned in class were invaluable in writing a clear feature for patrons on the
basics of classification.
In addition to the classes which most directly impacted this special project, there are others that I enjoyed immensely and
that have enriched me beyond measure. The principles learned and skills honed in the children’s literature and the library
management classes serve me well every day of my working life. Every class I have taken has contributed in more ways than
one to my knowledge of and enthusiasm for library science, and to my appreciation for its limitless possibilities. These
courses were fascinating, challenging, fun, demanding, enlightening, profound: a source of great satisfaction and, at times,
frustration – very much like the work for which, I realize, I have only begun to prepare.
To every one who has made this program possible – the administrators, professors, instructors, assistants, technicians,
office and library staff - I offer my heartfelt thanks.
Special Project: Public Library Study
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