The End of an Era

As I type this I am preparing to submit my final assignment for my final course as an MLIS student. It has taken me 2.5 years to get here - two classes at a time, while working 40+ hours a week at my normal job and 10-20 more as a research assistant. In the midst of a pandemic. Through the first year of marriage, a puppy foster fail, and the loss of my sister to cancer. In 10 days I'll be officially walking into tenure-track librarianship. It has been a wild time, and I'm proud of myself for making it through. I can only describe my feelings right now with a series of GIFs:

Image Source: Link

Image Source: Link

Image Source: Link

Key Takeaways - The Short Version

I'm meant to be writing a reflection about the evolution of my views on technology in education and librarianship, but reaching this academic finish line has me feeling some type of way so I'm going to use this space to wrap those thoughts into a more general list of perspectives, ideas, and values that I'm taking with me into the career pivot I've been slow-running to since 2021.

Information is Currency. It shapes, structures, builds, and maintains power, and the way information is created, disseminated, accessed, and employed is both liberating and oppressive. 

Context is Key. The same technology, data, communication, and knowledge has different value and meaning in different contexts. We need to be aware of the intent of its creation and use.

Technology is Not Magic. It's made by humans and we use it to do human things - but faster. We can use it for good, we can misuse it when trying to do good, and we can use it purposely for bad. It's up to us to be critical and informed, and to bring technology into our lives and the lives of our patrons and students appropriately.

We are Connected. Through information. Through the internet. Through our communities. But we are not all included - and connection does not create justice. 

We are Co-Creating the Future. The world today is often described as 'unimaginable' to generations past, but those generations made it whether they meant to or not. If we envision a different, better world, if we imagine a future that is shaped by knowledge and information practices rooted in justice and equity, we might be able to do it on purpose.

I Know a Lot but I Only Know a Little. It's not any of our jobs to know everything, and there are so many ways to know. I am a lifelong learner, even as I teach, and we are coconspirators in learning and growing.

The Next Chapter

This post is not a goodbye, just a reflection. There's a lot more to come, and I'm looking forward to sharing what I learn and what I'm thinking as much as I am to learn and think with you. We are all people first, and everything is figure-outable. Let's keep on growing together.

xoxo