Lightning Rounds

Cultivating Consortiums - The Central Texas Library and Museum Consortium is a unofficial central Texas group that meets quarterly to provide support and programming ideas to members. It has grown to include group programming and Summer Reading activities. I will discuss how it got started and how libraries can bring other local libraries and museums together to provide support and programming ideas. Also, how to keep the group functioning and alive when interest wanes from members.
Cultivating Critical Thinking: Strategies from Project Zero’s Toolbox - This Lightning Talk will introduce attendees to impactful lesson plans developed by Harvard’s Project Zero education program. Using two examples, I will demonstrate how lessons from Project Zero's Toolbox help students deepen their thinking and make their thinking visible through written and oral reflection.
Serial Shenanigans: Building Staff Community through Periodicals Quotes - What could Godzilla, garlic recipes, and board games have in common? The Serial Shenanigans presentation will share Cornette Library’s experiences posting and responding to daily quotes. Pulled from physical periodical subscriptions, these quotes and the conversations they spark have impacted library staff in unexpected ways, such as inspiring a board game lunch group and an all-staff exploration of the stinky-spicy allure of Takis. Through the “Periodicals Quote of the Day” project, staff are able to share their interests and expertise, create learning opportunities, and better understand their colleagues’ knowledge areas. Most importantly, this project has allowed some staff to start their day with a level of excitement and encourages a more energetic work environment. The presentation will then discuss the importance of and suggestions for implementing a project that aims at encouraging intra-library conversations. Attendees will have the opportunity to suggest fun and professional ways to increase engagement in their own libraries.
New Services - New Opportunities: Engaging Communities and Donors - In this lightening talk, I will be presenting on recent collaboration to increase our visibility and outreach.

Community engagement and donor relations often become monotonous and repetitive activities, leading to disengagement. Special Collections and Archives in Corpus Christi is working to build community and donor engagement through alternative approaches to archival programs and services to strengthen the institutional, professional and geographic mosaic of our partnerships and networks. The implementation of a new digitization service and program that is extended to unconventional organizations has the potential to entice new interest in archives and by extension, new donors.

Special Collections and Archives will take advantage of our upcoming move to our new downtown location to reinvigorate how we partner with businesses, citizens and other cultural heritage institutions in the area. Concurrently, the new program and service will be offered to campus and System faculty, departments and colleges to support teaching and learning initiatives in an exciting new way. Of course, this does have it challenges, and tapping into existing and new partnerships are helping to overcome them.