Supporting libraries through collaboration

Our library faculty and staff play a pivotal role in connecting our campus and community with knowledge and research that drives academic excellence and discovery. However, their work doesn’t stop at the campus borders. Our library faculty and staff have been working on many projects that propel state and national library initiatives forward, collaborating with colleagues across Michigan and beyond.

Advancing data literacy with library collections

Data Librarian Daria Orlowska's innovative project on data literacy showcases the transformative potential of integrating structured datasets into educational curricula.

In early 2020, Orlowska met with our archive and regional history curators to discuss opportunities to transform some of Western’s distinctive collections into structured datasets, which would make the information more accessible to the community. Identifying appropriate collections and creating the datasets was an extensive process, but it resulted in a dataset for the South Haven Michigan Lighthouse Logs, a record of passing vessels from 1878-1882.

After the dataset was created, Orlowska created three lesson plans—one each for third grade, eighth grade and undergraduate students—using the South Haven Lighthouse datasets to help students learn about Michigan history and gain critical thinking and data literacy skills.

“We saw this as a great opportunity to pilot integrating datasets into the curriculum to introduce students to data literacy earlier in their education,” says Orlowska.

“I had never created lesson plans for a K-12 audience, and distilling ideas into concrete learning outcomes with low-tech, hands-on activities was a real challenge,” adds Orlowska, who typically works with college students, researchers and faculty members.

“Building these lessons helped me improve learning outcomes, better articulate skills gained, and create experiential components within other data workshops at the university level,” Orlowska notes.

Orlowska's lesson plans provide teachers with free resources to create experiential learning experiences for students to engage with historical datasets, fostering critical thinking and digital literacy skills essential for the 21st century.

Making manuscripts more accessible

Our distinctive collections librarian, Dr. Sue Steuer, serves as vice president and member services representative for Digital Scriptorium (DS). Digital Scriptorium is a consortium of North American libraries and museums that provide digital access to descriptions of their premodern manuscripts and are “dedicated to enhancing access and appreciation” of these manuscripts.

Digital Scriptorium recently completed DS 2.0, which reimagined and rebuilt the DS database, making it easier for researchers to find and access these understudied manuscripts. As vice president, Steuer works with other board members to encourage curators across the U.S. to join and make their collections visible.

Western joined Digital Scriptorium in 2020, but additional work was needed to prepare for DS 2.0. Steuer worked with our cataloging and metadata team to prepare Western’s data for the new catalog, which uses shareable Wikidata. Cataloging manuscripts and special collections takes time and specialized knowledge, so our cataloging and metadata team was essential in getting our data ready.

“Manuscripts can be particularly hard to catalog and to locate in library catalogs because they do not conform to the traditions we associate with print materials such as multiple identical copies since they are handmade artifacts,” says Steuer.

In addition to the complexity of the items, smaller institutions may not have the resources to catalog these special items. With the completion of DS 2.0, institutions can submit their manuscript data without providing extensive detail—making it easier to bring attention and attract researchers to their collections.

“It is a win-win situation where researchers can make new discoveries, and libraries can learn more about what they hold,” adds Steuer. “This is particularly important for young scholars, who may not have access to funding to travel abroad or even to distant libraries in the U.S.”

Improving searches with linked data

Cataloging and Metadata Librarian Marianne Swierenga’s work is often behind the scenes, but her knowledge and skill set have helped her take the lead in a multi-state group focused on improving searches with linked data.

What is linked data? It is essentially data that is easily readable by machines. This makes it easier for people to find information—including library collections—when they search online.

Card catalogs have been obsolete for decades as libraries converted their records to digital formats. Now, most people can search a library’s collections from anywhere in the world. But just like the classic card catalog, the results are only as good as the data—metadata in library speak—in each record.

“Linked Data offers a way to structure information that makes it less ambiguous, shows relationships, makes sharing and reusing data more efficient and decentralized,” says Swierenga.

As chair of the Linked Data for Libraries Users Group, Swierenga advocates for and supports libraries’ efforts to use linked data and helps organize educational events that draw hundreds of online attendees nationwide. In fall 2023, Swierenga moderated a discussion on artificial intelligence, linked data and the future of metadata.

“AI is transforming the information landscape,” Swierenga notes. “As information professionals, I think we’re uniquely positioned to consider the amazing possibilities of how the technology can be used in libraries, as well as discuss the concerning parts, like data quality, copyright infringement, embedded biases and data privacy. It’s important that we have these discussions now.”

The group also hosts a week-long Wikidata ‘edit-a-thon’ that educates and trains people to create and edit Wikidata entities and link more data about a subject relevant to Michigan or Indiana. Wikidata supports other Wiki projects like Wikipedia, a critical, free information resource.

“I like to call our edit-a-thons ‘data parties,’ because it can be a lot of fun and rewarding to add information about our corner of the world for all to use. This is often data that didn't exist in Wikidata before, and now it’s part of the information universe. Data is powerful,” Swierenga adds.

Preserving collections with a digital network

When library users search the online catalog, they don’t see the massive amounts of data—and work—that keeps the system running. Network Administrator Senior Alex Dark works behind the scenes to protect our library data and keep processes running smoothly. Dark is also lending his knowledge and talents to support a statewide initiative to preserve and protect library collections.

The Michigan Digital Preservation Network (MDPN) is an initiative started in 2019 to create a digital preservation solution for cultural heritage institutions in Michigan. This project was initiated after a survey found that one-third of responding institutions did not preserve their digital collections. The MDPN’s mission is to provide a distributed digital preservation network for collecting institutions across the state to preserve knowledge for future generations.

Western Michigan University is a founding member of the MDPN and a leading pilot program member. Dark is a critical member of the MDPN Technical Committee and a resource for resolving technical issues and helping other members troubleshoot their setups.

Protecting digital collections and preserving the legacy of all Western’s library data are crucial parts of Dark’s role.

“One of my most important duties is to ensure the WMU Libraries data are preserved and remain accessible in the event of some physical or digital catastrophe,’ says Dark. “MDPN does exactly that with some of our most important collections.”

Associate Dean Paul Gallagher adds, “Libraries have always been centers to preserve knowledge for print materials. This effort brings together a community to do the same with our digital heritage and help protect our scholarly and cultural legacy.”

Digital collections are often created from physical library collections but also include archived digital assets like photographs or webpages. Creating a digital scan or photograph of these items makes them more accessible and raises awareness of their existence. It also preserves them in case of damage due to major catastrophes like floods, fire or destructive weather.

Like many institutions, Western utilizes external cloud storage solutions to maintain a backup of digital collections. If this cloud storage was lost, the MDPN would provide a backup of the most important collections at other hubs across the state.

“With MDPN, those collections are preserved around the state and have a contingent legal framework for access and use,” says Dark. “It’s a way to ensure our digital collections can last 100 years or more.”