Items

• 
  2020-06-17

  NY at its Core

  Help shape the history of your community by applying for the Advanced Certificate in Public History at the College of Staten Island, which qualifies you to work in museums and historical societies.
• 
  2022-08-22

  Sensory Roadblock: Unexpected Detriments and Benefits of Mask-wearing in Gathering Food and Information

  During the pandemic, I opted to order all of my groceries online to be delivered. I have never been much of a take-out person and mostly cook at home, so I really love to pick my ingredients when grocery shopping. Missing the in-store grocery shopping experience over the past few years, I sometimes go out to gather my fresh foods, especially after the normalizing of social distancing and mask regulations. Though I still prefer to wear a mask, even when regulations are occasionally loosened, a sensory occurrence that I did not expect to miss or lack as a consequence of mask-wearing is the importance of smell in my food-gathering habits. Being able to check the ingredients for both flavor and freshness qualities by smelling them is such a natural instinct that most lifeforms use to find their food. I never considered myself someone who actively smells things very often, so this sensory roadblock surprised me, as I initially chose to go to the store to get better foods than those that had been delivered to me. I have often come home and found that the asparagus or meat that I had just bought had that unpleasant odor of food past its prime, even though its appearance and texture seemed just perfect. I also miss being able to smell the full intensity of the fresh-cut flower bouquets that proclaim the seasons when going out grocery shopping. This temporary lessening of sense-of-smell from wearing a mask has been a bit of a hinderance in such ways, but it has been beneficial in many others. For example, I have dust allergies and used to become very stuffy after visiting my library due to the book dust—especially since, as a history and art history graduate student, all the books that I want or need to check out are usually the oldest or dustiest ones! Not being able to smell or breathe-in these things has helped me dramatically in my experience of information gathering. I can now spend hours looking over books that I wouldn’t have thought of opening before and have found some wonderful sources for my research. Though of course many historical texts are fully available in online formats and an invaluable resource, I often feel the same way about visiting my library as I do visiting my grocery store—I hope to find something myself that might work even better for my own project, either culinarily or academically.
• 
  2020-04

  Sudden Change to the Nature of Library Work

  This story shows how pandemic radically changed workplace experience, including sensory memories, for my occupation as a library worker in Washington County Utah in April 2020.
• 
  0002-03-01

  SMhopes at the SMPL Teen Lounge

  A variety of submissions to the SMhopes website, designed as posters and banners by Paula Goldman, and installed in the Teen Lounge at the main branch of the Santa Monica Public Library. The Library asked for a variety of hopeful messages as they begin having students visit the Teen Lounge again.
• 
  08/17/2020

  Carol Knauff and Catherine Allgor Oral History, 2020/07/31

• 
  04/28/2021

  Jill Polglaze Oral History, 2021/04/28

  Jill Polglaze is a librarian in the Franklin School District in Southeastern Wisconsin. She manages staff at the libraries at all levels of schooling in this district. In this interview, Jill discusses how COVID-19 has affected her life, including her job, family life, and pandemic overload in the media. She gives specific focus to the Franklin School District’s reaction to the pandemic and its involvement in the creation of protocols and keeping everyone safe. Furthermore, Jill discusses the various reactions to the pandemic she has noticed between the different school levels, elementary, middle, and high. Jill has a positive outlook on the future and shares her thoughts on a post-pandemic world.
• 2020-04-10

  The Whir and the Waft

  When schools shut down, there was a transition period where teachers waited to find out what they would need to do next. When that was decided, our work week was drastically changed. To achieve equity, we gave 30 minute lessons over Google Meets to anyone who wanted to show up twice a week. This meant a lot of free time--which meant reading! I went to the local bookstore and there was a line: only 5 people allowed in the massive 1-block building at a time. When I was permitted entrance to the silent space, I had to accept hand sanitizer from an automatic dispenser. This was not my first encounter with the substance, but it was the most memorable. The machine whirred and spit an enormous amount into my hands, completely filling my palms with watery, reeking sanitizer. I looked around for a towel or space to shake it off...there was so much! It began sliding through my fingers and dripping down my arms, a cold, slow trickle that spread the hospital scent with it. I frantically began rubbing my hands, but even so, huge glops of it splattered on the linoleum floor as I quickly walked to spread the leaking substance more thinly over the floor and avoid creating a puddle. The sterile and unpleasant smell stuck to my skin and followed me throughout the store, into my car, and to the end of my day. This will be hard to forget, and it made me buy my own, thicker hand sanitizer that I could control, and that smelled like pineapples and mango, and raspberry lemonade (it took some time to order, though, because so many companies were out of product). I didn't realize then, in April 2020, that machines like this would be everywhere, or that upon return to my classroom the next April, I would have my own gallon jug of it to offer students. The smell and the feel of that bookstore experience still make me cringe, yet this scent and substance have been normalized and their presence is expected and sought out. The whir and the waft of alcohol will not leave my senses, and, though they tell an important sensory history of this pandemic, I wish they would.
• 
  2021

  COVID-19 Story

  During the pandemic, I was able to get back into reading and also once the restrictions were lifted, I was able to get back in the gym and start biking again. I would try and bike anywhere from 10-15 miles per day which was a goal of mine to hit.
• 
  2020-12-31

  The Summer Your Librarians Became Youtubers...

  I am a children's librarian in rural Louisiana. We are approximately two hours away from all major forms of entertainment, so the library acts as not only a community hub but a place for children to learn and participate in extracurricular activities year-round... until Covid. Though our community hardly noticed the virus itself, the effects of being locked down soon took hold, and we were left with a community of children, families, and elderly people more isolated than they usually were. The depression set in. And my director had the fabulous notion to take what we did to the airwaves... Or rather the internet. Our seriously underutilized Facebook Page became the hub of activity, and overnight we went from librarians to Youtubers leading digital craft and art classes, Zoom creative writing workshops, and nightly bedtime stories. What initially began as a means to cheer up the children soon developed into full-fledged outreach. Local politicians, law-enforcement, and other community leaders read stories for us on our page as a means to connect with the people in our community. We did special digital story hours with schools once they opened back up in the fall, and also read stories to patients in the nursing home. Continuing with this train of thought, we partnered with our local American Legion Hall, which is located on a main thoroughfare and has large windows clearly visible from the road, to set up our annual "Christmas Around the World" exhibit (which features Christmas traditions from many different countries as well as Kwanzaa and Hanukah traditions) since there was no way to feature the display in our small meeting room safely. Every program was modified, digitized, and brought to the people of our community in the best possible way they could be... which turned the 'year of the plague' into a year of learning, cooperation, and ingenuity for us.
• 
  2021-06-24

  COVID scam awareness sign

  When I visited the library today, I noticed in the large assortment of flyers on the community posting board a flyer warning about COVID-19 scams. The flyer is from the California Senior Medicare Patrol, and mentions a variety of different scams related to vaccine distribution that people should avoid. It also provides a hotline phone number. The photo was taken on June 24, 2021.
• 
  2021-03-22

  Apache County (AZ) Library COVID-19 Guidelines after March 22, 2021

  This copyright-free image of a public-facing government webpage displays the COVID-19 protocols in place at Apache County (AZ) library locations after Governor Doug Ducey ordered local governments to phase out public health mandates on March 22, 2021. Unlike urban areas within the state, rural Apache County in northeastern Arizona no longer required mask use inside private or government (public) buildings and facilities.
• 
  2020-04

  The Historical Research Project

  Specifically, the Covid-19 pandemic inadvertently prevented me from my continued work in the Research Department at the Denver Public Library, as well as my volunteer work with the School Tours program at the History Colorado Center. However, it has given me an opportunity to conduct a history research project of my own choosing. I have had an ongoing interest in a writing project on the Domesday Book, which was a survey conducted in medieval England in AD 1085-1088. The repeated news stories on fellow Americans and citizens from around the world choosing to become interested in artwork and/or other projects while presented with an abundance of personal time due to Covid-19 restrictions has inspired me to begin this project. I was able to obtain a copy of an English translation of the Domesday Book and, though my graduate level academic work has not been postponed in any way, I have found time to begin this work. I will always remember that I began this passionate project because of the Covid-19 lockdown and restrictions, it will occupy my time far beyond Covid-19.
• 
  2021-02-27

  Pandemic Fashion

  Since the beginning of the pandemic, I wore a mask. I think I went one place without one on Friday, March 13, as the world fell apart and I was driving home to Phoenix from my mother’s house in San Diego County. But since then, I have been collecting masks the way I would collect graphic and band tees as a teenager and young adult. I have developed “criteria” for what I like, prefer, and even need in a mask. I think about it when I pick one each day. If I am wearing patterns, I grab a solid mask in a complementary color. Solid outfits open up the gates to lots of options. Very quickly, I realized I needed a way to manage these masks. The two hooks that hang near our front door for stocking at Christmas promptly became something else. A bin of clean masks hangs on one hook and a lingerie bag on another. The routine is simple, grab a mask from the container as you leave, come home and drop it in the bag. When the bag is full, zip it up and drop it in the wash. Done! So here are some of my favorites: • Baby Yoda • Disneyland Spirit Jersey style • Old Navy, Old Navy, Old Navy – they come in five packs, available for every season and holiday, prints and solids, easy to grab, cannot say enough • And, of course – the true hero of the pandemic, masks made with love. My coworkers and I have chosen the raccoon for our library mascot. My boss’ mom had this beaver fabric just sitting around, so she made one for each of us (bonus points, this one has a nose wire), and finally, the same wonderful ex-co-worker of our department who made us all the raccoon masks made school-themed ones for us, the Desert Vista Thunder, one with lightning bolts and one with the school colors in the plaid. • Our other library theme is rainbows and all things equality – down to the matching rainbow Apple Watch bands we have to pair perfectly with this rainbow hearts mask from the Human Rights Campaign. I am not ready to give up wearing masks. I have both doses of Pfizer, and it has been two weeks, but I still think masks are a good idea and something that I will for sure be wearing when I feel any kind of sick post-pandemic if that ever happens. It’s the responsible thing to do, and frankly, I have too much invested into my masks and management system to say goodbye to it anytime soon.
• 
  2020-09-10

  Documenting the Experiences of Black America during the COVID-19 Pandemic

  This story, from the Harvard Gazette, features the work of two friends -Tracie Jones & Sarah DeMott- as they try to curate the experiences of black Americans during the coronavirus pandemic. Their collective effort resulted in Black America and COVID-19; a library guide that seeks to serve as a historical database for stories about the impact of the pandemic on African American communities. Information and material included in the database ranges from oral histories, podcasts, blogs, and links to webinars.
• 
  2021-02-24

  School in the Era of the Pandemic

  Going around the school, there are signs and posters scattered around the entire vicinity, requiring masks and social distancing. Prior to any of these events, people were constantly together, with no masks, crowded rooms, etc. Now it is crazy to even fathom that I've been to a concert with thousands of people bumping into each other. Although this seems like a generic topic to discuss, I'm sure in the future it will seem so inconceivable.
• 
  10/13/2020

  Cynthia Lopez Oral History, 2020/10/13

  An interview with Cynthia Lopez, a St. Mary's University employee in the Blume Library
• 
  2020-10-13

  Finally moving to Phase 2

  Wenatchee has been in lockdown and stuck at phase 1.5 for months due to an inability to get the virus under control. We finally received word that we could move to phase two and reopen things like the museums and library in town, which have been closed for 7 months due to COVID. This reopening means that many public services like computer use at the library and wifi for those who do not have access to it at home will be open and able to be used by those that need it. It is an important to compare where we are at to other places that moved into new phases much quicker, some of which had spikes because of it. I personally have not been able to leave and have been stuck at my house for months. I used to go to the library three times a week for school and to get out of my house but with a pandemic, I have been spending more time inside. I do not feel comfortable enough to go to the library yet, but am excited that the option is now there. Back to normal is still not an option though, and I worry that this will cause more cases in my area. This whole experience has been eye opening for how much I did unplanned, now I have to plan everything I do so I can keep myself and my family safe.
• 
  2020-08-14

  Library Takeout Video

  A librarian at Duke University made a video outlining the steps for library takeout and it's amazing.
• 
  May 1, 2020

  Boonville IN May 1 2020 Library

  These photographs were taken to document some of what people in Evansville and its Tri-State region saw and experienced as the realities of the Covid-19 pandemic came to the area in the spring of 2020. Many of these images represent literal signs of the time, while others figuratively depict signs of the pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-01

  REALM Project

  The Reopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) main website where one can access all of the reports, digital materials, results, and resources of the REALM project From their website: "As libraries and museums around the country begin to resume operations and reopen facilities to the public, there is need for clear information to support the handling of core museum, library, and archival materials. OCLC, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Battelle are conducting research on how long the COVID-19 virus survives on materials that are prevalent in libraries, archives, and museums. The project will draw upon the research to produce authoritative, science-based information on how—or if— materials can be handled to mitigate exposure to staff and visitors. To achieve these goals, the REALM project will: - Collect, review, and summarize authoritative research that applies to materials commonly found in the collections and facilities of archives, libraries, and museums - Ongoing consultation and engagement with a project steering committee, working groups, and other subject matter experts from archives, libraries, and museums - Laboratory testing of how COVID-19 interacts with a selection of materials commonly found in archives, libraries, and museums; and identifying methods of handling and remediation - Synthesize the above inputs into toolkit resources that support reopening and operational considerations - Share project information and toolkit resources through the project website and amplified by member associations and support organizations that serve archives, libraries, and/or museums."
• 
  07/02/2020

  Lynn Brown Oral History, 2020/07/02

  Interview with Lynn Brown , Educational Coordinator of the Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center by interviewer Alex Bice. Lynn speaks about the importance of group and physical interaction learning. She also shares her thoughts on how the pandemic has altered educational practices for students and teachers during a time of distance learning.
• 
  2020-07-08

  Printing To Go

  Twitter post from the Boston Public Library that highlights a new, socially distanced printing service that they are offering to the community. Social distancing and new cleaning requirements have limited people's abilities to access printers if they do not own one themselves. This object emphasizes how libraries and other cultural heritage institutions are altering their services to fit the current moment.
• 
  2020-07-09

  Lock down libraries in remote Peru

  I saw this tweet about a rural library fund, and thought it was really interesting that there is a charity providing access to books for people in remote Andean communities in Peru. I watched some of the Zoom recording to learn about it, and it seems really encouraging that this type of charity work is continuing despite COVID-19. Providing physical books to students in remote areas is such a worthy cause, and one that can really fracture along class lines due to cost and accessibility.
• 
  2020-06-29

  The New York Public Library Lions Wear Masks

  This is a post from the NYPL official Instagram account. The caption reads: "As NYPL prepares to gradually reopen select physical locations on July 13, our beloved lions #PatienceAndFortitude are setting an example to remind New Yorkers to stay safe. To pick up or drop off materials when locations reopen, masks will be mandatory. Learn about services that will be offered during reopening, locations, and more at nypl.org/coronavirus or by visiting the link in our bio."
• 
  2020-06-26

  Philippine Covid-19 Archive [rationale]

  The Filipinas Heritage Library created the Philippine Covid-19 Archive as a response to the pandemic, and developed a plan for collecting materials related to the Covid-19 crisis in the Philippines. This document outlines that collecting strategy, and is the basis for the Philippine Covid-19 Archive item set.
• 
  2020-04-20

  Marathon Monday

  Facebook post by the Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library, reflecting on what would have been Marathon Monday (the day the Boston Marathon is traditionally run) had the pandemic not force it to be rescheduled. The post mentions the proximity of the library to the finish line of the marathon, and includes a map of where the race begins in Hopkinton, Massachusetts.
• 
  2020-05-08

  Zoom Backgrounds

  Social media post on the Facebook page of the Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library. The post highlights eight different historical maps from the collection, noting that those interested can download these maps and use them as backgrounds on a video conferencing platform like Zoom. Due to social distancing, video conferencing apps like Zoom have become increasingly popular, and cultural institutions have sought to utilize and promote their collections in ways that are compatible with these platforms. https://web.archive.org/web/20200622122709/https://www.facebook.com/bplmaps/photos/a.10150599262740304/10163440288820304/?type=3&theater=
• 
  2020-06-15

  Filling empty space and empty time

  Our formal front room is usually reserved for family gatherings or avoiding the noise if someone has the tv on too loud in the living room. While it has long also been a place where my dad drops his notebooks, newspapers, and articles he has printed off to read, in quarantine it has become his space even more than before. While I have taken up embroidery, my mom has been sewing masks for those in need, and my brother has retreated once more to his room to watch YouTube videos, my dad has turned back to reading. Most of my life he has only really read nonfiction: books on history, economics, and political biographies. But he has been retired for over 2 years now, and I think all the work-related reading has cleared his system, so he has begun to bring fiction back into circulation. His consumption of literature has also been increased by the fact that shipping fees have been waved on books for the last three months. I have never seen him read this much or enjoy it this much. He is keeping his books in a place of pride and easy access too, instead of gathering dust in the shelves in our basement office or under the coffee table. Usually the bay window in the front room holds only the wooden candlesticks my uncle made us, and maybe a seasonal decoration or two, but now they display his growing library as well. He’s had the time before now; being retired, but he had other options to occupy his time, like going out for coffee nearly daily or pursuing the hardware store. The pandemic kickstarted the habit which I think will be entertaining him going forward into a post pandemic world with spy novels and literature added to his biographies and political economy texts.
• 
  2020-06-11

  BPL To Go

  Service offered by the Boston Public Library in response to continued closure related to the CoVid-19 pandemic. Service allows for library members to pick up books, movies, and CDs from library locations. FAQs and press releases related to the program highlight the compliance with social distancing, as well as quarantine protocols for materials that are loaned out. This service highlights how libraries are coping with the coronavirus, both in terms of being unable to welcome visitors but also how the coronavirus affects their lending of physical items.
• 
  2020-05-22

  Lineups & physical distancing could mean extra time in the sun

  A tweet from Ottawa Public Health from during an exceptional heat wave warning that increased lines outside of stores and services due to physical distancing measures could expose people to the heat for longer than usual and that precautions should be taken to avoid heat related illness such as sun burn or heat stroke.
• 
  2020-04-30

  The 25th Annual Brookline High School Poetry Festival

  The BHS Poetry Festival invites high school students, alums, and faculty to read their original poetry. Many participants shared poetry about the pandemic. (do you want the digital file separately?)
• 
  2020-05-26

  Australian school library COVID-19 information desk

  Mentone Girls' Grammar School Kerferd Library information desk during the COVID-19 return to campus (Phase 1) 26 May 2020. For student and staff safety the library stopped lending headphones and chess sets. In phase 1 junior school students in Prep to year 2, as well as senior school students in years 10, 11 and 12, returned to campus. Students in years 3 to 9 remained off campus and continued with online learning until phase 2 which commenced on 9 June 2020.
• 
  2020-04-03

  Donated Picture Books for Distance Learning

  Picture books donated to Princeton Elementary School by the Colusa County Library sit on display for students to choose from. With the closure of school campuses and public libraries, students did not have access to borrowed books during the COVID-19 pandemic and relied on donations to continue their literary learning. #ASU #HST580
• 
  2020-04-27

  The number of visits to the electronic library in Yakutia has tripled in a pandemic (Число посещений электронной библиотеки в Якутии выросло в три раза в условиях пандемии)

  "The number of visitors to electronic services of the National Library of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in March and April 2020 almost tripled compared to the same period last year, the director of the institution Sargylana Maksimova told TASS." #IndigenousStories
• 
  2020-05-18

  Go Back to Normal!!!

  I have learned in this quarantine that is you want to do something and not be lazy, then you must attack it head on and just go for it. The hardest part of accomplishing something is definitely starting. If you can start the thing you want, then you are more motivated to finish it because you have already spent time and effort trying to accomplish the thing you want. Even when I get out of this quarantine, I am going to try to apply this to my daily life. I really wonder when things are going to get back to normal, or if things will go back to normal. This might be the new normal which is a scary thought. I hope this is not the new normal because I had a plan for my future. Well kind of, but this is definitely not what I had planned. I am trying to remember that it is not about what I want for my future or what I think is supposed to happen in my life. It is about God’s plan and what he wants to happen in my life. *Original text in Creator: Nicole Dumitrascu #LSMS #NSD
• 
  2020-04-21

  Makeshift library in front of Hyde Park home

  A small library set up on the lawn of a home in Hyde Park, Chicago.
• 
  2020-04-28

  Small Community Library

  This is an image of a community library in my neighborhood where people can come and take a book and replace it with their own contribution. Because it is usually touched by many people it has been closed. This tell us that it is necessary to social distance and quarentine for the safety of yourself and others.#REL101
• 
  2020-03-13

  Public Libraries Close, Jefferson Parish, LA

  Libraries to be closed due to COVID-19 pandemic.
• 
  04/17/2020

  Access signage on University of Melbourne campus

  Access restrictions to the Law Building at the University of Melbourne
• 
  2020-04-09

  The Library is Closed Today

  This photograph was taken of a Libertyville, IL, public library, which is closed due to the pandemic. Across America, non-essential services such as libraries have had to shut down. The nature of the sign reflects the uncertainty of this quarantine period. By simply reading "The Library is Closed Today," this sign says little about how long it will be closed, instead directing patrons to the library website where information can be updated as circumstances change and new information is made available. #DePaulHST391
• 
  2020-03-27

  the library sleeps

  the library sleeps its pages unread and we are their dreams
• 
  2020-03-26

  Tweet about Continuity of Learning from the Moakley Archive at Suffolk University

  Shows information the Archive sent to students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 
  2020-03-25

  Library Social Media humor

  Cardiff University Library and Shetland Library's social media teams have a funny conversation on Twitter. Levity in the face of uncertainty has been more common online in recent weeks.
• 
  2020-03-24

  From You I Have Been Absent in the Spring

  A blog which fumbles in the proverbial haystack to find the - dare I say it - beneficial possible outcomes of the library lockdown for researchers.