The Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) University Libraries Section’s (ULS) Professional Development Committee has organized a free online presentation, entitled “Embedding Data Services within a Digital Scholarship Lab.” SpeakersĀ Eli Wachter, Jonathan Barber, and Justin Wadland (all Michigan State University) will explore “how to effectively incorporate data services into existing digital scholarship services at an academic library.” From the program description:
An early-career Data Visualization Librarian will begin the program by presenting their experiences joining a new position for a university library’s Digital Scholarship Lab. They will share their strategies of surveying needs with subject liaisons and building relationships with other educational units on campus to inform their priorities in developing data visualization resources and services. To expand beyond individual actions to improve services, an established Data Services Librarian within the same unit will describe his efforts re-establishing a Research Facilitation Network, which highlights and connects the research support services provided throughout the university. In re-establishing this Network, the team adapted the Campus Research Computing Consortium’s Capabilities Model to assess the research computing and data landscape at the university. In addition to building a sense of community among researchers and service providers, the Network provides regular events that address gaps in research support on campus. The unit lead will provide context for the intersection of data services and digital scholarship within academic libraries, using the Big Ten Academic Alliance libraries as a subset model. He will also illustrate how he has used appreciative inquiry to facilitate unit-level strategic planning as an active and ongoing conversation with team members, affiliate faculty, and constituents. In his presentation around strategic planning, he will share approaches for advocating for new positions, refining existing positions to meet emergent needs, and planning within the context of budget reductions.
The presentation will take place April 22, 2026, starting at 1:00 PM Central Time. Registration can be found here.
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This post was produced through a cooperation between Amy Gay, Abbie Norris-Davidson, Mariam Ismail, Carrie Pirmann, Trip Kirkpatrick, and Mimosa Shah (Editors-at-Large), Ruth Carpenter, Hillary Richardson, and Caitlin Christian-Lamb (Editors for the week), Claudia Berger, Molly McGuire, Nickoal Eichmann-Kalwara, Linsey Ford, Pamella Lach, Christine Salek, and Rachel Starry (dh+lib Review Editors), and Tom Lee (Technical Editor).