Digital Equity & Inclusion Strategies for Libraries

Promoting Student Success for All Learners

Authors

  • Jacqueline Frank Montana State University Library
  • Meghan Salsbury Montana State University
  • Hannah McKelvey Montana State University
  • Rachelle McLain Montana State University

Keywords:

Digital Equity, Digital Inclusion, Digital Divide, Access, Student Success

Abstract

Student success in higher education depends on access to digital resources and services, and today's students rely heavily on the library to help facilitate that access. Reliance on digital library resources and services surged in March 2020, when many US higher education institutions moved to remote learning in response to the global pandemic. This move highlighted a lack of awareness about the ongoing digital divide in higher education, and the underestimation of how student success would be affected in an online learning environment. Many students do not have a computer or device with internet access, access to reliable, high-speed internet, and/or can’t afford high-speed internet. These barriers inhibit students from experiencing digital equity and inclusion in the realm of remote learning. This article discusses how librarians working at a mid-sized academic library in Montana are working to advance digital equity and inclusion in their state, and the impact of this on students, and our work. It demonstrates how access to, or lack of access to resources impacts digital inclusion and digital equity in Montana, including personal device ownership, access to internet or cell service, the ability of libraries to implement remote authentication methods, and digital accessibility. The article shares perspectives and strategies from librarians working in public services and instruction, acquisitions, and electronic resources management, and how they are working together to promote digital equity and inclusion and increase the accessibility of library resources.

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Author Biographies

Jacqueline Frank, Montana State University Library

Jacqueline Frank (jacqueline.frank@montana.edu) is the Instruction & Accessibility librarian at Montana State University. Jacqueline has led library wide accessibility remediation efforts and has presented nationally on accessibility. She works to build awareness and offer training on ways to make instruction more accessible, and is interested in the overlap between accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion. She holds a master’s degree in Environmental Engineering from Montana State University, and an MLIS from the University of Kentucky. Outside of work you can find next to the closest body of water, walking her dogs, or binge-watching bad television.

Meghan Salsbury, Montana State University

Meghan Salsbury (meghan.salsbury@montana.edu) is the Instructional Technology Librarian at Montana State University (MSU). She works with students and faculty to create online learning opportunities, manages the library’s LibGuides, and teaches information literacy instruction sessions and credit-bearing courses. She joined the MSU Library in May 2019 and has focused her efforts over the past two years on developing and implementing the library’s online education infrastructure and collaborating with colleagues across campus to incorporate the library into the campus learning management system. Meghan holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in history and graduated from the School of Library and Information Management at Emporia State University with a master’s in Library Science in 2015.

Hannah McKelvey, Montana State University

Hannah McKelvey (hannah.mckelvey@montana.edu) is an Assistant Professor and Electronic Resources & Discovery Services Librarian at Montana State University (MSU) Library in Bozeman, Montana. Her current role and responsibilities at MSU Library include managing all aspects of electronic information licensed by the library through third-parties and to facilitate discovery and access to the library’s electronic resources and physical materials. Hannah describes her research interests as practice-based and applicable, focused around current work she is doing in the library. She is interested in discovery, broadly, of third-party subscription content, locally created resources, such as digital collections, physical library collections, and promoting these resources through outreach. Hannah holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Montana State University and completed her master’s in Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2011.

Rachelle McLain, Montana State University

Rachelle McLain (rachelle.mclain@montana.edu) is the Collection Development Librarian at the Montana State University Library. She manages the library’s collections budget and oversees the acquisition and deselection of resources to meet the research and learning needs of the Montana and MSU communities. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art History from Western Washington University and an MLIS from the University of Washington. She has presented and been asked to serve on panel discussions at both local and national conferences, in person and virtually.

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Published

2021-09-06

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 3 (2021)

Section

Special Section - Reports From the Field

License

Copyright (c) 2021 Jacqueline Frank, Meghan Salsbury, Hannah McKevley, Rachelle McLain

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms: see Author Agreement. Articles are licensed under a CC-BY-NC-ND license.