Part of my goal in outreach is identifying community partners that could be served by McFarlin’s expertise and resources. Of those community partners, the upper-middle and high school students in Northeastern Oklahoma are some of my favorites. I am open to collaborating with school librarians, classroom teachers, and/or curriculum coordinators to bring students to McFarlin for exposure to advanced research skills and sources. These visits give students temporary, on-campus access to McFarlin’s databases, use of some print materials, and direct instruction from academic instruction librarians. The instruction and materials highlighted during the visit could be used for specific projects/assignments, to support curriculum standards, or to expose students to the expectations of college work. I can also come to your school site and present on the importance of using an academic library in college.
Some of the schools/programs I’ve had the privilege of partnering with in the past are: Broken Arrow High School AP Literature, Dewar Middle School 8th grade GearUP, and Tulsa Honor Academy. For each of these groups, instruction and access were tailored to fit the needs of the students and their courses.
I also love being a community partner with Tulsa City County Library. Through this partnerships I have been able to invite TCCL librarians to campus for public library card signups and info sessions for international students. I have also been honored to speak at TCCL events for their Local Author Conference, AI Lecture Series, and Take 5 Summer Reading kickoff! My focus in this partnership is to highlight the expertise and importance of all types of libraries.
