Courses & Specialization
Throughout my program at KSU, I have held a focus and specialization towards leadership and management. Below you will find the learning outcomes of the MLIS program, the core courses, and my elective courses.
Learning Outcomes
Apply the field’s foundational theories, principles, values, ethics, and skills to everyday practice.
Outcome 1
Critique and synthesize research and identify appropriate research methodologies to solve problems in the field
Outcome 2
Analyze and engage in the changing cultural, educational, and social roles and responsibilities of librarians/information professionals and the environments they work in within the global society.
Outcome 3
Evaluate systems and technologies relevant to a particular information context.
Outcome 4
Identify needs and connect individuals and communities with information that engages and empowers them.
Outcome 5
Core Courses
LIS 60010
The Information Landscape
Fall 2017
Exploration of the nature of information and technology in information-intensive environments. Topics to be addressed include information lifecycle processes such as production, storage, sharing, and consumption; social, cultural, economic, legal, and technological contexts for understanding information processes; the roles of information professionals and agencies, and their place in the larger information marketplace; current and emerging information technologies that shape the information economy
LIS 60020
Information Organization
Fall 2017
Introduction to the theory and practice of information organization and retrieval in various information environments. Familiarity with principles, standards, tools and current systems relating to organization of information and retrieval. Exploration of supported information system functions such as searching, browsing, and navigation. Assessment and evaluation of information organization and retrieval systems.
LIS 60030
People Information Ecology
Fall 2017
Takes a user-centered approach in exploring the information needs and behaviors of people (as individuals and in groups, communities, and institutions) in relation to the larger information ecology that surrounds them. Topics covered include an overview of information ecology; the user-centered paradigm; major information needs and information behavior theories, models, and findings; the landscape of information sources and services for users; factors that influence people’s information needs and behaviors; and user empowerment, information ethics, information fluency, and related issues.
LIS 60040
Information Institutions & Professions
Spring 2018
Examines the political, social, economic, and technical forces that influence the larger environments in which information institutions are situated. This course explores characteristics of the environments in which information professionals may work, including but not limited to academic, school, public, and special libraries, museums, archives, cultural heritage institutions, government organizations, corporations across all industries, and information creators and publishers. The course explores characteristics of the information profession including core values and principles, emerging professions, and understanding possible futures in profession, and explores ideas of organizational behavior in information institutions that operate across the institution as a whole, within groups, and within individuals in the organization.
LIS 60050
Research and Assessment in Library and Information Science
Spring 2018
Focuses on quantitative and qualitative research methods applicable to information settings and environments. Explores research design, data analysis, proposal development, and ethical issues.
LIS 60092
Master's Internship in Library and Information Science
Fall 2019
Under the advisement of a faculty member, students complete a professional-level internship that serves as a culminating experience for the M.L.I.S. degree. A minimum GPA of 3.000 is required for registration in this course
LIS 60280
Master's Portfolio in Library and Information Science
Fall 2019
Completed in a student’s last semester. It will include the creation of an electronic portfolio to represent and self-evaluate the student’s experience throughout the MLIS program, considering program learning outcomes and preparation for a career in the field of library and information science.
Elective Courses
EPSY 65524
Learning Theories
Summer 2018
Theories of learning with special emphasis on application to professional practice. A critical examination of research on human learning processes.
LIS 60675
Youth Literature in the Digital Realm
Summer 2018
From apps, to eBooks, to multi-platform books, to books with augmented reality, new digital formats extend books across media platforms, and provide readers with new, interactive ways of engaging with texts. However, the proliferation of new media formats means there are just as many questions related to their selection, evaluation, and use. This course aims to answer those questions and to critically examine digital formats and related implications for stakeholders in the field of literary production for young people, including librarians, publishers, authors, illustrators, and readers.
LIS 60602
Cataloging I
Fall 2018
Principles of cataloging with emphasis on Dewey Decimal and Library of Congress Classification systems, Library of Congress subject headings, online cataloging and administration.
LIS 60608
The Public Library
Fall 2018
Analysis of the historical, sociopolitical, technological, fiscal and organizational factors affecting American public librarianship. Includes evaluation, planning, networking, funding, automation, buildings and censorship.
LIS 60609
Marketing the Library
Spring 2019
Introduction to the theory and practice of marketing the library. Topics include the evaluation of customer needs, the marketing mix, merchandising, public relations, relationship marketing, and the design and development of a marketing plan for libraries.
LIS 61095
Special Topics: Information Service to Diverse Populations
Spring 2019
Offered irregularly as resources and/or opportunities permit. Topics will be announced in the schedule of classes.
Information Services for Diverse Populations explores services for diverse populations to ensure equity of access to information in a range of LIS institutional settings. Special interests or needs include sensory or mobility-impairment; learning disabilities; illiteracy; incarceration and institutionalization; demographic factors (age, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, gender identity); non-native English speakers; and homeless persons. Covers Federal regulations, materials, spaces, programs and services, professional attitudes, techniques, and technology issues.
In essence, this course takes an “up close and personal” approach to learning that asks students to reflect on their personal attributes, strengths and biases, and to meet and interact with a variety of people, including the instructor and fellow classmates. Over the course of the semester, topics consider some of the effects of historical power imbalances in present day society in the areas of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and education paying specific attention to the ways libraries, archives and museums may consciously or unconsciously support unjust social systems. The course also explores ways to actively transform those systems and empower marginalized groups through information services to help create a more equitable society. Students hear from several experts working in the field, and also have the opportunity to develop resources and projects that can be implemented in a library, archive or museum setting.
LIS 60614
Selection and Acquisition of Library Materials
Summer 2019
Factors affecting selection in public, academic, school and special libraries (reading habits, censorship, publishing trends) community analysis, selection policies and process; selection sources; acquisitions.
LIS 60655
Copyright
Summer 2019
Exploration of advanced copyright topics such as mass digitization, creative arts and other issues in fair use, library, archive and educational uses including the TEACH Act, digital first sale rights, Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and an introduction to copyright reform.
LIS 61095
Special Topics: Scholarly Communication
Fall 2019
Offered irregularly as resources and/or opportunities permit. Topics will be announced in the schedule of classes.
This course aims to provide students with an understanding of core principles and topics of scholarly communication as well as enable students to acquire knowledge of the role of the information professionals in scholarly communication. This course examines the ways in which scholarly information is produced, disseminated, and evaluated. It also discusses challenges and opportunities for providing access to information, including open access movement and institutional repositories.