Jake Goldman
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My name is Jake Goldman and I am a part time MLIS student studying at Simmons’ SLIS West Campus in Greenfield, MA. I am primarily interested in public librarianship. I work for the Montague Public Libraries in Montague, MA where I manage the Millers Falls Branch Library—which has provided me with many amazing library stories I hope to share with you soon! Previously, I studied at UMass Amherst’s Stockbridge School of Agriculture and the Universidade do Algarve’s Centro de Ciências do Mar. I am particularly interested in LIS as a tool for positive social change. I also work part time at a local horticultural greenhouse and am passionate about gardening, hiking with my dog Lottie, and, of course, reading.
Entries by Jake Goldman
I was fortunate to attend the first annual conference of the Mass Digital Navigators Alliance this Spring in Southbridge, MA. Digital navigators encompass workers across fields such as libraries, councils-on-ageing, healthcare, community organizations, and municipalities who are working to advance digital access, engaging in efforts to build digital literacy, and providing support to people to navigate the increasingly complex digital world. Some things digital navigators do include assisting people access online benefits systems, housing, education, telehealth, and other essential online services. We in LIS have a lot of experience with this kind of work and it’s great to see a broader coalition joining together around our shared experiences and the need to advocate for the importance of this emerging field from across various backgrounds. One attending digital navigator based in healthcare systems relayed a story about helping a patient to set up a medical device. The biometric monitoring function required linkage to a smartphone app—a daunting prospect so anxiety-inducing in the patient that they deferred using the device for months. Later another participant told me…
I have some incredibly exciting news to share—thanks to the dedication and hard work of numerous library trustees, friends, volunteers and particularly Library Director (and Simmons alumnus) Caitlin Kelley the Montague Public Libraries will be constructing a new main library building in downtown Turners Falls, Massachusetts. I am incredibly proud of everyone who has labored to make this possible so that the town of Montague can have a modern, accessible library which will be capable of providing the space and services the community deserves. MPL won a competitive grant for $11.3 million dollars through the Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners and at a June 24th Special Election town residents voted to move forward with the project to construct a new building, appropriating the town’s share of $12.4 million dollars for the project through a debt exclusion. MPL’s main branch is currently located in a beautiful and historic Carnegie Library built in 1905; the building has been insufficient for the needs of the community since almost the mid…
Hello! I have been enjoying the long days, short nights, and summer verdancy! Whether you’re taking the opportunity to fast-track your program with summer courses or enjoying a much deserved break, I hope you are enjoying the summer too and making plenty of time for yourself. I myself will not be taking any summer courses but I am excited to say that when I resume my studies in September it will be in the form of an independent study with the potential to put into practice some of what I have learned at Simmons heretofore. Since enrolling, I have been seeking ways to collaboratively engage with both Simmons and my local library and employer, the Montague Public Libraries (MPL), and now that I have completed a few semesters it feels like an excellent time to apply some of what I have studied to the real world. With the support and guidance of our fantastic West Campus Coordinator Eric Poulin and in collaboration with MPL staff I will be conducting a diversity audit of MPL’s adult…
Hello! I’m Jake, I am a SLIS student attending the West Campus writing to you from Greenfield and in my coming posts I hope to share a little about myself, my experiences at SLIS West, and spotlight some of the exciting work going on in Western MA. I’m happy to say I’ve just completed two excellent courses: Collections Development & Management taught by Kristi Chadwick, who also serves as Director of the Ballston Community Public Library; and Information Services, Behaviors, & Ethics with Adjunct Professor Tim Dolan, who I must say gives some of the most detailed and thoughtful writing feedback I have been grateful to receive! The Library and Information Science Student Association West Chapter has put together a social event Saturday August 22nd and it is going to be a great time! We also have a lot of exciting events in development for the Fall, including career fair and professional development opportunities, community forums with faculty and colleagues from Boston to continue to create connections across the state, and more social mixers.
