Enhancing Collaboration Between Library Departments

Presenters

Ximena Valdivia, Florida International UniversityFollow
Veronica Gonzalez, Florida International UniversityFollow

Start Date

3-6-2024 11:35 AM

End Date

3-6-2024 12:00 PM

Presentation Summary

The collaboration between the Cataloging Department and the Diaz Ayala Music Collection at the FIU Libraries represents a significant advancement in enhancing access to and preserving Latin American cultural heritage in the United States. Through this partnership, FIU librarians have optimized cataloging and digitization processes, making the unique collection more accessible and user-friendly for researchers, students, and music enthusiasts. By combining their expertise, the librarians have not only improved access but also created opportunities to secure grants to support ongoing preservation and digitization projects. These collaborative efforts have played a key role in fostering a strong connection between the collection and the academic community. The librarians' collaboration with professors has facilitated the seamless integration of the Diaz Ayala Music Collection into courses, enriching students' educational experiences with innovative resources. Moreover, grant applications have enabled the funding of crucial projects that preserve and protect this invaluable musical treasure. In this presentation, FIU librarians aim to showcase how this partnership is building bridges through collaboration, using innovative problem-solving strategies, and assessing the outcomes to continually improve the partnership's impact.

Presenters Bio

Ximena Valdivia serves as a Cataloging and Metadata Librarian at Florida International University (FIU). Ximena holds a Bachelor in Library Science from the Metropolitan University of Technology in Santiago, Chile, a Master of Arts in Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida, and is currently studying for her Master of Arts in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at FIU. In her position, she is responsible for providing original and complex copy cataloging, creating metadata to maximize digital content discovery, and providing authority control for library materials and collections with a focus on Special Collections. She has previously worked with Barry University and the University of Miami in a number of capacities on significant historical collections.

Verónica A. González is a librarian at Florida International University's Digital Collection Center. Holding a Bachelor in Library Science from the Metropolitan University of Technology in Santiago de Chile and a Master of Arts in Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida, Ms. González is pursuing a second Master's in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at FIU. Her journey with the FIU Libraries began in 2004 when she joined the Department of Digital Collections. In 2006, she was awarded a Smithsonian scholarship, which allowed her to participate in a professional development program in Washington, expanding her understanding of new technologies and best practices in digital audio and preservation. She is currently in charge of one of the most extensive publicly available collections of Cuban music in the United States, the Díaz-Ayala Cuban and Latin American Popular Music Collection (DAC), which she utilizes to support research and advance efforts in preservation, access, and digitization.

Keywords

Partnership, Cultural Heritage Preservation, Academic and Curriculum Integration, Collaborative Problem-Solving

Learning Outcomes

1. Understand how collaboration between library departments can enhance access to and preserve cultural heritage collections. 2. Identify strategies for building bridges and assessing outcomes in collaborative projects