A few weeks ago I completed my 8-week intensive course at Dominican University’s School of Information Studies. Throughout the course, students shared creative works that surfaced for them. I asked student permission to share a couple of items they offered during the course, and I’d also like to share selected student course evaluations.
Student Creativity
First up: creative works shared during the course: A poem by Aron Ryan, who is also Poet Laureate of Elgin, Illinois. You can visit his website and view even more of his work at arondanteryan.wixsite.com/futurelibrarian
As we explored areas of creativity in critical hope, Lauren Todd shared her recent start and joy found in junk journaling/collaging:
We also created a playlist of students’ favorite songs. Listen to enjoy the sounds of Pentatonix, Chappell Roan, Thundercat, and more! And now…
Student Feedback
Eighteen students enrolled in this inaugural offering of the course, and eight students responded to Dominican University’s official student evaluation invitation. Following are selected feedback on aspects of my instruction, including effectiveness, what worked to help students learn, and where I could refine/improve the course:
- “Not only did [Professor] Kendrick explain the material well, but she also asked thought-provoking questions that I carried with me throughout my workday. The course material was tough, but she presented it with empathy and compassion.”
- “This class was fascinating and extremely timely. I hope that it will be offered again so that more students can benefit from the practices we learned in the class. Professor Kendrick is very knowledgeable on her subject or critical hope and low-morale experience in the library workplace. The class was well organized with a balanced workload. Before the class began, Professor Kendrick reached out to warn us about potential triggers for anxiety, depression and trauma. This was really important to me and I am extremely grateful to her for providing us with this warning. The care for her students’ wellbeing is at the forefront of Professor Kendrick’s class.”
- “Kaetrena is a really motivated, inspiring, organized, and professional instructor. I learned a lot in this class and it will be an unforgettable experience for me. I needed this class more than I even realized. Kaetrena’s research and expertise in this field allowed her to be the ideal instructor for this course and I personally feel that this should be a required course for all LIS programs. If not all, I certainly think this should be required for DU’s MLIS program.”
- “I enjoyed the mix of [weekly assignments]. I enjoyed that I could submit either a text response or a video response, since these options made the assignments more accessible and more enjoyable. I appreciated that there were bonus optional activities to further engage with the course and with my classmates.”
- “I appreciated the mixed format – video conversations and written elements. I also really appreciated that most of our assignments were only between ourselves and [Professor] Kendrick. I spent a lot of this course “figuring things out” in a way that was pretty personal, and I felt I could be a lot more candid because I knew that it was only going to be read by one person instead of an entire class who might not be as empathetic. Lessons were also released in a timely manner, which helped with my academic/work-life/personal-life planning.”
- “While it was the nature of the course, it went by quickly! Would be really great to have the option to meet once as well.”
- “For the discussion forums, it may have been helpful to have the initial post due one day (Friday) and the replies due another day (Saturday or Sunday) to provide time to read over everyone’s responses.”
Offering and sharing this course with Dominican University School of Information Studies students was thrilling. I’m so thankful for their engagement and excitment, and I appreciate their candor and energy as they shared their experiences, offered reflections, and moved forward in (re)imagining the roles of humane library practice and leadership, the need for praxis, and most of all, the importance of well-being so we can sustain ourselves as we improve the library profession/industry – and build just communities.
Thanks, also, to Sojourna Cunningham, Wendy Holliday, Cinthya Ippoliti, and Diann Smothers for sharing their scholarship and practice insights with my students, and to Dominican University School of Information Studies – in particular, Dr. Don Hamerly (DU SOIS Director) – for offering me the opportunity to design and teach this important course.
I’m thrilled to share that I’ll be teaching this course again during DU’s Summer session, which starts June 30, 2025!
Would you take this course? Let me know in the comments – or send me a message!
