CreateUK: Opportunities for Digital Pedagogy, Projects, and Collaborative Infrastructure

Jennifer Hootman:… Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Hello, thanks for coming. Now we’re going to get underway here in another minute or so. Well, folks, sign in and get settled. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): As you wait, please feel free to use the chat box to introduce yourself, tell us where you’re joining from Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): And maybe a little bit about what you’re hoping to get out of today’s session. Thanks so much for joining us. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): We’ll be getting started here in just about 30 seconds. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Thanks for being here.

01:59 - Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Okay, I think we’re going to go ahead and get started. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Welcome to see a nice fall 2020 virtual membership meeting. I’m Diane golden Burkhardt assistant director of the Coalition for network information CNI I’m really happy that you could join us here today and Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): I’m so glad you could be here for this session, which is part of a series on the theme of transforming organizations professions and individuals. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Before introducing the session. I just want to point out a few details. Closed captioning is available, please feel free to take advantage of that.

02:39 - Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): All attendees microphones have been muted, please use the Q AMP a box at any time to share your questions and moderated Q AMP. A will take place following the presentation. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): The chat box is open and available. I hope you’ll free, feel free to use it to introduce yourself, tell us where you’re from and maybe what you’re hoping to get out of today’s session or anything particular you’d like to hear addressed. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): This session is being recorded and the video will be made publicly available on CNN as YouTube and Vimeo channels probably within the next week or so we hope that you’ll feel free to share it. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): All right, now let’s get to the good stuff.

It’s really my pleasure to welcome Jennifer Whitman to CNI 03:20 - Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Jennifer is the digital humanities librarian at the University of Kentucky libraries. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): And she’s here to talk about how the UK libraries are trying to address digital scholarship teaching and learning needs within the institution and also how those efforts are being used to help build relationships across campus, which is Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Topic of great interest to the CNI community, Jennifer, thank you so much for coming to CNI to talk to us about some of your work at Kentucky, over to you. Jennifer Hootman: Thank you so much for having me. It’s, it’s a pleasure to be a part of the CNI fall virtual meeting this year. Jennifer Hootman: And Thank you all for attending.

04:01 - Jennifer Hootman: Just to give you some highlights an overview of Jennifer Hootman: What I plan to cover in this project briefing is starting with a little bit of background information. I’ll try not to spend too much time on that because I want to get to the meat of the matter, which is Jennifer Hootman: Our web hosting program, but in 2017 University of Kentucky libraries initiated a digital scholarship center task force to do a study of the digital scholarship landscape at the University of Kentucky and conducted needs assessment around digital scholarship Jennifer Hootman: And also in 2017 Jennifer Hootman: They were looking for conducting to search for a digital humanities librarian and I’m fortunate enough to have Jennifer Hootman: Been hired as that person and I joined them in 2013 early 2018 and so the digital center of scholarships in our Task Force work was already underway. Jennifer Hootman: But I joined in and they got me started. And with things right away, which was really nice. It’s actually was a great introduction Jennifer Hootman: To being in this position because I got a chance to work with colleagues closely and get to know people on the task force and have the opportunity Jennifer Hootman: To work with them and learning about the campus in terms of digital scholarship. So what a gift to a new person arriving in the role of digital humanities librarian, so I Jennifer Hootman: Participated particularly with the faculty interviews and looking at some of the existing services digital scholarship services that is on the UK campus and potential partnerships.

05:42 - Jennifer Hootman: So moving on that next year. Jennifer Hootman: We Jennifer Hootman: made several recommendations from the report and one of which is a web hosting platform that we got started in 2013. And that takes us to this year, which we’re getting close to moving into our second and third year with our program, create UK Jennifer Hootman: So the needs assessment that we that we conducted with the task force as I have listed here. We looked at benchmarking institutions faculty interviews existing services within the libraries and on campus and made several recommendations. Jennifer Hootman: So some of the themes that emerged from the faculty interviews were Jennifer Hootman: consultation services support for research data.

06:33 - Jennifer Hootman: Work that was being done research impact metrics hardware and software support physical space was also mentioned in the faculty interviews, the need for it. Jennifer Hootman: The need for support around scholarly publishing supporting digital pedagogical practices and support around some kind of technical infrastructure to to provide more avenues for practicing new digital pedagogical practices. Jennifer Hootman: And again, this, this, this of you might look familiar to many of you, as it indicates to me. I like the visual here the map because digital scholarship practices as we’re looking at them. Jennifer Hootman: across the university Kentucky landscape here is that it’s spread out all over as I would imagine is the case at many universities across the state.

So, 07:27 - Jennifer Hootman: We have a number of different areas that have been Jennifer Hootman: Working in the field of digital scholarship probably speaking for quite a while and some that were a little bit newer Jennifer Hootman: For instance, a CI co lab is is a group that is particularly focused on virtual reality, the new mappings collaboratory Jennifer Hootman: They even have a digital mapping online certificate so they have been working for quite some time in providing and Jennifer Hootman: Providing some sort of learning experiences around digital mapping. And so as you can see here we have a lot of activity happening on campus covering all kinds of aspects of digital scholarship Jennifer Hootman: But also within the libraries, we have had over a number of years, lots of work around digital scholarship and supporting that kind of activity on campus as well. Jennifer Hootman: Some of that being administrative work where you’re supporting events and projects around DS and supporting and providing access to resources data resources and digitize. Collections. Jennifer Hootman: Which is very necessary foundations for faculty and students to conduct their digital scholarship. We also provide a good deal of scholarly communication type services with our institutional repository UK knowledge copyright and author right Jennifer Hootman: Consultations Jennifer Hootman: assisting with Article level metrics and consultation services.

We also have a very robust oral history service through our lead been on center for oral history in our special collections and Research Center. Jennifer Hootman: We also have GIS support. Jennifer Hootman: And other digital services provided again sort of that foundational support through our library IT services. Jennifer Hootman: And so some of the recommendations that emerged from the the needs assessment and investigation that we had done with our task force. Jennifer Hootman: These are all of them, but these are just some highlights.

We definitely some some more low hanging fruit is is updating the library’s website and providing more information about our services because we found out through those interviews. Jennifer Hootman: That some of the things that faculty were Jennifer Hootman: articulating the need for support. We provided in some kind of way. Jennifer Hootman: So we also see that there’s a need then to continue with our promotion of the services that we currently have, and maybe even do a little bit better job of that. But there’s also a lot of other places where we can hopefully fill some gaps. Jennifer Hootman: We’re in a bit of a hiring freeze like most places so Jennifer Hootman: We were hoping to hire Research Data Services Librarian, and that will have to be revisited at a later time.

10:22 - Jennifer Hootman: But also recommending partnering and promoting and hosting more events partnering up with a variety of colleges and academic departments that were revealed through our look at existing services on campus already so we we saw even more potential partnerships through that study. Jennifer Hootman: We’re also looking at online instructional models and modules trying to Jennifer Hootman: Develop a more robust set of online tools for learning more about some of these digital scholarship types of tools that researchers and students can use as well as providing more instruction around digital literacy Jennifer Hootman: We also recommended that we Jennifer Hootman: further develop our geospatial services and take a look at that space. Jennifer Hootman: And build that out a bit more. And also look at repurposing other spaces in the library for digital scholarship sort of work looking at spaces for consultations and workshops that are that are specific to Jennifer Hootman: This type of audience. And then lastly here, what I’m highlighting today is our web hosting space that we recommend it.

And we recommended piloting a virtual space for campus. Jennifer Hootman: So we have joined a host of other institutions across the land. Jennifer Hootman: Where we have decided upon Domain of One’s Own product from reclaim hosting. It’s a very popular choice. You know, it’s not the only choice. We were looking at other possibilities, but some of the reasons behind choosing Domain of One’s Own was that Jennifer Hootman: There was less of a learning curve with it for those who are are administering it Jennifer Hootman: As well as when I was at the University Minnesota libraries. I had some exposure to domain one zone already and kind of understood, at least at a surface level.

12:15 - Jennifer Hootman: What it looks like how it operates. So I was very impressed by it and it’s really a good platform for Jennifer Hootman: Those that are just starting out in digital scholarship work as well. I mean those advanced users. Jennifer Hootman: They can pretty much Jennifer Hootman: Gravitate towards a lot of types of platforms and not need as much help but to reach those to reach a broader spectrum of possible digital scholarship Jennifer Hootman: Practitioners is to and researchers is to, I think, provide a platform that is already pre populated with applications, ready to go easy to install, that sort of thing. And that certainly was doing a one zone for us. Jennifer Hootman: With the easy sort of one click Install it also gave us a branded portal, a single sign on integration with campus and they have Jennifer Hootman: 30 days of nightly backups and can accommodate up to 500 users. They also have some support around migration for students who graduate or faculty that might leave campus and a good amount of documentation for technical support.

13:27 - Jennifer Hootman: So this is just a screenshot of our current UK wide net site. This is our brand portal for the web hosting that we’re providing that was certainly again just to revisit that. Jennifer Hootman: Briefly, is that that is something that really bubbled up out of our needs assessment that there was a real gap around Jennifer Hootman: The majority of individuals on campus, having some kind of access to a digital space, upon which to Jennifer Hootman: Create and host their, their projects. So that is something with all the other digital scholarship activity that was going on on campus that was something that we have the libraries thought that we might be able to fill. So we’re trying to get the word out as much as possible.

14:15 - Jennifer Hootman: Advertise promoting our web hosting space that we call create UK Jennifer Hootman: As a place where students and faculty can come to manage and share their, their research outputs and their academic work in digital form. Jennifer Hootman: So with that, some of the ways that we’re hoping to really ground establish and grow create UK on campus within this this pilot time period. Jennifer Hootman: Which is intense because it’s a lot of work in a short period of time to get something up and running and widely known and and accepted. So some of the things that we’ve been doing our promotional talks and media through campus communications so Jennifer Hootman: I’ve been providing some campus presentations within the libraries to Jennifer Hootman: Promote it within the library faculty and staff as well as on campus, working with the Center for enhance learning and teaching to host some of those presentations, because they have a built in audience with faculty already and graduate students, so they’re a good partner. Jennifer Hootman: To have in terms of promoting this particular program.

15:26 - Jennifer Hootman: And some invited presentations. A few so far with the i thought was a great one are Jennifer Hootman: in information technology community of practice. Jennifer Hootman: had an opportunity to present to them and they were very excited about this particular program. Jennifer Hootman: For many reasons. And so that was, that was good to have that that kind of support and the WD faculty that is the writing rhetoric and digital services faculty. I was invited to a meeting to be able to present to them because we saw them also as a good fit for this. Jennifer Hootman: Service as well.

16:07 - Jennifer Hootman: We also have been providing individual group consultations with faculty and students. And what’s interesting here again create UK has not only given the libraries. Jennifer Hootman: Are positioned us as a service provider, and yet another way supporting digital scholarship. It has also provided provided us a position by which to be a collaborator and an entree to building Jennifer Hootman: At the very least communication pathways. But even more hopefully longer term sustained relationships with a variety of departments across campus that Jennifer Hootman: We, we, in digital scholarship and particular me and digital humanities position might not readily have some sort of connection with or that connection might not be so readily visible.

So create UK that this program has really helped establish 17:03 - Jennifer Hootman: Possibilities for those pathways which has been really exciting. So I have worked with faculty members in the School of Music, for instance, I’m also in the Jennifer Hootman: In pharmacy in the College of Law, the Honors College and again the the writing rhetoric and digital studies college as well excuse me department. Jennifer Hootman: And public policy and administration and also within the libraries. So again, I’ve really been able to have kind of a breadth of contact with faculty and students in lots of different disciplines. Jennifer Hootman: And it is proven to really help establish some kind of network around this particular program, upon which we can build Jennifer Hootman: Also been holding workshops and creating some tutorials around the applications within create UK because again, even Jennifer Hootman: For those individuals who might be comfortable with, with the Domain of One’s Own platform, some of the applications they might be stumped with Jennifer Hootman: And really need a little bit of hand holding around getting like a WordPress site up and running for their class or an omega exhibit up and running.

18:12 - Jennifer Hootman: So the workshops and tutorials are meant to provide that sort of synchronous and asynchronous support around that. Because we, you know, Jennifer Hootman: It’s not very helpful. I think if we just sort of drop a service and drop a resource and not provide that kind of sort of support around it because they’re going to have questions and they’re going to need help. Jennifer Hootman: Also, some of the technical support that I’ve been providing is creating templates within WordPress to make it a little bit easier. Jennifer Hootman: To get started on certain kinds of projects with impress doing some troubleshooting looking under the hood logging into their account and and looking to see what what Jennifer Hootman: What they’re trying or attempting to do and troubleshooting that and providing hopefully some some solutions and in most cases.

Also, I’ve had a lot of design and workflow recommend recommendations or questions around that. Jennifer Hootman: And so design can be anywhere between, you know, how do I change my theme something simple like that in WordPress to workflow with the students like how Jennifer Hootman: How should I deal with the media that they turned into me that I want up on the site, whether it be scale or WordPress or how do I deal with Jennifer Hootman: Or take in their essays that are going to be included on this Web Project and depending on the platform or the application, you know, that could be a slightly different kind of flow. Jennifer Hootman: Some of the examples that are emerging from this first year of Crete UK have been interesting to follow and to see develop and basically there are about four general areas. Jennifer Hootman: That the work is Jennifer Hootman: Turning into. And so we have a lot of portfolios that are being developed by faculty and graduate students again from that wrt the writing rhetoric and digital studies course.

20:07 - Jennifer Hootman: Recently there was a spike because they a faculty member had Jennifer Hootman: Their students sign up in Crete UK to create a portfolio for their class. So there’s a bit of a spike there. We also have a lot of research websites and they were the early adopters to create UK Jennifer Hootman: unbeknownst to me that there. There were a lot of individuals in the Pharmaceutical Sciences that one or to set up lab sites where they share their research and and Jennifer Hootman: Share their information about their research team so that has been quite interesting to follow in in in that area of development and then also there’s been the course projects. Jennifer Hootman: Which is something that we’re greatly interested in in supporting and growing as well. And like I mentioned before, the School of Music One professor in particular was an early adopter.

20:55 - Jennifer Hootman: He has created a scholar site for one of his courses recent women composers of the 20th century, and also Jennifer Hootman: Again, this semester. He’s trying WordPress with his chamber music class where the students are including essays and that are will be a part of this website. And then also, one that is just popped up that I’m working on with a professor again in that w AR D. Jennifer Hootman: Department. She teaches a class called writing bourbon and they’re creating what she would like to see as a Xen Jennifer Hootman: Called distilling Lexington. So there are a lot of student essays that will be stitched together to create this so Jennifer Hootman: I’m excited to be working with her on that project.

And then we also have exhibits that are that are popping up. Jennifer Hootman: To which are from library staff and and that being an anti racism reading list that was developed and also one that 1918 over here that focuses on our, our local campus history, looking at the student army army Training Corps and also the flu pandemic that and how that affected campus. Jennifer Hootman: A couple of things I just want to point out about a little bit of data behind Crete UK and its growth. Jennifer Hootman: In terms of the accounts and Jennifer Hootman: Those that have created domains with increased UK. It’s been a Jennifer Hootman: Slow ish but always increasing amount of Jennifer Hootman: Account requests. So that’s been good.

And it’s been at a rate at which you know i women and Minister of the UK program can handle. Jennifer Hootman: But as you see her recent. There was a recent spike that I mentioned a little bit ago because of a class signing on to create portfolios. So the, the question here in the future would be about scalable support. And that’s something that we definitely want to take a look at Jennifer Hootman: As we move a little bit further down the road in our pilot Jennifer Hootman: What this also isn’t saying though, too, is something that we can take a little bit deeper dive on it at Jennifer Hootman: A point in the near future to is to dig a little bit deeper because this doesn’t show usage at all. So these are the actual single account.

So a faculty member can have an account but have 23:22 - Jennifer Hootman: All of their students in several classes actually engaging with the application being added as authors or editors to WordPress platform for instance. Jennifer Hootman: But those don’t show up in the actual accounts because of students don’t have an account in Crete, UK, they don’t have. They’re not an owner of a domain, they are actually just been engaged. Jennifer Hootman: In an application through their professors invitation. So drilling down past the accounts to see how many individuals are actually engaging with those applications would be very telling. Jennifer Hootman: User type growth.

We’re seeing 23:58 - Jennifer Hootman: Kind of the growth, where we were hoping we would see it and large, the three largest groups. There are the library UK libraries employees. So it’s nice to have some internal adoption and understanding and experience with the program, the current UK platform. We’re also seeing Jennifer Hootman: The Graduate students and the faculty. The grow and So together they make up just about half of our account holders with increased UK and that’s the population. We really wanted to target and hopefully that will continue to grow.

24:36 - Jennifer Hootman: So just quickly here looking ahead to your two and three. Again, I think we’re going to need to continue to promote Jennifer Hootman: An advantage of any kind of opportunity that we might have in that regard. Jennifer Hootman: Continue to develop short videos, maybe how to use on the platform on the various applications. Add to add to the learning modules that we’re developing Jennifer Hootman: Follow up with account holders like circle back and check in, whether it be informally, or maybe even a formal assessment of their experience with their current UK account and what they’re doing with it or not. Jennifer Hootman: Also looking at some assessment at at the end of our pilot and what recommendation we might make Jennifer Hootman: Scalable support.

I mentioned a little bit ago 25:26 - Jennifer Hootman: If it does become so large and really takes take some fire, then it would be Jennifer Hootman: Something that we would have to look at strategically and perhaps that’s something that might come in the form of working with academic liaisons Jennifer Hootman: To where we support the the liaison who will then provide that direct support to their faculty and their departments. Jennifer Hootman: And then also contacting fellow domain one on a Domain of One’s Own adopters as well. I would like to contact. Some of them and to learn more about what they’re doing on their campus with the domain of one Jennifer Hootman: And that’s what I have for you today. I am ready for any questions. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Thank you, Jennifer. That was really interesting and I have to say personally very surprising that there is such a need for these kinds of services.

So thanks for bringing that to see and I 26:26 - Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): I just found it fascinating. And I just want to remind our attendees, the floor is now open for questions, so please share your questions with us. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): In the Q AMP a box. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): And I’m sure Jennifer will be happy to address any questions you have, or we’d love to hear your comments as well. I’m curious to know if there are Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): folks in the audience who have detected a similar need at their institutions who are providing a similar service.

I’m wondering what you’re doing and how that’s going and I personally have quite a number of questions. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): I’m wondering, are you what kind of staffing support is there for for this are you doing this on your own or do you have a team that helps you with it. Jennifer Hootman: I’m kind of it. Jennifer Hootman: Which was, you know, going into it you know that’s something that we knew Jennifer Hootman: So we were prepared for that. I think that, like I said, right now it’s it’s at a the increases at a pace of which, you know, I can handle on my own. Jennifer Hootman: But if there continues to be any sort of sharp increases like the Jennifer Hootman: Recent one that we experienced that I refer to Jennifer Hootman: Then I think some sort of scalable solution would have to be kind of imagined because our digital scholarship department is two people.

27:53 - Jennifer Hootman: Me and my supervisor, who’s the director Jennifer Hootman: And so I think it would be Jennifer Hootman: Beneficial to take it and maybe that’s something to do. Now, in anticipation of possible spikes, how we Jennifer Hootman: leverage our colleagues and get them on board with joining us and providing that kind of support. Right. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): I see. We do have a question from Clem. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Go through and Clem wants to know if there was any pushback from campus it Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): To the libraries, providing access to a domain and the one zone. Jennifer Hootman: I don’t remember there being any Jennifer Hootman: Kind of pushback. Jennifer Hootman: Or any kind of Jennifer Hootman: Problem with running into our it in terms of the services they provide Jennifer Hootman: Like I came in as the the project was already underway with the assessment. But when we implemented.

I don’t remember there being any problem with our it 29:02 - Jennifer Hootman: We seem to we seem to be on Jennifer Hootman: On the same road headed in a similar direction button different lanes. Jennifer Hootman: If that’s Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): So you’re Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): You’re not collaborating with them in any way on this. Jennifer Hootman: Not at this point. Okay. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Got it. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Clem. Thank you for that question that that is an important and interesting one. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): And do Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Do you know is are they offering any similar type of service is campus it offering any similar type of web hosting option. Jennifer Hootman: Not that I’m aware of, no.

29:36 - Jennifer Hootman: It’s really yeah Jennifer Hootman: I mean now in the past, there was, um, a directory that one could have with their institutional Jennifer Hootman: Profile. Jennifer Hootman: A set of folders that they could have access to that is that is on a server. And so there might be some individuals on campus that have these legacy Jennifer Hootman: At this legacy access to server space, but that is going forward. That’s not something that everybody is necessarily granted and also Jennifer Hootman: While it might be some kind of server space for them. It’s not something to where it’s it’s a fully functioning, sort of like supported server with installed applications and that sort of, yeah.

30:25 - Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Not as user friendly probably Jennifer Hootman: Certainly not yet. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): And I also noticed on your user chart undergraduates. We’re not listed are they, do they have access to it or or have you made a decision to offer the service to other sectors of the community. Jennifer Hootman: Yeah, that’s a, that’s a great question. Um, the way we’re handling and approaching that right now. Anyways, in the pilot is to grant undergraduates accounts on a case by case basis. Jennifer Hootman: Part of the routine. We only have so many counts. I mean, we have plenty. I think for us to get through this pilot, but I think that if we open the doors to undergraduates. I’m not quite sure how how long that five of those 500 seats would last and how they how it would be used by the undergraduates. Jennifer Hootman: But so it’s a case by case basis, there might be an undergraduate, for instance, working with a faculty member to where they are tasked with setting something setting up a site for the faculty members course or something. Jennifer Hootman: Or, you know, maybe there’s another case that that would make a lot of sense.

So right now we’re just, we’re focusing much more on the graduate students and the faculty 31:39 - Jennifer Hootman: Understand, they do have access to it. And in a way, if they’re if they’re faculty if they’re in a course where their, their professor has an account that which they’re Jennifer Hootman: Installed WordPress, for instance, then that faculty member might invite the students as contributors to the site and have them. Jennifer Hootman: upload their essays, or do something along those kind of lines. So they’re interacting with it. And that’s the kind of usage, I would like to kind of drill down into and get to know a little bit better. This next year, but they aren’t account holders. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Well, Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): I’m really appreciate the opportunity to Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): To hear about that.

Thank you for indulging me my questions and I see we’re a little bit past time so I don’t want to hold everyone up. Just want to thank Jennifer. One more time for sharing this project with us and big thanks to all our attendees for joining us here today. Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): If you want to hang around after I turn off the recording and, you know, have a chat. Join the conversation, please feel free to do so, just raise your hand. I’ll be happy to enable your microphone and other than that, I just like to wish everyone a Diane Goldenberg-Hart (CNI): Good day, wonderful weekend I hope we’ll see you back at CNI not this afternoon and in the coming weeks and days. Take care everyone. Bye bye. .