We’re not quite at “go” yet – classes officially start on the 14th, but the faculty is now in meetings and new students are orienting, so the start is creeping ever closer. It feels both just like yesterday I was working on last year’s stuff… oh wait, it was!
Seriously, it’s been the oddest summer. Even the years I was considered administration and working all summer felt somehow different than the actual year. This summer? Probably thanks to the sudden closing in March and then doing the WFH thing the days–and months–blurred together.
It has been a busy time, filled with many Zoom chats sponsored by AISL, Zoom Book Buzz gatherings, virtual conferences (ALA Annual, LiLead) and strategic planning sessions (LIRT), two classes (Global Online Academy’s Wayfinding and Library Juice’s Embedded Librarian) and many one-off professional development days. There were two in-school committees I worked on, one for hybrid learning and one for DEI.
And then there were the little things. We updated our Digital Portal and our 2020 Election Resource Guide. Using Loom, my staff and I created a number of tutorials that we’ve embedded in our Welcome to Cox Resource Guide. The official website was also rethought (it’s not quite live yet, sadly). SORA and “reading for pleasure ebooks” have been added to the collection.
This week and next the Upper School faculty is exploring the technology tools that might help us better meet our students needs. The various committees are reporting out. There are two sessions for wellness circles, and the first was yesterday afternoon. My group went really deep, in a scary but important way. Given the circumstances, I’m hoping we can do a lot more of that work so we have a real support group while we’re working remotely. Milton is very generously allowing us to work at our comfort level, so the library will be closed until the US starts in-person teaching (by cohort, day students only) and then we’ll rotate staff. But in order to do that, we must get tested for COVID and that’s another thing to deal with tomorrow.
How was your summer? Did you get one? Here’s to getting past the current crisis and ending the year the way we began last year: in person, with colleagues and friends.
Of course I’ve read a lot, some great stuff and some… not so great. I’ll blog about that later. There are a lot of things I’ve been mulling over, personally and professionally, and that post is coming up as well.
Venn Librarian 
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