<div class="fr-view"><p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s the OU Librarians! ;Librarians are superheroes, adventurers, ;explorers, ;and invaluable guides to other heroes. They ;work with masses of data and wrangle complex systems to bring you a wealth of information in the hundreds of databases and e-book platforms we manage; work with publishers to get the best deals for our budget; manage intellectual property agreements; collaborate with ;academics, associate lecturers and other colleagues ;on module content; support student success by teaching research skills; ;support students and researchers with complex information needs; ;provide free training in digital capabilities and share their expertise with librarians and others all over the world and ;so much ;more&#8230; And their role is constantly evolving! So, to celebrate National Librarian Day, we asked our librarians to ;share with us what ;made them want to become literary champions ;and what they love ;most ;about ;serving the OU community.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">For Learning and Teaching Librarian Jude, ;librarianship ;was ;something that was ;always on the ;cards: ;“Being a librarian was something I always wanted to be, without knowing it! Librarians are teachers, researchers, advisors, and (in my case) data heads all in one, there&#8217;s so much I can get involved in every single day. Plus, all the reading. Naturally.”</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">Something else to know about Jude… she’s an excel ;master! ;Now, she may not be able to channel the levels of mystical energy that Doctor Strange can, but ;if you ;want to use Excel to ;crunch numbers faster and further than you thought possible and build bulletproof spreadsheets, ;Jude is the Sorcerer Supreme ;to go to.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">You may not realise it, but ;insights and analytics is integral to the ;running of the ;OU ;library ;– so ;much so that ;it ;has its own ;dedicated ;Insight and Engagement team. They ;work with data on a day-to-day basis to ;see what impact the ;Library ;is having ;on ;your experience as a student ;and what it can do to ;continually ;improve the service it provides.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">Caroline, ;a certified librarian ;who works within the ;Engagement and Insight ;team ;(and manages the ;Library’s ;Student Research Panel), ;thrives on being able to ;help ;the ;OU ;community ;reach that light-bulb moment ;with ;library resources. ;“I love solving problems, doing ;research, ;and helping people find the answers they need on their journey. Sharing that “bright spark” moment is a wonderful thing to be a part of and the reason I wanted to join this profession of superheroes!”</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">Research expertise is another skill that our librarians hold under their multifaceted utility belts. ;Whether you ;need guidance on ;how to ;undertake and disseminate ;your ;research, ;want to attend training sessions ;to build your ;knowledge in areas of research data management ;and ;literature searching, ;or ;want ;advice ;on the best open access publishing options for your research, ;there’s always someone in the library that can ;come to your rescue. ;The team even carry out their own research ;on a variety of subject matters, from assessing ;the impact ;of library training on student success ;to ;how it can improve ;the accessibility of the services ;and resources ;it provides. ;It takes years of hard work and dedication for librarians to truly harness the ;power of their researching capabilities, ;and for the Library’s Associate Director, ;Selena Killick, ;the ;research ;librarian ;bat-signal has summoned her across the globe.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">“My role has led me down the path of becoming a researcher practitioner ;librarian and I have been fortunate enough to travel across Europe, the Middle East and the USA to share my expertise with other Librarians. American immigration was always very interested to know why a librarian would need to travel to the USA for business purposes &#8211; they couldn&#8217;t believe someone in my profession would ever need to leave the library.”</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">There’s ;definitely ;something ;superhero-esque ;about ;our ;library team’s ability to navigate the vast range of services they provide and the knowledge they hold… even ;The Flash would struggle to keep up with it! ;One of the Library’s Senior Managers, Jo, often ;has to ;don her superhero cape ;and utilise her ;librarian superpowers ;to ;manoeuvre ;her numerous job responsibilities… ;but luckily, it’s something she loves.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">“My favourite thing about being a librarian is…the varied nature of the job – not just in terms of what I do day to day (my favourite things are building relationships, supporting people to develop their skills, facilitation and strategic planning) &#8211; but also what I see my colleagues doing – we have user experience specialists, data analysts, customer service experts, marketeers and communications professionals, space and environment planners, learning designers….you wouldn’t think that those things would be part and parcel of the profession but they are, the opportunities to specialise are way more exciting, innovative and inventive than anyone could possibly imagine!”</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">And if you thought ;that ;the life of a librarian was mundane and unexciting, ;our Learning and Teaching Librarian, Fiona, has a story ;from one of her previous roles ;that ;reads like a ;page ;out of ;Action Comics.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">“I used to work for a government department and as regional librarian for ;Northwest ;region in the 1980’s, being responsible for Library Services to Northern Ireland. ;I had arranged to visit one of our mini libraries in a sub office in the province, which was on an army base. Sadly, ;they had forgotten to tell the soldiers guarding the gate that I was coming, so I had to spend 40 minutes staring down the barrel of a machine gun while my credentials were checked out in Whitehall.”</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">Luckily, Fiona hasn’t had to deal with that level of ;‘excitement’ ;whilst working at the OU ;Library, ;but ;she is still known as the Wonder Woman ;of the Library World.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">If you’re dangling off a ledge waiting for Superman or Batman to come rescue you—you’ll be waiting a long, long time. But if you find yourself barraged by confusing information, in desperate need of ;some referencing advice, or unable to track down that ;journal article ;you need for your TMA…you can ;always ;count on ;an OU ;librarian to come swooshing to your rescue and help save the day!</span><span data-ccp-props="{"> ;</span></p>
<p><img class="fr-fic fr-dii wp-image-11414" src="https://thehootstudents.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/1649407115663.png" data-id="11414"></p>
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<p><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB"><em>The Library Services website is your gateway to a wide range of online information resources. You can use it to find out more ;</em></span><em><a href="https://www.open.ac.uk/library/about" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB"><span data-ccp-charstyle="Hyperlink">about the Library</span></span></a><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">, search our extensive ;</span><a href="https://www.open.ac.uk/library/library-resources" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB"><span data-ccp-charstyle="Hyperlink">online collection of Library resources</span></span></a><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB"> ;(including eBooks, journals, databases and more), and explore our ;</span><a href="https://www.open.ac.uk/library/training-and-events" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB"><span data-ccp-charstyle="Hyperlink">programme of live online training sessions</span></span></a><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB"> ;that are available to all OU students and staff. Or indeed, come and speak with us at the ;</span><a href="https://www.open.ac.uk/library/help-and-support/contacting-the-helpdesk" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank"><span data-contrast="none" lang="EN-GB"><span data-ccp-charstyle="Hyperlink">Helpdesk</span></span></a><span data-contrast="auto" lang="EN-GB">: we look forward to it and are ready to save the day 24/7.</span></em><span data-ccp-props="{"><em> ;</em></span></p>
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