Jason Alston, 2008-2010 Resident
Jason K. Alston was hired as the University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s first Diversity Resident Librarian in July 2008, after receiving a master’s degree in Library Science from North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina. During his first year at UNCG, Jason completed four-month rotations in the departments of Reference & Instruction, Tech Services, and Special Collections & Archives. In his second year with UNCG Libraries, Jason has focused on special collections cataloging, though he is interested in all types of academic and public librarianship.
Jason’s noteworthy accomplishments as UNCG’s Diversity Resident Librarian include rendering a poster session – “Implementing an IMLS Diversity Scholars Initiative: Making the Scholars Program Work for Students” – at the North Carolina Library Association’s 2009 conference in Greenville; Jason also moderated a panel, entitled “The Library Diversity Committee: Serving Knowledge, Serving You”, at NCLA 2009. Jason has also developed a written usage aid for book vendor YBP’s “GOBI Peer” feature, and delivered a presentation about the “GOBI Peer” feature to library faculty at UNCG. Jason has served on the library diversity committee, the search committee for Jackson Library’s current first-year instruction coordinator, and assisted with coordination and planning efforts with UNCG’s Multicultural Resources Center and with “ACE Scholars”, a diversity scholarship collaborative initiative between Jackson Library and UNCG’s Department of Library and Information Studies.
Outside of his duties and accomplishments at Jackson Library, Jason – a life member of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association – served on the logistics planning committee for the 2010 National Conference of African American Librarians. Jason spoke about the residency and the state of diversity in libraries in the Carolina Peacemaker article, “First Diversity Resident Urges Blacks into Library Science Field”, and rendered the resolution on behalf of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association at the funeral of BCALA founder Dr. E.J. Josey.
Read Jason's two year report.
Rotations
- July 2008-November 2008
- Reference and Instruction
- December 2008-April 2009
- Technical Services
- April 2009-July 2009
- Special Collections and Archives
- August 2009-June 2010
- Cataloging, emphasis on special collections