ODNFest 2023 was a smashing success. Librarians and library staff from across the State of Ohio gathered on October 10, 2023, to celebrate 5 years of the Ohio Digital Network.
Dr. Kristen Howard
The morning began with a thought-provoking talk from Dr. Kristen Howard (McGill University) on Metadata Justice and Exploitative Labor in Libraries and Archives. After her talk, ODN attendees discussed practical questions about Metadata Justice.
Kristen Whitson
The second keynote speaker, Kristen Whitson, of Recollection Wisconsin and WiLS, shared on Recollection Wisconsin’s Community Engagement Projects. She provided a Resource List to further discussion for libraries on community engagement.
The day also included two panels. For the first panel, the State Library of Ohio welcomed three members: Chloe Dickson, Southwest Public Libraries; Elizabeth Coots, Montgomery County Records Center; and Megan Sheeran, Columbus Metropolitan Library of the Library Juice Academy Digital Curation Certificate Program. The State Library supported 14 cohort members through the certification program through scholarships and meetings.
The second panel featured two of the 2022-2023 Metadata Mini-Grant recipients. The Metadata Mini-Grant provides up to $4,999 for libraries to use for metadata labor and digitization costs to add collections to DPLA. Michelle Sweetster of Bowling Green University shared how BGSU used the grant to digitize Grace McClurg and Dora E. Giffen Papers. Annamarie Klouse of the Ohio State University shared how OSU used the grant to describe the George Bellows Record Books and Ledger.
ODNFest 2023 concluded with an update on ODN from Penelope Shumaker, Library Consultant, State Library of Ohio. She shared about the progress of the project over the past five years, as well as updates to current and future project goals.
ODN Participants were invited to tour the State Library of Ohio during the lunch break.