CHICAGO—Join Core for the webinar “Beyond Your Department: Uniting Catalogers” on January 13, 2026, at 1 p.m. CT. TFighting against the perceptions of catalogers as isolated or antisocial can be a challenge, especially when many institutions only have one librarian assigned to catalog. Further, many of these catalogers hold multiple roles and may not originally be catalogers, resulting in a higher frequency of flawed records and inaccessible OPACs. We can address these problems by creating cataloging communities, which will improve the quality of their work, thereby improving the usability of catalogs for patrons.This presentation will provide examples and opportunities to connect catalogers, informed by the presenters’ initiatives in creating a statewide cataloger community. These opportunities to build community will be modeled with one-on-one interactions, cold emailing, listservs, workgroups, roundtables, connecting with existing resources, etc. The session will create connections among catalogers, with the larger goals of improving access to library materials and sharing metadata best practices. The formation of these communities will encourage more librarians to participate in metadata projects, making the field a more welcoming place to learn and work. These communities will also empower librarians to champion technical services roles and positions.
Beyond Your Department: Uniting Catalogers
Live Webinar: Tuesday, January 13, 2026, 1 – 2 p.m. CT
Presenters:
Amy Banks, Cataloging Librarian, Utah State,
India-Bleu Niehoff, Cataloging Librarian, Utah State, Logan, UT
