November 27, 2019
At the intersection of education and activism, you’ll find Renee Lynch. Renee became a TASCHA Research Assistant last summer when she saw an advertisement for our Advancing Library Visibility in Africa (ALVA) project. Originally from the Chicago area, Renee says that “traveling is the best way to learn and to reflect and get ideas.” She…
September 26, 2019
Rachel joined TASCHA as the Communications Research Assistant during her final year in the Information School’s Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at the University of Washington program where she studied youth librarianship, inclusive community outreach, and information literacy. Prior to starting her MLIS, Rachel worked in the communications field and community with the…
July 10, 2018
As many communities struggle to keep up with shifts in technology, public libraries provide critical digital literacy training that helps people improve their skills. Yet, library staff struggle to keep their own skills up-to-date and to deliver trainings that engage and excite learners. One promising resource to assist libraries is Mozilla’s Web Literacy Core Curriculum….
April 2, 2018
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded the Technology & Social Change Group (TASCHA) at the University of Washington Information School with a $16 million “legacy” grant to conduct research that will aid the global transformation of public libraries as centers of learning, creativity, and community development. The Gates Foundation announced that at the end of…
February 13, 2018
A new report, The learning circle experience: Findings from the P2PU participant survey, from Michelle Fellows examines free study groups organized for people to take online classes together and in-person, known as P2PU learning circles. P2PU’s work over the last two years has spawned 319 learning circles conducted across 89 cities in the United States, Canada, and Kenya….
January 22, 2018
At this year’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF), TASCHA researcher Maria Garrido spoke on a panel, Policy Changes for Public Access, hosted by IFLA and EIFL. Dr. Garrido offered her expertise from her Development and Access to Information project (DA2I) as well as her work around the role that libraries play in providing access to information….
February 2, 2017
Libraries are … essential to the functioning of a democratic society … libraries are the great symbols of the freedom of the mind. — Franklin D. Roosevelt When you think of your community’s public library, do you picture a political nexus that holds the power to influence the future of our country? If not, we don’t blame…
May 13, 2015
TASCHA kicked off field research for the Regional Study & Resource Center Evaluation project in Namibia in March 2015. Fieldwork is crucial to research success, particularly when performing evaluation work. Principal Investigator Araba Sey and Research Analyst Michelle Fellows visited Namibia to conduct research activities that comprise part of the first component of the project. Over the period of a few weeks, the researchers went to Windhoek, Gobabis, Oshakati, Helao Nafidi, and Eenhana to visit the Regional Study & Resource Centers (RSRCs), conduct interviews, and observe staff and patrons in the RSRCs.
