About the Program
The purpose of the ACRL Instruction Section Mentoring Program is to contribute to the professional development of academic librarians who teach information literacy by pairing librarians experienced in teaching with librarians and graduate students new to instruction or to the Instruction Section. This program creates a forum for learning opportunities, networking, and the exchange of ideas between paired mentors and mentees about instruction and information literacy.
- In the 2023/2024 academic year, the program will run from October 2023 to June 2024.
- Conference attendance is not required. In fact, all of the mentoring takes place through virtual communication such as email or video conference.
- Mentors should have a passion for instruction and experience in this field. Serving as a mentor is also a meaningful way to contribute to our field in ways other than committee work.
- Mentees should be librarians or graduate students seeking to improve their instruction skills and knowledge.
- We welcome applications from mentors and mentees working in a wide range of academic library and instructional contexts.
- Mentors and mentees should expect to have monthly conversations with each other. Additional opportunities for synchronous and asynchronous networking and idea sharing will also be available.
Application Information
- Mentor applicants, please use this form.
- Mentee applicants, please use this form.
- Deadline to apply: Friday, September 8, 2023. Membership in both ACRL and Instruction Section are required to apply.
Resources for Mentors and Mentees
Mentees:
Mentors:
How the Program is Accomplished:
- All interested members of the Instruction Section are invited to participate.
- The mentoring program is managed through the IS Mentoring Program Committee.
- Mentors and mentees will be matched based on completed web form applications.
- The partnerships require a time commitment for both mentors and mentees.
- Mentors are provided with guidelines on the roles and expectations of the IS Mentoring Program.
- Mentor/Mentee support is provided by the IS Mentoring Program Committee as well as through suggested background readings on excellence in mentoring (see annotated list of sources).
Selected Sources:
Annotated list of sources related to mentoring. Our text for the group is The Elements of Mentoring by W. Brad Johnson and Charles R. Ridley (Palgrave Macmillan, 2nd ed. 2008).
