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Innovative Education in Libraryland

© Mindy Rhiger

Not every school offers Library Science Degrees. And not every school offers Library Science degrees as well at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Consistently ranked among the best, UIUC's Graduate School of Library and Information Science is considered by many to be the library school to attend.

This August, however, Dean Leigh Estabrook will be stepping down from her deanship at UIUC. Dean Estabrook has held the deanship since 1986, and she has seen the school through a major technological transformation.

The LEEP program, an online distance education program for the Master's degree in library science, is a particularly innovative feature of UIUC's library science program that was initiated during Dean Estabrook's tenure. Through the LEEP program, many students have been able to benefit from the program at UIUC without living in Urbana-Champaign. LEEP has been extremely successful, and I say that as someone who has taken LEEP classes. Online learning can be a challenge, but the faculty and staff that teach in the LEEP program have been very creative in developing new teaching methods for use in the online environment. My classes utilized small group discussion (via several chatrooms), a chalkboard to post comments and important points, and Web sites that serve as slides.

Dr. Estabrook will remain on the faculty at UIUC after her resignation of the deanship. The Library School is searching for a new dean, and Professor Linda Smith will serve as the Interim Dean.

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Sorry for the brief article this month. Between graduating, moving, and starting my new job, I've been rather swamped. Thanks to everyone for reading, and see you all next month when I'm sure I'll have plenty of stories to tell about what it's really like to be a librarian vs. a library student!