Professional Philosophy Angelo _ Roselle 1

Introduction

My path to librarianship and the MLIS degree was unconventional in that I never had any

library experience prior to enrolling at San Jose State University in the spring of 2008; however,

I have always had a strong desire to assist people in their pursuit of knowledge. In an effort to

provide the reader with an understanding about why I chose this profession and have this

professional philosophy, I have decided to include a background of my childhood.

Up until the age of seventeen I was denied access to education and information. The

religious cult (The Family) that I was born and raised in constantly tried to block my pursuit of

knowledge. Books, literature, and magazines that were not written by members of The Family

were restricted. In addition, music that was not produced by The Family was forbidden.

Furthermore, online access was controlled, and members of The Family were not allowed to

freely access information. Upon leaving The Family and transitioning into my new life in Culver

City, I often found myself drawn to the Julian Dixon Public Library, where I spent most of my

free-time reading books and learning how to access online information. I was overwhelmed by

the vast amount of information at my fingertips, and I knew that I had just begun my path

towards gaining an education. Interestingly enough, the first time I ever sat in a formal classroom

was two months before my eighteenth birthday at Santa Monica College. It was on that day that I

realized I needed to help other young people like me have the ability to freely study, learn, and

pursue knowledge.

While finishing up my Bachelor’s degree in History at the University of California, Los

Angeles, I started considering ways I could achieve my goals of helping people that had grown

up without intellectual freedom. I first considered law school, and was actually in the process of

applying when I came across a brochure of the Library and Information Science (LIS) program
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at San Jose State University. As I researched the profession of library and information

professionals, I realized that becoming a librarian was my ultimate desire. I was particularly

struck by the values, principles, and ethics that the profession stood for. For example, I read how

librarians stood for freedom by opposing censorship, allowed for the free expression of ideas,

provided equal and open access to all viewpoints, and facilitated people’s pursuit of knowledge.

It was at that time that I became hooked on this profession. Instead of following up on my

applications to law school, I began filling out my application to library school. Finally, in

January 2008, I enrolled in my first library and information courses, which pushed me on a path

towards librarianship.

SJSU SLIS

Although I researched several library and information science programs around the

nation, I selected San Jose State University’s program because of its focus on practical

librarianship, specifically by providing instruction on technologies in information organizations.

At the time of my enrollment, I had not selected a specific library specialization, and I wanted to

take a range of LIS courses. Additionally, the core courses for the MLIS program were my

introduction to librarianship, but they also made me realize that I lacked the technical skills that

were necessary for librarianship. In particular, as I was taking Library 202 (Information

Retrieval), I became aware of the numerous technologies that librarians use, maintain, and

reference in order to serve library patrons; therefore, I tried to take a variety of technology

courses to gain useful skills. Some examples of the technical skills that I gained at San Jose State

University include learning how to build information retrieval systems in my Library 202 course,

manage databases in my Library 242 course, design Web pages using HTML and CSS in my

Library 240 course, and evaluate Web 2.0 technologies in my Library 246 course.
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In addition to my technology courses, I also took coursework in library cataloging, non-

profit marketing, and archives. In Spring 2009, I enrolled in my first archives course, Library

256 Archives and Manuscripts. As I created my first finding aid, discussed current issues

affecting the archival profession, and wrote about using Web 2.0 technologies in archives, I

realized that archives was the track for me. I thought, what better way to promote access to

information then by helping to collect, organize, preserve, and provide reference for valuable

collections of information.

After taking the Archives and Manuscript course, I realized I needed to gain professional

experience in an archival repository; therefore, in the summer of 2009 I applied to the Pasadena

Museum of History Research Library & Archives for a Fall 2009 internship, and was delighted

when I was accepted. From the first day as an intern, I knew that I had my work cut out for me.

While the Research Library & Archives has a variety of fantastic archival records, it lacks a

professional full-time archivist, money, or updated technology to operate at an adequate level.

For five months I researched, organized, evaluated, and created preservation cases for a 220

oversized bound newspaper collection. In the end, I was able to save half of the supplies budget,

and the collections manager was greatly appreciative.

During this internship I become aware of how desperate some archival repositories are

for knowledgeable professional archivists. This realization only strengthened my determination

to continue gaining education and experience while in graduate school. In fact, this spring

semester I am interning at Jet Propulsion Laboratory Archives, and I am working on several

digital image preservation projects. It is my hope that this internship will be my springboard for
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gaining practical archival experience in preserving digital assets, and I am looking forward to

continuing to develop my skills and knowledge as an archivist.

Librarianship and Archives

I started this program with the intention to work in a public library; however, I now am

determined to become an archivist. For this reason, I want to discuss the similarities between

librarians and archivists, and show how I created my e-Portfolio to demonstrate my

understanding of the work of both librarians and archivists. Although there are many differences

between archivists and librarians, there are also many similarities. In fact, archivists and

librarians share similar codes of ethics, values, and professional responsibilities. For example,

archivists select, evaluate, organize, describe, and help to preserve historical records. Similarly,

librarians build collections, evaluate the relevance and quality of materials, catalog, and maintain

library materials. In addition, both archivists and librarians do their best to provide open access

to information through reference services and marketing of products. While there are differences,

I realize that librarians and archivists share the same primary goal of helping users have equal

and open access to information.

My early essays, research papers, group projects, presentations, and discussion forum

posts all reference libraries, in particular public libraries; however, as a result of my change in

focus for this degree, most of my assignments since the spring of 2009 reference the work of

archivists. For example, my marketing research paper was about the Pasadena Museum of

History Archives. Similarly, my research and methods course provided me with an opportunity

to write a research proposal that discussed volunteers in archival repositories. All in all, the use

of evidence specifically about archives, in addition to evidence I presented about libraries, has

given me an interesting perspective on the information profession. Specifically, my coursework

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at SJSU has helped me to see the opportunities where librarians and archivists can collaborate on

programs and projects that provide our patrons with better services and products. In short, this

understanding of librarianship and how it relates to the work of archivists will serve me well in

the future.

Competency O

In addition to satisfying the fourteen core areas of librarianship, all San Jose State

University Library and Information Science graduate students must show mastery of

Competency O, Contribute to the cultural, economic, educational and social well-being of our

communities. My contribution to the cultural, economic, educational and social well-being of our

communities is evidenced by this entire portfolio consisting of my coursework, professional

internships, work experiences, peer mentoring and volunteer work.

In Competency A I discussed my understanding of the ethics, values, and principles of

librarianship and how we must constantly be using these standards to guide our professional

work. In Competency C I supplied evidence of my research and assessments of librarians

reaching out to special populations, specifically minorities and patrons with disabilities. Finally,

Competency D showcased how proper research about our communities is required if we want to

satisfy the information needs and wants of our communities. Furthermore, I understand that we

information professionals need to do all we can to provide unrestricted access to information,

provide services that facilitate learning, and design programs to help our communities become

information literate. Whether we are creating databases, writing strategic plans, marketing to

communities, building collections, designing training programs, conducting research, or

evaluating programs, we must enable our society to effectively access and use information.
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In addition to my internships at the Pasadena Museum of History and Jet Propulsion

Laboratory, I have also been volunteering at the Pasadena Public Library. My tasks included

organizing the photo collections of the library, and creating tutorial storyboards for several law

databases. Both these tasks helped to increase access to the products and services of the Library,

and I am thankful for my opportunity to apply my theoretical knowledge in a real work

environment. Finally, I worked at as peer mentor for SLIS last fall, which allowed me to work

with new SLIS students as they began their library studies. This peer mentorship opportunity

shows my desire to make our profession the absolute best it can be by helping to guide new

students into the profession. In conclusion, my past professional experiences together with my

current and future aspirations show my dedication and contribution to improving the cultural,

economic, educational and social well-being of our communities.

Professional Goals

Even though I will be obtaining my Master’s in Library and Information Science this

semester, my time at San Jose State University’s (SJSU) School of Library and Information

Science is not over. Last year I applied for and was accepted to the SJSU graduate school for a

Master’s in Archives and Records Administration, which I know will provide me with the

additional knowledge and skills I desire to have for my career as an archivist.

Because I have gained technical skills and knowledge during my graduate years at San

Jose State University, it is my desire to use these abilities to help archives properly manage

archival collections. Furthermore, as an archivist, I will be bound by the ethics of the Society of

American Archivists, but I will continue to let the foundational principles of librarianship guide

my professional career. As I enter the profession, I seek to gain more practical knowledge about

managing archival collections. In addition, I want to become more proficient with technologies,
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attend professional conferences and workshops, and seek ways to effectively preserve electronic

records.

Over the last two and a half years I have let me desire to help young people direct my

professional goals. One of the goals directly related to this desire is to assist archives in

providing K-12 schools with programs and services that allow for students to partake in the

wealth of information we have in our archival repositories. In the end, I know that I will be able

to apply all my knowledge, skills, and experience when I enter the work place, and I will

continue to contribute to the information profession.