Call for Participants

Visualizing the Future Symposia: A National Forum on Data Visualization in Libraries

Visualizing the Future (full proposal) is an IMLS National Forum Grant to develop a literacy-based instructional and research agenda for library and information professionals with the aim to create a community of praxis focused on data visualization. Building on current work supporting data visualization in libraries, this grant aims to create a diverse community that will further advance data visualization instruction and use beyond hands-on, technology-based tutorials toward a nuanced, critical understanding of visualization as a research product and form of expression.

As part of this grant we are seeking applications for a cohort of fellows to: carry out research on the practice and teaching of data visualization, attend two in-person meetings over the next two years, and help in the development and dissemination of a framework for data visualization support in libraries and related institutions. We are accepting applications from all individuals, including current practitioners, students and those in adjacent fields and types of work; the two in person meetings will be in August 2019 and June 2020. Applications are due January 31st. We are happy to answer any questions you may have at visualizingthefuture@umich.edu. Full instructions are below.

Overview

As libraries increasingly provide, collect and use data, developing a variety of methods for supporting this work is becoming absolutely critical; data visualization support offers an accessible, nuanced, and meaningful way for libraries and their communities to engage with data and information. But, data visualization support in libraries is at a critical juncture; it is growing rapidly with an increasing number of libraries hiring visualization librarians and assigning visualization responsibilities to a variety of librarians. Failure to create a long term vision for data visualization risks either significant duplication of effort or libraries will fail to take a leading role in providing critical visualization support. At the same time, as a profession we lack a broad vision and articulation of what skills, knowledge, and methods are central to this type of work.

This national forum aims to provide an opportunity to articulate the role data visualization can play in advancing the mission of academic and public libraries. To this end we seek to develop frameworks, knowledge and communities needed to train librarians to support and engage with this work. Beyond improving data visualization services, such a framework will also offer a rich and critical lens through which to understand the complexities, challenges and insights of data services writ broadly. The resulting framework will serve both as a resource for libraries that want to develop or expand data visualization services and as a research agenda for future work. In addition, participants will further become resources to their communities and expand their ability to provide instruction, consultations, and strategy setting to develop robust data visualization services.

Our goal is to have a group of participants that cuts across age, race, sex, gender identity, ethnicity, ability, experience in libraries, disciplinary background, job responsibilities, institutional characteristics, socio-economic background, and other aspects. In order to foster a cohort of librarians that will be motivated to continue and share this work well beyond the forum, we hope to seek out participants who will be able to aid in building a community around data visualization in libraries that will be sustainable, supportive and reflective in its practices.

We are at a unique moment where a well described, researched, and articulated vision of the future of data visualization support and use in libraries could help shape the national landscape for years to come. Collectively deciding on what this future should look like and how to best achieve it will guarantee that each institution does not have to chart its own course. Furthermore, articulating a nationally-coordinated approach to data visualization will ensure that this growing field integrates with and supports larger efforts around data librarianship.

Project Design

This National Forum Grant will support a series of overlapping activities to empower participants in their efforts to dig deeply into one or more areas of data visualization theory and practice and translate their understanding into modular instructional materials appropriate for a wide range of institutions and audiences. The main components of this project are listed below (further details available in the full proposal):

• Recruitment of 12 fellows to participate in the national forum on visualization, under the guidance of an advisory board (December 2018 to February 2019)
• Individual research projects (understanding that ‘research’ can take multiple forms and media) undertaken by fellows on a topic of their choosing around the practice or teaching of data visualization (March 2019 to July 2019)
• Monthly virtual meetings to connect fellows to each other and to regional visualization communities and to build skills in curriculum development (March 2019 to November 2020)
• A kick-off meeting in summer 2019 to explore commonalities and complications that arose throughout the research period and produce a set of specific visualization topics to develop into course modules (August 7 to 9, 2019, in Ann Arbor, MI)
• A year of course module development, delivery, and refinement, undertaken by fellows and organizers, including travel to relevant conferences and meetings of professional organizations to present and share this work (August 2019 to June 2020)
• A final symposium in summer 2020 to review the results of instruction efforts, share strategies that worked well, and harmonize materials as needed (June 2020)
• A close-out period for completion and dissemination of course materials and other reports from the grant activities (July 2020 to November 2020)

(live version of schedule)

The project team is looking for a cohort of fellows who can commit to the two in-person meetings and a few hours a week of work over the course of approximately 18 months to make steady progress toward the collaborative visioning and design of critically-focused instructional materials on data visualization topics. The grant will fund travel to meetings and at least one conference to disseminate findings and materials.

Applications will be accepted for two full months (December 2018 and January 2019), and fellows will be notified at the end of February 2019, at which point the orientation and research period of the project will begin.

Who should apply?

Selection of fellows will include individuals with diverse levels of experience with data visualization, as well as individuals occupying varying positions in libraries, to improve the range of experiences represented in the group. Applications from all individuals will be considered, including current practitioners, students and those in adjacent fields and types of work. Applications will be reviewed with an eye to the feasibility of the proposed research, the relevance to critical visualization instruction, and the diversity of topical interests.

What to Submit

Applications should consist of a two-page curriculum vitae, a written proposal for a research project (details below) and a letter of commitment from the applicant’s institution. All files should be prepared and submitted in PDF format.

Details about the project proposal:

We understand research in a broad sense. The project you propose should be an exploration of a topic of interest but can take different forms depending on the topic and your goals. The hope is that the work undertaken for the project will complement your current work but also be relevant to the larger field of data visualization. Sample topics include: representations of data, both visual and non-visual; the ways in which visualization design engages with empathy and readability; the ways in which visualization design differs based on data source; the process of inference/induction from data; ethics of data visualization; or accessibility of data visualization.

Specifications:

• Maximum number of words: 750 words
• Areas you may want to address within your proposal text:
  • Brief description of topic area
  • Plan for addressing/researching the topic area
  • Relevance to current position - how you might use the results of the project
  • Ideas for the impact this topic will have on visualization instruction

Details about the letter of commitment:

As part of the application process, approval should be sought from your immediate supervisor and, as appropriate, someone from library leadership (e.g., an associate dean, an associate university librarian, a library director). Please use the boilerplate text below to generate and obtain signatures for your letter of commitment. We have created a sample letter of commitment that you are welcome to download, use and modify if needed.

How to Submit

The deadline for this call has passed (January 31, 2019). Thank you to all of our applicants!

Email any questions to: visualizingthefuture@umich.edu