Are you invested in questions about who (which racial/cultural groups) is being represented in children’s books featuring Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC) and how (what messages are being sent) they are represented? Are you a conscientious reader of picture books, early readers, middle grade and young adult literature?
If so, the Diverse BookFinder (DBF) Metadata Community of Practice may be for you!
The Diverse BookFinder seeks applications for the 2023-2024 Metadata Community of Practice to code books for children and youth featuring BIPOC characters. The DBF is an online, searchable database and associated physical collection designed to facilitate the discoverability and exploration of multicultural picture books. Our goal is to diversify and balance bookshelves everywhere, so that all children can find themselves reflected and celebrated in libraries, schools, and homes across the nation.
With a recently awarded National Leadership Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) titled “Middle Grade and Young Adult Books with Black, Indigenous People, and People of Color: Where Are They?” the Diverse BookFinder will build upon its existing infrastructure to integrate early readers, chapter books, middle grade books, young adult books, graphic novels, and comics into the database and Collection Analysis Tool (CAT).
We believe BIPOC communities must be centered in the work we do, and we encourage applications from those who identify as BIPOC. We also specifically seek candidates with a critical understanding of race, culture, gender, and power and a strong interest in the application of this knowledge to analyses of BIPOC representation in children’s and young adult books. We envision a world overflowing with books by and about BIPOC, a world of children’s literature that reflects the diverse voices and experiences of BIPOC-identified people and communities.
A Metadata Community of Practice of members will:
- Commit to participating for 14 months: September 2023 to December 2024, with nine weeks of training sessions from September through November 2023;
- Read, code, and discuss with team members the content of assigned books (35 books/year, 3-5 hours/week), using systems and processes established by the Diverse BookFinder; and
- Participate in regular discussions via Zoom to share and discuss findings.
To learn more about the Metadata Community of Practice please visit our Community Webpage and register for our 60-minute virtual information session:
https://sites.google.com/diversebookfinder.org/dbf-cop-infosession
The information session will be held via Zoom at 5:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM CST / 3:00 PM MST / 2:00PM PST on Wednesday, May 24.
You can register for the session right now here: https://bates.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cW8yKGdISOKKmMbPa0oYaw
The information session will be recorded, but you must register for the session in order to receive the link to watch it later. All registrants will also receive a link to the application.
For questions or more information, please email Lisely Laboy at [email protected].
Thank you for your interest in the Diverse BookFinder’s Metadata Community of Practice! We hope to meet you at the information session.