No, it’s not my actual birthday, but this January marks my first full year as a Digital Initiatives Librarian at The University of Iowa Libraries, and while I served in a couple of short-term roles at UI since 2004 (Map Library Assistant & Statewide Digital Initiatives Specialist for the Iowa Heritage Digital Collections), 2006 was my first year of permanent involvement in the Digital Library Services department.

In addition to completing many digital collections, which have been highlighted in this blog throughout the year, and hiring a terrific group of student assistants that have allowed DLS to ramp up in-house digitization initiatives, my own knowledge has grown in the past year in the areas of mass digitization and moving from projects to programs, as well as specific new skills related to scanning, metadata and digital content management.

In 2006, I was afforded the opportunity to build collaborative relationships with individuals and groups in the community that led to extremely successful digital initiatives: the Iowa City Host Noon Lions Club, the Old Capitol Museum, the School of Art and Art History, the University of Iowa Museum of Art, the Department of Geoscience and College of Dentistry, University of Iowa Press, English Department and others just getting started.

Of course, further collaborations within the library led to outstanding digital collections as well: Special Collections and University Archives, Iowa Women’s Archive, the Information Arcade, John Martin Rare Book Room at Hardin Library, Media Services and Map Collection, just to name a few.

The variety of these projects makes them enjoyable and fulfilling, and perhaps the greatest benefit to me is the amount that I learn just by working with the materials, making me look forward to another great year with DLS in 2007!

–Mark F. Anderson
Digital Initiatives Librarian