During fall 2021, the Digital Scholarship Studio (DSS) at LSA and the U-M Library partnered closely to expand their services to support digital scholarship projects. This led to a set of new initiatives which aim to support the use of digital methods in research related to anti-racism and social justice, provide multifaceted services, resources, and infrastructure for digital projects in the humanities and social sciences and improve digital and data literacy.
Digital Scholarship Studio at LSA
The Digital Scholarship Studio (DSS) was introduced to provide digital scholarship support to the U-M community. The DSS team at LSA draws from multiple groups within LSA Technology Services including Research Computing & Infrastructure, Learning & Teaching Consultants, and Web & Application Development Services. They also partner with the U-M Library and other campus units such as the Center for Academic Innovation, Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, and Consulting for Statistics, Computing, and Analytics Research. The DSS provides a growing number of services to faculty, staff, and students in the form of workshops, consultations, office hours, and technical support.
In 2021, the DSS noted several accomplishments including providing support to more than 11 research projects and assisted faculty in more than $11 million worth of grant captures with the help of digital scholarship colleagues in the U-M Library. The digital scholarship webpages were revamped to reflect the newly-available tools and services, such as the updated OmekaS version using the OpenShift platform. The DSS also published a Spotlight article that highlighted the wonderful digital scholarship work done by our U-M scholars (the "Beyond the Physical" project). It conducted eight workshops and planned for 13 additional workshops to be held in 2022 that would introduce U-M faculty and students to digital scholarship and help them learn how to incorporate digital methods and tools into their research and teaching. Lastly, all DSS office hours were held virtually due to the pandemic. Shifting to a virtual format provides more flexibility for the U-M community and attracts larger audiences. There was a growing number of virtual office hour visits in 2021 compared to the previous years.
Anti-Racist Digital Research Initiative
During fall 2021, LSA Technology Services and the U-M Library, partnered with the National Center for Institutional Diversity’s Anti-Racism Collaborative, to pilot a new initiative to support digital scholarship research that advances anti-racism and social justice. The initiative is a mini-grant program that provides funding to help U-M faculty and graduate students develop their research project prototypes and plan for the full life-cycle of a digital project, from conceptualization and creation to planning for preservation. Out of the 33 applications received, the initiative awards a maximum of six grants of $5,000 each and a reserve of $1,000 to cover migration costs for contingent faculty or graduate students. Accepted research projects will be announced at the beginning of the winter 2022 semester. Projects can take a broad range of forms, from collecting community interviews to presenting data in various ways such as collections and digital maps. The Digital Scholarship Anti-Racist Committee will support these projects by providing consultations and expert advice about the best tools to serve research goals, and connecting the researchers with the relevant services and resources from units across campus.
Digital Scholarship Certificate Initiative
For the first time, the U-M Library and LSA provided opportunities for U-M graduate students to acquire digital skills and expand their digital and data literacy through a joint certificate program. The Digital Scholarship Certificate is an extracurricular, non-credit-bearing certificate that introduces graduate students to topics related to digital and data literacy, digital humanities research skills, digital pedagogy, and professional activity in digital environments. It's designed to allow graduate students to work and learn as a small cohort. The Digital Scholarship Certificate aligns with the values and principles guiding our digital scholarship work which are consistent with the larger LSA Technology Services mission and values, DEI, and are compatible with those principles at U-M Library. Team members from Digital Scholarship at U-M Library and Digital Scholarship at LSA provide workshops and facilitate the learning activities of this certificate program. In fall 2021, 10 out of 19 graduate student applicants were selected to join the 2021 cohort. Throughout the program, graduate students have the opportunity to engage with their peers from various departments at U-M. They may also receive mentorship from digital scholarship experts to develop technical expertise and create a unique learning experience based on their research or teaching interests. This will culminate in the production of either a professional e-portfolio or a digital scholarship research project that they will showcase to their peers and digital scholarship specialists. Depending on their projects, students may take up to two academic years to complete the certificate. The certificate application will open again in August 2022.
For more information about connecting with our teams for consultations, office hours, or to learn more information, visit our website or email us at [email protected]. You can also learn more about our events on the digital scholarship calendar or check out our digital scholarship workshops.
