Cheers!
This is how long we’ve lived to see the successful transformation of my Mortenson Egg. The final stage that completes the metamorphosis of a butterfly is the stage where the pupal case splits open for the emergence of the adult butterfly to spread its soft and wet wings to dry, and eventually fly.
My pupal case swinging on the 13th floor at the ALA headquarters in Chicago (Illinois), split open in Dublin (Ohio), where I crawled out and found myself at the OCLC headquarters.


Any librarian in Ghana has some fair knowledge about OCLC, because you either learn about this organization in school or you use their services at work. I did both and I am happy to say that the WorldCat (a database of the OCLC) I have been using for almost a decade now to process new books into the University of Ghana Library System, is no longer an abstract noun to me because I have seen and touched it.
Nancy Lensenmayer welcomed Associates and gave us an overview of this renowned non-profit American organization that is bent on bringing all libraries in the world together at one place through resource sharing. Presentations on “OCLC & Research Data Management”, “New Model Library Project”, and “OCLC Governance” showed how the organization is transforming to meet the changing needs of its patrons, resonating perfectly with the theme for the 2024 Associates Program.




As research data management is increasingly becoming essential in academics, I was impressed to learn how OCLC is following up with this development by embarking on research projects to examine the needs of researchers and the roles of academic libraries in supporting researchers in meeting this emerging requirement. The New Model Library project is a great idea for libraries and librarians across the globe to maximize our adaptive ways during the COVID-19 pandemic by converting those short-term responses into long term innovative roles to change our library services.

We ended the visit to OCLC with tours to their library, archive and museum; data center; and service operation center. On the walls of the service operation room were some printed inscriptions, and one that caught my attention was “We will change without fear as often as is needed to help everyone achieve company goals.” I felt that powerful message and told myself that come what may, I will change as often as needed without fear to ensure that the needs of my library patrons are met.
From OCLC we spent the night in Dublin, and travelled to Columbus the next morning to the Ohio State University (OSU), a member of the Big 10 Alliance. The interior design of the Thompson Library, OSU, inspires concentration and focus. The design of the library’s interior to house such a vast collection in style makes it aesthetically pleasing and conducive for reading and learning. The comprehensive resources students have access to in the library, together with the digital initiatives, spaces and services provided by the OSU Research Commons show their commitment to support research. I was not leaving the Thompson Library without performing the ritual of the Buckeye community: the good luck charm. I rubbed my palm on the head of the William Oxley Thompson bust in the library and prayed for a fully funded doctoral study offer in my next applications.



Before we departed to Urbana-Champaign, we visited the Westerville Public Library: a library championing open access to information for all members of the Westerville community and its environs.


Just like the other public libraries visited, there are different spaces and services for different categories of users, but what I saw unique with Westerville Public Library is their Homework Help Center: a space where staff and volunteers assist elementary and middle school students to understand and find ways to do their assignments. A service worth emulating in public libraries in Ghana.

Juneteenth in Champaign was spent in our usual room 309 but this time behind closed doors because the main library was not opened to users due to the holiday. It was an optional activity where few Associates had signed up to watch a documentary on AI titled Coded Bias. I was overwhelmed with the discoveries of Joy Buolamwini and the follow up projects to investigate the distortions in the algorithms of Artificial Intelligence. I learned how our inherent biases as humans consciously or unconsciously gets embedded in the technologies we create. After watching this documentary, my research interest in AI stirred up with a deeper interest to consider ethical issues in AI for responsible use and practice. Coded Bias has been an eye-opener for me to approach AI related projects henceforth with a monitoring lens for bias in every process.

We finally got to spend more time with Peggy Nzomo on Information Literacy (IL). Peggy started the workshop by providing a comprehensive overview of IL, engaged us in some brainstorming activities and ended with some frameworks we can adopt to teach and design IL instructions to educate patrons.
This session expanded my understanding and approach to multiple literacies, which is part of my learning objectives for this program. What I found new was the term “infodemic.” I know of misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation, but infodemic was new to me. With technology today, the rise and spread of false and misleading information is rapid, therefore the access and ability to leverage information independently to make informed decisions is essential for sustainable development. I intend to apply the insights gained from this workshop by incorporating the lessons into the library instruction seminars I organize each year for graduate students of the Department for the Study of Religions (UG). I will also use the frameworks and resources shared by Peggy to design a sustainable IL instruction lesson for my community to fight infodemic. And I will share these insights and resources with colleague librarians and information professionals in Ghana to promote IL in order to bridge the divide.


My colleague Associates can testify to the fact that the swiftness of our director, Clara, is not only in the pace with which she walks whenever we were out on tours, but also in other aspects of her work. This was evident when she walked us through the 2-day SILL training program in a 3-hour workshop. SILL (Strengthening Innovative Library Leaders) is a 4-module interactive program designed to train librarians on leadership style, innovation, planning, and communication. SILL is like DiSC but it is more specific to librarians. I was impressed with my leadership style assessment during this interactive workshop.


Interestingly, my most dominant leadership style in SILL which is Affiliative has some similarities with my DiSC style (S). The exercise on communication style self-assessment was particularly enlightening for me as it highlighted the significance of all four styles in order to be an innovative leader. Clara urged us all to be SILL trainers and use the materials to promote innovation and empower more agents of innovation in librarianship. At the end of the workshop, I understood my own leadership and communication styles and also learned what I can do to improve as a leader.

My action plan was initially a gamified approach to collect feedback from library users using a self-designed hapa cards when I return to Ghana. But the session on GREAT Service with Zoe Revell gave me a resource that will make my work easier. This is a great tool I intend to use as soon as possible to evaluate my library services by collecting the impact stories and other feedback from users. This will help me assess and measure the impact of my library services on students, and also ensure that their needs are always met. In order to transform my library, I need feedback from my primary users to know what I am doing right and the aspect of my services I need to improve to serve them better.
Our next tour was to the Amish community in Arthur (Illinois), where I witnessed the traditional lifestyle of this strict Anabaptist sect of Christians who refrain from modern conveniences such as cars, electricity, mobile phones, etc. and instead rely on horse-drawn buggies and other manual tools.


I had a taste of an Amish meal which was so delicious and also browsed the high-quality handmade products in their shops. I enjoyed my conversation with Lamar Schlabach, an Amish craftsman who was interested in my mother-tongue and sought to know whether Asante Twi is an English dialect or has any English influences in its composition like the Pennsylvania Dutch spoken by the Amish people which is actually a German dialect.

We visited the Atwood Hammond Public Library serving this community and I was impressed to learn about how the library is strategizing to meet the different needs of this diverse community.
The final week of the 2024 Associates Program began with a travel to the state capital of Illinois and the home of Abraham Lincoln, Springfield. We visited the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum (ALPLM); the Illinois State Library; and the Abraham Lincoln Historic Home.




Dr Ian Hunt shared with us the tales from the vault, after we have toured the presidential library collection, before we proceeded to the museum, the Illinois State Library and finally the historic home of the 16th President of the US. The use of technology to preserve and recreate historical scenes was outstanding.

As I walked through the recreated scenes of the life of Abraham Lincoln, I understood the power of storytelling in the education and preservation of history. I am inspired by how these libraries and museums are leveraging on technology to revisit history and engage visitors meaningfully.
The eve of our completion of the program was packed with interactive sessions on Library Consortia, Research Data Services, Savvy Research, Strategic Foresight, and facility tours to Siebel Center for Design and UIUC Campus Instructional Lab. I learned about the value of library consortia from Anne Craig, and how the CARLI Network for instance is transforming libraries in Illinois. Prior to this presentation I had witnessed from our tours how users are benefiting from OhioLINK, OPLIN, and INFOhio in Ohio. Sandi Caldrone’s session focused on the need for academic libraries to support researchers in research data management to promote academic integrity and ensure compliance with funding requirements. I had much interest in this session because my showcase presentation the next day was on library initiatives to enhance research excellence in University of Ghana and research data services was the key initiative. Lisa Hinchliffe exposed Associates to strategic foresight, and I learned some new methods to anticipate the future as a librarian and prepare for new trends and technologies.
Aside Vafa Mammadova, the other Associate I “worried” the most during this program was Yoonju Gal. Yoonju preferred to be called Rachel because I wasn’t pronouncing her name well initially. I often confused Yoonju with Yunjin (the other Associate from South Korea) and subsequently did that intentionally just to see her reaction. Below is one of her “bombastic side eyes” in response to my attempt to pull her legs when we took a stroll on the main quad.


On this eve, Yoonju gifted me a Korean Quilt and wrote Dwomoh in Korean alphabets. I told her Dwomoh is not my name until Prince is added so she should do the needful. I had to make sure she misses my annoying self when she returns to South Korea.

Our last evening at Newman Hall was full of fun as if we had no showcase presentation to do the next day. We met in Chintan Pandya‘s room and recalled our arrivals and first week into the program and how time had flown so fast for its completion. We exchanged currencies and tokens from our various countries and expressed how we will be missing each other. Some Associates suggested that our temporary WhatsApp platform be maintained and not dissolved after the program.


On Wednesday, June 26, 2024, all 12 Associates participated in the Associates Showcase where each presented on different topics focusing on our local contexts but centered on the theme “New Roles & Impact in Libraries Around the Globe.” My presentation highlighted the need for University of Ghana Library System to have research data services and also leverage on digital tools to enhance research excellence in the University of Ghana.

Our graduation ceremony followed immediately with each Associate receiving a certificate of participation.



We were not surprised to see our colleague from Serbia, Daniela Skokovic, being honored as the Most Distinguished Associate for 2024. Throughout the program Daniela exhibited her professional leadership capabilities.


As I always refer to her as “my mom” and she responds accordingly as “my son”, I was so proud to see her receive the Susan Schnuer Associates Leadership Honor. I admire her journaling skills of sketching her reflections and experiences to tell a story.



The 2024 Associates Program ended successfully with so many experiences gained, and I am happy to say my Mortenson Egg has completely transformed into a beautiful butterfly ready to fly back home to Ghana.






Thank you for your time. You can click here to read my final reflections of the program.
