Librarians Doing DH: A Team and Project-Based Approach to Digital Humanities in the Library

The Claremont Colleges Library embarked on a “learn by doing” Digital Humanities (DH) program and series of team-based projects in order to provide librarians experience working directly with DH methodologies and tools. Drawing from two divisions in the Library, a team of librarians designed an analysis project using DH tools to examine collection development trends on the topic of terrorism. In the process, the team addressed technical obstacles, communication issues and time management techniques that contributed to a productive collaboration. DH can be a catalyst for librarians’ own research beyond serving in a supportive role for the disciplines. With its broad applications for library research, DH has the potential to bridge departmental divides in libraries and promote a culture or environment of experimentation