An Exploration of Participatory Action Research to Extend the Roles of Information Professionals in Rural Community Engagement Will Buck ( ) Masters Candidate, School of Information Sciences University of Tennessee Bharat Mehra Graduate Research Associate Professor, School of Information Sciences University of Tennessee

❖ I will reflect on my experience as a Graduate Research Assistant on the Information Technology Masters Scholarship Program, Phase II (ITRL2) working with Dr. Bharat Mehra (Principal Investigator) in exploring a Participatory Action Research (PAR) model to extend the roles of information professionals in rural community engagement. ❖ I will offer examples of PAR-generated outcomes including tools and methodologies for the audience to apply in their rural Appalachian libraries and communities. ❖ I will illustrate how my work on ITRL2 and PAR has placed me on a path of inquiry toward community empowerment in my professional and scholarly career. Agenda

❖ Program Goal: Provide paraprofessionals in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) Region with scholarships to complete a master’s degree with a focus on IT and rural librarianship in the SIS program at the University of Tennessee via distance education. ❖ The ITRL2 program has a research component that continuously analyzes the effectiveness of students’ experiences in developing IT applications in their courses for their rural work environments. Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21 st Century: Integrating Information Technology Competencies in the Southern and Central Appalachian Region (Part II) (ITRL2) ($478,258). Institute of Museum and Library Services, Laura Bush 21 st Century Librarian Program, October 2012 – September 2015 (One year no-cost extension till September 2016). (PI: B. Mehra, Co-PI: V. Singh). URL: What is PAR?

❖ Program Goal: Provide paraprofessionals in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) Region with scholarships to complete a master’s degree with a focus on IT and rural librarianship in the SIS program at the University of Tennessee via distance education. ❖ The ITRL2 program has a research component that continuously analyzes the effectiveness of students’ experiences in developing IT applications in their courses for their rural work environments. Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21 st Century: Integrating Information Technology Competencies in the Southern and Central Appalachian Region (Part II) (ITRL2) ($478,258). Institute of Museum and Library Services, Laura Bush 21 st Century Librarian Program, October 2012 – September 2015 (One year no-cost extension till September 2016). (PI: B. Mehra, Co-PI: V. Singh). URL: What is PAR?

What is Action Research? ❖ AR contributes to both the practical concerns of people in immediate problematic situations and to the goals of social science by joint collaboration within a mutually acceptable ethical framework. (Rapoport, 1970, p. 499). ❖ AR is a valid research method in applied fields, providing outcome-based results, and suggesting direction for progressive change. (Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988). ❖ AR is closely tied to interpretive inquiry; hence traditional criteria to evaluate rigor in experimental research—objectivity, reliability, validity, and generalizability—are inappropriate, and AR researchers may establish trustworthiness of their study by reporting on credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability. (Stringer, 1999). ❖ Essential AR characteristics include decentralization, deregulation, and cooperativeness in execution to make possible transformations in social practice and changes in the social institutions where they take place while re-defining relationships that support it. (Mehra, 2006). Courtesy of

❖ Program Goal: Provide paraprofessionals in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) Region with scholarships to complete a master’s degree with a focus on IT and rural librarianship in the SIS program at the University of Tennessee via distance education. ❖ The ITRL2 program has a research component that continuously analyzes the effectiveness of students’ experiences in developing IT applications in their courses for their rural work environments. Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21 st Century: Integrating Information Technology Competencies in the Southern and Central Appalachian Region (Part II) (ITRL2) ($478,258). Institute of Museum and Library Services, Laura Bush 21 st Century Librarian Program, October 2012 – September 2015 (One year no-cost extension till September 2016). (PI: B. Mehra, Co-PI: V. Singh). URL: Why PAR?

Why Participatory Action Research? ❖ Critiques of AR reflect a lack of awareness of the inherent power dynamics of the research process and the subsequent impediments to genuine participation. (Etowa et al, 2007, p. 352). ❖ Older versions of AR, especially in education in the 1970s, faced credibility problems when they placed both research roles and action roles into the practitioner. Now action and research are seen as complementary roles, typically done by different people, with the emphasis on proper collaboration and participation. (Punch, 2014, p ). ❖ The steps in the AR spiral of design are best undertaken collaboratively by co-participants in the research process. (Kemmis & McTaggart, 2000, p. 595).

Why PAR for the Rural Librarian? ❖ PAR utilizes a framework characterized by decentralization, deregulation, and cooperativeness. ❖ Rural library services are in high demand, providing a hub of social activity and access to community resources that provide opportunities for accessing local expertise and collaborative potential. ❖ Strategic collaboration with domain-specific entities can improve sustainability of emancipatory change.

Courtesy of ❖ “A community engagement model allows me to develop intersections between my teaching, research, and service activities in an integrated manner to promote community building and community development outcomes that made a real difference in people’s lives within and beyond the academy.” ❖ “Community engagement represents a contemporary and relevant strategy in recognizing diversity and the assets and skills of the underserved populations on society’s margins.” Community Engagement Mehra, B., and Robinson, W. C. (2009). The Community Engagement Model in Library and Information Science Education: A Case Study of a Collection Development and Management Course. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 50(1),

❖ Program Goal: Provide paraprofessionals in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) Region with scholarships to complete a master’s degree with a focus on IT and rural librarianship in the SIS program at the University of Tennessee via distance education. ❖ The ITRL2 program has a research component that continuously analyzes the effectiveness of students’ experiences in developing IT applications in their courses for their rural work environments. Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21 st Century: Integrating Information Technology Competencies in the Southern and Central Appalachian Region (Part II) (ITRL2) ($478,258). Institute of Museum and Library Services, Laura Bush 21 st Century Librarian Program, October 2012 – September 2015 (One year no-cost extension till September 2016). (PI: B. Mehra, Co-PI: V. Singh). URL: Information Technology Rural Librarian Master’s Program, Phase II (ITRL2)

❖ Program design phases: ❖ Recruitment of 13 students from libraries in SCA Region ❖ Needs assessment of library services and information challenges faced by rural regional libraries ❖ Implementation of educational/training activities ❖ Mentoring/evaluation/assessment of program outcomes and dissemination of program results/experiences Information Technology Rural Librarian Master’s Program, Phase II (ITRL2)

❖ Outcomes from courses in information technology: ❖ Technology planning, assessment, and analysis ❖ Database and web design, development, and usability ❖ Building digital library, web portals, and Library 2.0 tools ❖ Establishing hardware and software configurations for networking systems Information Technology Rural Librarian Master’s Program, Phase II (ITRL2)

❖ Outcomes from courses in library management ❖ Service evaluation/assessment in rural libraries ❖ Planning/management of rural library program for youth and adults ❖ Reader’s advisory and other information services ❖ Grant writing and partnership development Information Technology Rural Librarian Master’s Program, Phase II (ITRL2)

❖ What does community engagement mean to you? ❖ How can you adopt a community engagement model and integrate action research towards community change, diversity and inclusion, and innovation in your local rural communities? ❖ How might we identify strategic partnerships to collaborate in overcoming the barriers and challenges to meaningful change? Questions for the Audience

The PAR Framework (Reason & Bradbury, 2008) ❖ PAR responds to people’s desire to act creatively in the face of practical and often pressing issues in their lives in organizations and communities. ❖ PAR calls for engagement with people in collaborative relationships, opening new ‘communicative spaces’ in which dialogue and development can flourish. ❖ PAR draws on many ways of knowing, both in the evidence that is generated in inquiry and its expression in diverse forms of presentation as we share learning with wider audiences.

The PAR Framework (cont.) (Reason & Bradbury, 2008) ❖ PAR is values oriented, seeking to address issues of significance concerning the flourishing of human persons, their communities, and the wider ecology in which we participate. ❖ PAR is a living, emergent process that cannot be predetermined but changes and develops as those engaged deepen their understanding of the issues to be addressed and develop their capacity as co-inquirers both individually and collectively.

 Outcomes in Agriculture  Hughes  Outcomes in Business/ Economic Development ❖ Outcomes in Education ❖ Bana ❖ Vaughn Examples

❖ Outcomes in Environmentalism ❖ Ferreyra ❖ Rammelt ❖ Outcomes in Healthcare ❖ Campbell ❖ Etowa Examples

❖ Challenges Related to Specific Rural Domains ❖ Agriculture ❖ Business/Economy ❖ Criminal Justice/Law ❖ Education ❖ Environmentalism ❖ NGOs ❖ Public Policy Directions for Ongoing Research

❖ A Model for Strategic Collaborative Partnerships ❖ Assess your own institution’s strengths and weaknesses ❖ Identify domain for rural change ❖ Highlight domain-specific challenges ❖ Identify partners whose strengths offset weaknesses and domain challenges Directions for Ongoing Research

❖ PAR in Rural Criminal Justice/Law ❖ PAR in Rural NGO/Nonprofit ❖ PAR in Rural Public Policy Gaps Identified in PAR Review

❖ What does community engagement mean to you? ❖ How can you adopt a community engagement model and integrate action research towards community change, diversity and inclusion, and innovation in your local rural communities? ❖ How might we identify strategic partnerships to collaborate in overcoming the barriers and challenges to meaningful change? Questions for the Audience

Questions and Comments? Thank You!