1. Information Digitization in the Humanities: The Cultural Assessment Interest Group
Hannah Scates Kettler
Digital Humanities Research & Instruction Librarian, University of Iowa

2. What is the Cultural Assessment Group
DLF Assessment Interest Group subgroup
Est. 2016
Participants from Libraries and Museums
Goals :: 
build an understanding of 'cultural assessment' for digital collections.
 raise awareness of cultural bias and institutional “blind spots”

3. Perspective
Representation from entire process of digital collection creation
Hannah => End user
Developer
Researcher
Public / Non-specialist
Example Project: Migration Is Beautiful

4. Postcards Correspondence
Type (AAT) 
Postcards Correspondence 
Digital Collection 
Mujeres Latinas Digital Collection
Adella Martinez correspondence, 1943 
Topical Subject (LCSH)  
Mexican Americans  
Chronological Subject  

13. Need for cultural assessment
Acknowledging a problem
Ex: Doctor Riddle
Application to Digital Collections and Usability
For whom are we collecting / building digital collections?
The doctor riddle – A father and son have a car accident and are both badly hurt. They are both taken to separate hospitals. When the boy is taken in for an operation, the surgeon (doctors) says "I cannot do the surgery because this is my son". How is this possible?  
result is based on assumptions about male dominance in medical professions.Usually favors a more dominate or privileged assumption/position/viewpoint.
How many people think of minority group when invoking this scenario?

14. Initial Findings Findings: "Cultural Assessment" is overwhelming
Librarians do not have all the expertise
Some projects have begun to address gaps in digital collections
Solutions:
Break it down into manageable foci
Ask collogues in other areas
Specifically 
Australia:
Canada: Social Inclusion Audit
EU: Balanced Value Impact Model (PDF online - Google it)

15. Where we are now Acknowledged the problem
Outlined areas of potential bias
Environmental Scan of Library evaluation
Creating a FAQ / Rubric

16. Future Aims / Work Transitioning to focus on metrics
Publishing Bibliography and FAQ
Building metric as tool
Encouraging diverse involvement

17. Recent Statement
"The University of Iowa Libraries' strategic plan places a high priority on efforts to abolish intolerance and cultural invisibility by promoting understanding and inclusion through our work." (Nov. 2016)

18. Contact https://wiki.diglib.org/Assessment:Cultural_Assessment
@hskettler (Twitter)