Elizabeth Manriquez

What is the most significant issue facing your field and how should it be addressed?

The fallacy that libraries are obsolete. In the twenty years since the World Wide Web became easily accessible, a school of thought has arisen that ready information is sufficient information. Although we teach children to follow the C.R.A.P. method (Currency, Reliability, Authority, and Purpose/Point of View), most adults have never heard of it. A majority of adults, 62%, get their news from social media. Information evaluation has never been more important. Libraries are answering this call with workshops and classes on information literacy. The public and students need to be taught how to find scholarly resources, evaluate information, and how to use the library. This begins with how to use the library catalog and ends with a populace capable of critical thought.

What have you read, listened to, or watched recently that has influenced you or your work?
 
I’m obsessed with podcasts. One of my favorites is “The Librarian is In” from the New York Public Library. In March, they did an episode about how libraries help immigrants and underserved communities. It really sparked my interest in what services libraries offer immigrants, of all types, and I learned libraries are offering services such as legal aid clinics. I spent more time thinking about libraries as a third space and the relationship they have to their changing communities. I plan to research the effectiveness of various library programs that host legal clinics, specifically in communities with high immigrant populations, with an eye towards submission for publication this spring.
 
What is it about being a law school professor that inspires or motivates you?

I love empowering people. I chose librarianship and academia over practice because I feel most rewarded when I teach someone to be an advocate rather than advocating for them. Working with students in the law school, at the moment they are deciding who they are going to be and how they are going to affect the world is a priceless opportunity. It’s incredibly gratifying to interact with these young, intelligent people, taking them through concepts step by step and then seeing the confidence when it clicks. I would not be the person I am today without the generous guidance of countless professors and I am humbled by the prospect of contributing to current and future students’ success.