Welcome to our NEW iSchool Help Desk monthly newsletter!! We will be using this to share updates about what we’ve been up. Whether you’re a current student, faculty, or staff; or an alumni or friend of the iSchool Help Desk and want to keep in-the-know about us, we’re glad to have you! You can expect updates about the major initiatives and projects we are working on, pictures and updates from our fun social events, and anything else up and coming at the iSchool Help Desk!
We’ve been keeping very busy this semester with lots of new projects. One of our largest projects has been to provide resources and support for the iSchool as the university begins working to meet new upcoming digital accessibility standards. You can learn more about how the U of I is preparing for digital accessibility compliance here. Updating all course materials to meet these standards by April of next year is a big undertaking, and we are working in many different ways to provide support throughout this process.
Our GAs have created, written, and led monthly workshops for faculty and Teaching Assistants about topics such as PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, and Canvas accessibility practices and tools. We have also offered drop-in hours where instructors can bring in any materials that need updating or questions and get one-on-one help with them, and will continue offering these regularly.
Blind Date With a Book
On Valentine’s Day, the Help Desk hosted a Blind Date with a Book event, which was a hit! Lots of students came by and were paired with a new, free book (or two) from our little free library, all wrapped up and decorated with adorable designs! We had so much fun meeting students and helping them make new connections.
Bluesky!
Did you know that we are on Bluesky now? While we have not completely transitioned away from other social media platforms, we are excited to try out this new platform and make new connections there! You can follow us at @uiuchelpdesk.bsky.social! You can check out our recent series of posts to help you get to know all of us GAs a little better! Here’s an example:
Social Events
Every month, the iSchool Help Desk GAs have a social event together to have some fun and enjoy time together as a team! This month’s event was a mystical Fortune Telling Tea Party, complete with snacks, crafts, and some fun activities! Enjoy some photos from this below.
Graduation
As graduation is swiftly approaching for about half of our GAs, our second-years are working hard on their job searches. Join us in wishing them all good luck in finding the right next steps in their journeys! We know they will all be doing amazing things in the future, and we will continue sharing any exciting updates as they come!
In this process, our second-year GAs have also been putting together a compilation of career resources, including successful application materials and other useful information that will help future Help Desk GAs in their career preparation.
Community Shelf
Another great example of one of our GAs working to make things better for other students is our new Community Shelf! This is located next to the Help Desk, and Delia has worked hard to put together free resources for any students to give and take. There will also be a beautiful new zine full of resources and information about the iSchool coming to the shelf soon, and a shelf for people to leave notes and writing/art projects to share! Come check it out next time you’re near the Help Desk.
Upcoming…
Thank you so much for reading this, and for your support! We are excited to be able to keep everyone updated on the amazing things happening at the Help Desk and in our community. Keep an eye out for next month’s newsletter, as we have many exciting new things coming up!