PDA Event: African American Subject Funnel Project

Have you ever wondered how Library of Congress Subject Headings are created? How they’re changed? Who can participate in this process? Additionally, in recent years, the library community has recognized the need to make our libraries more equitable and representative of the diverse groups we serve. This has inspired initiatives to reexamine library spaces, collections, and systems. This presentation examines one such effort, the African American Subject Funnel Project. This cross-institutional, collaborative group works to improve catalog records by adding or amending Library of Congress Subject headings related to the African American experience. By exploring these topics, panelists will demonstrate how the library community can work together to improve our catalogs - and, by extension, better facilitate research.

Learning outcomes

• Participants will be introduced to the work of the African American Funnel Project in order to understand how Library of Congress Subject Headings are added and amended.
• Participants will learn about the structure and operation of one collaborative, reparative cataloging project so that they might organize similar initiatives in their areas of expertise.
• Participants will leave with an appreciation of the complexities of working with the Library of Congress and the need for both technical and subject expertise in order to successfully advocate for additions and changes to the vocabulary.

Presenters

Michelle Cronquist is a Special Collections Cataloger at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and has served as Cataloging Chair of the African American Subject Funnel Project since 2021.

Simone Clunie is Assistant Head of Cataloging and Metadata at Binghamton University Libraries and is a recent member of the African American Subject Funnel Project, joining in 2024.

Chereeka Garner is a Digital Engagement Librarian at the University of Central Florida and has been a member of the African American Subject Funnel Project since 2023. 

Register to attend.

Sponsored by SEFLIN