Courses

Below you will find the current course offerings listed by semester and then alphabetically by department. Students and Faculty should log in to workday.simmons.edu and view the live course listings for the current semester. The current semester listings below are updated weekly. If you have any questions about these courses, please contact the Registrar's Office at or 617-521-2111.

Fall 2025 Course Schedule

Last Updated: 05/18/2025 10:10AM

Library Science

LIS 400 - Virtual Orientation

This required orientation course introduces all Library and Information Science, and Dual Degree students to the full range of academic, administrative, and social expectations for students, and the environment in which they must meet those expectations. Intended for and appropriate to both online and face-to-face students, this course describes program requirements; college, school, and program policy; and offers information about the full range of resources available to the students in support of their program. It also offers basic tutorial and instruction related to the use of Moodle (the learning management system used in online and face-to-face courses), library resources, and other key tools used to support student learning.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Katherine Wisser
TBD
TBD

LIS 403 - Evaluation of Information Services

The course applies the principles of evaluation research to contemporary information management problems. It covers the fundamentals of identifying and investigating problems relevant to continuous quality enhancement and communicating the results to decision makers.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Shengang Wang
3
TBD

LIS 404 - Principles of Management

Designed to acquaint students with the basic management functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling. The course is intended to help provide understanding of human interactions in the workplace and develop the practical problem-solving skills needed to handle managerial problems professionally. Approaches to managing, from authoritarian to participative to laissez-faire, are examined. Readings, case studies, critical incidents, simulations, and discussions. This is a required course for the Libraries & Librarianship concentration.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Lisa Hussey
3
TBD

LIS 406 - Management & Evaluation of School Library Programs

A critical review of the issues and trends in management, program development, and evaluation of contemporary school library media centers at the elementary, secondary, and district levels in the United States. Students in this course will complete 15 pre-practicum fieldwork hours in the context of an assignment involving the development of an observation protocol (a method associated with evaluation research) and an interview with a school library media specialist.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Arianna Lechan
3
TBD

LIS 407 - Information Service, Behaviors & Ethics

This course focuses on topics related to services, information sources and information seeking processes as manifested in a variety of information centers. Introduces information concepts and services, including: question-negotiation (the reference interview), customer service, ethics, evaluating the collection, management, user service philosophy, service in different institutional settings and for diverse populations, and the assessment of services. Students learn about the creation, packaging, access and presentation of information in different types of sources and formats. This is a required course for all MS students.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Linda Schuller
3
TBD
02 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Linda Schuller
3
TBD
OL01 TBD TBD
Rebecca Stallworth
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Rebecca Stallworth
3
TBD
OL03 TBD TBD
Eric Poulin
3
TBD
OL04 TBD TBD
Jennifer Sweeney
3
TBD

LIS 408 - User Instruction & Information Literacy

This course offers an overview of user instruction and assessment of related learning outcomes across information settings. The course will introduce basics of pedagogy, including backwards design, universal design, assessment of learning outcomes, and learning theories. Students will critically examine concepts of information literacy and analyze its role in instruction across information settings, and apply best practices in development of information literacy learning outcomes and instructional programming to design program modules in various formats.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Laura Saunders
3
TBD
20 2025/09/06 - 2025/12/13
Saturday
9:00AM - 11:50AM
Erica Eynouf
3
SLIS West
OL01 TBD TBD
Emily Remer
3
TBD

LIS 415 - Information Organization

The phenomena, activities, and issues surrounding the organization of information in service of users and user communities. Topics include resource types and formats, information service institutions, markup, descriptive metadata, content standards, subject analysis and classification, and the information life cycle. Readings, discussions, examinations, and oral and written exercises. This is a required course for all MS students.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Daniel Joudrey
3
Main Campus
02 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Daniel Joudrey
3
Main Campus
OL01 TBD TBD
Kyong Eun Oh
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Kyong Eun Oh
3
TBD
OL03 TBD TBD
Ralph Holley
3
TBD
OL04 TBD TBD
Ralph Holley
3
TBD
OL05 TBD TBD
Emily Baldoni
3
TBD

LIS 416 - Descriptive Cataloging

This course addresses the theories, principles, and practices of bibliographic description and the application of national standards to the construction of catalogs in libraries. It covers the fundamental concepts of descriptive cataloging including: the elements of bibliographic description, the choice of descriptive detail, the description of print and non-print resources , the choice of access points, the formulation of authorized names and titles, the principles and practices of authority work , and the application of encoding standards. The course also includes examinations of current trends and future directions of descriptive cataloging. May include readings, discussions, presentations, exams, exercises, and individual or group projects.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Daniel Joudrey
3
TBD

LIS 420 - Modern Publishing and Librarianship

The course focuses on the book publishing industry and its relationship to the library profession. Students examine all the segments of the publishing process: editorial, design, manufacturing, marketing, and sales. The course explores current issues in the book publishing industry; it helps librarians develop critical skills to evaluate books; it clarifies aspects of copyright as related to printed material; and it provides information about ways libraries can influence what appears in print and can take advantage of current conditions in the publishing marketplace. Also included are guest speakers from the publishing industry, media presentations, and individual research papers.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Anita Silvey
3
TBD

LIS 421 - Social Informatics

Social Informatics refers to the body of research and study that examines social aspects of computerization - including the roles of information technology in social and organizational change and the ways that the social organization of information technologies are influenced by social forces and social practices. This graduate seminar is for students interested in the influence of information technology in the human context, including cultural heritage, professional concerns, and social inequities. The course introduces some of the key concepts of social informatics and situates them into the view of varied perspectives including readers, librarians, computer professionals, authors, educators, publishers, editors, and the institutions that support them.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
20 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/18
Thursday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Eric Poulin
3
SLIS West
OL01 TBD TBD
Lisa Hussey
3
TBD

LIS 423 - Storytelling

This course examines cultural origins and contemporary practices of oral storytelling. It explores the psychological and social value of stories and practical and ethical issues in selecting, adapting, and presenting story materials. Students observe and practice storytelling and develop a personal repertoire of stories. Readings, class discussion and exercises, and course assignments will acquaint them with a wide variety of story types, skills of story presentation, and the development of story programs.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Melanie Kimball
3
TBD

LIS 425 - History of the Book

The course will cover a wide variety of topics concerned with the history and development of the book, both as a physical object and as the bearer of intellectual content. Therefore, the lectures/discussions will look at two different kinds of phenomena: the physical properties of the objects that carried written and pictorial texts and the intellectual use to which books have been put. A third area that the course will address picks up the miscellaneous but important issues of the world of libraries; the antiquarian and out-of-print book trade; book collecting; remainders; handling, storing, caring for, repairing, and conserving books; legal considerations of book/text ownership and use; and other areas of book history. Students will be introduced to the extensive vocabulary of the book world. With a mastery of this new vocabulary, the students will have a grasp of a subject of extraordinary breadth, boundless fascination, and endless debate. As Milton said, "A good book is the precious life blood of a master spirit." This course will explain why.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/06 - 2025/12/13
Saturday
10:30AM - 12:00PM
Katherine Ruffin
3
TBD

LIS 432 - Concepts Cult Heritage Informatics

This courses serves as a foundation course for students who seek careers as information professionals in archives, museums, libraries, and other cultural heritage settings. Working with representative partner sites, the course introduces students to diverse information organizations. With a focus on the purpose, mission, and history of these institutions, the course examines key concepts and activities in an interdisciplinary context. Differences in the purposes and missions of these institutions are also considered. Specific topics include: collection building, organizing knowledge structures, conserving and preserving collections, collection use, exhibitions, education, the application of technology, and cultural politics. Assignments include case studies, presentations, and group projects. This is a required course for the Cultural Heritage Informatics concentration.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Heather Hole
3
TBD

LIS 435 - Music Librarianship

Scope, types, and functions of music libraries; their physical and intellectual organization and administration. Included are principles and techniques of selection, acquisition, classification, cataloging, binding, storage, and dissemination of music materials; principles, techniques, and materials of music reference and research; music publishing and recording, including listening facilities; and philosophy and functions of the music librarian. Ability to read music and substantial music literature background required.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Elizabeth Berndt
4
TBD

LIS 438 - Introduction to Archival Theory & Practice

Fundamentals of archival theory and practice, including the issues, values, methods, and activities in archival settings. Introduction to core archival functions of appraisal, acquisition, arrangement, description, reference, and access. Overview of history and terminology of the profession. Discussion of the types and varieties of archival repositories and the value of historical records beyond traditional research use. Engagement with contemporary issues in the archival profession. The course includes a required 60-hour field experience.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Mollie Metevier
3
TBD
02 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Adam Kriesberg
3
TBD
OL01 TBD TBD
Adam Kriesberg
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Joel Blanco-Rivera
3
TBD
OL03 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Jerry Simmons
3
TBD

LIS 439 - Preservation Management

This course covers the fundamentals of the prevention and remedial treatment for the preservation of collections in libraries, archives, and museums. The study of the structure and deterioration of many types of cultural heritage materials serves as a foundation. Preservation and collections care topics, such as environmental management, pest management, disaster planning, housekeeping, available treatment and reformatting options, and best storage practices, provide students with opportunities to learn practical skills they can apply right away.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/06 - 2025/10/11
Saturday
9:00AM - 4:00PM
Donia Conn
3
TBD
OL01 TBD TBD
Donia Conn
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Donia Conn
3
TBD

LIS 440 - Archival Access and Use

Explores access to and use of archives and manuscript collections within the framework of archival description and representation. How archives are described and the surrogates that are used to represent them profoundly impact their access and use and are central to the archives profession. Students will explore various types of archival use including exhibits (physical and virtual) in addition to the creation of surrogates for primary sources and will gain a theoretical and practical understanding of EAD (Encoded Archival Description) as well as other emerging metadata standards.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Katherine Wisser
3
Main Campus
OL01 TBD TBD
Kelsey Kolbet
3
TBD

LIS 441 - Appraisal of Archives and Manuscripts

Archival appraisal, or the assessment and evaluation of archival records to determine their continuing value for long-term retention, is one of the central and most critical challenges and responsibilities of the archivist. Building on the introductory exposure to appraisal offered in LIS 438, this course will focus on developing a theoretical framework for appraisal by introducing students to the strategies and methodologies of appraisal, through case studies and by exploring appraisal models developed and implemented within the profession. It will place the issues and activities of appraisal within the context of the documentation of society and the preservation of organizational and community memory.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Peter Botticelli
3
TBD

LIS 442 - Establishing Archives and Manuscript Programs

Developing a knowledge base that encompasses a variety of competencies around sustaining an archives is vital for archivists who often work in small one or two person repositories or may face the challenges of establishing new repositories. This course will analyze the requirements of such small or emerging programs and focus on the ways to develop strategic plans, locate and pursue sources of funding, market and design outreach, understand the physical and intellectual resources of an archival facility,; and sustain program growth. The class will also examine these issues within the context of different types of archives (i.e. government, academic, historical societies).

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Jason Wood
3
TBD
OL01 TBD TBD
John Ansley
3
TBD

LIS 443 - Archives, History and Collective Memory

This is a bridge course between Archives and History that explores the relationship between historical events, the creation and maintenance of archival records, and the construction of collective memory. It analyzes the role of archives and records in the process of documenting and remembering (or forgetting) history. Focusing on twentieth century events, it considers such archival issues as repatriation, records destruction, contested history, and memory construction. These issues are presented within the context of various types of records such as genealogical records, oral records, and records of material culture (artifacts) in addition to traditional print materials.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
5:00PM - 7:50PM
Aiden Bettine
3
TBD

LIS 444 - Digital Preservation

This course explores theories and practices for preservation of digitized and born-digital materials. Students focus on a variety of environments, repositories, infrastructure, policies, and procedures necessary to care for digital content. Topics include sustainability of media; file formats; metadata; rights issues; asset and risk management; digital forensics; and certification.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Rhiannon Bettivia
3
TBD

LIS 445 - Metadata

This course will cover the theory and practice of metadata as it is applied to digital collections. It will provide students with a comprehensive overview of current metadata standards in the library, archives, and visual resources communities, and offer them an opportunity to get hands-on practice using selected standards. It will examine the role of metadata in the discovery, delivery, administration, and preservation of digital objects, and consider current and emerging issues in metadata. The course will address all aspects of metadata, including creation, management, and use. In-class exercises and assignments will provide students with the opportunity to apply specific content and structure standards. Prerequisite: LIS 415.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Rhiannon Bettivia
3
TBD

LIS 448 - Digital Stewardship

This course teaches the core concepts and skills needed to create and manage digital collections and repositories. It covers the digital convergence of cultural heritage information in libraries, archives and museums. It introduces strategies for managing digital objects over the long term through active, ongoing oversight of the total environment (content, technologies, and user expectations) during all phases of the information life cycle. The course also includes extensive discussion of policy issues affecting digital collections, including sustainability issues for digital repositories, and open access to digital resources.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Peter Botticelli
3
TBD

LIS 449 - Rare Book and Special Collections Librarianship

With the growth of the Internet and the proliferation of electronic applications in librarianship, the role of the Special Collections and Rare Book library has not gotten simpler. In fact, the new technology has added a layer of complexity to the life of the librarian, while many operations remain unchanged. Often, Special Collections/Rare Books Departments are like a library in microcosm, for many of these departments do all of what the parent institution does, in both technical and public services. On top of this, many administrators look to the Rare Books Department and use the department's facilities and holdings for public relations and other fund-raising activities. This course is designed as a practical introduction to Rare Book and Special Collections Librarianship, to cover the many issues of these departments' responsibilities for the neophyte as well as the experienced librarian.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/05 - 2025/12/12
Friday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
TBD
3
TBD

LIS 450 - Public Libraries

This course surveys the history, staffing, organization, development, and future of public libraries, addressing the principles and techniques associated with planning and delivering public library services to individuals and communities. Students will examine the governance and service structure of metropolitan and town libraries and consider the political, fiscal, and societal trends affecting them. Special attention will be given to the analysis of the library needs of specific groups and relationship of these needs assessments to the implementation of particular programs and services.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Don Simmons
3
TBD

LIS 451 - Academic Libraries

This course surveys the history, staffing, organization, development, and future of college and university libraries. Common issues-including managing change, scholarly communication, publishing, information technology, advocacy, evaluation and assessment, planning, budgeting, and higher education-will be addressed within a context that connects academic libraries, and their infrastructure, with their parent institutions.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Rebecca Stallworth
3
TBD
20 2025/09/06 - 2025/12/13
Saturday
1:15PM - 4:05PM
Eric Poulin
3
SLIS West

LIS 453 - Collections Development and Management

Activities through which library collections are systematically developed and managed are explored, especially the formulation and implementation of written collection development policies. Other specific topics include identification of user needs; collection evaluation; fund allocation among competing departments, subjects, and/or media; selection methods; intellectual freedom; storage alternatives; and cooperative collection development. Course includes readings, guest lectures, and a term project in which a collection development policy for a real information agency is prepared.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Mei Zhang
3
TBD

LIS 455 - Usability and User Experience Research

This course covers the conceptual frameworks and applied methodologies for user-centered design and user experience research. Emphasis is placed on learning and practicing a variety of usability research methods/techniques such as scenario development, user profiling, tasks analysis, contextual inquiry, card sorting, usability tests, log data analysis, expert inspection and heuristic evaluation. Rather than a Web or interface design course, this is a research and evaluation course on usability and user experience with the assumption that the results of user and usability research would feed directly into various stages of the interface design cycle. Assignments may include usability methods plan, user persona development, scenario and task modeling, card sorting, usability testing project, and user experience research project.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Konstancja Sinczak
3
TBD

LIS 458 - Database Management

Principles and practices of database management and database design. Discussion and practice cover database application lifecycle, data modeling, relational database design, SQL queries, reports and other interfaces to database data, and documentation. Lectures also cover Web databases, XML, multimedia databases, and ethical and privacy issues associated with database systems. Individual and group projects.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Christine Rolka
3
TBD

LIS 459 - Fundamentals of School Librarianship

Students complete structured field experience activities in elementary and secondary school libraries. Students will document their field experiences, make reflective written responses to readings and activities, and complete carefully designed learning projects that will help them develop professional skills, knowledge, and resources. This course fulfills 30 of the mandated 75 hours of pre-practicum field experience in preK-12 libraries for Massachusetts initial certification.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
7:00PM - 9:50PM
Arianna Lechan
3
TBD

LIS 461 - Curriculum and Instructional Strategies for the School Library Teacher

This course provides an in-depth look at the pedagogy of teaching and learning including an analysis of the research base that informs the application of specific strategies used for effective instruction. Students will examine the organization, structure, and content of the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, the Common Core State Standards, and the AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner. Students will prepare lessons, teach, participate in peer reviews, and begin to develop as reflective practitioners. Students will develop an understanding of the wide range of instructional strategies as they learn to create and implement standards-based lesson plans. Students will learn how to assess these lessons, resulting in data that correlates to student achievement.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Georgina Trebbe
3
TBD

LIS 464 - The Medieval Manuscript from Charlemagne to Gutenberg

This course will introduce students to the components of the medieval manuscript codex and teach them how to localize and date this kind of material, introducing them to the fields of paleography, codicology and manuscript illumination from the reign of Charlemagne in the ninth century to the invention of printing in the fifteenth. They will trace the development of book production and literate culture from its monastic origins to the later commercialization of the book trade. Different types of texts, such as Books of Hours, will be introduced. Students will learn the fundamentals of manuscript bibliographic description, and issues involving the modern book trade and curatorship of this type of material will be addressed.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Lisa Davis
3
TBD

LIS 467 - Web Development and Information Architecture

Organizing and structuring content to help individuals, communities, and organizations find and manage internal and external Web-based resources and services. Application of current coding, metadata, and style standards to create Web documents. Evaluation of Web site quality and usability, and assessment of resource discovery tools. Strategic planning and user needs analysis for information architecture. Content inventory, organization, and management in support of wayfinding and navigation. Design documents for prototyping large Web sites. Readings, essays, design projects, in-class presentations.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Naresh Agarwal
3
TBD

LIS 471 - Photographic Archives and Visual Information

Photographs as visual information. Problems of meaning, context, and definition. Responsibilities of the photo archivist. History of major types of photographic artifacts and development of photographic genres. Characteristics of 19th century processes. Special problems of subject access and remote access. Utilization by scholars, visual researchers, and communication industries. Onsite examination of management practices in a variety of institutions. Guest specialists include, when possible, visitors from special libraries, historical societies, major archives, museums, and picture agencies.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
20 2025/09/06 - 2025/12/13
Saturday
1:15PM - 4:05PM
Charles Abel
3
SLIS West

LIS 472 - Moving Image Archives

This course explores the primary formats, technologies, approaches, and social dimensions of archiving and preserving motion picture film, magnetic video tape, and digital moving images. We study the preservation of moving images from historical, theoretical, and critical perspectives that inform archival practice. Course topics include: the field of moving image archives; histories of moving image technologies; preservation approaches, field-specific standards; ethics; and the presentation of moving images.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Rhiannon Bettivia
3
TBD

LIS 477 - Digital Asset Management for Libraries, Archives and Museums

The increasingly digital nature of the cultural heritage milieu is driving convergence of practice in LAMS (libraries, archives and museum). Before appropriate technological solutions can be determined and implemented, requirements need to be defined and convincing use cases developed. Students taking this course learn the theoretical underpinnings and the practical skills specific to ascertaining user requirements, management and access of digital resources, focusing on commonalities among practice in libraries, archives, and museums. Three areas crucial to the effective management of digital assets are emphasized: use-case analysis, technological skills, and project management.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Peter Botticelli
3
TBD

LIS 481 - Library Collections and Materials for Children

This course addresses the evaluation, selection, and organization of materials for children (ages 0 - 12) in public and school library collections. Students will become familiar with materials for children in various formats, including the picture book, easy reader, transitional book, and chapter book; and will attend to fiction and nonfiction published to meet young people's recreational and curricular reading and information needs and interests. This course places strong emphasis on the evaluation of both individual items and library collections of children's material as well as on the selection of material for children for the purposes of collection development.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Melanie Kimball
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Amy Pattee
3
TBD

LIS 482 - Library Programs and Services for Children

This course examines trends and techniques in planning and delivering public library services to children and their families. Attention is paid to the learning needs and recreational interests of children through the various stages of childhood. Students have opportunities for observation and practice of storytelling and other program techniques. Emphasis on planning, developing, funding, publicizing and evaluation of services and programs.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Amy Pattee
3
TBD

LIS 483 - Library Collections and Materials for Young Adults

This course addresses the evaluation, selection, and organization of materials for young adults (young people ages 12 - 18) in public and school library collections. Students will become familiar with materials for young adults in various formats and genres, including traditional and graphic novels, and will attend to fiction and nonfiction published to meet young adults' recreational and curricular reading and information needs and interests. This course places strong emphasis on the evaluation of both individual items and library collections of young adult material as well as on the selection of material for young adults for the purposes of collection development.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Amy Pattee
3
TBD
OL01 TBD TBD
Melanie Kimball
3
TBD

LIS 485 - Introduction to Programming

Introduces computer science and programming using a high-level programming language (currently Python). Teaches program design in the context of contemporary practices both object oriented and procedural. Presents fundamental computer science topics through initiation and design of programs. Students learn to think logically and to apply this thinking to debugging computer programs.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Shengang Wang
3
Main Campus
OL01 TBD TBD
Zona Kostic
3
TBD

LIS 487 - Data Interoperability

Libraries and archives rely on data. While data is ubiquitous, the formats in which data is stored can vary widely. The differences in formats can hinder the accessibility of useful information and lead to difficulties in finding answers to questions. This class examines different data formats, and how the information they store can be transformed into other formats, and the inherent difficulties in some of these transformations. This class uses the Python programming language and related libraries to examine and transform data in a variety of formats, including .txt, CSV, XML, and JSON. By the end of the course, students will be able to write programs to perform these transformations accurately, and with awareness of potential ways that data can be lost or mistranslated.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Sarah Dirienzo
3
TBD

LIS 488 - Technology for Information Professionals

This course provides the conceptual foundation and context of computing, Internet and related technologies as used in information-intensive professions. With an emphasis both on concepts (along with an emphasis on terminology that appears in the professional literature) and skills (interactive demos and/or hands-on sessions), the course encourages students in trying out and learning new pieces of technology. The course provides an overview of topics such as how computers work (hardware, software, history of IT); networking; internet, related technologies and the future of WWW; content management systems; RDBMS and XML; ethics; security; information search and retrieval; the impact and implications of technological change on libraries, archives and other information centers; technology today and tomorrow; and other related topics. Along with providing the general technology foundation needed before taking other technology courses offered at SLIS, this course also introduces some of these other courses.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Naresh Agarwal
3
Main Campus
02 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Zona Kostic
3
Main Campus
20 2025/09/06 - 2025/12/13
Saturday
9:00AM - 11:50AM
Abigail Baines
3
SLIS West
OL01 TBD TBD
Naresh Agarwal
3
TBD
OL02 TBD TBD
Mei Zhang
3
TBD
OL03 TBD TBD
Mei Zhang
3
TBD
OL04 TBD TBD
Dane Groves
3
TBD

LIS 491 - Reader's Advisory & Popular Cultural Trends

This course is designed to teach students how to meet the popular reading needs of adult public library users. Genre fiction, literary fiction and non-fiction titles along with readers� advisory resources and tools are explored. The relationship of readers� advisory services with reference, and other library programs, research on adult reading, and with popular reading in an information society will be examined. While the course introduces the basic principles of reader�s advisory work, subjects or genre, because of the immense body of literature available, will be covered in a brief, introductory manner. The fiction genres included are adventure, western, mystery/crime, science fiction, fantasy, romance, historical fiction, Christian fiction, and horror. Non-fiction subjects include how-to-do-it, biography, self-improvement, and consumer health. Readers� advisory services including the interview, book lists, and book discussion groups are examined. Relevant research, trends and issues related to readers� advisory are discussed.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
Lisa Hussey
3
TBD

LIS 495 - Practicum Equivalent Experience (preK-12)

The Practicum Equivalent Experience provides students with the opportunity to apply in a school setting the skills and knowledge that he/she has learned throughout the School Library Teacher Program. If a student is currently working in a school library as "the teacher of record," he/she can choose to substitute one of the practica with a Practicum Equivalent Experience. The Practicum Equivalent Experience allows the student to receive credit for work experience gained at the school in which he/she is employed. The Practicum Equivalent Experience is done under the direction of a college supervisor and supervising practitioner. The minimum time requirement for a Practicum Equivalent Experience is 300 clock hours. Registration is made by arrangement with the Director of the School Library Teacher Program. LIS 495 is a capstone experience which is completed after all pre-practicum course work has been completed.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 TBD TBD
Arianna Lechan
3
TBD

LIS 498 - Practicum (PreK-8)

This is an educational field-based experience at the preK-8 grade level for students needing a practicum as certification requirement. Students will have the opportunity to practice school library skills and methods under the direction of a college supervisor and supervising practitioner. A minimum of 150 clock hours will be arranged. Registration is made by arrangement with the Director of the SLT program.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 TBD TBD
Arianna Lechan
3
TBD

LIS 499 - Practicum (7-12)

This is an educational field-based experience at the 7-12 grade level for students needing a practicum as certification requirement. Students will have the opportunity to practice school library skills and methods under the direction of a college supervisor and supervising practitioner. A minimum of 150 clock hours will be arranged. Registration is made by arrangement with the Director of the SLT program.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 TBD TBD
Arianna Lechan
3
TBD

LIS 505 - Special Topics in Library Science

This is a course open to a variety of subjects and topics. This provides faculty with the opportunity and flexibility to develop courses based on current interests and trends in the field. After a course has been offered several times, the faculty consider whether it will be entered into the regular curriculum or remain a special topics course. Please note that these courses are offered occasionally and are not part of the SLIS course rotation.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Don Simmons
3
TBD
OL02 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
TBD
3
TBD

LIS 506 - Government Archives

Course focuses on the specific settings, requirements, opportunities and challenges faced by organizations charged with the collection, preservation, access and retention of records created through the activity of governing. Starting from the notion of a "record' as it applies in a government context, this course explores the unique legal, social and ethical responsibilities of government archives. It investigates the imperative of the appraisal, preservation and access to those records in a democratic society. Government archives represent a key category of archival institutions that confront the tensions between access and recordkeeping, and this course explores traditional archival functions, using the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) as a point of analysis. In addition, the course will look at the challenges faced by State Archives as well as municipalities or towns. Topics covered will include the relationship and development of legislation and record keeping, the impact that that legislation can have on the mission of government, and the public's understanding and expectations of the institution. While the course primarily focuses on government agencies in a U.S. context, international government archives will be explored.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Katherine Wisser
3
TBD

LIS 507 - Museum Studies

This course provides a theoretical and practical introduction to Museum Studies. Students will read academic scholarship on the history of museums, the cultural and epistemological functions they have served and the ethical dilemmas they face. Through a combination of lectures, site visits and conversations with leaders in the field, they will also examine how real-world institutions organize, preserve and exhibit their collections, serve their audiences and make use of new technologies. Students will learn about professional roles including curation, collections management, registration, education and fundraising. The class will examine the continuing divide between arts institutions and historically marginalized communities, and analyze how (and how well) a variety of organizations are reaching out to diverse audiences today. Students taking this class at the graduate level will complete supplementary assignments and readings.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Heather Hole
3
Main Campus
OL01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Heather Hole
3
TBD

LIS 512 - Advanced Field Experience in Library and Information Science

This course is a focused field experience combined with a related academic components. The field experience involves a minimum of 130 hours in an LIS setting and approximately 20 hours of coursework completed online. As a 3-credit course, it has a significant hands-on learning component. Through discussion with key personnel in the organization and working under professional supervision, the student gains hands-on experience in the information environment. Examples of coursework include: readings; discussion forums; reflections or journal entries; and/or examples of field work. Prerequisite: 18 credit hours including all SLIS core and concentration requirements.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Mollie Metevier
3
TBD

LIS 600 - Supervised Study

Open only to students in the doctoral program. Required of all such students (1) not in residence in any regular semester in order to maintain matriculation, (2) not taking a course for credit during the fall or spring semester, and (3) working on their concept paper, proposal, or their field research project. Supervised study may not be applied toward academic credit requirements for the doctoral degree.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Kyong Eun Oh
TBD
TBD

LIS 620 - History, Concepts, and Research Opportunities

LIS 620 serves as a foundation and a cohort-building course. The course takes an international perspective in exploring historical developments, current issues, and research activities of interest to library and information science, archival studies, and related information fields. It reviews the history and major developments in LIS education and considers the role of scholarship in higher education. It introduces key topics related to the research process, including problem identification, funding opportunities, the communication of findings, use of human subjects, research ethics, and research misconduct. Assignments include papers, presentations, leading classroom discussion and completion of the Simmons College Institutional Review Board "Investigator 101" module. This is the required first course for SLIS Ph.D. students. MS students admitted with the permission of the instructor.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Adam Kriesberg
3
TBD

LIS 642 - Applied Statistics for Library & Information Science

This course covers basic statistical methods and tools for exploratory data analysis in social sciences, focusing on basic concepts of probability theory, experimental design, descriptive statistics, inferential statistics, and regression analysis.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
OL01 TBD TBD
Kyong Eun Oh
3
TBD

Literature & Writing

LTWR 107 - Creative Writing: Fiction

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/11
Tuesday, Thursday
12:30PM - 1:50PM
Farooz Rather
4
TBD
02 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/11
Tuesday, Thursday
9:30AM - 10:50AM
Patrick Sylvain
4
TBD

LTWR 108 - Contemplative Writing for Self-Knowledge

Introduces the practice of contemplative writing, with a focus on private writing and freewriting. Includes readings of classic and contemporary writers� diaries and essays, equips students with techniques of reflection, and incorporates communal writing and workshop sessions in a supportive setting.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
2:00PM - 4:50PM
Renee Bergland
4
TBD

LTWR 111 - Greek Mythology and Religion

Examines myths about the principle gods, goddesses, and heroes of ancient Greece, and the influence of Greek mythology on later literature, language, and the visual arts. Includes readings from Homer, Hesiod, Sappho, Ovid, and Greek dramatists.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/09
Tuesday
6:00PM - 8:50PM
TBD
4
TBD

LTWR 176 - African American Fiction

Analyzes repeated themes and rhetorical patterns found in literature by African American authors.  Investigates how social experiences and cultural productions (like music and religion) frame the literature. Readings extend from slave narratives to contemporary short stories and novels by African American writers

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/11
Tuesday, Thursday
5:00PM - 6:20PM
Patrick Sylvain
4
TBD

LTWR 195 - Art of Film

Serves as an introduction to film analysis by teaching the basics of mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing, and sound as well as fundamental principles of film narrative, style, genre, and theory. Films chosen from a number of different historical periods and national contexts, including classical Hollywood cinema.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/05 - 2025/12/12
Monday, Friday
2:00PM - 3:20PM
Suzanne Leonard
4
TBD

LTWR 199 - Approaches to Literature

An introduction to the English major, 199 provides a grounding in the skills and questions basic to the study of literature: how to trace an image, how a novelist constructs a character, what a poet is doing with meter and rhyme, and how to make comparisons between different texts. Required for all English majors.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/08 - 2025/12/08
Monday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Renee Bergland
4
TBD

LTWR 201 - Environmentalist Writing

So you want to do something to help save the planet. Awesome. But how? This integrative learning seminar will help you to build the research and writing skills you will need to express your own environmentalist vision.<br /> Faced with planetary extinction, we must pay attention to the nonhuman world as well as the human world. We need science. We need policy. We need ethics. We need art. In this course, we will explore the perspectives of poets, philosophers, activists and scientists. We will sharpen our own rhetorical skills in informal conversations, formal presentations, and �" most importantly �" in writing. Assignments will include creative non-fiction, Op-Eds, reviews, and essays stacked with scientific data.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Monday, Wednesday
5:00PM - 6:20PM
TBD
4
TBD

LTWR 229 - Resist! Political Resistance in Literature and Film

What does political resistance look like when it takes literary forms? In this course, we will explore how writers, filmmakers, activists, and thinkers have engaged in significant acts of political resistance across the 20th and 21st centuries, but those in positions of authority rarely recognize the superpowers of literary production. Let's change that. In this course, we'll ask how fiction, cinema, poetry, memoir, and song work to oppose tyranny and to create a more just world. We'll put literature into action by making politically relevant zines, pamphlets, playlists, and videos informed by significant theoretical writings from the modern age. Resist!

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/02 - 2025/12/11
Tuesday, Thursday
3:30PM - 4:50PM
Farooz Rather
4
TBD

LTWR 265 - Modern(ist) Women

Considers the innovations of the modernist novel in English, from the end of the Victorian era through High Modernism (1901-1945). Writers studied may include Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, E.M. Forster, Henry James, Radclyffe Hall, Rebecca Wells, and Winifred Holtby. Focuses may include war; suffrage; women and education; women and work.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
8:00AM - 10:50AM
Andrew Koenig
4
TBD

LTWR 310 - Advanced Creative Writing Workshop

Serves as an advanced-level workshop for creative writers seeking a space in which to concentrate on craft and participate in sophisticated discussions of their writing. Requires completion of a manuscript worthy of being submitted for publication and an essay on theory and practice. Will focus on a specific genre each semester (Public Humanities, Creative Non-Fiction, Fiction, or Poetry).

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/03 - 2025/12/10
Wednesday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Farooz Rather
4
TBD

LTWR 327 - Psychoanalysis, Race, and Sexuality

Investigates psychoanalysis as a theoretical discourse that has been forced continually to rewrite itself as it rethinks and makes room for the concepts of race and gender. Focuses upon Freud, Lacan, and more recent scholars and theorists who have used race and gender to redefine psychoanalysis.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Patrick Sylvain
4
TBD

LTWR 527 - Psychoanalysis, Race, and Sexuality

Investigates psychoanalysis as a theoretical discourse that has been forced continually to rewrite itself as it rethinks and makes room for the concepts of race and gender. Focuses upon Freud, Lacan, and more recent scholars and theorists who have used race and gender to redefine psychoanalysis.

Section Section Dates Time Instructor Credits Location
01 2025/09/04 - 2025/12/11
Thursday
11:00AM - 1:50PM
Patrick Sylvain
4
TBD
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