Keely Smith Email & Phone Number

As a youth services collection development librarian, I buy materials for children and teens at Anythink's seven branches and bookmobile. I love reading reviews, looking at trends, and being "in the know" in the publishing industry. I evaluate databases, online, and physical materials for purchase and also work with the rest of the buying team to curate our “TryIts” collection for all ages. Developing a collection as diverse as our population has been my primary focus. Our mission at Anythink is to “open doors for curious minds” and I love being part of it!I have also proven to be a capable leader, teacher, and creative guru as I have led meetings of my coworkers, managed projects, and allowed to run with my creative ideas. Some of my accomplishments and duties include:• Communicating with Adams County school teachers to buy books to support their curriculum• Project leader for book subscription box program “Anythink Box,” which won the City of Northglenn business award• Spearheaded the “Vibrant-See” project to purchase and circulate EnChroma glasses for colorblind customers• Project leader for multiple collection diversity audits• Developed and co-lead intellectual freedom training for employees

My position at BPL evolved during my time there. When I started as a Reference Specialist on the Collection Development team at the Main Library, I was in charge of collection development, maintenance, and purchasing of periodicals. I also became the head purchaser for the children and teen collections, which was a blast! My collection development work was balanced daily with serving our patrons at the reference desk where I provided friendly, solution-oriented reference service. Through departmental changes, I transitioned from the Main Library to a smaller branch where I offered weekly storytimes and family programming in addition to collection development work.

As a research assistant at Penrose Library at the University of Denver, I primarily helped students and faculty with their research in person, over the phone, via email, and chat. I gathered scholarly information from online databases and taught research techniques. I enforced library policies, calmly assisted with computer and printer errors, and provided cheerful customer service to the DU community. I also exercised my creativity by creating book displays, both academic and for entertainment, which earned me the responsibility of book display manager.

As a library clerk at a public library in Minnesota, customer service and teamwork were top priorities. Working the front-lines, I enjoyed being a friendly face and source of information for visitors while at the same time supporting my coworkers. At the information desk , I informed guests of our policies, registered patrons for library cards, and took payments for fines. Behind the scenes, I updated the status of materials, processed requests, shelved books, and maintained materials.

As a Personal Care Attendant for a 12-year-old girl with autism, I proved to be a patient and capable problem solver. For example, I developed a successful rewards system that helped shape desired behaviors. This system reduced outbursts and other negative behaviors by holding her accountable for the availability of weekly privileges. My responsibilities included safely driving her to therapy and other activities, preparing meals, and overseeing her general welfare.

Performed detail-oriented work in the interlibrary loan department. I processed requests by comparing them to our catalog holdings using OCLC, Workflows, and RAPID; then stealthily hunted for the books and articles to ship worldwide. Solving cases of lost materials also became a valuable skill.

As a summer intern at ArtReach Alliance, a non-profit arts organization, I proved to be artistic, organized, and a conscientious program planner who is involved in the community. I designed my own outreach program serving children living in low-income housing: I planned and taught weekly art lessons and inspired the children to create a finished product that was later put on display . I also proudly represented the organization and taught art projects at parks and community events.

Mlis, Library & Information Science

Activities and Societies: ALA- DU student chapter, ALSC, CAL, CLEL

Bs, Psychology