When San José State University School of Information student Myles Jaeschke saw a call for volunteer moderators for this fall’s Library 2.012 Worldwide Virtual Conference, a global event for information professionals, he jumped at the chance to put to use the skills he learned as a student assistant, where he helped students and faculty learn to use the school’s Collaborate web conferencing system.

“The Library 2.012 conference had so much to offer. There were hundreds of sessions presented by LIS experts from around the world,” said Jaeschke, who moderated four conference sessions, where presenters logged in from New Zealand and other Pacific Rim countries.

As a moderator, Jaeschke received training to manage the introductory slides for each session and help presenters get their slides ready. He was also responsible for resolving any technical issues that arose during the sessions.

“One of my presenters needed help moving some slides around right before the presentation began,” Jaeschke recalled. “Others needed help fielding all the comments in the chat box during the session, so part of my job was making sure the presenter saw all the questions.”

While some presenters had experience working with Collaborative web conferencing software, Jaeschke said that others were brand new to it. “So part of my job was making the presenters feel comfortable with the format.” In addition to helping presenters, Jaeschke assisted attendees, sometimes taking them into virtual breakout rooms for assistance troubleshooting such things as audio.

“Now I’m an expert working in Collaborate,” said Jaeschke, who has worked in a public library for 17 years. “The skills I gained as a Collaborate Assistant and as a moderator at Library 2.012 are huge – I know how to troubleshoot technical issues and can facilitate sessions.”

During fall 2012, Jaeschke served as a moderator for several iSchool professors who require Collaborate sessions in their courses. As a Collaborate assistant, Jaeschke was enrolled in a 3-unit Special Studies course with instructor Debbie Faires, where he not only gained expertise using Collaborate software, but also gained experience as an instructor.

“Part of the Special Studies coursework is to teach incoming INFO 203 students how to use Collaborate. That experience taught me how to present online. I’ve become a better speaker in a group setting because of it.”

With a target graduation date of December 2013, Jaeschke plans to stay in his current position of Media Selector in the Collection Development department at the Tulsa City-County Public Library, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Because of his extensive experience in public libraries, Jaeschke has selected coursework to balance the skills he has already acquired professionally, including the Collaborate assistance work.

Favorite Blog

Librarian In Black: “Sarah Houghton and I see eye-to-eye on most things. She’s not afraid to speak her mind.”

Influential Classes

INFO 220 (Film & Media) and INFO 220 (Music Librarianship) “In the film class, I created a LibGuide for films made in Tulsa and surrounding areas. It’s on our library’s website.”

Best Conference

National Media Market: “I attended this conference for many years and am a past chair– if you work in collection development, it’s a great opportunity to preview films, especially documentaries.”