iSchool courses are taught by a mix of faculty, instructional staff, and working practitioners. Jacob Ineichen has taught a variety of courses for the iSchool including LIS 644 Digital Tools, Trends, and Debates and LIS 646 Introduction to Information Architecture. In Spring 2022, he is teaching LIS 640 Web Development.
Jacob Ineichen’s library career path boils down to networking and trying things out. While attending the iSchool, he tried all the avenues – archives, cataloging, digital tools, tribal libraries, book history and print cultures – and eventually became “the website guy” at his job in the outreach office in the School of Education. When he began work at his current position as a Digital Services Librarian at Madison Public Library, he maintained connections with the iSchool through ALA conferences and committee work. When he heard about the need of an on-campus technology instructor, he decided to give back.
Ineichen keeps conversations going in the classroom. He likes learning with and from his students each semester, and his students help him keep up to date on web trends and digital tools. What he learns in one semester can be applied to the next.
His advice for students is to try new and different things so as to not get used to the idea that librarians do only one set of tasks. “Librarianship as a field is varied and vast and full of so many different types of experiences.” Ineichen also advises students to use available resources. “In most situations, you will find that someone you know usually has wisdom and experience to share that could help you.” He has found that if you respect people’s knowledge and time, they are almost always willing to answer your questions. He added, “This works especially well if you make friends and find colleagues who come from different backgrounds than you. Or are just smarter. That works well, too.”