Course Proposal Submissions

Are you an established expert in rare books, special collections, and print culture? Or perhaps an expert in library and information studies, critical librarianship, or data studies? CalRBS encourages course proposals on innovative topics that build on its vast array of courses focusing on rare books, special collections, and manuscripts.

CalRBS is especially interested in the following areas as they relate to rare books, libraries, archives, and museums:

  • Grant Writing
  • Advanced Pedagogy and Teaching 
  • Remote Course Programming and Design
  • Space Planning and Innovative Alternatives 
  • Social Media
  • Programming for ESL and Bilingual Constituencies
  • Data Preservation
  • Digital Knowledge Repatriation
  • Crisis Recordkeeping
  • Public Libraries and At-Risk Populations
  • Sustainability Studies
  • Climate Change Impacts on the Profession
  • Grassroots Communities
  • Archives Organization
  • Reappraisal and De-Accessioning
  • Digital Methods for Research and Scholarship
  • Data Activism
  • Collection Development for Specific Communities
  • Ink and Papermaking (Maker studio and/or history of)
  • Children and Young Adults and Public Libraries 
  • Primary sources in K-12 Education
  • History, production, and publishing of children’s books
  • Material, Collections, and Institutions through Indigenous and First Nation lenses
  • International Librarianship, Bibliography, and Rare Books
  • Disability Studies
  • Feminist and Gender Studies
  • Postcolonial, Decolonial and Critical Development studies
  • History of small presses and independent publishing in Los Angeles/California/U.S. and beyond
  • Gastronomy, cook books, and food culture
  • Topic and survey courses that focus on undergraduate and high school students

Courses that focus on critical analysis, diversity, ethics, and promote justice-oriented approaches are especially welcome. In addition to these areas, we are looking for courses that fill identified gaps in the current CalRBS curriculum. While new courses can extend beyond the domain of rare books and special collections, they should contextualize rare books within a larger library and information economy, emphasizing the importance of book and print culture throughout the discipline of Information Studies.

To recommend a course, please complete the Course Proposal Form, and email to <calrbs [at] gseis.ucla.edu>.

If you have any questions, please contact CalRBS Director, Robert D. Montoya at <montoya [at] gseis.ucla.edu>.