Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hi Hamaxides! As promised by the Wikipedia Library team at the inception of the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group, we are conducting an open-election for the steering committee with 5 to 8 positions. Nominations will be accepted from 3 January 2018 to 9 January 2018. If you are interested in being a part of this committee, you can nominate yourself starting January 2nd next year. This position should attract Wikipedians and librarians with dedication and time to lead the user group in its first year. The elections will happen following the nominations phase starting from 10 January 2018 to 23 January 2018. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact WikiLibraryUG [at] googlegroups [dot] com. A message will be sent shortly before the dates linking to the venue for nominations and election. Thank you! On behalf of the user group founding members--MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 04:40, 13 December 2017 (UTC)Reply
Wikimedia and Libraries User Group Steering Committee Election Nomination Phase
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hello again Hamaxides! As stated in our previous message, nominations for the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group steering committee elections are now open and will remain open until the 9th. If you are interested and have read the instructions, please nominate yourself on the election page. Please forward your queries to librarieslists.wikimedia.org, and for private correspondence, please get in touch with one of the founding members. And finally, wishing you a prosperous and happy new year on behalf of the user group founding members! On behalf of the user group founding members --MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 08:00, 3 January 2018 (UTC)Reply
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hello once again! We are happy to announce that the steering committee election 2018 is now open for voting. Because you have joined the user group by 21 January 2018, you are eligible to vote. As mentioned under the instructions for voters, you can vote support for multiple candidates, at most one support for each candidate. Also, oppose votes are not allowed, but discussions are welcome on the talk page.
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hello everyone! The steering committee election for the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group is finally over and the results you were patiently awaiting for is here! We had many great candidates with awesome skillsets and experience, unfortunately not everyone could make it to the final eight. We are grateful to all the candidates for stepping up and boldly throwing their hat in the ring. It was a difficult choice and they made it. Now, the results. The candidates who made it to the final eight are,
On behalf of the founding members, the TWL team and the user group members, we congratulate the candidates on their successful run and welcome them to the committee. The steering committee and the founding members will soon meet to discuss the handover and next steps of the user group. Thank you--MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 18:56, 16 February 2018 (UTC)Reply
What's new from the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hi Hamaxides! Greetings from the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group. Yes, you heard that right! We are now officially known as the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group (previously, Wikipedia Library User Group). New group contacts are User:Merrilee and User:Sodapopinski7. The elected steering committee has been meeting twice a month ever since their election, working on the organisation and details of user group functioning. Progress is being made and we'd like to keep the members updated.
The steering committee invites you to participate in this poll to help the committee plan activities this year.
The committee decided to use the librarieslists.wikimedia.org and has started making announcements on the list. Please join the list for future announcements and for internal discussions and communications.
The latest meeting minutes of the steering committee meeting (May 14-15, 2018) is now available on Meta.
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hi Hamaxides! Greetings from the Wikimedia and Libraries User Group. Thank you for participating in the poll to help the steering committee plan activities for the year 2018. We received 84 responses, and the results can be found on the resources page. In addition to that, there are a few more things we'd like to share with you.
If you are attending Wikimania,
Bring your books! You can participate in the book swapping we have planned, and swap/leave your books on the table. More details here
If you are not attending Wikimania,
we have you covered too!
Please help us plan activities for this year by sharing your suggestions on how to implement the top two ideas from the poll results. The discussion is open on the user group talk page.
The latest meeting minutes of the steering committee meeting (June 28-29, 2018) is now available on Meta.
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hi there - apologies for the late notice, but I wanted to make sure Ohio Wikimedians are aware. Proposal submissions and scholarship applications for WikiConference North America 2018 (Oct 18-21 in Columbus) are due today (August 15). If you have any projects or ideas to share through a presentation, roundtable, etc., I encourage you to make a submission. If you would be traveling from out of Columbus to attend the conference and need funding for a hotel + transportation, $500 scholarships are being offered (apply here).
We have also started an accommodations and transportation guide for visitors here - if you have information and recommendations to add, I encourage you to edit the page.
I know some folks have expressed interest in helping out with the event. We'll have public information very soon for opportunities to help with logistics and sponsorship, as well as a sign-up form for volunteering to help out at the conference itself. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out to me. Thank you! ~SuperHamsterTalkContribs18:11, 15 August 2018 (UTC)Reply
Latest comment: 6 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hello! Kevin from the Ohio Wikimedians and WikiConference North America here. As a quick reminder, WikiConference NA is happening Oct 18-21 at the Ohio State University Libraries. The schedule has been posted (more to come), and registration is open as well. If you'd like to attend, I encourage you to register as soon as possible - especially if you're interested in the pre-conference events, as they're filling up rather quickly. If you're on Facebook, we also have an attendees group for folks to coordinate travel, logistics, and ask questions. We also have a new volunteer coordinator, who is working on creating the on-boarding process for volunteers to help out at the event - you'll hear from me again when that's ready, if volunteering interests you. Any questions, feel free to reach me on my talk page. Thanks and hope to see you later this month! ~SuperHamsterTalkContribs08:17, 1 October 2018 (UTC)Reply
Wikimedia and Libraries User Group Steering Committee Election Voting Phase
Latest comment: 5 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Hello Hamaxides! We are happy to announce that the steering committee election 2019 is now open for voting. Because you have joined the user group before 28 February 2019, you are eligible to vote. Not unlike last year, you can vote support for multiple candidates, at most one support for each candidate. Also, oppose votes are not allowed, but discussions are welcome on the talk page.
Latest comment: 5 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
General Updates
To facilitate casual conversations between members, we now have a Facebook group! If you're on Facebook, feel free to request to join.
Kevin has prepared a 2019 Activities Rapid Grant to support our user group's activities through the end of the year. This includes funding for edit-a-thons, Wikipedia Connection activities at Ohio State, and other potential events. Please give it a review, and provide endorsements at the bottom and/or comments on the talk page. If you would like to plan an activity or can think of something that could be funded that isn't already included, please bring it up! The goal is to have the grant submitted for review early in the week.
Our membership list has been revamped and supports the addition of new details (such as name, picture, location, and titles). Members are welcome to update their entry if they wish (all details are optional).
Movement Strategy
Sam (PonyToast) and Maria (Rimmel.Edits) have signed up to serve as our Organized Groups Strategy Liaisons; through December, Strategy Liaisons will act as a conduit for ideas, questions, and updates between the Movement Strategy and organized groups such as our own. Thank you to both members for taking this on!
The Wikimedia Summit 2019 just came to a conclusion. Maria Rimmel (Rimmel.Edits) served as our representative this year, following her work at the Ohio State University and WikiConference North America. This year's event had a heavy focus on the Movement Strategy Process and its Working Groups. Maria will be providing updates and outcomes of the conference on the user group talkpage soon - keep an eye out!
Upcoming and Ongoing Events
This May is the election for two Affiliate-Selected Board Seats for the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees. The Ohio Wikimedians User Group will be eligible to cast one vote. Be on the lookout for updates on how we will decide our vote.
Two edit-a-thons are being hosted for Ohio State Department of Spanish and Portuguese students this month. One edit-a-thon is focusing on improving Wikipedia's coverage of female and under-representated language scientists, and the other on Latinx studies.
Recent Events
WikiConference North America 2018 (Oct 18-21) at the Ohio State University was a great success! Over 200 attendees (including those representing over 15 Wikimedia affiliates and 25 academic institutions) attended the 70+ sessions we had. A big thanks goes to all the event's organizers, volunteers (including those from Ohio Wikimedians), sponsors, and session hosts. View the full report (work in progress) for more details and outcomes. You can also check out the photos on the Commons.
"By doing an event like this, we can show people that you can edit; your contributions are valid; your contributions are valued. Beyond valued: necessary," Dalesio said.
Alden Library at Ohio University also independently hosted an Art+Feminism edit-a-thon on March 22. Check out the event page for more details. Outcomes included editing 27 articles, including the creation of a new one.
"We will be encouraging participants to use our collections to create and strengthen articles, and Library volunteers will be available help them do this effectively. In doing so, we hope to encourage participants to move beyond the role of information consumer, and to consider how they can enrich the information landscape—and maybe leave the internet a better place than they found it," Jennings stated.
Have something for the next newsletter? Add it to our May 2019 draft.
Latest comment: 5 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
General Updates
WikiProject Cleveland Museum of Art — Kevin (SuperHamster) and Maria (Rimmel.Edits) have been collaborating with Neal Stimler and the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) to launch WikiProject Cleveland Museum of Art on the English Wikipedia! Back in January, the CMA announced its conversion into an Open Access institution—and part of this initiative included the upload of thousands of photos and Wikidata items on CMA artworks. This WikiProject has been created to improve Wikipedia's coverage of topics related to the CMA, such as artworks and artists featured in the Museum's collections, while being able to leverage the great resources that have been released into the public domain. If you'd like to join in, please sign up to be a member here. We have an expanding list of articles to create here.
Mailing list live! — We now have admin access to the previously-deprecated Wikimedia-US-OH mailing list. All members are encouraged to subscribe here. Anyone who would like to communicate to subscribed members can email wikimedia-us-oh@lists.wikimedia.org.
Membership List — Reminder that our membership list has been revamped and supports the addition of new details (such as name, picture, location, and titles). Members are welcome to update their entry if they wish (all details are optional).
Movement Strategy
The Movement Strategy Working Groups have created their recommendations, located here. Community input will be accepted until September 15, so if you would like to provide feedback, be sure to do so in the next couple weeks.
Upcoming and Ongoing Events
Wiki Loves Monuments is back in the United States for 2019. Through the end of September, upload your photos of registered historical sites to the Commons to help document our history and illustrate Wikipedia - and have a shot at winning the national contest. If you're interested in participating, a guide to finding historic sites in Ohio is available here.
In April, two edit-a-thons were hosted at the Ohio State University:
The Female and Under-represented Language Scientists edit-a-thon, hosted by the Hispanic Linguistic Colloquium in collaboration with the Buckeye Language Network (BLN) Student Association. The goal of the event was to improve articles on under-represented language scientists. 11 editors contributed 50+ edits that consisted of 1.54k words across 24 articles, including one new article.
The Spanish & Portuguese Edit-A-Thon, hosted by students from the Spanish and Portuguese department (Dona pipoca and Caesarologia, with support from SuperHamster). The edit-a-thon focused on expanding coverage of Spanish and Portuguese topics on the English Wikipedia, primarily by translating articles from Spanish/Portuguese to English. In doing so, attendees sharpened their Spanish/Portuguese skills, gained experience editing Wikipedia, and learned about new topics. 23 editors contributed 180+ edits that consisted of 15.8k words across 70 articles, including four new articles.
Wikimania 2019 took place in Stockholm this year, with several Ohio Wikimedians attending. If you're interested in some of the sessions, many of them were recorded and are available on the Commons here.
Have something for the next newsletter? Add it to our October 2019 draft.
Latest comment: 4 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
Upcoming and Ongoing Events
Cleveland Museum of Art Open Access Anniversary Campaign — January 23rd (today!) is the one-year anniversary of the Cleveland Museum of Art's Open Access program. To celebrate, we are hosting an editing campaign (with postcard souvenirs!) from now through February 9. Help expand and create articles related to the Cleveland Museum of Art (including artists and artworks featured in their collection), and receive a postcard from the Museum. If you'd like to participate, check out the task list and sign up on the event page.
Recent Events
In December, the Cincinnati Art Museum hosted an Art+Feminism edit-a-thon. The museum was an excellent place to have an edit-a-thon, with a café and staff who were helpful in setting up and ensuring there were enough tables, outlets, and plenty of resource materials available. There was a related exhibit, Women Breaking Boundaries, that was of interest to attendees. In total, 9 people attended.
Movement Strategy
The Movement Strategy document, with 13 recommendations, has been released and is located here. You may utilize each recommendation's respective talk page to leave any feedback you might have.
Between February and March 2020, the recommendations will be finalized, incorporating final feedback. By the end of March 2020, the recommendations are slated to be approved by the Wikimedia Foundation's Board of Trustees.
Kevin (SuperHamster) will be attending Wikimedia Summit 2020 on behalf of the Ohio Wikimedians. This year's Summit will be focusing on discussing the implementation of the finalized Movement Strategy recommendations. Please get in touch with Kevin if you have ideas and suggestions that you would like conveyed.
Latest comment: 4 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
General Updates
I hope this message finds you well and in good health during these trying times. Below is a list of some online activities that you may be interested in participating in.
The Wiki Global Check In has started! This initiative is gathering check-ins from Wikimedians all around the world, and asks for a photo that captures something related to life in your context or part of the world during the pandemic.
WALRUS (Wikimedians Active in Local Regions of the United States) is now hosting virtual meetings twice a month on Monday evenings. This is a place to discuss anything Wikimedia, as well as a place for Wikimedians to come together and mutually support each other. The next virtual meeting should be on Memorial Day, May 25th. You can sign up for the Wikimediaus-l mailing list to stay up to date on all WALRUS happenings and to receive meeting invites.
Wikipedians have been busy documenting the pandemic. In Ohio, we have articles on the pandemic in Ohio and in Columbus (the latter of which was written by our newest Ohio Wikimedians member, Ɱ!). If interested, you're encouraged to help update and expand these articles, or even consider creating articles documenting the pandemic in other Ohio metro areas.
If you miss visiting your local museums, don't forget that the Cleveland Museum of Art's entire collection is available online and in the public domain (when permissible). Our WikiProject Cleveland Museum of Art is currently tracking 44 English Wikipedia articles and 40,322 images, which are now acquiring over 2,000,000 views a month. If you're interested in contributing, there is still plenty of work to be done to expand and create new articles!
Movement Strategy
The finalized Movement Strategy Recommendations have been published! This is a clarified and refined version of the recommendations that were released in January.
The Wikimedia Summit 2020 that was to occur in April was canceled, and Wikimedia Deutschland will not be hosting a virtual replacement. In its stead, Ryan Merkley, members of the movement strategy core team, and external consultants are exploring options to move the contents of the conference into a series of virtual events.
Have something for the next newsletter? Add it to our June 2020 draft.
lists.wikimedia.org, and for private correspondence, please get in touch with one of the founding members. And finally, wishing you a prosperous and happy new year on behalf of the user group founding members! On behalf of the user group founding members --MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 08:00, 3 January 2018 (UTC)
lists.wikimedia.org and has started making announcements on the list. Please join the list for future announcements and for internal discussions and communications.
Facebook group! If you're on Facebook, feel free to request to join.
Columbus Metropolitan Library tour
Thursday group photo at the Thompson Memorial Library
Friday group photo at the Thompson Memorial Library
Wiki Education Foundation group photo
