New grant to help libraries increase information literacy around scientific information

Jodi Schneider
Jodi Schneider, Associate Professor

Assistant Professor Jodi Schneider has been awarded a three-year, $416,760 Early Career Development grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS grant RE-250162-OLS-21), under the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program, which supports innovative research by untenured, tenure-track faculty.

Her project, "Strengthening Public Libraries' Information Literacy Services Through an Understanding of Knowledge Brokers’ Assessment of Technical and Scientific Information," seeks to clarify how knowledge brokers—such as journalists, Wikipedia editors, and activists—assess the quality of scientific information. The project has implications for public access, information literacy, and understanding of science on policy-relevant topics.

"Library-based services to knowledge brokers have the potential to change the amount of misinformation circulating," said Schneider. "Complex scientific and technical information is highly relevant to the average person: It affects policy, legislation, and choices people make in their day-to-day lives."

For her project, Schneider will interview knowledge brokers and analyze documents they have written. Each year of the project will focus on a different case study: COVID-19, climate change, and artificial intelligence and labor. During the last 18 months of the project, Schneider will work with five public libraries to co-develop services that they can use.

"By implementing the services developed in this project, public libraries will be able to help consumers of information become more discerning about the sources they deem reliable as well as more skilled at processing information for themselves," she said.

The project draws on the work from her Linowes Fellowship with the Cline Center, where she has been investigating the polarization of health information in news.

Schneider studies the science of science through the lens of arguments, evidence, and persuasion. Her long-term research agenda analyzes controversies applying science to public policy; how knowledge brokers influence citizens; and whether controversies are sustained by citizens' disparate interpretations of scientific evidence and its quality. Schneider holds a PhD in informatics from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and master's degrees in library and information science from the University of Illinois and mathematics from the University of Texas at Austin.

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Spectrum Scholar Spotlight: Dalia Ortiz Pon

Twelve iSchool master's students were named 2024–2025 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This "Spectrum Scholar Spotlight" series highlights the School's scholars. MSLIS student Dalia Ortiz Pon earned her bachelor's degree in Latina/Latino studies from San Francisco State University. 

Dalia Ortiz Pon

Debnath datafies "The Bulletin"

MSIM student Tan Debnath, whose interests span data mining, statistical modeling, text mining, and digital humanities, joined the Center for Children's books as a research assistant. He was tasked with building curation processes that would datafy seventy-five years' worth of archival issues of The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, one of the nation's leading children's book review journals.

Tan Debnath stands casually with his hands in his pockets and smiles broadly at the camera. It's a sunny day

He receives Amazon Research Award to improve monitoring of Earth’s ecosystem

A new project led by Professor Jingrui He aims to help scientists monitor disruptions to the Earth’s ecosystem, such as climate change. She recently received support for her work through an Amazon Research Award, which includes $60,000 in cash and an additional $40,000 in Amazon Web Services (AWS) credits.

Jingrui He

iSchool undergraduates selected as 2025 Community-Academic Scholars

The Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute (IHSI) has selected BSIS student Dhanvi Puttur and BSIS+DS student Lara Terpetschnig as 2025 Community-Academic Scholars. Representing nineteen majors and nine minors in eight colleges and schools at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and two additional universities, the eighteen scholars in this cohort encompass diverse fields of study, from community health to graphic design to statistics. 

BSIS+DS student Lara Terpetschnig and BSIS student Dhanvi Puttur

Scholarship provides validation, motivation for Martinez

BSIS+DS student Fabian Martinez chose his major because he wanted to learn how to help people understand and interpret data and information. While his immediate plans include finding a job in data analytics, business analytics, consulting, or product management, his ultimate goal is "to create meaningful relationships and help make a meaningful impact in the world" in whatever way he can.

Fabian Martinez graduation