Keep Teaching: Leveraging Disruption as a Catalyst for Change

abstract:In response to the COVID-19 global pandemic, the University of Maryland (UMD) Libraries quickly switched to online teaching and learning. This disruption created a chance for innovation, allowing the UMD Libraries to scale back nonessential functions and focus on improving mission-critical work. The authors present the teaching program at UMD Libraries as a case study for innovation under pressure, highlighting three areas: (1) redevelopment of the Fearless Teaching Institute, an online professional development program for library teachers; (2) transition of a fundamental program—the Academic Writing Program—from an in-person to an online learning environment; and (3) redesign of the Research and Teaching Fellowship, a teacher training program for master of library and information science (MLIS) students, all to better support online learning and pedagogy.