CCI Alumnus to host guest lecture presentation for SIS
College of Communication and Information alumnus Kevin Mallary is ensuring everyone is included in the conversation through his research on disabilities and accessibility.
Mallary is an assistant professor of library and information studies at Old Dominion University. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in communication at Wake Forest University and earned his PhD in communication and information from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Mallary has done extensive research on the use of assistive technologies in academic libraries and whether or not the delivery process provided by academic libraries is actually meeting students and their needs. His dissertation, supervised by SIS Professor Devendra Potnis, explored the experiences of university students with autism using academic library and information services.
“Something that I’ve always been passionate about is how people with disabilities, whether it’s students with disabilities or library patrons, are able to access, use, and benefit from information,” he said.
Mallary is currently working on a grant that looks at the accessibility and usability of library services for patrons who are deaf and hard of hearing. He said his research interests come from his lived experiences.
“That has been really important to me as somebody who is profoundly deaf. So doing research with a community that you don’t necessarily see represented in literature is refreshing. I’m able to build rapport with participants, both in terms of being neurodiverse, but also being deaf. So, it’s been really interesting to see how technology can connect information to people who have a variety of needs that otherwise could not be met,” he explained.
Mallary was born four months early and weighed only 1 pound and 5 ounces. He said disability and accessibility were two topics he has always been aware of and he wants others to understand the importance of keeping these topics at the forefront of peoples’ minds.
“It’s really important that we keep having these conversations and that information professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skill, and the opportunity to go out and do such meaningful work,” he said.
Mallary will be presenting a lecture 1 pm March 5 in CCI’s Scripps Convergence Lab Ed Ingle Theatre to talk about certain practices information professionals can use to embrace community members with autism.
“What I really hope is that current students, whether they’re in SIS or any of the other schools within CCI, are made more aware of the increasing rise of neurodiverse patrons in libraries and information spaces including higher education,” he said.
As a VFL, Mallary said he’s thankful to be asked to speak at his alma mater and to talk about a topic that means so much to him personally.
“It’s exciting to be invited back to UT and to CCI. I love finding every reason to get back there. It’s really indicative of CCI’s desire to include alumni in important conversations. It helps broaden everybody’s collective understanding of what it means to be diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible,” he said.If you are not able to make it to his in person lecture, there is a virtual option via Zoom
CCI Alumnus to host guest lecture presentation for SIS written by Kristen Gallant and originally published on the College of Communication & Information site.