Mix IT Up!: A Blending of Community Informatics and Youth Services Librarianship to Further Social Justice in Library and Information Science Education

Mix IT Up! is a library and information science (LIS) education initiative blending theories and approaches in community informatics and youth services librarianship in order to further social justice agendas. It is based on collaboration with community partners who share similar interests and objectives. Prior to launching Mix IT Up!, community members identified a pressing need to engage with local youth more effectively. Mix IT Up! was developed to address this critical gap. From 2011 to 2015, Mix IT Up! enabled a broad array of community-based connections and projects related to youth advocacy and information technologies—the “IT” in the title—and provided robust opportunities for LIS students to gain experience in community engagement. Mix IT Up! serves as a model of effective practice in LIS education.