Dear School Library Media Specialist,

My name is Carrie Packer, and I am an MLIS student at Southern Connecticut State University. I am currently working on my Capstone Special Project titled Reclassifying Autism: A Study of Connecticut Librarians, the Dewey Decimal Classification System, and Evolving Standards.

The purpose of this research is to explore how autism-related topics are currently classified within the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system in Connecticut public and school libraries and to gauge librarians’ awareness of new research and professional guidelines that may influence classification practices.

I am inviting School Library Media Specialists who are involved in classifying materials in their libraries to participate in a brief online survey. The survey includes multiple-choice and open-ended questions, takes approximately 10 minutes to complete, and will remain open until October 27, 2025. You can access it here:

Survey for School Library Media Specialists 

Participation is voluntary, and you may skip any question or stop at any time without penalty. No personal or identifying information (such as names or emails) will be collected, and all responses will remain confidential. Data will be stored in a password-protected account accessible only to me.

There are no known risks or direct benefits associated with participating in this study. The results will be used solely to fulfill the requirements of my MLIS special project and will be shared only with Southern Connecticut State University faculty and students in my course and will be presented at the ILS research forum at SCSU. The results will not be published or made public.

If you have any questions about this study, or if you would like a summary of the results when the project is complete, please contact me at packerc2@southernct.edu. You may also contact my faculty advisor, Dr. Saira Soroya at soroyas1@southernct.edu with any questions about your rights as a participant.

By clicking the survey link above and submitting your responses, you indicate that you are 18 years of age or older and that you voluntarily consent to participate in this research study.

Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

Sincerely, 

Carrie Packer 

MLIS Candidate 

Southern Connecticut State University