Wikipedia Editing Party scheduled to increase UIU community entries

History, campus life, academics, athletics, notable alumni, and military friendliness − these are all topics briefly incorporated into Upper Iowa University’s (UIU) Wikipedia page. However, a significant amount of information relevant to these and other points of interest are either outdated or yet to be included. With this in mind, a UIU and Fayette community Wikipedia Editing Party will be held Tuesday, January 16. The event begins at 6 p.m. in the Henderson-Wilder Library – Lakin Lab at Fayette Campus. Pizza and refreshments will be served.

“Wikipedia is currently the seventh most visited website in the United States,” UIU Archivist Jeanette Garcia said.  “It is for the best interest of UIU and the Fayette community that the posted information is accurate, complete and up-to-date. One of the struggles that Wikipedia faces is in providing unbiased and verifiable information. For that reason, Upper Iowa University employees and Fayette city employees are requested to not edit their own pages. However, we are hoping that through teamwork we can share our expertise and information with others who can edit those pages.”

Garcia noted that a common goal of Wikipedia and public libraries is to provide free and open access to information. The upcoming event will allow local residents to come together, edit and improve specific topics or types of content related to the UIU and Fayette community.

Those who attend the event will be provided a brief introduction to Wikipedia and editing.  For simplicity and convenience, Google Doc pages for Upper Iowa University and Fayette have been created.  The Google Doc pages are open, allowing those without a Google account to edit them, and they are designed to allow multiple people to edit a single document.  This will allow for easier editing, collaboration and review of subjects before they are uploaded to Wikipedia.

In addition to forging new community partnerships, the Henderson-Wilder and Fayette Community library staff members hope to showcase the vast resources available at the local libraries during the event. For additional information about this library resource/outreach event, contact Garcia at garciaj26@uiu.edu or 563.425.5722.