>> Hello. My name is Cara DeCusatis, and I am a graduate student at the University of Maryland studying Human and Computer Interaction. This is a field that examines how people interact with technology and how that technology can be better designed to meet the needs of people. As part of the 2022 Junior Fellows Program this summer, I have the opportunity to work in the Office of the Chief Information Officer as part of the IT Design and Development Directorate conducting user research. While the Library of Congress might be best known for its vast archives and preservation practices, there are also a tremendous amount of digital products and services that are essential to the library and its missions of expanding access. One way we make these products and services even stronger is by conducting effective user research to better understand the needs and practices of the library's patrons. For my project this summer, we are researching how different types of people use digital tools to send materials to the library. Those materials may be copyrighted works for the mandatory deposits, multiformat cultural collections for the American Folk Life Center, donations or acquisitions to the prints and photographs division, and more. This research will allow us to create an artifact called a user journey map, which illustrates the phases of someone's experience, or journey, as they accomplish a goal. We are using a journey map to uncover the hidden steps, obstacles, and emotions that occur when someone submits files to the library and communicate those insights in an accessible and impactful way to various stakeholders. User research tools, like journey mapping, are one of the ways the library can work to better understand donors, visitors, researchers, or even internal staff. Here's an example of a completed journey map from a different project. This shows the steps a participant takes when submitting interviews to the Library of Congress for the Veteran's History Project. During this fellowship, I am working closely with Digital Library Services to conduct interviews with different types of people who submit files to the Library of Congress. File submission is one of the core areas of Digital Library Services, and our research is part of a larger initiative to modernize this process. This modernization aims to improve the user experience of sending materials to the library in addition to streamlining or internal steps to receive, process, store, and present materials. By investing in user research and growing a holistic understanding of the library's patrons, we can improve both internal and external tools and optimize user experience. This directly supports the library's school of being user centered as outlined in the strategic plan. This is especially important as the library continues to evolve and become more digitally enabled to better serve the needs of users of across the globe. I'd like to thank the Library of Congress, Natalie Budda [assumed spelling] Smith, and Olivia Bachum [assumed spelling] for providing me with this unique opportunity and offering guidance throughout the project. Thank you.