Ladies and Gentlemen – Nicole Cunha!
Posted February 15, 2014 by Maggie Davidov
Every semester I interview someone so fantastically excellent from the GSLIS program so I can share him or her with the Student Snippets fan base. This semester I have chosen a friend and colleague of mine from Beatley Library at Simmons. Nicole Cunha, a graduate of Simmons College, has been working in the library since her junior year. She is now a dual degree major in Children’s Literature and Library Science at GSLIS. She is a constant inspiration to me. She works in almost every department at Beatley and when she’s not working, she’s here working on all of her homework. She is a rockstar. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Nicole Cunha.
1) What made you choose the GSLIS program and what is your focus while here at Simmons? How did you get here?
Long story short, my hometown/elementary school librarian told me about Simmons when I was younger; or she at least tried to get me interested in it. If I remember correctly, she had mentioned Simmons to my mum because she recognized my passion for the written word at an early age (and I still have the summer reading program medals to prove it).
I guess you could say I’m here partly to extend the influence she had on me and share my love of books with other malleable minds. On the other hand, I’m here to blend the field of Library Science (and Children’s Lit!) with my newest interest : video games and video game design. Using these three things I want to explore how people learn, the various ways to encourage multi-faceted learning and create new models for interactive learning within a library setting.
2) What are some of the best parts of the dual degree program? What have you learned so far?
The best part of the program (both in and outside of class) : the people, and how we play off each other. We help each other work through our thought processes for papers, research for projects and allow each other to geek out about our hobbies and passions. A few that come to mind: Star Trek, picture books, the Muppets and Beauty and the Beast. The staff stress that our classmates are our network, and I agree with them. At the risk of sounding sentimental (if that’s even the right word), these scholars, librarians and archivists in training form an amazing support network, intellectually and emotionally!
This being my second semester. I could say I haven’t learnt a lot, but that’s definitely a lie. Criticism of Children’s Literature (CHL 401) was challenging and thought provoking; Information Organization (LIS 415) lead me to trust in my instincts (and certainly appreciate the art that is cataloguing!), and Foundations of Library Science (LIS 401) allowed me to hone in on a couple interests and figure out how to actually apply them to my future profession.
3) How long have you been working at Beatley? Where do you work and what’s your favorite job?
Though I’m sure everyone knows that I live at Beatley (almost literally), I’ve only been working here since my Junior year of undergrad [for proof, check a 2013 yearbook or the portraits along the wall to the MCB]. My favorite job…oh, that’s a tough one…everything? ILL/Reserves provides me with back of the house/behind the scene experience; at Circulation I’m able to interact with people across the college and the public all the while developing my customer service skills, and Stacks Maintenance gives me the chance to spend time among the shelves- my natural habitat you might say. Despite not working much with Stacks and Circ anymore, I miss getting recognized by patrons when I’m not on shift. That tells me I’m at least doing something right!
4) If you had a super power what would it be? Would you use that power for good or evil?
Super power, eh? I’m at a toss up between healing (either with herbs or magic like in Charmed) or time travel (preferably Doctor Who or Harry Potter style). I like helping people and lending a hand or ear when needed, but I also would like more time to get everything I need to done. I’m very much like Hermione- in the library (usually doing homework).