Classes
Relax
Posted October 30, 2014 by Hayley Botnen
We have six weeks of school left. Not even six weeks! Because of Thanksgiving, we more or less have five weeks of school left! I’m at the point in the semester where all my group projects are looming in November, and I have three research papers to do, and I still have to figure out what the heck a pathfinder even is, but for some reason I’m not that stressed out about it. I think a huge part of the reason why I’m not stressed out is because for me reading is a de-stressing activity. So even when I have to read novels for homework, my brain can’t disassociate from the de-stressing. I love reading. So I love doing my homework. I almost forgot to write this blog post because I got too engrossed in Beverly Cleary’s Fifteen. Even though I had some issues with the text, the mere act of reading it made me calm. So in this high stress time, remember what makes you calm. Maybe it’s taking a break and just sipping…
What Everyone Is Talking About
Posted October 18, 2014 by Samantha Quiñon
The schedule of Spring 2015 classes came out this week, and for a while, it was all anyone could talk about. I still walk through the halls and overhear conversations about it. Generally, people are excited or stressed about it. It’s exciting because we can look ahead and see ourselves moving forward in the program, but with all of our options at SLIS, that can simultaneously be a bit anxiety provoking. I’ve stayed really close with three other people with whom I had classes over the summer. We all started during that term and were all archives concentrators with the same SLIS academic advisor. Also, we were in class 12 hours a week together and worked collaboratively on many group projects, which is a good way to get to know one another. (Summer schedule is 6 hours a week for six weeks per class with a maximum of 6 total credits, instead of the usual 3 hours a week for 12-13 weeks per class with a maximum of 9 total credits.) Now, after two classes…
Hey You! Take a Break!
Posted September 22, 2014 by Alexandra Bernson
Even though we are barely a month into the semester, I’m starting to get a little overwhelmed. This post might be a bit premature for some of you reading this blog, but as an online student working full time and living on my own, it is very easy for me to feel inundated with everything that I have to do. For us online students, there isn’t a standard structure to our academic schedule – no set class times, no free afternoons, no opportunity to go to the 2PM free coffee hour on campus (seriously though – there never seems to be any student events in Boston that take place after 5PM!). I am still adjusting to building time for my schoolwork into my schedule, and so far I’m getting everything done on time. But then I remember that it is barely the end of September, and soon my mountains of reading and required discussion forum posts will be supplemented with 10-page research papers and group projects. I can’t help but log into Moodle and utter,…
Field Study at BPL
Posted September 20, 2014 by Samantha Quiñon
I have to do a field study for my Archival Methods and Services (LIS 438) class, which entails visiting a local repository, using it to answer a research question, and then writing a 3-5 page paper about the experience. In the past I’ve mostly used small, community archives, so for a change of pace, I chose to visit the large and impressive print department of Boston Public Library’s Special Collections. The entrance to BPL Before I could visit, I had to come up with a research question. Since I didn’t know what collections the department housed, I went online to its website (BPL Special Collections) to get an overview of what it had. Even though only a tiny part of the vast Special Collections has been digitized, BPL still does an exemplary job of listing what it has available for researchers and the general public. But with so much selection, it was a little overwhelming! I ended up picking the Adlow papers, a collection of late 18th and early 19th century documents that belonged to…
The Balancing Act Begins!
Posted September 14, 2014 by Alison Mitchell
Well, my first full week of school is over, and my two biggest accomplishments were getting a student discount (10% at Tags!) and making my kids do my homework. Kidding. Kind of. Going back to school at age 41, with a husband and kids and part-time work, is, in some ways, just like going to school at any age. I puzzle over how long it will take me to get to school from our home in Somerville (almost an hour!), where to get my ID (the campus card office), what kind of notebooks to use, whether I needed a snack during a 3-hour class (yes!). There are some major differences, too. Before I leave for class, I make lunches for my kids and get them ready for school. I check my phone during breaks to make sure the school hasn’t called. I drag myself to book club one night, and we talk about our parents’ health problems (probably not what my 20-something classmates are discussing over dinner). I balance my freelance work and shifts at…
Dissecting Computers
Posted September 13, 2014 by Samantha Quiñon
I blog and I’m in library school, so sometimes people think I know a lot about computers. While I can understand why they would make this assumption, to be perfectly honest, technology really intimidates me. This goes back to a when I was in the second grade and my family got a new peripheral device and remote control for our cable television. There were so many colorful buttons! I started pushing away at them, trying to find the guide channel. As result, the TV froze and would not turn back on. It took two days to get someone from the cable company to reset everything, and by the time it was all over, I had a fear of touching expensive machines and always tried to get other people to handle technology for me. My first personal computer? My boyfriend set it up. My first iPod? My brother put all of my music on it and on every iPod I’ve owned since. When I moved away from home for the first time? My boyfriend at the…
Grad School Year Two: Bring it On!
Posted September 12, 2014 by Jill Silverberg
I’d like to start this blog post by first welcoming back my fellow returning grad students and by welcoming those starting their first year in SLIS! I have a good feeling that this semester is going to be a good one, and I wish the same to all of you. Since the last time I posted something here, I’ve made the move from Brighton to Roxbury Crossing. Not only am I now living with other students from SLIS and the Children’s Literature program, but I am also within fifteen minutes from school. Essentially, I will be at Simmons a lot this year, either at the library, at the Student Services Center desk, or in the tech lab. I even purchased an awesome blanket from the Simmons Bookstore to keep me warm while inside the Palace Road Building. Still deciding if bringing a blanket to class would be a bit too much. What do you think? Beyond the above, I’m sort of ashamed to admit this but, the reality that my second year of grad had…
Hanging out with JFK
Posted June 26, 2014 by Jill Silverberg
Did you know that just a short bus ride away from the JFK T stop on the red line is the JFK Presidential Library and Museum? Did you also know that the papers and writings of Ernest Hemmingway are also stored there? No? Well, neither did I. That was, at least, until I went on a field trip with my Preservation Management class last Thursday. Yea, that’s right, I went on a FIELD TRIP! Ms. Frizzle from The Magic School Bus would have been super proud of my class. Not only did we get to learn about the responsibilities and skills required to be an archivist and deputy curator to a Presidential Library, but we also learned about the JFK Library’s disaster plan and how it was tested during an actual disaster that happened last year. For those who don’t know, the library had a fire last April and though smoke, water, and firefighter damage was great, the library and museum did not lose a single item. Now that’s what I call impressive. Considering that my course,…
(Not) A Lazy Summer
Posted June 12, 2014 by Jill Silverberg
When I look out my window, I find it hard to believe that less than three months ago, there was still snow on the ground. Not only that, but it felt like the winter of 2013/2014 was never going to vacate the Boston area. And yet, here we are; the sun is out in full force and people are starting to gather in any air conditioned space that they can find. However, considering just how unbearably cold the first half of the year was, I won’t be complaining about the heat anytime soon. But if the city gets hit with another heat wave like it did last July, well, let’s just say that you will most likely be able to find me sitting at a table inside JP Licks. Speaking of summer, this one will be my first ever as a resident of Boston! But just like my last few summers back home in Long Island, I will be spending the bulk of this summer tucked away inside, either at work at the BPL or in…
How to be a Public Library Director in 5 Very Packed Days
Posted May 30, 2014 by Emily Boyd
I got to spend last week talking about one of my favorite things, public libraries, with one of my favorite professors, Mary Wilkins Jordan. During my time at Simmons (so far) I’ve taken three intensive courses and I must say I love the format. While learning about the many aspects of library management (budgeting, outreach, programming, evaluation, collection development, and advocacy to name a few) in one week was a bit overwhelming at times, it’s also a great way to cover a lot of ground quickly and get to the heart of issues. Many people in graduate school, especially at GSLIS, are also working and do not always have a whole semester to devote to classes like LIS 450 Organization and Management of Public Libraries and the week-long intensive format is a great alternative. The class was structured in five jam-packed days over the course of one week and we covered a lot of ground in a very short time. This is a subject that I’m incredibly passionate about so it was wonderful to be…