Simmons Perks!
Posted April 6, 2012 by Maya Bery
With the end of the semester just around the corner, everyone is predictably buried under end of the semester papers, projects, and group work. I know for myself, the mammoth practicum binder that SLT students must submit at the end of both of their practicum experiences has begun to infiltrate my dreams. My respite is delving into the stack of dark and depressing books I have chosen for my youth programming materials talk in two weeks time. But if you have some spare time, or you simply want to take a break, why not take advantage of that little blue card in your wallet? Yes, that one. The one that says “Simmons College” on it? There’s probably a very unflattering picture of you beneath the logo? Yes, that blue card. You may not realize it, but that Simmons ID card gets you two rather nice perks. You see, Simmons is located right in the midst of two of America’s finest museums: the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (which you…
Librarian or Batgirl?
Posted April 4, 2012 by Julie Steenson
Library and Information Science that is the degree program we are pursuing and the name says it all. The Masters degree program years ago was just Library Science, but as the world changes, so does the role of librarians. We are not just librarians, but information and technology specialists scientists, in fact. If you think you know what your librarian does, think again. This is a much bigger world than checking out books. We are Superheroes of the Information Age! Earlier blogs discussed our personal journeys to discover what area of Library and Information Science we wish to pursue. I, like my peers, have changed my mind countless times in these first few months. Why? Because there are so many choices! Here is my short list of career paths I have considered: Tradition public librarian with a modern technology twist database management, technology public outreach (iPads, kindles, etc.), web development, social media. Reference librarian in an academic library. Faculty librarian in an academic setting Yes, librarians are now embedded in university departments, as…
Program Change
Posted April 3, 2012 by dunhame
For the second week in a row, Danielles post has provided a great springboard for mine. She discussed how many of her friends/colleagues in the program have been questioning their concentrations in GSLIS. I began my career at Simmons GSLIS as a dual-degree History/Archives student. For a better part of this semester, I had been questioning whether I wanted to continue to pursue my MA in history. After much debate (as outlined below), Ive concluded that, while I will continue to maintain an archives concentration in the MLS program, I will no longer be pursuing an MA. There are three main considerations that guided my decision pursue the dual degree: An MA would make me a more competitive applicant than the MLS alone would. Archivists make collections available to and work with historians, so being a historian myself would help me be better at my job. Academia is fun! I like thinking hard and writing and exploring new avenues of thought. Especially over the past semester, as Ive learned more about myself and the field…
Dungeons and Dragons or: Libraries and Librarians
Posted April 2, 2012 by Sarah Barton
On Friday, to conclude the Best March Ever, I went to The Future of Reference hosted by Simmons GSLIS. The keynote speaker, Joe Janes, Chair of the MLIS Program at the University of Washingtons Information School, ended the evening with a bang. He championed the idea that librarians are important. He was, of course, preaching to the choir, but I tend to have a hard time justifying my existence as a library student. Arguments I have heard against libraries include, but are certainly not limited to: When was the last time that any of our friends went to a library? and Libraries are like dungeons. (Does that make librarians fire-breathing dragons?) But Mr. Janes unleashed the dragon in his talk called Information makes us human. He said that Our profession is central to what we are as a people. We make humanity more human. That message had me breathing sweet hot librarian fire. Libraries may seem like dungeons in the incandescent world of Google, but over time libraries have preserved information in a way that…
In Flux
Posted April 1, 2012 by Danielle Geller
A lot of the friends, acquaintances, and colleagues Ive made since my time began at Simmons have been or have started to question the direction theyre going in library science/archives school. I cant say Ive been exempt! Through the classes Ive taken, internships Ive had, and even internships Ive applied for, Ive been molding and trying to figure out the course and shape of my future career. Do I want to work in a corporate or academic environment? Out of all the areas and time periods of history that interest me, which do I want to continue to pursue? What will be the topic of my dissertation? Yes, Ive definitely been weighing that one in my head, even if its still two years down the road. Do I even want to continue pursuing history? One thing Ive learned, which seems quite obvious but isnt necessarily always black and white, is that Ill never be happy in a job that doesnt interest me. Friends of mine that arent enjoying their internships find the material boring, and its hard…
Simmons MSLA-SIG Conference Tomorrow!
Posted March 30, 2012 by Maya Bery
I’d like to take this blog post to shamelessly plug the annual Simmons MSLA-SIG conference happening tomorrow in the Main College Building from 8:30-3:00 p.m. Though I admittedly had a personal role to play in organizing the conference as the secretary of the Simmons student interest group of the Massachusetts School Library Association, I would encourage anyone interested to come because it promises to be a great day. We’re featuring panelists discussing “how to survive your first year” and “teaching middle school” as well as two presentations that were given at the 15th annual AASL conference this past October in Minneapolis on fostering collaboration and getting multicultural literature off the shelves and into the hands of readers. I think this conference also demonstrates what is so wonderful about Simmons and the GSLIS program in general. The MSLA-SIG is a student-run organization, though the wonderful Dr. Fran Zilonis serves as our advisor. This conference, which has been going on for several years now, is entirely student organized, and attracts phenomenal speakers from across the state each…
Change of pace | Library recycle bin find
Posted March 29, 2012 by fox32
Library recycle bin find. Copyright 1972. Patterns include a dog blanket, wall hanging to display blue ribbons, and a throw for your horse knitted with circular needles you made from that leaky hose in the backyard. -via rockstar Somerville librarian Cathy P.
Want Your Own Action Figure?
Posted March 28, 2012 by Julie Steenson
All I have to do is look around a typical GSLIS classroom and any librarian stereotypes disappear. I dont know anyone who looks like this action figure (although I am guilty of wearing my hair up in a clip on occasion who has time to style hair in library school?). As I regard my peers on any given day, I see a mix of men and women, young and not-so-young, tattooed and pierced, in all manner of clothing and hair styles. Any doubters just need to peek at the Men of the Stacks 2012 calendar: http://menofthestacks.com/ or check out the Belly-dancing Librarian: http://www.sonic.net/~erisw/bdlib.html to know that these old-fashioned shushing librarian stereotypes have no place in modern librarianship. We are fun! We are tech savvy! We love helping people! Librarians come in all shapes and sizes just like everybody else…so why do the stereotypes persist? And how will we change them? To learn more, check out this book by Ruth Kneale: You Don’t Look Like a Librarian: Shattering Stereotypes and Creating Positive New Images in the Internet…
DIY Archives: NEA Spring 2012 Meeting
Posted March 27, 2012 by dunhame
As Danielle kindly mentioned in her last post, she and I recently shared a blog-worthy experience; this past Saturday, we attended the New England Archivists (NEA) Spring 2012 Meeting. Running the risk of blog redundancy, Im going to spend a bit of time writing about my experience at NEA. Luckily, Danielle and I attended some different sessions and got different take-aways from the meeting, so Im thinking this post will be unique after all! The NEA Spring 2012 Meeting was held at Wesleyan University, which makes its home in the quaint city of Middletown, Connecticut. It was really nice to have the opportunity to get out of Boston for a day; I love the city, but getting out to smaller-scale America is something I really appreciate doing from time to time. As a bonus, Wesleyan University is a beautiful campus, and since the weather was somewhere in the realm of This cant be March! we were able to get some time outdoors between sessions. This was my first ever professional conference. It was very exciting…
Library Promotional Considerations
Posted March 26, 2012 by Sarah Barton
New technologies are changing how people use libraries, and libraries must evolve their services and outreach accordingly. Last Wednesday I went to the volunteer kick-off event for the Friends of the Somerville Public Library. The Friends, like many similar organizations representing public libraries across the country, are always looking for new ways to promote their library. So, over the past few days I came up with some fun means of bribery to generate awareness of the library. [Disclaimer: some of these ideas are more feasible than others.] Readers Race Library 5k A road race is not a novel idea (pun intended), but serves as an effective promotional technique. The race starts and ends at the library, and all proceeds benefit the Friends organization. Free books would be available at the finish line, and local businesses could set up booths in the post-race hangout area. Get a Free Library Card Day Ok, so every day is Get a Free Library Card Day, but maybe emphasizing the FREE aspect might help catch peoples attention. Random…