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Category: Agriculture

Agricultural Campus Open House: A fun day for all

Yesterday, approximately 35 members of the Dal Libraries staff from the Halifax campuses joined our colleagues in Truro at the Agricultural Campus for their annual Open House event.

The Agricultural Campus staff created a welcoming, fun, and interesting environment for everyone to explore. Faculty, staff, and students were on hand to explain various research projects and offer samples of local produce and delicacies. There were also games for the kids, contests for young and old, adorable animals, and beautiful gardens to take in, as well as a barbecue, ice cream, and cake. The new Seed Lending Library was featured in the MacRae Library, offering free samples of seeds such as lettuce and parsley.  A full list of all the activities from yesterday can be viewed here.

Our Communications Coordinator Marlo MacKay tries her hand at soap felting, a process where you add layers of wool to a bar of soap to make your loofah-type product,

Our Communications Coordinator Marlo MacKay tries her hand at soap felting, a process involving adding layers of wool to a bar of soap to make a loofah-type product. (photo by Stephen Murray of the Sir James Dunn Law Library)

Thank you to our new President, Dr. Florizone, for providing the Dal Tiger bus that many of the library staff and other Dal staff took to the event.  Thanks also to the staff at the MacRae Library on the Agricultural Campus, Elaine MacInnis, Verna Mingo, Sherree Miller (who came in on her vacation), Jolene Reid, Jennifer MacIsaac, Erin MacPherson, and Linda Cormier, the MacRae Library’s SIM intern, for being such gracious hosts. We can’t wait to go again next year!

A scene of the beautiful rock garden on the Agricultural Campus. (photo by Stephen Murray of the Sir James Dunn Law Library)

A scene of the beautiful rock garden on the Agricultural Campus. (photo by Stephen Murray of the Sir James Dunn Law Library)

 

Cake served by the staff at the MacRae Library.

Cake served by the staff at the MacRae Library. (This and all following photos courtesy of Debbie Bangay of the Killam Library.)

Nellie and Susan (KIllam Library) on the bus en route to the Open House event.

Nellie and Susan (Killam Library) on the bus en route to the Open House event.

 

Janet, Susan and Nellie of the Killam Library enjoying the beautiful grounds of the Agricultural Campus.

Janet, Susan and Nellie of the Killam Library enjoying the beautiful grounds of the Agricultural Campus.

 

Four little sheep all in a row. They were being herded as part of a demonstration with a Shetland sheepdog.

Four little sheep all in a row. They were being herded as part of a demonstration with a Shetland sheepdog.

This man is a professional falconer, bringing his hawk to the Agricultural Campus to rid the crops of unwanted pests such as sparrows.

This man is a professional falconer, bringing his hawk to the Agricultural Campus to rid the crops of unwanted pests such as sparrows.

 

Chicks, always cute!

Chicks, always cute!

Sheep shearing

Sheep shearing

 

Goodbye Aran!

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The Dal Libraries are saying goodbye to Aran Silmeryn, who has just accepted a position at the Vaughan Memorial Library at Acadia University.

Aran started working at the Killam Library on the first day of classes in September of 2010. His duties included staffing the circulation and information desks, as well as handling Novanet Express hold requests and claims returned files. In October 2012, Aran was seconded to Document Delivery to cover a maternity leave, which gave him the opportunity to develop a new set of skills. He was also a member of the award-winning Dal Libraries Green Team, a team that came up with environmentally friendly initiatives for the libraries.

Prior to coming to Dal, Aran worked at the NSCC Waterfront Campus Library, where he completed his diploma in Library & Information Technology. A mid-life career shift that he decided to go for in 2008, Aran was first employed in the library field within three months of starting his studies, all the while living in Wolfville and commuting to HRM.

“I’ve loved working at Dalhousie, but I’m also relishing the opportunity to work within my own community. Wolfville has been my adopted hometown for ten years, and I can see first-hand what a positive effect Acadia has on the fabric of the place. As work environments, the Vaughan and the Killam Libraries really mirror each other, but there will be differences, subtle and broad. I’m fascinated to find out what they’ll be. And naturally, I’m looking forward to trading in three hours of highway driving for a five minute stroll down a tree-lined street, ” says Aran.

“It was a pleasure working with Aran,” says Sandy Dwyer, who was the Head of Circulation at the Killam during most of Aran’s time here. “He was a valuable member of the team and he will be truly missed.”

Congratulations and best wishes from all of us at the Dalhousie Libraries, Aran!

Heather MacFadyen, the new Scholarly Communications & Collections Librarian

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Heather MacFadyen started working as the Management and Economics Librarian at the Killam Library in September 2012. Since January 2013, she’s been working as the Scholarly Communication, Economics, and Information Management Librarian. And her newest role, beginning in July, will be as the Scholarly Communication and Collections Librarian.

“I am delighted to be working with Heather in her new role as Collections Librarian. Her skills and fresh perspective are already proving crucial to our re-imagining and re-organizing resource management at the Dalhousie Libraries,” says Patrick Ellis, Associate University Librarian, Resources.

In this position Heather will support system-wide collection activities by providing analysis, consultation and planning services. Her work in Scholarly Communications includes leading the Faculty Research Profiles program in DalSpace, supporting the Dal Libraries OJS journal hosting service, and other digital scholarship initiatives.

 

Performing Arts Library Proposal

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This week, Senate approved the merger of the Theatre and Music departments to become the School of Performing Arts effective July 2014. In support of this upcoming merger, and also to provide a more convenient, contemporary service, the Dal Libraries’ are proposing the development of a Performing Arts Library, to be located in the North Learning Commons of the Killam Library.

The Performing Arts Library will be a space where students in the Performing Arts programs will feel at home. Students can use this space to study and be inspired while steeped in the works of accomplished performers in their chosen specialty. There will be audio, visual, print and electronic resources and corresponding library services offered within a space created expressly to suit their needs. Some of the resources will come from our existing collection and some of the items would be new acquisitions. Other students will also be welcome to use the Performing Arts Library and to explore their more creative inclinations; perhaps the space will inspire them to pursue studies in the Performing Arts!

Because this project is still in the proposal stage, we are currently seeking funding sources. We hope that the space will be ready to function as the Performing Arts Library in September 2014.

Libraries Seek Your Input on New Strategic Plan

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This winter, the Dalhousie University Libraries created a new strategic alignment plan, Vision 2015. Developed by a task force of librarians from each of the five Dalhousie libraries, Vision 2015 aligns the libraries’ goals with Dalhousie University’s strategic plan, while also addressing the major trends in libraries today.

In addition to the task force, all 134 members of the Dalhousie Libraries’ staff participated in discussions that contributed content to the plan, making Vision 2015 a true feat of collaboration.

Now, we’d like you, the Dalhousie community, to give us your thoughts on the plan while it is in draft form. The Dalhousie Libraries serve students, faculty and staff, and all members of the Dalhousie community are important stakeholders in the future direction of the Libraries. By contributing feedback, you are ensuring that the goals of the Libraries reflect the needs of the Dalhousie community. This plan will take the Dalhousie Libraries into 2015, informing all we will do. Your comments will also inform our planning in a year or two when we begin to create a new plan to align with the new strategic plan for Dalhousie University.

Please review the draft of the plan and provide us with comments by June 30. We appreciate your participation in this process to guide your Dalhousie Libraries.  Please send comments to the University Librarian at donna.bourne-tyson@dal.ca or call 494-4089 if you would like to discuss anything in the plan further.  Thank you!

Public Presentations by Digital Archivist Candidates

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Candidates for the new role of Digital Archivist with the Dalhousie Libraries will be giving a series of public presentations this week. Join us for these presentations on the topic Establishing a Virtual Sixth Library. Candidates will share their vision for the Dalhousie Libraries’ Digital Scholarship Initiative.

The presentations will take place in the MacMechan Auditorium in the Killam Library. Each presentation, followed by a Q&A session, will be approximately one hour.

Wed., May 29/2:30 p.m. — Kirsta Stapelfeldt
Thurs., May 30/2:30 p.m. — Creighton Barrett
Fri., May 31/2:30 p.m. — Duncan Cowie

The Digital Archivist Search Committee hopes to see you there.

Thomas McCulloch Museum 3D Scans Now Available on DalSpace

Working with the DalSpace 3D Model Collection, School of Information Management student Amy Lorencz has just finished uploading and cataloging the 3D scans created earlier this year of a number of marine biology specimens from Dalhousie’s Thomas McCulloch Museum.  The 3D scanning done for this project was made possible in large part through a grant from the Canadian Association of Research Libraries.

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A pink abalone, or haliotis corrugata, getting 3D scanned.

The 3D scans, like all models stored in the DalSpace 3D model collection, are made available through an Open Access copyright license – so feel free to download them and share them with your friends. The 3D scans can be 3D printed through Dalhousie’s 3D printing service too. If you’re feeling creative, using a 3D modeling program like SketchUp, you could even turn one of these the Thomas McCulloch Museum 3D scans into a customized ring or necklace.

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The resulting 3D Model

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The 3D printable model

We’re always looking for new submissions to help grow the 3D model collection. If you’ve done any 3D printing and you’d like to share the model you’ve created with the rest of Dalhousie, send your model to 3Dprint@dal.ca with “submission” in the subject line, or else come over to the Killam Library Help Desk and ask to speak to Gino.

New: A Single Service Point in the Killam Library

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If you’ve ventured into the Killam Library this past week, you’ll see that the service area that once was labelled “Circulation” is now providing circulation, information and research assistance from the same desk. The idea behind this change is to provide better service to our users by ensuring a more efficient and effective allocation of the staff’s time.

Remember in April when we asked for your suggestions to name this new single service point? We received a ton of great suggestions from you and we’re currently reviewing those suggestions. We plan to make a decision about the name of this new service area in June, so we’ll announce the new name then.

There will be other changes as the summer moves along, but in the meantime, what do you think of this change?

Dal Libraries Hours for Victoria Day

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Who’s open, who’s closed this holiday Monday (May 20)?

Sir James Dunn Law Library — closed

W.K. Kellogg Health Sciences Library — 12-6 p.m.

Killam Memorial Library — closed

MacRae Library — closed

Sexton Design & Technology Library — 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

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