Intern profile: Mitchell Jabalee

June 21, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

Where are you interning?
I am interning at the Dalhousie University Archives.

What brought you to the MLIS program at Dal?
What brought me to the MLIS program was in interest in learning and developing a broad range of skills to add to what I already have. My goal is to learn many flexible skills that make me a great fit for working in the field of archives.

What drew you to the internship at the Dal Libraries?
I was interested in gaining more experience working in an archive and the summer intern job at Dalhousie’s archives was the perfect opportunity.

What’s your educational background?
Previously I have completed an undergraduate degree with honours in history at Cape Breton University.

What have you been doing during your internship?
So far during my time at the Dalhousie Archives, I have been processing records and creating archival descriptions for the materials of Canadian writer and poet Charles Bruce that get uploaded to the archives’ online catalog, helping with the preparations for the renovations to the archives collections space and assisting in daily operations and tasks alongside other small tasks here and there.

Goodbye and Congratulations, Karen!

June 6, 2019 Marlo MacKay 2 Comments

by Michelle Paon

After 38 years with the Dal Libraries, Karen Chandler is retiring.

Karen’s career at Dalhousie began in August 1981 when she accepted a Clerk-Typist position in the Killam Library’s Circulation Department. In January 1984, she was promoted to Head of Reserve. By December 1991, Karen had advanced to become the Head of the Serials & Microform Department (later known as the Serials Unit).

In December 2013, Karen was promoted to the position of Manager, System-Wide Resources, a role in which she skillfully negotiates vendor licenses for direct subscriptions to electronic resources & databases and shepherds the subscription renewals of a vast array of consortially-purchased products.

Proficient in dealing with financials, Karen forecasts expenditures and calculates variances that are crucial in preparing Resources budgets. Karen provides timely information to Library Heads and librarian liaisons to enable their decision-making with regard to licensed consortial products. She also alerts her Resources team members of license and product changes to assist in providing seamless access to electronic resources.

Karen has contributed in valuable ways to both the Dal Libraries as well as to the broader Novanet community. She served as Co-Chair of the Novanet Acquisitions/Serials Committee as well as being a long-standing Acquisitions/Serials Functional Contact. She was a member of the Novanet Data Migration Team and the Novanet Training Team (Acquisitions/Serials clients “Train the Trainers”). Within the Dal Libraries, Karen served on the Technical Services Management Team, the Dal Libraries Technical Services Task Force, and more recently on the Resources Managers Group.

We will miss Karen’s astute negotiation skills, conscientious attention to detail, and remarkable memory and record-keeping with regard to serials and database subscriptions.

Please join us in congratulating Karen on her upcoming retirement.

Congratulations, Karen!

Welcome Jessica Irving, Systems Developer

June 5, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

We are pleased to welcome Jessica Irving to the Dalhousie Libraries as our Systems Developer.

As a developer, Jessica will be responsible for designing, building, implementing, and customizing the Library and Academic Technology applications supported by the Dalhousie Libraries.

Two of the largest areas of her focus will be DalSpace and the Library website; however, Jessica will also be doing development work for the full range of digital services that we offer. The role also has responsibility for measuring and improving the overall usability of our systems and ensuring that users have a consistent experience across all of our systems.

Jessica completed Bachelor of Science with a major in Psychology in 2014 and just a few weeks ago graduated with her Bachelor of Computer Science (Co-Op). In 2017, Jessica spent one of her co-ops working in the Dalhousie Libraries’ Academic Technology Services unit as junior developer. In her spare time, Jessica runs a costuming business making super hero and video game costumes. She has traveled around Canada and the USA to appear at conventions and to judge costume contests.

Welcome, Jessica!

Happy Retirement, Carolyn!

May 27, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

Carolyn Liggins retired from the Dalhousie Libraries earlier this year. She spent the bulk of her career with the Libraries in the Killam, where she started working in 2002. Previous to that, she worked for eight years as a secretary in Dal’s Chemistry department.

During her time at the Killam Library Access Service Point, Carolyn became the go-to troubleshooter for the microfilm equipment, a task she enjoyed. Carolyn also had a reputation for being an eloquent writer. She excelled at preparing training instructions and the finished product could always be relied upon to be accurate, clear and concise.

For a time, she was a weekend student assistant supervisor and enjoyed working with the students. While working full time, Carolyn was often also a student herself. A true life-long learner, Carolyn took courses in math and in the Master of Library and Information Studies program at Dalhousie.

In 2017, Carolyn made the move to the Sexton Design & Technology Library where she worked as a library assistant at the service point. She provided front-line library support to the Dalhousie community and the public.

Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement, Carolyn. Best wishes from all your colleagues at the Dalhousie Libraries.

Welcome Ahmed Mahdy to Dalhousie Libraries

May 8, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

by Morgan Fleet, NSCC PR intern

We are pleased to introduce Ahmed Mahdy as the new Systems Administrator with Academic Technology Services at Dalhousie Libraries, in the role previously filled by Jason Flynn. Ahmed started with Dalhousie Libraries on April 29.

Before joining the team at Dalhousie, Ahmed had worked for over ten years in public firms and multinational corporations in both Halifax and Cairo, Egypt. This has given him experience working in information technology and systems administration which he has always been passionate about. Ahmed previously spent six years as the Software & Hardware consultant for the Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Egypt.

As the Systems Administrator for Academic Technology Services, reporting to Brian Lesser, Ahmed will be responsible for the upkeep, configuration and reliable daily operations of the computer systems such as DalSpace, Dataverse, Archivematica, OJS, Proxy, other servers and backup systems at Dalhousie Libraries. Welcome, Ahmed!

Welcome Cassandra Larose, the new Evening & Weekend Supervisor at the Sexton Library

April 26, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

We are pleased to welcome Cassandra Larose to the Dalhousie Libraries.

Cassandra has both administrative university experience and academic library experience, having worked in the Office of the Vice-Provost, Student Affairs at Dalhousie and at the MacOdrum Library at Carleton University. She also has worked as a law clerk.

In addition to her experience in the Vice-Provost, Student Affairs office, Cassandra has supported work in a variety of capacities at Dalhousie, including providing backup student intake service at the Bissett Student Success Centre (Advising), working on the Student Impact Awards, and completing projects with Dalhousie Analytics and the Registrar’s Office. During her time at Carleton University, Cassandra volunteered as a staff advisor for their Alternative Spring Break program, travelling with groups of students to Honduras and Ecuador to complete community service learning projects.

She is currently obtaining her MLIS at Dal part-time. She chaired the Information Without Borders conference earlier this year.

Welcome, Cassandra!

New Collections Analysis Librarian, Kirsten Huhn

April 12, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

We are pleased to introduce Kirsten Huhn as our new Collections Analysis Librarian. Kirsten started with the Dal Libraries on February 4.

Prior to joining the Dal Libraries, Kirsten was the Head of Acquisitions and Serials at Concordia University Library in Montreal. She has also worked as a librarian at Jacobs University Bremen in her native Germany. Kirsten has extensive professional experience in Collection Services, specifically in the areas of acquisitions, collection management of serials and electronic resources, and budget management.

The Collections Analysis Librarian is a new position in the Dalhousie Libraries. In this role, Kirsten is supporting the acquisition, assessment and integration of the Libraries’ print and electronic collections. Working as part of the Resources team, she is closely involved in collection development and management operations. In addition to her role in the Resources team, Kirsten serves as a subject liaison to Earth Sciences and Environmental Sciences.

Kirsten is a strong believer in user-centered service and is looking forward to supporting the academic mission of Dalhousie, through her role with the Dal Libraries.

Kirsten has a Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) from McGill, and a Magister Artium (M.A.) from Leipzig University. In 2000, she was a visiting student in the Graduate Studies program at Dalhousie.

We’re so happy to welcome Kirsten back to Dalhousie and Halifax.

New Manager of Operations, Academic Technology Services

April 1, 2019 Marlo MacKay Leave a Comment

We are pleased to announce that Brian Lesser is the new Manager of Operations in the Academic Technology Services (ATS) unit, which is the Dal Libraries department responsible for managing technology in the libraries and classrooms, video conferencing services, and Brightspace.

This role is a new one for the Dalhousie Libraries. Brian will be responsible for overseeing the Libraries technical infrastructure, provide management and leadership to the operations team (system administrators, developers, and statistical computing), will be responsible for the implementation of technology-enabled learning projects, and will have ownership of the academic software lifecycle.

Brian is a two-time Dalhousie alumnus, with a BA and a Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS). He was awarded the Louis Vagianos Medal on convocation in 2018 for “the capacity for blending originality with practical thinking and the courage to seek solutions to professional problems outside the mainstream.” The first winner of this award was our very own University Librarian, Donna Bourne-Tyson.

A Nova Scotia native, Brian started his career in academic technology at Acadia University as a student assistant and pedagogical researcher running summer technology camps for secondary school teachers and students. His career at Dalhousie began in 2004 as a student assistant, then in 2006 he became a Systems Administrator with the former Academic Computing Services department of central IT services.

Brian joined the Dalhousie Libraries in 2013 when Academic Computing Services merged with the Dalhousie Libraries’ ITS, now known as Academic Technology Services. His early career had focused on instructional technologies and eLearning, but since joining the Dalhousie Libraries and pursuing an MLIS degree, Brian has developed a strong interest in library systems and library services, including a keen interest in user experience, service design, and research data management.

Donna Bourne-Tyson Receives the Ken Haycock Award

February 15, 2019 Marlo MacKay 2 Comments

Donna Bourne-Tyson, University Librarian of Dalhousie, has won the prestigious Ken Haycock Award for Promoting Librarianship from the Canadian Federation of Library Associations, presented at the OLA Superconference in Toronto on January 30. Donna received this award for her significant contributions to the field of librarianship, to which many of her colleagues at Dal can attest.

Sincerest congratulations to you Donna, from all of your Dal Libraries colleagues. See below what the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), the nominating institution, had to say:

February 4, 2019 – The Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL) would like to congratulate current CARL President, Donna Bourne-Tyson, on receiving the Ken Haycock Award on January 30th at the OLA Superconference in Toronto. This award is conferred to an individual who has made significant contributions to the public recognition and appreciation of librarianship through professional performance, teaching, and/or writing.

Ms. Bourne-Tyson was honoured with this award for her firm commitment to personal membership in professional associations and her remarkable range of Board roles in regional, national and international association and consortia, and for founding and shepherding multiple new organizations.

“Donna believes and lives a philosophy that working together is much more effective than solo or siloed action. Through her collaborative view of the library world, Donna has brought together people, institutions, and even associations to effect consortial action. And through this, she has had long-reaching impact. Donna has quietly and pragmatically helped shape the library association landscape in this country,” said Paul Takala, Chief Librarian, Hamilton Public Library, during the award ceremony.

CARL is pleased to have nominated Ms. Bourne-Tyson for the award, in recognition of her association engagement and her leadership and dedication as an ambassador and role model for librarianship. The award includes a $1,000 reward, which Ms. Bourne-Tyson has graciously donated to the Canadian Federation of Library Associations.

The LibVine

What's going on at the Dalhousie Libraries

Category: Archives & Special Collections

Intern profile: Mitchell Jabalee

Happy Retirement, Carolyn!

Welcome Cassandra Larose, the new Evening & Weekend Supervisor at the Sexton Library