DLIS Symposium 7: From the Classroom to the Community: Social Justice in Library & Information Science

April 18, 2015 – Professors, students, and field professionals gathered on a warm Saturday afternoon at the St. John’s University Queens Campus for an enlightening series of presentations on the issue of social justice in librarianship. A blend of professional talks and student presentations, Symposium 7 offered attendees a wide array of viewpoints on issues facing information professionals today, including digital representation of cultural heritage objects, library services to the incarcerated, the benefits of professional organizations to students and recent graduates, and revolutionizing library service to communities. Professional speakers included author and DLIS alumnae Marybeth Zeman and Michael Edison of the Smithsonian Institution, Open Knowledge Foundation, Council on Library and Information Resources.

DLIS Spring Symposium 2015 Photo Gallery

View images of the day’s event below:

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Students, Faculty, and Alumni Team Up for a DLIS-Led University Presentation

What began as a presentation of a collaborative teaching of GIS systems evolved into a group discussion of DLIS-led projects and opportunities offered through the University. This student and faculty idea-sharing workshop evolved into an engaged discussion amongst information professionals interested in speaking about links between the GIS projects and the DLIS Academic Service-Learning (AS/L) projects. In the hopes of establishing further opportunities for student development through AS/L, the group conversed lightly over topics such as creating interactive historical information objects and archival image representations using the GIS software.

Representatives of other university departments attended the DLIS-led event, including the University Archives, the Center for Teaching and Learning, Instructional Design, and the University Libraries. To view images of the event and find out more about the topics covered in the workshop, please visit a related post at the DLIS Blog.

DLIS Professor Co-Leads ALISE Social Justice Workshop

Dr. Rioux co-leads the workshop, standing left

The 2015 ALISE Academy Workshop held in Chicago this January brought together LIS faculty for a professional development session in regards to social justice issues in librarianship. The ALISE Academy, a half-day annual event, included 65 presenters and a four-hour workshop lead by a team of three, including DLIS’s Dr. Kevin Rioux.   Other workshop leaders included Nicole A. Cooke of the Graduate School of Library and Information Science of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and Miriam E. Sweeney from the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alabama. Together, this group spoke to an audience of peers about how to incorporate social justice into a LIS course curriculum.

Dr. Shari Lee: Teen Library Services

DLIS assistant professor Dr. Shari Lee specializes in teen and young adult topics in librarianship. Recently, her work in the field earned distinction as the Best Article in the Journal of Research on Libraries and Young Adults. Dr. Lee was presented a YALSA Writing Award for her article, “Beyond Books, Nooks, & Dirty Looks: The History and Evolution of Library Services to Teens in the United States,” because of the importance of such historical research as means to provide better future service. The article examines the development and implementation of young adult library services over time and proposes an agent of change to improve the quality of relationships between teens and libraries.

DLIS Professors Featured on University Website

Over the last few years, the St. John’s University Department for Institutional Advancement has taken steps to extend outreach to our alumni community.   The University seeks to develop and maintain donor gift plans by focusing on intuitive ongoing faculty research and department projects that relate to the St. John’s Vincentian mission.

Our faculty provided the Department for Institutional Advancement stories of personal experience in the field that exemplifies the passion that guides them through their careers.   Currently featured on the University website are faculty spotlights on three of our DLIS professors: Dr. Kevin Rioux, Dr. Christine Angel, and Dr. Shari Lee.

DLIS Professor to Co-Lead Workshop at ALISE 2015

Dr. Kevin Rioux

The upcoming year marks the 100-year celebration of the Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE), the nonprofit intellectual breadbasket for university faculty of LIS graduate programs in North America. Professor Kevin Rioux, Ph.D. will co-lead a workshop at the event being held in Chicago, IL on January 27, 2015.

Welcoming Students to a New Semester

A week before classes were scheduled to begin, DLIS held its semiannual orientation meeting for new and returning students at the D’Angelo Center on the Queens Campus.

The meeting provided new students a chance to engage with each other and hear about continuing student experiences, while returning students caught up after a summer of internship and work opportunities.

New students arrived first to receive introductory information to benefit their inclusion into the program. A few select Graduate Assistants took the opportunity to give advice to the newcomers based on their personal experiences here at St. John’s. Above all, our Graduate Assistants stressed the importance of self-motivation and organization as a key component to success in the program. They encouraged new students to take advantage of every opportunity to introduce themselves to classmates, making the online learning environment much more personal and engaging. DLIS alumni April Earle left our new students with one important message, “Commit to what it is you say you’re going to do…you’re here for yourself”.

A Letter from the Director

Dear Students, Alumni and Friends of DLIS,

I have just been appointed Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs at Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem, Utah. UVU is the largest university in the state and the fastest growing. It has 34,000 students and is projected to have 40,000 within a few years. This appointment will provide me with an opportunity to help the students, their families and community develop in important and meaningful ways in a society that is changing dramatically, primarily as a result of technology.
Unfortunately, it also means leaving DLIS, St, John’s University and New York, all of which I have grown to love. For the last eight years I have had the privilege of working with the DLIS faculty, students, alumni and other professional colleagues. We have accomplished much together, including full reaccreditation at a time when many other programs have not. Our students have received an outstanding education. In turn they have joined our alumni in serving society well and continually improving that service.

Spring Symposium 2014: Connecting Research to Practice

Moderator Dr. Kevin Rioux introduced the two guest speakers for this information session: Associate Professor and Outreach librarians at St. John’s University, Caroline Fuchs and Adjunct Reference Librarian at Adelphi University, Robert Weiss to speak with the audience about connecting research to practice.

Caroline Fuchs, with the aid of DLIS student Lisa Brigandi, presented a lesson from the field: Library Services for Student Veterans. Currently, St. John’s University is recognized as a Yellow Ribbon School, or a school with ample programs, support and facilities for student veterans. Fuchs described student vets as an isolated group of students that do not always adjust well to a university atmosphere.