Whether you’re looking to design or refine an app, link hardware to software or create a program prototype, Steacie Library’s first Dungeon Hackfest will be the perfect place for computer programmers, coders and computer aficionados to collaborate.

Steacie Science and Engineering Library will be hosting the Dungeon Hackfest on Feb. 21, from 9 to 5:30pm in the library’s basement computer lab. The event is open to all York community members.

Hackfests have become increasingly popular in computer science and engineering circles and Steacie Library’s Dungeon Hackfest will follow a typical model of collaborative coding and computer programming in the spirit of open source innovations. Participants will be encouraged to discuss their “hack” ideas, consult with each other and draw upon differing areas of expertise.

Lunch and refreshments will be provided to all registered participants. For more information, contact Science Librarian Sarah Shujah, at sshujah@yorku.ca.

York University Libraries are pleased to announce the arrival of a significant collection of microfilmed records from the archives of the Black United Front (BUF) of Nova Scotia. These records complement York University Libraries’ rich and diverse collections of print and electronic material relating to African-Canadian social and political history, and social reform movements. This unique microfilm collection can be found in the Microtext area on the first floor of Scott Library (see the catalogue record).

The Black United Front of Nova Scotia arose from a “family” meeting of over 400 representatives from black communities across the province held in November 1968.  Championed by founding members such as Dr. Burnley “Rocky” Jones, now an internationally recognized lawyer and social justice activist, the BUF began as a grassroots social reform organization that was dedicated to campaigning for black equality and political and economic empowerment. Led in its early years by an Interim Council, the group worked to secure provincial funding and was formally incorporated under the Societies’ Act in 1970. It was later governed by a Provincial Council comprised of elected representatives from black communities throughout Nova Scotia, and formally operated until the mid-1990s.    

Reflecting on the history of the BUF, noted poet, scholar, and former BUF member George Elliott Clarke remarks, “The BUF was born of two contradictory ambitions: 1) the communal need to confront white racism aggressively and campaign for black equality and 2) the governmental desire to blunt black radicalism and revolutionary energy by turning ‘activists’ into social workers. These conflicting aims and mandates led to decades of strife between BUF administrators and members, and between the organization and community interests and non co-opted activists.” Still, says Clarke, “The group served an important ‘change’ agenda, almost despite itself”, and consequently, “no responsible account of black political insurgency during this period can be undertaken without detailed reference to its history.” 

The fifteen microfilm reels of BUF records acquired by York Libraries’ represent a significant portion of the complete BUF records, which remain at the Nova Scotia Archives.  The reels contain a rich and diverse assortment of operational documents created or accumulated by the BUF, including:  minutes of the original BUF Interim Council and the Provincial Council (1970-1995); Board of Directors’ minutes;  correspondence; personal notes; newsletters; financial statements;  annual and quarterly progress reports on programs; and in-house publications such as newsletters and promotional brochures.   

The BUF records offer rich opportunities for researchers and students interested in the complex struggle of African-Nova Scotians (Africadians) and African-Canadians to confront racism and work towards equality and prosperity. Political Science Professor Karen Murray, who worked closely with library staff to help bring the records to the Libraries, notes that this unique acquisition represents an important step in helping York “to become a leader in ensuring that Black history is placed where it should be, at the centre of university curricula.” Murray hopes the acquisition will help to “bring new stories to light, to reveal the pertinence of Black history to contemporary political struggles, and to significantly advance debates about the character of Canadian democracy, past and present.” She encourages researchers and students at all levels to explore this unique collection, and is excited about the potential it offers for both undergraduate and graduate work.  In the words of George Elliott Clarke, “Scholars, dive into this archive: you have nothing to lose but your quietism!”

For more information about this resource, please contact Patti Ryan, political science librarian, (pryan@yorku.ca, x66469).

On Feb. 11, University Librarian Cynthia Archer will invite all faculty members, 2,500 randomly selected graduate and 5,000 randomly selected undergraduate students to participate in LibQUAL+ – an online survey conducted by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) that serves to assess library services, compare benchmark standards and create organizational change.

“When identifying the Libraries’ strategic priorities, we look to faculty and students to determine library developments that can have a positive impact on their research and studies,” explains Archer. “The LibQUAL+ data highlights explicit ways in which we can align our spaces, services and collections with the expectations of the community we serve.”

Spaces

York’s undergraduate students identified a need for more seats and aesthetically pleasing study areas. In response to these requests the Libraries have created an additional 435 study seats in the past three years.

In 2011 phase one of the Learning Commons renovation at Scott Library was completed and a modern, student-centred space was unveiled. The second phase of the Learning Commons renovation will begin as funding becomes available.

In 2012 the Fireside Reading Room at Frost Library was renovated to offer students a fireside seating area, collaborative work tables and computer carrels. Also last year, more than 135 new quiet study seats were added to the fourth floor of Scott Library.

Services

Many 2010 LibQUAL+ participants requested newer and faster computers. As a result, York University Libraries have made good on the promise that no computer shall ever be more than three-years-old.

 Collections

Faculty and students now have access to a collection of e-books that has more than doubled in size from 300,000 to over 600,000 titles. Additionally, in the past three years the Libraries have acquired more than 24,000 e-journals – bringing the total number of e-journal titles to approximately 72,000.

The LibQUAL+ survey takes approximately 15 minutes to complete and participants can enter into a draw to win one of three Kobo e-Readers.

The Libraries will receive initial LibQUAL+ survey results in May and will share final results with the York community in the fall.

For more information about LibQUAL+, contact the survey coordinator at libqual@yorku.ca.

January 16, 2013

York University Libraries, in conjunction with the Office of the Vice-President, Research & Innovation, are sponsoring the University’s first annual Undergraduate Research Fair, to take place on Feb. 27 in the Scott Library Collaboratory (second floor).

The Undergraduate Research Fair’s Steering Committee requests instructors consider worthy research projects that have recently been graded and encourage qualified students to participate. Student applications are due by Jan. 25.

Students view the poster outlining the Undergraduate Research Fair, which will take place in the Scott Library Collaboratory at York’s Keele campus on Feb. 27

As York’s first multidisciplinary Undergraduate Research Fair, participation in 2012-2013 is extended to students in the Faculties of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, Environmental Sciences, Fine Arts and Glendon. There is an intent to expand the fair campus-wide in future years.

Undergraduate students in any year of study are encouraged to submit a graded, research-based paper, project or honours thesis prepared between March 2012 and Jan. 2013, along with a 250-word abstract. Projects may be submitted in languages other than English, but the application abstract must be in English.  Fair participants will be selected by the steering committee, comprised of faculty members and librarians.

“I’m excited to see this (Undergraduate Research Fair) developing and expect it will attract a lot of student attention,” says Lisa Philipps, associate vice president of Research & Innovation and fair adviser.

The fair – poster sessions presented in a friendly ‘market place’ environment – is intended to showcase undergraduate student researchers and their work. In addition to gaining valuable presentation experience and earning a chance to win an award of $500 or $600, student participants will receive a signed certificate honouring their contribution to the University’s refereed Undergraduate Research Fair to add to their resumés. Award winners may have their papers published in a journal sponsored by the Libraries and all participants will be celebrated at a reception during the Fair, which faculty, friends and family are welcome to attend.

“We hope that this new fair will support York’s goals to build an engaged university, enhance the local research culture and improve student retention by offering a forum for undergraduates to share their research outside the classroom in a cross-curricular environment,”  explains Associate University Librarian and Fair Steering Committee member, Catherine Davidson.

Visit the Undergraduate Research Fair website for information on eligibility, awards, submission requirements and an application form.

On Nov. 5, more than 2000 students taking courses at Glendon Campus received a special gift in the form of a new study area in Frost Library. Glendon Principal Kenneth McRoberts, University Librarian Cynthia Archer, York student ambassador Jaclyn Volkhammer and Acting Department Head of Frost Library Sarah Coysh, jointly unveiled the Frost Library’s first major renovation in almost 50 years.

From left, University Librarian, Cynthia Archer,  student ambassador, Jaclyn Volkhammer, and Glendon Principal, Kenneth McRoberts, cut the ceremonial ribbon and unveil Frost Library’s new Fireside Reading Room

Faculty, staff, students and donors attending the unveiling were the first to see the former “Reserves Room” transformed into a multi-modular, student-centred space. The aptly named “Fireside Reading Room” boasts a comfortable seating area nestled around a fireplace, four large collaborative study spaces and a bank of eight additional computer carrels.

In an effort to make the space more conducive to the evolving needs of York’s 21st-century students, open dialogues and student focus groups were conducted. Under the leadership of Architect Michael Guido and Project Manager Sean Thibeault, work on renovating the space began in last spring.

The Leslie Frost Library was York’s first library and has been an integral part of both the Glendon and York communities for the past five decades.

McRoberts welcomed guests to the reception with his opening remarks. “I’ve known many libraries over my life. I’ve spent a great deal of time in them and have developed a real love for libraries,” McRoberts explained. “But there’s no library that is more loveable than this one. This is a library that has really contributed to the community, which is appreciated by the community, and has a very special place at Glendon.”

Volkhammer spoke about what the renovated space will mean to Glendon’s students. “My favourite part of the renovation is the fireplace and the seats around it. Frost [Library] already seems like my home on campus – I think I probably spend more time in the library than in residence! It’s fitting that there’s a room like this. It wouldn’t seem out of place in your home.”

Archer spoke of the continued commitment by the York University Libraries to refreshing the student experience at Frost Library. “We are committed to revitalizing Frost Library’s welcoming atmosphere as funds become available,” Archer said. “The creation of the Fireside Reading Room is just a start. Our vision for Frost Library is to completely renovate the first floor so we can continue to serve a student population with diverse learning styles and technological needs.”

The first phase of the renovation was made possible because of York University Libraries’ donors.

To conclude the reception a video titled “Rediscover Frost Library” was screened. The video features Glendon alumni and Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies Professors Emeriti John Lennox ’67, J. Paul Grayson ’67, Bob Drummond ’67, and current Glendon students, Emma Price, Drew Pinkerton and Alexandra Tangorra. The six reminisce about their first impressions of Frost Library, with memories that span five decades. They discuss how the renovated space will affect a new generation of learners.

York University Libraries partnered with Learning Technology Services (LTS) to create the three-minute video that celebrates Frost Library’s past while focusing on its future. “Many of Glendon’s alumni and donors are spread across the country and the world. We knew many of them wouldn’t have the opportunity to see, first hand, the renovation that resulted from their generosity,” says Coysh. “The ‘Rediscover Frost Library’ video allows us to show our appreciation through a medium that can be easily disseminated and shared among our Frost Library supporters – on websites and through social media.”

View Frost Library’s newly renovated Fireside Reading Room. Watch the Rediscover Frost Library video or view the FlickR gallery.

Associate Librarian of Humanities and Religion, Scott McLaren, has been awarded a prestigious Botein Fellowship by the American Antiquarian Society (AAS). McLaren will spend the month of November at the AAS in Worcester Massachusetts extending research he began in his dissertation on early Upper Canadian religious print culture. Specifically, McLaren wants to deepen his understanding of the role Upper Canadian Sunday schools played in spreading literacy across the colony.

Receiving the Botein Fellowship for research in the history of the book in American culture will grant McLaren access to the AAS library that houses approximately two-thirds of all American publications produced between 1640 and 1876.

Access to America’s earliest publications may seem counterintuitive to a study of Upper Canadian Sunday schools, but McLaren knows this literature will have a profound influence on his research. “Sunday school libraries in Upper Canada started to take shape in the 1820s and in many ways they functioned as the colony’s first ‘public’ libraries, especially for those living outside of urban regions,” McLaren explains. “However, many of these schools followed American models and imported all their books from New York.” For these reasons, Sunday school libraries functioned as transnational centres for literacy across the Upper Canadian backwoods.

Following the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 it became especially problematic for Upper Canadian Sunday Schools to form libraries around American texts. These books presented a version of history that Canadian political elites were not comfortable with. In the 1840s the colony’s chief superintendent of education, Egerton Ryerson, banned the use of American textbooks and teachers in Canadian schools entirely.

What McLaren is most excited about is the opportunity to pore over literature that was deemed insidious enough to be prohibited by Canadian politicians. “I want to use my time at AAS to read through these ‘subversive’ books and see what people were reading in 1822-1840 – particularly because these texts helped to shape the landscape of early Canadian print culture,” McLaren explains.

These publications will inform a number of scholarly articles as well as McLaren’s book tentatively titled A Reading People: Print Culture and the Methodist Struggle for Social Respectability in Upper Canada, 1800-1850.

“Scott is a great scholar who captures our imagination and certainly demonstrates book history is not boring,” says Cynthia Archer, University Librarian. “How many of us knew Sunday Schools and public libraries in Canada are related and that Ryerson banned American textbooks for use in the classroom?”

The AAS was established in 1812 when the United States was at war with Britain. The founder, Isaac Thomas, wanted to preserve all records that served to inform the American identity outside of Britain’s governance. The AAS also boasts one of the world’s largest collections of early Canadian publications.

A panel of four experts from various post-secondary educational institutions are set to argue the topic “The Great Debate: Should the blog replace the book?” They will discuss the value of emerging forms of scholarly communications in a public forum.

The two panellists arguing for the blog will be Ian Milligan (pictured left) and Melonie Fullick.  Milligan is professor of history at the University of Waterloo and co-editor of the blog ActiveHistory.ca. Fullick is completing her PhD in Education with a focus on post-secondary governance, policy, and organizational change and holds a BA in Communication Studies from McMaster University and an MA in Linguistics from York University.

The two panellists arguing for the book will be John Fink and Scott McLaren (pictured right). Fink is the digital scholarship librarian at McMaster University. His specific research interests include copyright, open source software, physical community and digital humanities. McLaren completed his PhD in book history and print culture and is the humanities librarian and a faculty member in the Graduate Program in Humanities at York University.

Audience members will take an active role in the debate by tweeting questions and rebuttals using the hashtag #blogvsbook to the live Twitter feed that will be projected on screen at the event.

“Open Access Question of the Day”
Oct. 22 to 26 

Each morning, a question pertaining to scholarly communications will appear on the York University Libraries’ homepage. The question will be tweeted via the York University Libraries Twitter account. Participants can send an answer the day’s question on Twitter using the hashtag #yulqod for a chance to win a $20 YU card credit. Each day, a different question will be posed and award winner announced.

The winning tweet for the Oct. 22 question of the day will be announced during “The Great Debate: Should the book replace the blog?”

“Open is Sweeter
“Oct. 24, 2012 at 12pm (noon)

During “Open is Sweeter”, York students, faculty, and staff are invited to join the University librarians in the Scott Library Atrium for cupcakes. The librarians will be available to answer questions about open access or scholarly communications.

For more information about scholarly communications, open access, or Open Access Week events at York University visit the Scholarly Communications website.

The School of Health Policy & Management in the Faculty of Health has just published the University’s first online undergraduate academic journal hosted by York Digital Journals  – Healthy Dialogue.

An annual publication, Healthy Dialogue will feature original articles written by undergraduate students in the School of Health Policy & Management related to all aspects of health studies. There will be particular emphasis placed on pressing contemporary issues and debates related to health and health-care management, health informatics and health and social care policy.

“We make things happen in the School of Health Policy & Management,” says health Professor Tamara Daly (left), who is co-editor-in-chief of the journal along with Julia Salzmann, an undergraduate student in health policy.

Healthy Dialogue is a student-run, faculty mentored initiative which highlights the outstanding health-care writing and research of undergraduate students in the School of Health Policy & Management.

The inaugural issue has articles looking at policy options regarding access to health care for the homeless and trade agreement and pharmaceutical patent protection by student Danalyn Byng and another on harm reduction policy by student Guytano Virdo.

“Not only do we have incredible students, who are engaged and engaging, but we also have faculty who are world-class researchers, and top notch teachers and mentors,” says Daly. “It is a winning combination. This journal demonstrates how, together, we foster healthy debate.”

Julia Salzmann

The journal is also designed to be a forum for graduate and undergraduate students to exchange ideas, expertise and creativity.

“It’s an absolutely amazing opportunity for undergraduate students to go through the editorial process to give them that competitive edge they are looking for when applying to graduate programs,” says Salzmann. “How many undergrads can say that they’ve had their work published?”

Salzmann says it wouldn’t have come about without the tremendous assistance of Andrea Kosavic, assistant librarian in Bibliographic Services at Scott Library. Kosavic says she is happy to work with others on campus to either migrate an existing journal to digital or help get a new start-up, such as Healthy Dialogue, up and running.

To contribute to the journal, watch for the annual call for papers in early winter of each academic year. Submissions will be reviewed by section editors comprised of one senior student and one faculty member.

For more information, visit the Healthy Dialogue website or the School of Health Policy & Management website.

When asked to write a 10-page essay, or find credible and accurate research sources, or balance academic responsibilities effectively, students often don’t know where to begin. The Learning Commons – a collaborative partnership between the Writing Department, York University Libraries, Learning Skills Services, and Career Services – has produced a series of five fun, informational videos that highlight the academic supports available to students who are hoping to refine their skills.

Myles Marcus, Farrah Bulsara, and Annabelle Li are featured in the videos

The Access to Success video series takes the viewers on a student-centred virtual tour of the Learning Commons Hub, Ask: Chat with a librarian instant messaging service, and the Writing, Library Research, and Learning Skills supports available at York.

Librarian, Kent Murnaghan, initially received 140 applications from students wanting to be involved in the video project. After an interview and audition process the three student participants selected, Farrah Bulsara, Annabelle Li, and Myles Marcus, worked collaboratively with Murnaghan and the Learning Commons’ partners to deliver five engaging scripts.

“A lot of planning was involved in getting the videos from pre-production to post-production. We worked as a team to develop and implement ideas – some that were over the top and later found themselves on the cutting room floor – that were entertaining while still communicating the intended message,” explains Marcus, a York student completing the final year of his Communications and Urban Studies double major.

Partnering with Learning Technology Services (LTS), filming of the Access to Success video series began in March 2012 and took five full days to shoot.

“I really enjoyed being a part of the scripting and filming process. It’s important that students know that writing instructors can help them draft an essay, librarians can provide research assistance, and learning skills instructors can help them manage their time effectively,” explains Bulsara, graduate (’12) of the Film Production program. “If I had known these supports were available and so easily accessible I’m positive my coursework and assignments would have been easier to manage.”

Li, a student of the Design program, added, “I hadn’t taken full advantage of the research, writing, or learning skills resources because I wasn’t entirely aware of their benefits. Working on these videos was the catalyst for me to seek advice and assistance from the Learning Commons. I hope these videos do the same for other students.”

The overarching goal for the project was to create engaging content that that could easily be shared and disseminated among peers on web sites and in social networking sites.

Murnaghan believes these videos can also complement course curricula. “Many if not all faculty members require students to source academic or scholarly journals, write an essay, or manage conflicting academic priorities,” Murnaghan explains. “Faculty members can integrate one or all of the applicable videos into their course curricula and introduce support services that will help students achieve success – not just on that one assignment, but for the rest of their academic careers.”

The Access to Success video series can also be viewed via the York University YouTube page.