Academic Lecture Series - Division of Library and Information Science Fall Symposium - Manhattan Campus

November 03, 2012 8:30 AM - 3:00 PM
Saval Auditorium, Manhattan Campus

 Library and Information Sciences

Division of Library and Information Science Presents: Fall Symposium

1. Mary Niles Maack, Ph.D – keynote speaker title: Toward a new model of the information professions: embracing empowerment. - Affiliation: Professor, UCLA, Grad Sch of Ed and Info Studies
2. Audrey Belanger - Title: Public Library Services for the Homeless in NY Metropolitan Area   
3. Susan Berdinka - Title: Drupal Content Management System in the Library
4. Leslie Chen  - Title: Fandom Works - Affiliation: Queens Library
5. April Lynne Earle - Title: Design of an Application Profile for the St. John’s University Oral History Collection
6. Alyse Hennig - Title: Davis Library Archives and Special Collections

Note: presentation proposals are still being reviewed this month; a complete list will be forwarded the first week in October

Presentation Title: Public Library Services for the Homeless in the New York Metropolitan Area
Presentor: Audrey Belanger,  St. John’s University


Homelessness is a significant problem in the New York metropolitan area. Public libraries have the potential to provide valuable services to meet the information needs of homeless individuals. In order to reach their potential, libraries must have the appropriate services and policies in place to ensure that they are assisting homeless patrons rather than unintentionally or deliberately excluding them. This presentation will examine policies and services suggested by the literature, and the differing viewpoints on the topic in the field. The presentation will conclude with research questions for further study.

Presentation Title: Drupal Content Management System in the Library
Presentor: Susan R. Berdinka, St. John’s University


What is the purpose of a library web presence? As any other library service, it exists to serve the patron’s information needs, and to help build the library community. If a library’s web presence fails to achieve that purpose, it must be changed to meet that goal.

Drupal is an open source content management system (CMS). A content management system is software that saves content in a database, allows administrators to easily edit the content, and displays the content in a standardized way; all without the editor needing to know any programming languages. Drupal is scalable: the library’s website can continue to grow without needing to start over again.

In this presentation, we will discuss basic installation and maintenance of a of a Drupal 7 website. We will discuss Drupal “out-of-the-box” and the suggested minimal modules for a basic library website and how to use them. We will demonstrate content creation and customization of a basic library website. And we will also discuss how Drupal can be the foundation for a truly interactive web presence, including sharing, commenting, tagging, and RSS feeds. We will also discuss what skills are required in order to build a good Drupal site.

Presentation Title: Fandom Works
Presentor: Leslie Chen, Children’s Librarian at Queens Library

Pop culture is an undeniable and omnipresent force in our society, and while some libraries have taken the hint and are incorporating it into their programs and services, many misconceptions and prejudices prevail. Rather than being mere receptacles, kids and teens interact with pop culture, critique it, disseminate it, and even transform it -- thus creating, and participating in, the world of fandom. In this presentation, we will have a basic introduction to fandom, learn about fanfiction and fanpedias, and find how we can use fan culture to help young people find connections between pop culture in their everyday lives and the concepts they learn in class.

Presentation Title: Design of an Application Profile for the St. John’s University Oral History Collection
Presentor: April Lynne Earle, Librarian, St. John’s University


The goal of this project was to create an application profile (AP) for the St. John’s University Oral History Project Collection. Begun as part of the LIS 253/HIS 404: Oral History course in the Spring 2011 semester, the purpose of the Oral History Project is to record and collect the memories of the St. John's community. Oral histories have the potential to provide information that is not otherwise published. These very personal, digitally-recorded, recollections of individuals’ connections to St. John’s help to fill the gaps in the University’s recording of its own history.

At present the only way to access the collection is to contact the University Archives by phone and make an appointment to listen to CDs on-site. The Web serves as a primary point of access and resource discovery for most researchers; however, the University’s own OPAC is still an important discovery tool. Therefore, the required element set created for this AP was mapped to the most relevant standards available for cataloging and web-based, electronic resources; MARC and Dublin Core Qualified respectively. Both MARC and DC presented their own sets of issues and quandaries. However, I hope that presenting the experience of applying existing metadata standards will show that record creation is a surmountable task and a necessity if we plan to share our University’s history.

Presentation Title: Davis Library Archives and Special Collections
Presentor: Alysse Hennig, Librarian, St. John’s University

This presentation will overview of the Davis Library’s Archives and Special Collections. Ongoing projects will be discussed. Topics will include processing, creating finding aids, updating and enhancing the website, inventory management, marketing, and grant writing.

Date: Saturday, November 3rd, 2012
Time: 8:30 AM - 3:00 PM
Location: Saval Auditorium, Manhattan Campus

RSVP: Required. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THIS EVENT!!

More Information
Dr. James Vorbach
vorbachj@stjohns.edu
Ext: 1834