Category Archives: General Library

Librarian/Yoga Teachers: Uncovering a Unique Population

Kari Mofford, UMassD Librarian and certified yoga instructor, co-authored “Librarian/Yoga Teachers: Uncovering a Unique Population” for the Journal of New Librarianship. The article is available at https://newlibs.org/index.php/jonl/issue/current.

Abstract: A survey was created to determine whether or not there is a community of librarians/library workers who are also certified to teach yoga. The survey helped to identify the size of the community and explored the participant’s experiences associated with the dual skills sets. Results show there are strong benefits for those library workers who have their yoga certification, but there are also concerns and challenges that demonstrate a need for a more formal community and further research. 

Introducing our Scholarly Communication Librarian, Emma Wood

A Scholarly Communication Librarian has joined the Claire T. Carney Library team this Fall! Although the position is new, Emma Wood has been with the university for 13 years, including as a librarian at the UMass Law Library where she assisted students and faculty with legal research. She is interested in supporting research and publication on campus as well as promoting OERs (free and low- cost teaching materials).  Read on to learn more about our new librarian.

What is a Scholarly Communication Librarian?

It’s an exciting and relatively recent development in the world of librarianship. I have the opportunity to enhance and encourage scholarship on campus by supporting research and publication. This means meeting with faculty to help to make their research and scholarly articles more discoverable, creating faculty profiles, and by identifying resources to help with their digital projects. For example, I hope to see an online repository of faculty scholarship developed in the near future. I will also work with students on data management tools and best practices and will provide reference help. An important part of my job will be getting the word out about the advantages of Open Educational Resources, not only how they save students money but also how they improve teaching/learning in the classroom. Everyone benefits from accessible, affordable textbooks and class materials!

Where are you from and where did you go to school?

Way out in the western part of the state – The Berkshire Mountains – a town called Adams, MA. I moved to Dartmouth more than a decade ago to work at UMass Dartmouth. I received my undergraduate degree in English/Communications from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and I completed my Masters in Library Science at Simmons College (now Simmons University) in Boston, MA.

What are your hobbies/interests?

Food, travel, 80s movies, books, cats, writing, Stranger Things, Cobra Kai, and metal bands!

What are you looking forward to this fall semester?

I’m eager to get to know more UMass Dartmouth faculty members and their research interests. Not only is their teaching important to our success, but the articles and original studies and projects they produce are vital to our culture and profile as a university. I’m looking forward to working with both faculty and students to enhance the resources they need to find, produce, and disseminate scholarly works. And I am thrilled to be working with open education materials – a concept that has interested me since my time as a student trying to buy textbooks and as a librarian helping students get access to what they need for class.

What do you want students and faculty to know about you?

That I am dedicated to supporting them, and I want the library to be everyone’s favorite place!

How can someone contact you?

Email me at emma.wood@umassd.edu or call 508-999-8681

Interested faculty members are encouraged to schedule a Scholarly Check-In with me where we can discuss ways to increase the visibility and discoverability of your scholarly publications. You may also schedule an OER Consultation to consider free and low-cost materials that you may integrate into your classes.

Are you a student who has experienced the benefits of low or no cost textbooks or a faculty member who uses OERs? I want to hear from you!

Announcing the Publication of PLCS 36-37: Heritages of Portuguese Influence: Histories, Spaces, Texts, and Objects

We are pleased to announce that Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies (PLCS) 36-37, “Heritages of Portuguese Influence: Histories, Spaces, Texts, and Objects,” is now available! You can find this issue as well as all back issues available for free on the journal’s website.

Cover of PLCS 36/37. Includes names of guest editors: Miguel Badeira Jeronimo, Anna M. Klobucka, and Walter Rossa.

Situated in the interdisciplinary field of Critical Heritage Studies, this special issue gathers articles originating in diverse areas of scholarship (and in many cases fostering productive cross-fertilizations among them) that deal with the multifaceted postcolonial and globalized heritages of the Portuguese empire and Lusophone diasporas. The contributors discuss “heritage” and “influence” critically, as cultural and political arguments and practices, and as historical manifestations entailing diverse perspectives, motivations, and consequences, formed in colonial and postcolonial situations, imagining the past, the present, and the future.

The Center for Portuguese Studies and Culture’s Tagus Press publishes its electronic version of PLCS on the library’s journal hosting platform.

Website Redesign Coming Soon

The Claire T. Carney Library is getting a new website!

Based on feedback from faculty and students, we have redesigned the library’s main website. The new website offers a contemporary look and feel alongside improved functionality, making it easier for you to find exactly what you need.

The site will go live later this month (August 2022), just in time for the start of the fall semester. Here is a sneak peek of the new design:

New library website homepage.

If you have any questions, please contact us. We look forward to sharing the new website with you!

Announcing the Publication of PLCS 34-35: The Open Veins of the Postcolonial: Afrodescendants and Racisms

We are pleased to announce that Portuguese Literary & Cultural Studies (PLCS) 34-35, “The Open Veins of the Postcolonial: Afrodescendants and Racisms,” is now available! You can find this issue as well as all back issues available for free on the journal’s website.

Making an obvious reference to Eduardo Galeano’s Open Veins of Latin America, this volume proves that the veins of the postcolonial remain open, having prolonged and reproduced themselves over the course of decades. “The Open Veins of the Postcolonial” traces the emergence of epistemological categories and offers thematic analyses of racial and ethnic differences, as well as those arising from sociability, representations, and sociopolitical and cultural dynamics. This volume likewise unmasks the naturalizing discourse of the ideology of subalternity and institutionalized discrimination through various “beliefs” and tacit practices; discusses how to articulate the place of belonging with ethno-racial identity in the twenty-first century; and contributes to the broad discussion initiated by the United Nations’ declaration of the International Decade for People of African Descent, 2015-2024 (Resolution 68/237).

The Center for Portuguese Studies and Cultures’s Tagus Press publishes its electronic version of PLCS on the library’s journal hosting platform.

Position Opening: Electronic Resources Librarian

The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth is seeking applicants for its Electronic Resources Librarian position.

The Electronic Resources Librarian is responsible for managing the life cycle of electronic resources, including license negotiation; acquisition; renewals; activation; discovery and access support; maintenance; and evaluation. The librarian in this role is part of the Library Technical Services team and ensures continued access to and support for robust, distinctive, and innovative collecting in support of academic initiatives and university programs. The Electronic Resources Librarian effectively engages with colleagues across the Library, the University and externally with consortia and vendors.

The Claire T. Carney Library is the centerpiece of the concentric campus plan of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. UMass Dartmouth is the only research university located on the beautiful South Coast of Massachusetts. Its library plays a fundamental role in enhancing the learning experience of students by providing services and space for research, study, and social activities.

The historic town of Dartmouth along New England’s Farm Coast is one of the largest towns by land area on the banks of the Buzzards Bay. New England has historic architecture, small towns, large cities, bustling metropolitan areas, and great seafood. The cities of Providence, Boston, and New York are within driving distance.

How to apply:

For more information about this position, including minimum starting salary; qualifications; and information about how to apply, please navigate to our website at UMass Dartmouth Careers.

All interested applicants should submit a letter of interest, current resume, and the contact information for at least three professional references.

Position Opening: Library Assistant IV

Want to work at Claire T. Carney Library? We are currently looking for a Library Assistant IV to join our team.

General Summary of Position:  The Library Assistant IV is responsible for performing day-to-day activities in the area of access services. These activities include assisting patrons with circulating materials by charging, renewing, and discharging library materials; providing technical support to patrons using library computers, printers, or connecting personal devices to the university network; supervising student workers; and assuming responsibility for the operation of the library in the absence of a supervisor, especially during night and weekend hours.

For more information and to apply for the position, see the full job posting at http://careers.umassd.edu/dartmouth/en-us/job/514484/library-assistant-iv.

ILL/ILLiad to be unavailable Thursday morning, May 12th

ILLiad, the software used to make interlibrary loan (ILL) requests, will be unavailable for 1 to 3 hours on Thursday, May 12th starting around 9 am. This downtime is needed for the vendor to make server-side upgrades.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact the Library Systems department at libsys@umassd.edu and/or the Interlibrary Loan Department at libill@umassd.edu.