Congratulations to our graduating student employees!  The Library annually recognizes their contributions by giving them the opportunity to suggest items to add to the collection.  The items selected by the students have been purchased and are now available at the Library, with a mention of the contributors in the catalogue records, as well as in each of the chosen items themselves.  In the photo, recent graduates Sethlina Adusei (left), Leyan Saleh (middle) and Jason Chow (right) display their requested titles, now part of the Library collection.

Requested titles include Unspoken Feelings of a Gentleman (2014), Mornings in Jenin (2010), and Food Inc. (2009) (DVD).

Congratulations to Chief Librarian, Madeleine Lefebvre, who was recently elected to the OCLC Board of Trustees during the OCLC Global Council earlier this month.  OCLC is a global library cooperative that provides shared technology services, original research and community programs for its membership and the library community at large. As an elected member of the Board of Trustees, Madeleine will be working on behalf of participating libraries worldwide to ensure that the cooperative meets the needs of individual institutions, and the profession at large. In addition, the Board is responsible for recruiting and working with the OCLC President and CEO, and for monitoring the cooperative through a dedicated audit process. Madeleine is the first Canadian to be elected to the Board of Trustees.

Once again, the Library will participate in the LibQUAL+ survey, along with several other Canadian university libraries. The Library participated in LibQUAL+ in 2007, 2010, and 2013. Please visit the Library website to view results from the previous survey.

Starting the week of April 4th, a random sample of students, faculty and staff will receive an e-mail invitation to complete the web-based survey.  Participation is completely voluntary and the process is entirely confidential.  Students may choose, if they wish, to submit their email for a chance to win one three $50 Starbucks gift cards. Neither the email address nor any other personal identification will be transmitted with the survey responses.

Your participation in LibQUAL+ 2016 will be particularly valuable as we now have the Student Learning Centre as part of our space.  We sincerely hope that you will complete the survey if you receive an email invitation.

Thank you for your support. If you have any questions, please email: libqual@ryerson.ca

It’s award season, and time to celebrate and recognize the contributions of our fabulous library staff!

At the recent Ryerson Awards Night celebration, the university recognized excellence in teaching, research, administration, service and leadership. The 2016 event honoured 118 staff and faculty members.

Simon Ly, the Library’s long-time IT Technician, was the recipient of a Julia Hanigsberg Make Your Mark Staff Award for his 22 years of excellence in service and leadership.  Librarians Lucina Fraser, Kelly Kimberley, Fangmin Wang and May Yan were recipients of the Librarian Award, for their varied contributions to student support and engagement, and innovation in library services.

In addition to the Ryerson Awards, our talented staff have also received external recognition for their efforts. Librarian Mandissa Arlain, who recently received a Viola Desmond Award, was also awarded an International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) Fellowship to attend the World Library and Information Congress in Columbus, Ohio in August.  Mandi was one of only 15 librarians in Canada to receive a fellowship, which pays all conference expenses, including travel.

Our student staff have also made their mark at Ryerson.  Jason Chow, a work study student who helps make library resources available in accessible formats, as well as supporting the One Stop Copyright Service, recently received an Experiential Learning Work Study Award.  This award recognizes a work study student who has made an impact in fostering a collegial environment, using exceptional interpersonal skills to proactively seek out collaborative ways to work with colleagues in their department and/or across the community. Jason will receive his award at the Student Experience Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, March 29th.

Congratulations to RULA’s Mandissa Arlain, who was the recent recipient of a Viola Desmond Day Award!  The Viola Desmond Day Awards celebrate the work and achievements of strong Black women from Toronto Metropolitan University and the greater Toronto community.  Now in its 8th year, the awards help raise awareness of Viola Desmond’s contributions to the civil rights movement in Canada, and the diverse and little-known stories of past and present women of African descent.

The awards are named after four notable women in Canadian Black history.  Mandissa has received the Ms. Chloe Cooley Ryerson Staff Member Award, and will receive this award at  the Viola Desmond Day Awards Ceremony on Monday, March 7 from 5-8 p.m. in POD250.  Recipients of this award have enriched Ryerson’s and/or Toronto’s diversity through initiatives promoting Black history, and have made a positive difference in areas such as equity, diversity, inclusion, human rights, social justice and community-building.

Mandissa has worked at RULA since 2003 in a number of different roles –  as a Library Technician, Circulation Services Supervisor, and more recently, as a Librarian, after having completed her Masters in Information Studies at the University of Toronto’s iSchool. Mandissa was a member of the university’s Anti-Racism Task Force, formed in 2010, and also volunteers for the 100 Accomplished Black Canadian Women (ABC) Project.  This is the second time a staff member from RULA has won a Viola Desmond Day Award – librarian Lucina Fraser was also an award recipient in 2010.

Did you know that the average expenditure in 2013 on candies and chocolates by Canadian households was $191?  Check out Statistics Canada’s ‘Valentine’s Day… by the numbers‘ for more information about this special day.

Did you know that 64% of adults aged 25 to 64 in Canada had post-secondary qualifications in 2011? Here are some more interesting statistics about education in Canada.

Our staff in the Geospatial, Map and Data Centre have been busy developing a new and improved website!  Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the new format and content, which was strongly influenced by user feedback. The new site has been organized to provide easier access to our three major collections: Geospatial Data & GIS resources, our Paper Map Inventory, and the Statistics & Data resources available through the Library. We encourage you to provide feedback about the new site through this blog, or visit us in the GMDC, located on the main floor of the Library, at the north end! We hope to see you soon.