The LIS Research Coalition is delighted to announce that its five sponsored places for new professionals at the DREaM project launch conference have been awarded to:
Paula Goodale
Research Assistant – PATHS Project
The iSchool
University of Sheffield
Paula has recently graduated with an MA in Librarianship and is now working as a part-time researcher in the Information School at the University of Sheffield, where she is also registered for a part-time PhD. Paula is looking forward to the DREaM project launch conference because it will contribute to the conversation about evolving LIS research methods. She says “I hope that it will generate lots of ideas that I can immediately incorporate into my research practice, as well as highlight opportunities for extending my research into new areas, utilizing new methods for future projects. Having a digital media and multi-disciplinary background, I am aware of the wide range of research practices and I am keen to find out how some of these might be applied in LIS and perhaps how more traditional LIS methods can be adapted in areas of my current research that are outside of the mainstream.”
Samantha Halford
Subject Librarian (School of Engineering & Mathematics)
City University London
Samantha graduated with an MA with distinction in Library and Information Studies from University College London in 2007. She currently works as a subject librarian at City University and will be working towards a postgraduate certificate in academic practice next academic year. Samantha’s first professional post focused on supporting academics’ and students’ research and learning. Now she would like to turn her attention to developing her own research and writing. Samantha says “I would like to start making a contribution to the body of LIS research, and attending the DREaM project launch conference would be a wonderful opportunity to learn about best practice in methods and techniques from the beginning.”
Ray Harper
Planning Officer
University of Sheffield
Ray has already embarked on his career as a practitioner researcher having recently published a paper based on his Masters dissertation project in the New Review of Academic Librarianship. He is also currently engaged in another project to examine the overlaps between LIS and knowledge management skills. In his role as Planning Officer at the University of Sheffield Ray analyses and prepares data for a range of departments across the institution. Ray says “I think that it is important for the LIS profession to positively engage with other professions because LIS practitioners and researchers have skills of direct application to numerous other disciplines, and can learn a lot from dialogue with those outside the traditional LIS ‘sphere'”.
Shreeti Rajyaguru
Clinical Information Search Service Officer
UHL NHS Trust Education Centre Library
Shreeti holds an undergraduate degree in Information Management and Computing and earlier this year started a new job as a Clinical Information Search Service Officer in the NHS. Shreeti is looking forward to contributing a fresh perspective on LIS research from her position as a new professional working in clinical librarianship. She is keen to join the conference as a delegate to “gain further exposure to the works of professionals in the area of library and information science as well as continue to build networks in the field”.
Charlotte Smith
Assistant Librarian
University of Cambridge
Charlotte completed her MSc dissertation last year and is currently working towards chartered member status of CILIP while in post as an assistant librarian at the University of Cambridge. Charlotte is a strong supporter of the goals of the DREaM project, particularly since social media has changed the ways in which we can gather and analyse data, as well as disseminate research output. Charlotte says “LIS researchers are branching out into informal domains to conduct research and this has the effect that such research may not be disseminated to the entire LIS community. This is why it is crucial that we develop a UK-wide network of LIS professionals which we all, if not belong to, at the very least have the knowledge of how and where to look for current research.”
The DREaM project launch conference takes place on Tuesday 19th July 2011 at the Conference Centre of the British Library in London. For further information about the DREaM project launch conference and registration, please see the DREaM project launch conference web site.
We would like to thank the sponsors TFPL Intelligent Resources, Sue Hill Recruitment and Glen Recruitment for supporting the award of the five places to new professionals.
The Coalition has organised a panel session on publishing entitled “Meet the editors” as part of the conference programme on Thursday 30 June, and funded four places for UK delegates at the event. Professor Hazel Hall is delivering a keynote presentation at the conference, and chairing one of the sessions. On the Tuesday the Research in Librarianship Impact Evaluation Study (RiLIES) project team will be in Salford to run the third of the RiLIES project focus groups with librarians working in medicine and healthcare.
Colm Talbot
