Graduation Interview with our Graduate Assistants

It is the end of the Spring Semester, and for everyone in their final semester, it means Graduation! That is certainly what it means for three of our graduate assistants at the Scholarly Commons. While it is a bittersweet moment for us at the Scholarly Commons to see our colleagues go, we are happy and excited about the great things they will achieve in their chosen profession.  This week, we interviewed three of our graduating graduate assistants Zhaneille Green, Ryan Yoakum and Nora Davies who have been a major asset to the Scholarly Commons. Over the past two years they have added immeasurable value to our department and in our interview with them, they all had amazing things to say about their experience at the Scholarly Commons. Here are some highlights from our interview with them.

How would you describe your GA experience to others?

Zhaneille: My experience has been eclectic. I joined the Scholarly Commons during a time of change, and it continues to evolve. I’ve learned so much about instruction, media, collection development, and service and service-point communication.

Ryan: My role comprises of three major parts. First, I am responsible for supervising both the Help Desk in room 220 as well as the Loanable Technology desk and ensuring that the student employees have everything they need to support the library patrons. Outside those desk hours, I am also responsible for designing workshops, supporting events hosted in the space, and hosting consultations related to optical character recognition and ABBYY FineReader. The third aspect of my work are internal projects related to the unit. Without going into specifics, these basically require me to have a basic understanding of data analysis and library policy creation.

Nora: I’d describe it as a great opportunity to get experience working in an academic library. I had a great team to work with and I truly wish that I could stay longer. I learned a lot about library services beyond my experience with public libraries and I had fun collaborating on projects with my fellow GA’s.

What accomplishments are you most proud of working with Scholarly Commons?

Zhaneille: I am most proud of the GIS (Geographic Information Science) Savvy Researcher workshops I taught with my GIS supervisor. It led to members of the University of Illinois community reaching out to learn more and allowed me and a fellow GA to take on big projects. I’m even getting experience with grant writing because of my GIS expertise.

Ryan: I am really proud of the Image of Research competitions during my two years with the Scholarly Commons. The students who have taken their time and effort to participate do a really great job each year, and it is incredibly rewarding to help out with this event each year. I am also really proud of the ways I have gotten to help others in the unit internally, whether it was designing the training session for the undergraduate student workers or assisting a full-time staff member on one of their projects. 

Nora: I’m proud of running a Savvy Researcher Workshop on Accessible E-Learning with Zhaneille. I was able to broaden my instruction experience and practice lesson planning and it was great to be able to share our knowledge with others.

What do you believe is the next step in your career path?

Zhaneille: After two years as a GA in an academic library, I don’t want to leave academic librarianship, for now. I will continue to pursue a career in technical services, specifically e-resources.

Ryan: I am currently looking into positions related to instruction and digital technology. These two aspects of librarianship have played a key role in my development, so those positions are the most appealing to me in the job market. In the long term, I would love to focus on something more administrative and policy base, as it is an aspect of librarianship that has just started to grow on me.

Nora: I’ll still be here during the summer, so I don’t have that next step quite figured out yet. I’m beginning to apply in earnest to jobs that begin in the Fall and, because of my experience, I have a lot of different places I could go. I’ll be looking for positions in Archives & Special Collections or Reference Services, with a focus on my technology skills. I don’t have any particular preference between Academic and Public Libraries and I have the experience to apply for both.

Do you have any advice for any GA starting out?

Zhaneille: Take a moment to learn about what the department and the wider university needs and have to offer. A graduate assistantship is rewarding because even though your projects and duties are a part of the job, you learn so much in the process. I’m graduating and still wish I had taken more LinkedIn courses or met more people.

Ryan: Do not be intimidated by all of the technology if that is brand new to you. There are so many opportunities to grow in the Scholarly Commons to learn these tools naturally. I would also encourage exploring aspects of librarianship you are interested in during your GA’ship. Since collaboration is a crucial aspect of our identity, there are so many opportunities to work with colleagues in other units related to areas of librarianship you are curious about, and the Scholarly Commons GA’ship gives you that flexibility to do that.

Nora: Don’t be afraid to check in with your supervisors. They’re there to help you succeed! If you feel lost on a project, need more work, or want to get experience working with something specific your supervisor should have some ideas.

There you have it guys!  While goodbyes are hard, it is a necessity to welcome new beginnings. We are glad to see how the Scholarly Commons have impacted the growth of our graduate assistants. We know they are all going to continue to make outstanding contributions and change in their future endeavors. We celebrate you Zhaneille, Ryan and Nora and Congratulations on your graduation!

Meet Our Graduate Assistants: Precious Olalere

Precious headshot

What is your educational and/or professional background? 

My undergraduate degree was in Library and Information Science at the University of Ilorin in Nigeria, West Africa. In my prior experience, I worked in a research library where I was able to help researchers and students get access to the right information, I absolutely loved doing this and then I went on to work for Scholars Academy where I gathered some data analytics experience and helped students and researchers with data related questions. 

What led you to your field? 

One key factor that influenced my choice of this field is my ardent love for helping people. Connecting people to the information they are looking for has always been something I enjoyed. Then I realized the philosophies that libraries represent for the people in their communities and how they influence the success of people, which can, in turn, birth a strong nation; all of these are what drove me to the field. 

What are your research interests? 

While I have a broad interest, I am particularly interested in information organization and management, digital libraries, data, and learning analytics. 

What is your specialty within the Scholarly Commons? 

I will be focusing on the data side of things at the Scholarly Commons such as data analysis and data visualization. 

Describe a favorite project you’ve worked on.

This is a hard one because I have enjoyed all the projects I have worked on, particularly the one where I created a small database for a particular library collection. The library had a handwritten manual inventory book used to locate items. To save the amount of time in locating items; I designed a simple inventory database to make access to information faster and easier. 

What Scholarly Commons resource are you most excited to learn about?  

I am really looking forward to learning about room 308 studio booths, I have always loved music and so maybe I will get to record my imaginary music album in it – haha! 

What do you hope to do after graduation? 

While I am still undecided on what I would like to do after graduation, I am really interested in data librarianship and working in the academic sphere.  

Meet Our Graduate Assistants: Jason Smith

Jason selfie

What is your educational and/or professional background? 

I graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a bachelor’s in History and Cognitive Psychology and a minor in Music. While an undergrad, I worked at the Music and Performing Arts Library (MPAL) on campus, which is where I developed my interest in librarianship. While working there, I was responsible for the circulation desk, reference desk, shelving, and had some experience with special collections.  

What led you to your field?

I actually never thought much about librarianship until I reached my undergraduate years. A combination of working at MPAL, doing research for history courses, and a love for learning made me realize that a Library and Information Science (LIS) pathway was a perfect fit for me. I reached this thought in my freshman year of college, so over the course of 4 years, that passion did not change!

What is your specialty within the Scholarly Commons? 

I am one of the weekend and evening shift supervisors. I am responsible for supervising the undergraduate student assistants and ensuring the smooth operation of the Scholarly Commons and loanable tech during times when full-time staff are not working. I also do some work on our LibGuides, have created signs for the 220 space, and am hoping to pursue more data or audio/visual (AV)-related projects.

What Scholarly Commons resource are you most excited to learn about? 

I am really excited for the A/V booths! Since I have a background in music, I spent a lot of time in studios and recording spaces. I love being in them and being able to have a space to perform and record music. I would love to set up my equipment one day when I am not working and just spend some time in there! 

What do you hope to do after graduation? 

I am mostly undecided as to what I want to do after graduation! However, I am very interested in archives, special collections, and museums. I am hoping to explore courses relating to these and pursue whichever field that I think I will enjoy most!

Meet Our Graduate Assistants: Hannah Meyer

Photo of Hannah in front of Main Library

What is your educational and/or professional background? 

I went to Elon University for my undergraduate degree, where I majored in psychology with minors in teaching & learning and literature. While at Elon, I worked at their library which cemented my desire to work at a library. Other professional experiences have included working at local bookstores during the summer.  

What led you to your field? 

I grew up going to my local public library. I have always loved reading and knew I could not picture a future where I did not spend my workday surrounded by books. I enjoy doing research and helping patrons find what they are looking for.  

What is your specialty within the Scholarly Commons? 

I am a shift supervisor at Scholarly Commons. I supervise student assistants during weekend and evening hours. I also work on various projects within the department including working on LibGuides and scheduling. 

What Scholarly Commons resource are you most excited to learn about? 

I am most excited about learning about all the loanable technology that Scholarly Commons has to offer! It has been interesting getting to see the different options for equipment to check out and to learn the difference between them.  

What do you hope to do after graduation? 

I am still undecided on what kind of library I would like to work at after graduation. Right now, I am considering working at either an academic, community college or public library.  

Meet Our Graduate Assistants: Nora Davies

Nora headshot

What is your educational and/or professional background?

I graduated with an English degree from Beloit College in Wisconsin. Afterwards, I worked at the Circulation Desk and then at the Reference Desk at Gail Borden Public Library in Elgin, IL. I also had a second job in Materials Services and then later Cataloging at the Poplar Creek Public Library in Streamwood, IL. 

What led you to your field?

I ended up in the library world unintentionally. As an undergraduate, I worked a campus job at the college library so I could avoid cafeteria work. Then, once I moved back to my hometown, I used that experience to apply for a job at my local public library. I ended up really enjoying the atmosphere of the reference desk and worked there for five years. I like the odd out-of-the-box questions I get at the desk and enjoy helping people with their research, their genealogy hunt, or their email accounts. Libraries do a whole lot more than I’d ever realized.

What are your research interests?

I’m interested in equitable and accessible library services, social work in libraries, and open educational resources (OER). I’m also interested in art and design.

What is your specialty within the Scholarly Commons?

I’m working as a Digital Projects Assistant at Scholarly Commons and the Rare Book and Manuscript Library. I work on our social media accounts, our newsletter, and I create graphics or instructions as needed.

Describe a favorite project you’ve worked on.

In my previous position, I was given free rein to work on mini posters for a bunch of tri-sided stands to advertise different library services. I enjoy being able to make creative graphics and designs.

What Scholarly Commons resource are you most excited to learn about?

I’m excited to learn more about our studio cameras and how to take professional-looking photos.  

What do you hope to do after graduation?

I’m still undecided as to what kind of librarianship I’d like to pursue after I graduate. I think I’d like to work as a research librarian at a college or university.