Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Get to know some of the staff who started working at the Library during Spring Term 2018.
Heather Bunnet-Jones
Library clerk - resource sharing, Circulation Services (Davis Centre Library)
Heather joined the Library on June 18, but has been with the Library for five years as a student staff member in Circulation and Collections. She graduated from University of Waterloo last June with a Joint Honours BA in Psychology and Social Development Studies with a specialization in Individual Well-Being and Development.
In her first full-time position, Heather says "I really enjoy being able to work with other full time employees that I was never able to interact with since I worked mainly at night. It’s great getting to know everyone at both locations while also being able to help out students who are conducting research."
Heather spends a lot of her spare time volunteering with an aim at promoting wellness and mental health, including psychiatric clinics, Kids Help Phone, peer counselling, and other crisis hotlines.
Jordan Hale
Digital repositories librarian, Digital Initiatives
Jordan joined the Library July 9, managing the UWSpace and Open Journal Systems platforms, and providing support for open scholarship on campus. "One of the neatest things about being a UWSpace administrator is keeping up with all of the cutting-edge research that goes on at Waterloo."
Jordan came to Waterloo after working as a cataloguer and reference specialist at the University of Toronto’s Map & Data Library, so being next door to the Geospatial Centre and map and atlas collections feels right at home. They have an MA in Cultural and Political Geography, and an MI in Library and Information Science from University of Toronto.
Jordan was awarded a Chief Librarian's Innovation Grant, along with media archivists, for the development of the Toronto Film Map digital project. Jordan loves long-distance cycling, cats (photos available upon request), the Los Angeles Dodgers, and super cheesy jokes.
Hilary Hung
Library clerk - resource sharing and reserves, Circulation Services (Dana Porter Library)
Hilary began June 25, and is responsible for hold requests, book return and processing scans for patron requests and course reserves. On the Circulation Desk, Hilary helps students navigate and access resources in the library as well as on campus. She serves on the Student Engagement Committee and says she loves "to plan events that connect students to library resources in innovative ways."
Before coming to the University of Waterloo, Hilary worked at Guelph Public Library, Markham Public Library and the Queen’s University Stauffer Library.
Beyond the stacks, Hilary is a practicing artist and she often uses her library skills to research and conceptualize projects in her artistic practice. Hilary’s art has been exhibited in places such as Toronto, Montreal, Guelph, Cambridge and the Georgian Bay National Park; visit her website to learn more.
Helen Player
Library clerk - receiving and holdings maintenance, Cataloguing
Helen moved into this full-time position on August 27, after working in collections maintenance as casual and contract staff for almost eight years. Shey says she enjoys the working atmosphere at the library..
Helen completed her degree as a part-time student at the University of Waterloo, graduating in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Gerontology. "I am very proud of this achievement."
"In my spare time, I enjoy attending plays, musicals and forums at The Stratford Festival." Helen was born and raised in Stratford, and really appreciates what Stratford has to offer.
"The Waterloo Reads area of the library is my favourite area for choosing a good book."
Johanna Whitson
Head, Metadata and Cataloguing Services
Johanna joined the Library on June 25 and describes Cataloguing and Metadata Services as "the magicians behind the curtain, creating the access points that allow people to fulfil their information needs." She has her MLIS from Western and Honours Communications with Business Option, with a minor in psychology, from Wilfrid Laurier. Johanna previously worked at a not-for-profit serving Canadian public libraries, starting as a cataloguer and eventually overseeing Collection Development. "I love working with data and finding new and creative ways to overcome obstacles or enhance services. I also have a fantastic team working with me, and I have really enjoyed learning from them and supporting the shift in their work as we move into Collaborative Futures."
In her spare time, Johanna enjoys hiking and camping. She also enjoys chocolate and coffee, and wasn't sure if they counted as 'interests,' but I will use my editorial power to say they do. Her scholarly interests relate to how the Internet is changing the social landscape, the impact machine mediation has on the human experience and connection, and "watching in horror from the sidelines" the developments in those areas.
Dr. Qian Zhang
Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) postdoctoral fellow in software curation, Digital Initiatives
Qian joined the Library on August 13 as a Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) postdoctoral fellow for the next two years. Qian will lead research into software preservation and curation in order to establish a framework and a set of best practices for curating software code that requires preservation over time—primarily for its value in facilitating and reproducing research.
Qian received her Ph.D. from Louisiana State University, with a major in Physical Oceanography and minor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, and has two masters degrees in Engineering Science and Control Science and Engineering, and a B.S. in Automation.
Before coming to Waterloo, she worked as a postdoc at the University of Illinois Library and National Center for Supercomputing Applications. Qian says she was drawn to the position because it combines academic research and real-world application. "Through years of interacting with data modelling, analysis and visualization, I have witnessed how big data and related computation advance new discoveries. I think UWaterloo Library is doing great things - integrating traditional library science with information science for better digital resource curation, access and preservation - eventually breaking the boundaries between disciplines.”
In her spare time, Qian enjoys reading, jogging, calligraphy and playing the piano.
