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Alan Witt, Milne’s New Business Librarian

Milne Library is delighted to welcome our new Business Librarian, Alan Witt, who comes to us from Rivier University, New Hampshire. Alan has B.A.s in Archeology & Medieval Studies from Wesleyan University in Connecticut, & an M.A. in History (Medieval Studies) & a Master’s in Library & Information Studies from the University of Rhode Island.

As you might expect from his educational background, Alan has a wide & eclectic group of interests & activities, including playing board games & gaming in general; acapella music ranging from medieval madrigals to modern pop, aikido (a martial art), baking breads & cookies, & reading, particularly fantasy & sci-fi (e.g., George RR Martin & Jim Butcher). And like many of Milne’s librarians, he is owned by a cat, Alaric.

Since arriving here in Geneseo in November Alan has been working with the faculty of the School of Business to expand the library’s business-related research classes & is looking forward to working with students on their business assignments. You can find Alan on the main floor of Milne Library in the Instruction Librarian “fishbowl,” or reach him at [email protected]. Welcome, Alan…we’re really glad you’re here!

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Brandon West, Our New Social Science Librarian

BWestMilne Library is excited to welcome Brandon West as our new Social Sciences Reference & Instruction Librarian. Brandon joins us from SUNY Oswego where he was the Online Instruction/Instructional Design Librarian. In addition to teaching information literacy classes he used his extensive knowledge of online teaching and learning, instructional design and pedagogy to help faculty and staff develop and deliver both in-person and online courses.

Here at Geneseo, Brandon will be the liaison to the Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, and Political Science Departments, and will work closely with faculty, students, and staff to help them with their information literacy, research, and collection development needs.

Prior to working in an academic environment, Brandon worked at the Grand Rapids Public Library in Grand Rapids, MI; he is also a former elementary school teacher, having been a fourth grade teacher in Charleston, SC.

Brandon received his B.A. at Grand Valley State University in English and Elementary Education, his M.Ed. from Grand Valley State University in Educational Technology, and his M.L.S. from Texas Woman’s University. As a life-long learner, he is currently pursuing a Certificate of Graduate Study in Online Learning and Teaching from the University at Albany.

In Brandon’s spare time he is the member of many national library committees and teams, such as the ACRL Instruction Session Teaching Methods Committee, the ALA GLBT Round Table, and he co-chairs the ACRL Distance Learning Section Awards Committee. In his spare, spare time he enjoys traveling, taste testing new restaurants, and parenting his two cat children.

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Why use Primary Sources?

A Primary source is material created at the time of an historical event and provides a true account of that event or time period. They are a great way to expose students to multiple perspectives on past and present events and issues.

Identifying and finding primary sources can be a challenge, however, which may dissuade students from using them in their research. The video below, designed by librarians Sue Ann Brainard and Michelle Costello, introduces the plight of the Little Rock Nine and their integration struggles through the use of primary sources, such as images, oral histories, government documents and music.

Sue Ann Brainard – [email protected]

Michelle Costello – [email protected]

LittleRock9

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“How Do I …” save time and frustration with research projects!

HowDoISo you’re new to campus and kinda new to the whole research paper thing.  Or you’re not new but just a bit rusty, and that library skills class you took seems so long ago.  Who can remember all that searching/citing/writing stuff anyway?

Just settle down, breathe deeply, turn on your computer, and bring up Milne Library’s homepage.  See that list over there on the right, called Quick Links?  About half way down is the one you want – “How do I …”

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Click on it and you’ll find all you need to help you through your research project, no matter which stage it’s at. Just about everything is covered, from “Begin My Research” to “Edit and Proofread My Writing.”   Need help distinguishing scholarly from popular (or primary from secondary) sources?  There’s a guide for that! Need some guidance on which databases to use, and how to do a really great search? Yep – there’s a guide for that, too.

When asking a librarian is just not an option – whether because it’s 2 a.m. and you need help NOW, or because you’re more of a DIYer – Milne’s “How do I …” guides will help see you through the research, citing, and writing of your paper or project.  (But do try to ask a librarian, too, OK?)Start

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Primary Sources: Hands-on History!

Using primary sources is an excellent technique for exploring historical events or topics. Knowing what a primary source is and finding concrete examples however, can be challenging. The video below, designed by librarians Sue Ann Brainard and Michelle Costello, introduces the plight of the Little Rock Nine and their integration struggles through the use of primary sources, such as images, oral histories, government documents and music.

This video is intended to be an introduction to a set of tutorials on specific research tools and techniques used to locate and access primary sources, to be created over the next year or so.

Please feel free to contact us with ideas for content and to let us know if you are interested in designing or developing future tutorials.

Sue Ann Brainard – [email protected]

Michelle Costello – [email protected]