News

Dear Colleagues,

The National Agricultural Library has an opening for a GS9/11 Digital Science librarian with a promotion potential to a GS12. This position is open to recent graduates. This position may be eligible to telework up to four days per week, based upon the duties of the position. You can view USDA’s telework and remote work FAQs here Telework and Remote Work FAQs | USDA.

This vacancy announcement closes 12/3/2024.

Clarification from the agency

This position is open to the public and career transition Federal employees. US Citizens and Nationals; no prior Federal experience is required.

Summary

This position is located in the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Information and Customer Service Branch in Beltsville, MD.

In this position, you will serve as the point of contact for customers with questions regarding physical and digital collections, web content, and online services. You will also assist in developing content, programs and events that build customer relationships.

Duties

• Assist in providing digital science services that promote the use of digital research methods, tools, or technologies to scientists across agricultural disciplines.
• Provide assistance to researchers, scientists, or research leaders on identifying literature and determining appropriate research tools.
• Assist in providing training, presentations, or outreach related to collections, resources, databases or literature access.
• Provide support by troubleshooting access issues or problems with electronic content delivery.

Link

USAJOBS - Job Announcement

Best,

Stephanie

Stephanie Ritchie (she/her) Lead Librarian, Customer Services Unit United States Department of Agriculture Research, Education, and Economics Mission Area Agricultural Research Service National Agricultural Library, Information Products Division Phone: 301-837-8925 Stephanie.Ritchie@usda.gov

 

Hello USAIN and AHIIG,

In case you haven't heard, there's a GREAT webinar coming up!

Please join us on Monday, Aug 05 at 2:00 (eastern) for an exciting collections-focused presentation on NC State University Libraries’ Special Collections holdings relating to animal protection. Dr. Gwyneth Thayer will discuss highlights from the collections as well a recently completed grant-funded project between the ASPCA and the Libraries to digitize materials pertaining to human-animal studies. Through the materials in this collection, attendees will also learn more about this history of organizations that have taken the lead in animal advocacy. This is an incredibly unique archive that is sure to peak the curiosity of those interested in the evolution of animal welfare. And yes, we will record the session for those who cannot attend!

Please register by Friday Aug 02, 2024. (https://ncsu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcvdumgqT8tHNxMXURS8Ib8p6i2rNzHsiazhttps://ncsu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcvdumgqT8tHNxMXURS8Ib8p6i2rNzHsiaz)

More about the speaker...

Gwyneth A. Thayer, Ph.D., is the Associate Head and Chief Curator at the Special Collections Research Center at the NC State University Libraries. She is responsible for curating the holdings relating to the history of animal protection, including both animal welfare and animal rights collections. She is also an affiliate graduate faculty member with the Department of History at NC State University and teaches both graduate and undergraduate students. Her book Going to the Dogs: Greyhound Racing, Animal Activism, and American Popular Culture was published in 2013 and was awarded the North American Society for Sport History book award in 2014.

Your AHIIG Convener,

Hillary

-- Hillary Fox (she/hers)

Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Librarian

Collections & Research Strategy

NC State University Libraries

Please join the ACRL/STS Government Information Committee and our presenters for our Annual Update! The Annual Update is free and open to all, and registration is required. This session will be recorded and we hope to see you there.

Balancing Scientific Research with the Rights of Indigenous Peoples through a Mutuality Framework

presented by Rich Matsuda and Noe Noe Wong Wilson

Monday, June 24, 2024, at 12:00 pm PT / 3:00 pm ET

Registration is required: https://appstate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwtcOmgrTkpHNR8TYC8h4jB7fWonvGl4I8s. 

Description: Maunakea is a mountain on the island of Hawaii that is sacred to native Hawaiians and is one of the world’s best locations for astronomical telescopes. These two perspectives have come into intense conflict in recent years. The Hawaii state government intervened and formed a new community model of governance based on a mutual stewardship paradigm. Come learn about the inspiring work of bringing diverse perspectives together to find solutions through civil dialogue and shared understanding. 

Presenter Biographies

• Rich Matsuda is the astronomy representative on the new Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority and the first Hawaiʻi-born director of the W. M. Keck Observatory, one of the most scientifically impactful optical-infrared ground-based telescopes in the world, located on the summit of Maunakea. An electrical engineer, Matsuda started his career at Keck Observatory helping with the construction of the Keck II telescope. 

• Noe Noe Wong Wilson is an educator, Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, and native rights activist from Hilo. She was arrested along with other kūpuna protecting Mauna a Wākea in 2019. Wong-Wilson is executive director of Lālākea Foundation, president of the Hawaiian Civic Club of Hilo and co-author of ʻĀina Aloha Economic Futures initiative. She is a respected elder and Hawaiian cultural practitioner who also serves on the Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority.

Please direct any questions to the ACRL STS Government Information Committee Co-Chairs, Dan Broadbent (dan_broadbent@byu.edu) and Andrea Pritt (alp5088@psu.edu).

Join the National Agricultural Library in-person and online for “Locating Black Stories at the National Agricultural Library” on May 22, 2024 at 10:00 AM EDT.

Inaugural NAL Scholar in Residence, Dr. Bobby Smith, II, will talk about his experience doing archival research at NAL to recover stories around Black people's historical relationship to agriculture via the USDA. Dr. Lopez Matthews, State Archivist and Public Records Administrator for the District of Columbia, will provide commentary.

For more information: https://www.nal.usda.gov/events/locating_black_stories_NAL

Register to attend in-person or online here: https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_nds1bjpkSIeaDcMlwOGpMg#/registration

 

We hope you were inspired by the 4 USAIN Research Fellow presentations at the conference. You saw examples of how the award was used for student workers, transcription, participant stipends, research travel, and more.

The USAIN Professional Development Committee is accepting applications for the 2024 USAIN Research Fellows Award. We look forward to hearing from you!

A total of $4,000 in funding will be available to one or more USAIN members for financial support for conducting research on agricultural information. Examples of costs that could be covered by the award include (but are not limited to): transcription, travel to an institution for research, student worker support, etc. Funding requests may include up to 50% to be used towards the dissemination of USAIN Fellow research findings via conference fees or open access publishing. 

This award does not cover indirect costs (facilities infrastructure and administrative cost) to host institutions. 

To apply, please complete the attached application to:

·  outline your proposed research or project 

·  describe what support is needed 

·  provide a research support justification demonstrating how this award will benefit the profession and possible USAIN members.

·  give preliminary ideas of where you plan to disseminate the outcome or results of your project

Applications will be judged on the applicability of research to the USAIN mission, and adherence to application guidelines (see the rubric that is also attached).

Deadline is Friday, May 31, 2024.

Award recipients will be notified by June 28, 2024.

Send the completed application via email to: usain-research-fellows-g@vt.edu

Questions can be directed to Kristen Mastel (meye0539@umn.edu), Luti Salisbury (lsalisbu@uark.edu), Kelly Weigand (kaj0050@auburn.edu), or Emily MacKenzie (emily.mackenzie@mcgill.ca).

Thank you for your interest in the USAIN Research Fellows Award!!

USAIN_Fellows_Application_2024 (1) (1).docx

Research_Fellows_Rubric_for_Award_2024.docx.pdf

The USDA National Agricultural Library has rescheduled the Heirs' Property Update for 2pm EDT on Tuesday, May 14th; this is rescheduled from the April 25th event. The Zoom link is posted below please feel free to register for a day-of reminder.

Please join the USDA National Agricultural Library on May 14th at 2:00 pm EDT for an Heirs' Property Update to discuss emerging funding, programs, and grassroots organizations working on this issue over the past several years. The update will feature speakers Savi Horne, Executive Director of the North Carolina Association of Black Lawyers Land Loss Prevention Project and member of the USDA Equity Commission Agriculture Subcommittee, Francine Miller, Senior Staff Attorney from The Center For Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) at Vermont Law and Graduate School, and Ebony Woodruff, Director of the Southern University Law Center Agricultural Law Institute for Underserved and Underrepresented Communities. The SULC Agricultural Law Institute for Underserved and Underrepresented Communities is a partner of the National Agricultural Law Center (NALC) in Fayetteville, Arkansas. This event is hosted by the Agricultural Law Information Partnership, which consists of NAL, the National Ag Law Center, and the Center for Ag and Food Systems at Vermont Law and Graduate School.

Greetings from the USAIN Advocacy & Action Committee! We are writing to encourage you to respond to the call to action from SPARC (the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition) regarding the adoption of the Federal purpose license by federal agencies for implementation of the 2022 OSTP/Nelson Memorandum. You can participate by signing the SPARC statement as an individual and also, if your institution is a member, by asking your leadership to register their support. If you are not sure whether your institution is a member, check the list of current SPARC members for confirmation.

For more information and to sign, see the SPARC statement in support of using the Federal purpose license to implement the 2022 OSTP public access memo.

As demonstrated by USAIN action plans and goals, our organization is a proponent of open access to agricultural and scientific information and other forms of scholarship and knowledge creation.  Together with SPARC and other partners, USAIN members have the opportunity to make our voices heard at this critical juncture.

By the way, Katie Steen-James, Manager of Public Policy and Advocacy at SPARC, will be a speaker at the 2024 USAIN/CBHL conference in Michigan. She will be one of the panelists in the session sponsored by the USAIN Advocacy and Action Committee on Monday afternoon, May 6. If you are attending (in person or online) join us for informative and engaging professional interactions and exchange of knowledge on open access, advocacy and the OSTP memo.

Claudine Jenda and Jeanne Pfander
Co-Chairs, USAIN Advocacy & Action Committee

On behalf of the Data Curation Network, I'm excited to share that applications are now open for the Summit for Academic Institutional Readiness in Data Sharing (STAIRS).*

To be held August 5-6, 2024 at the University of Minnesota, the STAIRS summit is designed to bring together data service providers, institutional repository (IR) managers, data curation professionals and other key stakeholders from across universities who support managing and sharing research data. We will use the summit to build up our communities of practice for institutionally based research data services and repositories in academic libraries, identifying common areas of need and exploring ways to strengthen connections between institutions.

Each institution should submit one application, but will be allowed to send up to three representatives. The applications for the summit are open now through May 17, 2024. Interested participants can view a PDF version of the application, as well as the rubric we will be using to evaluate applications. Full details available in our press release.

If you have any questions, you can reach out to Mikala Narlock (mnarlock@umn.edu) or Jake Carlson (jakecarl@buffalo.edu).

*This summit is funded under the NIH Office of Data Science Strategy’s program, Data Management Center of Excellence (DMCOE). The DMCOE is a project of HHS’s Health FFRDC, which is operated by MITRE.

Join NIFA and the National Agricultural Library (NAL) on Tuesday, April 16, at 11 a.m. EST for an informational webinar on Departmental Regulation (DR) 1020-006, involving public access to scholarly publication and digital scientific research data assets. Non-exempt data assets must be made publicly available in a reputable data repository in a machine-readable format, with a standardized metadata catalog entry submitted to NAL’s Ag Data Commons. This webinar will provide details on how to meet the requirement to report data assets in Ag Data Commons.

All NIFA awardees and contractors who are engaged in USDA-supported scientific research are encouraged to attend. Public access is a critical part of the USDA and NIFA’s support of Open Science. DR 1020-006 makes all peer-reviewed, scholarly publications and digital scientific research data assets arising from unclassified scientific research, supported wholly or in part by the USDA, accessible to the public to the extent practicable. DR 1020-006 implementation began in FY 2023 (October 1, 2022) and applies to NIFA awards, contracts, and cooperative agreements.

Register here: https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_nHY5p5sAQwWxvJSdNzE-2w#/registration

For more information, please visit Public Access for NIFA-Funded Work | NIFA (usda.gov). For additional information, please contact electronic@usda.gov.

The USAIN Nominations and Elections Committee is pleased to present the slate of candidates for the 2024 Election. USAIN will elect a President-Elect, a Secretary, and three Directors.

The Committee identified one candidate for President-Elect, four for Secretary, and six for the three Director positions. The ballot will also allow for write-in candidates. 

USAIN_Election_2024_Candidate_Bios.pdf

Please take some time to review the candidates’ biographies and personal statements.  All active USAIN members will receive a personal link to the electronic election ballot via SurveyMonkey next week; be sure mail from surveymonkey.com doesn't go to your junk mail folder.  

Thanks to all who are standing for election, and those who considered running. 

Sincerely,

Suzanne Stapleton (Chair), Megan Kocher, Tisha Mentnech, Amy Shannon

2024 USAIN Nominations and Elections Committee