Scholarly communications conference supports UMaine faculty, grad students

UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

February 16, 2018 News, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

A group of 40 University of Maine faculty and graduate students gathered at Raymond H. Fogler Library over winter break to attend a half-day conference dedicated to discussing emerging trends in scholarly communications.

ScholComm 2018 attendees participated in workshops that introduced them to new tools in academic publishing and advanced methods for tracking the effect of their publications.

Organized by Fogler Library, ScholComm was developed in response to feedback from faculty and students.

“After teaching several workshops on scholarly communication, it became clear that there was a need for, and interest in, further information, tools and discussion regarding the evolution of scholarly publishing,” says Jen Bonnet, social sciences and humanities librarian at Fogler Library.

ScholComm featured workshops on topics such as open-access publishing, alternative methods to track and convey scholarly impact and how to self-archive work in UMaine’s institutional repository.

“I attended ScholComm because I recognize the importance of reaching beyond the traditional academic audience to share the important work we’re doing as scholars,” says Susan Gardner, director of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and the Rising Tide Center at UMaine. “I learned so much about different ways to see one’s impact and share one’s work beyond a typical academic journal. It was an invaluable experience and I highly recommend it to others.”

The focus on evolving trends made ScholComm valuable for established scholars as well as graduate students who are relatively new to publishing.

With the success of ScholComm, Bonnet sees a growing demand for education and discussion about topics in scholarly communication. She sees workshops, trainings and conferences like ScholComm as an opportunity to help scholars expand the reach of their work.