McGill ABQLA Executive Committee 2009-2010

This fall, McGill students elected the new ABQLA Student Chapter Executive Committee for 2009-2010. This year's representatives are from left to right:

Amber McNair, Vice-President

Amanda Halfpenny, President

Morgan Eaton, Communications Officer

Adam Baron, Secretary/Treasurer

 Photo Credit: Susann Allnutt

President – Amanda Halfpenny

Amanda is a second year MLIS student at McGill. In addition to being the president of the ABQLA student chapter, she is also the chair for the MSPN (McGill Student Parent Network)’s Multilingual Children’s Library and the organizer for Web 2.You 2010. She works part-time at the reference desk at McGill’s Education Library and at the circulation desk at Westmount Public Library. Her library-related passions include everything from children’s literature and collection development to information literacy and technologies in libraries. When she is not studying or reading a good book, Amanda also trains for marathons. You can read her library blog at www.biblioblond.wordpress.com!

Vice-President- Amber McNair

Amber is a first year MLIS student in the Librarianship Stream.  She enthusiastically moved to Montreal from Calgary where she completed her first two degrees at the University of Calgary.  In 2004, Amber graduated with Bachelor of Arts, double major in Psychology and History (Canadian History concentration), followed by a Bachelor of Education, 2006.  From Sept 2006 to June 2009, Amber was employed as a teacher in Calgary.  She ran the Physical Education Program at a tiny, private school for one year, followed by teaching elementary school at a large school board for two years.

Being new to this exciting field of Library and Information Studies, Amber is interested in learning the numerous career options that exist in public, academic and special libraries to find out which is the most enticing.  Currently, Amber volunteers weekly at the Music Library at CKUT (McGill’s campus radio).  She is also the Treasurer of the SLA McGill Student Chapter and involved with the McGill Multi-Lingual Children’s Library. 

Amber’s personal interests include hiking in the Rockies, enjoying Québec summers while taking French courses at Université Laval, swimming, cooking and tossing a frisbee. 

Secretary/Treasurer - Adam Baron

 Adam’s passion for learning started at a young age and has since taken him all over Canada.  Born and raised in a small farming community in central Alberta, he moved to Nova Scotia after high school graduation to pursue a Bachelor of Music (Class of 2007) at Acadia University.  Following a move to Ontario, he graduated in 2008 from the Bachelor of Education program at the University of Windsor.  In addition to his two degrees, Adam has spent summers in Montreal, Chicoutimi, and Trois-Pistoles, QC studying and improving his French. 

Scared to lose the language he had worked so hard to learn, Adam moved to Montreal in September 2008 to continue, or so he thought, to improve his French.  What resulted, however, was a brief career as a music and piano teacher, and a decision to begin Library and Information Studies in September 2009.

Adam very much enjoys learning about the exciting domain that is Library and Information Studies.  He is currently Vice-President of the CLA McGill Student Chapter, Secretary/Treasurer of the ABQLA McGill Student Chapter, and is involved with the McGill Multilingual Children’s Library.  Outside of school, Adam volunteers regularly and teaches piano lessons.

Communications Officer - Morgan Eaton

 Morgan J. Eaton graduated with two BA’s in English and Theatre as well as a minor in French from Johnson State College in Vermont. After previously working at his college’s library and for a public library as the Processing Specialist and Children’s Program Coordinator, he spent three years as a Project Coordinator at a pharmaceutical market research firm. Morgan found the international research on every detail of prominent physicians’ work very stimulating. He parlayed that into his most recent position as the Archival Intern for a Harvard-affiliated medical center’s Special Collections Room. Morgan is honored to be at McGill specializing in Librarianship and hopes serving in its student chapter of the ABQLA will open up opportunities in academic or medical libraries.