School of Information Sciences

School of Information Sciences Faculty and Incoming Student Present at the American Library Association Annual Conference in San Diego

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Many School of Information Sciences faculty members, current students, and alumni traveled across the country from Tennessee to San Diego to attend the 2024 American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference and Exhibition.  ALA prioritizes learning and ensuring access to information for all by providing resources to library systems across the country and by advocating for […]

MSIS Student Travels to Norway to Present Research on Mammoth Ivory Hunting in Siberia

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It’s not very common for undergraduate students to travel across the world to present their research at international conferences, but one School of Information Sciences student recently had the unique opportunity to do so. Chris Hastings is a master’s student and a teaching assistant for Assistant Professor Brian Dobreski. Hastings has been researching mammoth ivory […]

MSIS Alumna Shares How Advocating for Oneself Can Lead to Opportunities After Being Honored by YALSA

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Ariel Birdoff (‘12) is an elementary school librarian who loves to read teen novels in her free time. Her father started his undergraduate at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and was a huge fan of the campus environment. The New York native remembers hearing about her father’s experience on campus when she was growing up. […]

Alumni Honored at 2024 MSIS Hooding and Awards Ceremony

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During the School of Information Sciences 2024 Hooding and Awards Ceremony, two alumni from the SIS master’s program were honored for their work in libraries and information sciences. Alice Faye Duncan (‘91) was awarded the SIS Distinguished Alumni Award and Isaiah West (‘14) was awarded the SIS Innovator’s Alumni Award.  Distinguished Alumni Award Presented to […]

UTK SIS Students, Faculty, and Alumni Shine at the 2024 Tennessee Library Association Conference

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Every year, professionals from across the state in the fields of library and information sciences, along with students and supporters, gather to share ideas, learn about new findings in the field, and award those who have shown exemplary leadership in the field. School of Information Sciences Director Abebe Rorissa (left) and Brynna Farris (Right) at […]

MSIS Alumna Says UT CALL Grant and Internship Opportunities Helped Her Obtain New Position at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center

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Jessica Atkins (‘22) is starting her new career as a senior data collection analyst at the Stephenson Cancer Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. She says she wouldn’t be where she is today without the opportunities she had at her universities and during her internships.   Atkins completed her undergraduate degree in anthropology […]

SIS Alumna Quanta Wyatt Receives the 2023 Arkansas Library Association Renetta Patrick Award for Outstanding School Librarianship

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Alumna Quanta Wyatt (‘95) loves conducting research. Her passion is what helped her gain the Arkansas Library Association (ARLA) Renetta Patrick Award for outstanding school librarianship, but she says she couldn’t have done it alone.   Wyatt is originally from Monticello, Arkansas, and lived there until she was fifteen. Her family then moved to West Memphis, […]

Q&A with PhD Graduate Scott Sikes

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After being inspired by his wife simultaneously working and earning her Master’s degree, Scott Sikes looked to Rocky Top for his return to higher education. He earned his Master’s degree in Information Sciences in 2018 and recently completed his PhD with a concentration in Information Sciences in 2021. He successfully defended his dissertation, “In Our […]