(519) 807-5367

karen.lees@mail.utoronto.ca

Karen Lees

160 Essex Street,

Toronto ON, M6G 1T5

EDUCATION
Candidate, Master of Information
University of Toronto
Library & Information Science concentration
Knowledge Management and Information Management concentration

2014 to 2016

Honours Bachelor of Arts in History

Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario
Administration Option
Co-op Option
French minor

2009 to 2014

EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE
Library Assistant
October 2015 to present
Norton Rose Fulbright Library
Completing a backlog of loose-leaf filing and continuing monthly updates in an accurate and
timely manner
Digitizing seminar and conference materials and updating their catalogue records
Cataloguing new materials in WorkSite document management system and InMagicDB Textworks
Library Assistant
September 2014 to present
University College Library, University of Toronto
Opening and closing the library, using Sirsi Workflows for circulation
Helping students find resources and navigate library technology
Additional project include creating thematic displays, reclassifying Canadian history books,
processing books for weeding
Library Student
May to August 2015
Ontario Securities Commission
Completed loose-leaf filing, digitization, and reference requests in a timely and accurate manner
Created an Information Services Knowledge Base for the CIO by interviewing five managers
Led the LibGuides migration from Version 1 to 2, trained coworkers on the new platform, and
created two new guides for targeted audiences
Uploaded legal decisions to Decisia, created metadata governance documentation for
consistency
Contributed to the Daily Newscan by selecting relevant stories to send to the entire organization
Leasing Agent
February to August 2014
The Cooperage at Barrel Yards
Provided information to public inquiries about 28 floorplans the luxury apartment tower
Maintained sales goals in an individual and team performance environment, achieved top leaser
Performed sponsorship and social media marketing
1

(519) 807-5367
karen.lees@mail.utoronto.ca

Karen Lees

160 Essex Street,

Toronto ON, M6G 1T5

Appropriately handled legal and financial documents, and other confidential information

Student Assistant
January 2012 to April 2014
Wilfrid Laurier University Library
Accurately shelved books, conducted inventories, processed holds and returns
Selected for special projects including large scale shifting of material and analyzing online
resources
Advised students on how to find material and how to use the librarys services
Operated the Voyager software system to provide assistance at the service desk
Troubleshot printers and scanners, taught students how to use them
Collections Assistant [Coop]
May to August 2012
The City of Kingston
Improved and updated the accuracy of the database of heritage items owned by the City
Inventoried new artifacts and compiled thematic lists of uncatalogued items
Researched upon request by the public within the collection and at the local library
Composed summaries of items in the collection for publication, prepared mass mailings
Archives/Records Technician [Coop]
May to August 2011
The City of Kingston
Filed records and retrieved requests from all city departments using their respective filing
systems within the TRIM database in the citys Records Centre
Catalogued new material, including confidential information
Various projects including updat ing the TRIM Context database, removing boxes according to a
retention schedule, and analyzing documents over a century old
ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
Student Reporter
October 2015 to present
Toronto Association of Law Libraries
Attend all association events, especially monthly lunch and learns, and submit a summary report
to be published in the quarterly newsletter
Chair
August 2015 to present
Professional Graduate Students Caucus
Facilitate meetings for professional graduate students across the university
Solicit guest speakers
Create professional development opportunities, gather relevant resources
Social Media Coordinator, Executive Member
April 2015 to Present
Hart House Library and Literary Committee
Manage and grow the Committees Facebook and Twitter presence
Collaborate with event coordinators to communicate their events to relevant audiences
Wrote a biweekly newsletter and moved the platform from Gmail to MailChimp
Improved and updated microsite pages within the Hart House website
2

(519) 807-5367
karen.lees@mail.utoronto.ca

Karen Lees

160 Essex Street,

Toronto ON, M6G 1T5

Created documentation about how to update the microsite and Coordinate all the accounts for
future coordinators

Secretary
April 2015 to present
Master of Information Student Council
Participate in monthly Governing Council meetings, record discussions, and upload to internal
drive and public facing website (Drupal based)
Participate on the Executive Committee, treating confidential information with care and guiding
the direction of the Council
Hold the Chief Returning Officer role for twice-yearly elections by advertising vacancies, setting
up the nominations in the voting website, and communicating the results
Elected Representative
September 2014 to April 2015
Master of Information Student Council
Represent peers at Graduate Students Union meetings
Represent peers at Faculty Admissions Council meetings, and participate in information days for
prospective students
Participate in Student Council meetings
Sponsorship and Promotions Executive
May 2012 to April 2013
Foot Patrol, Wilfrid Laurier University Students Union
Supervised and evaluated 15-20 volunteers per night as an executive and a dispatcher, and
responded to emergency situations
Planned and promoted special events in a team for the whole student population, contacted local
businesses to collect sponsorship for prizes
Collaborated with the Coordinator and executive team by communicating policy and special
events to the service of over 100 volunteers
NOTABLE PROJECTS
Lightning Talk, Information Journal Discovery Tool
iSchool Student Conference
Collecting metadata about Information journals relevant to target audience
Prototype on an online platform

March 2016

E-Resources Practicum
September to December 2015
University of Toronto Career Centre
Planned tweets for the coming year, matching the e-book collection to thematic events
Proposed new links for website to incorporate the new e-book collection
Performed Information Architecture walkthrough of student portal
Scripted and recorded screencast tutorials for using the portal
Poster: TSpace: A Stakeholder Analysis of Institutional Repositories
TRY Library Staff Conference
Volunteer Practicum: VITA wiki creator

May 2015

February to April 2015

3

(519) 807-5367
karen.lees@mail.utoronto.ca

Karen Lees

160 Essex Street,

Toronto ON, M6G 1T5

Our Digital World

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