Passionate and dedicated, Mary Dykstra Lynch is celebrating more than four decades of excellence at Dalhousie University. Her tenure with the school started in 1970, when she graduated with a Master of Library Science and began working as a head cataloger for the Dalhousie University Library. She quickly realized she had found a home with the institution, and her talent and hardworking nature made her an invaluable addition to their staff. Dr. Dykstra Lynch was continually selected for promotions, and she rose from assistant professor at the School of Library Service to associate professor of the School of Library and Information Studies. From 1986 to 1995, she served as the director of the School of Library and Information Studies, and from 1987 to 1997, she served as a full professor. Upon her retirement that year, she was granted the distinguished title of professor emeritus, which she holds to this day.
Dr. Dykstra Lynch has held a variety of positions outside Dalhousie University as well. She was a senior audiovisual librarian for the national Film Board of Canada, a member of the advisory board for the School of Health Records Science at the Halifax Infirmary, a research officer at the University of Sheffield, and a member of the National Information Highway Advisory Council of Canada. Further, she maintained membership with the Canada Commission on Cataloging, the Canadian Library Association, and the Canada advisory committee for the International Organization of Standardization, among other organizations. To advance her knowledge and standing in her professional community, she completed continuing education at the University of Sheffield and obtained a PhD in 1986.
As a civic-minded person, Dr. Dykstra Lynch enjoyed using her abilities for the benefit of others. Some of her notable roles include president of the Citadel North Neighborhood Association in Halifax, Canada, member of the board of directors for the Canadian Network for the Advancement of Research, Industry and Education (CANARIE), and member of the international consultants committee for the World Information and Communications Report produced by UNESCO in Paris. She was also proud to be a consultant to the National Library of Italy in Florence and the Getty Trust, and to be a donor to the Canadian Diabetes Association and World Vision.
Another way Dr. Dykstra Lynch found to share her background was through publications. She authored “Access to Film Information” in 1977, “Precis: A Primer” in 1985, and numerous articles for professional journals. She also edited two books and several film catalogues, and was a on the editorial board for “Film Canadiana,” “Cataloging and Classification Quarterly,” “Expert Systems for Information Management,” and “Library and Information Science Research.” From 1986 to 1994, Dr. Dykstra Lynch was a series editor for the School of Library and information Studies at Dalhousie University.
As a testament to her hard work and dedication, Dr. Dykstra Lynch was selected as a research grantee at Dalhousie University in 1976, 1980, 1990, and 1996, as well as at the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council in Ottawa, Canada, between 1987 and 1990. She was honored to be included in numerous editions of Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in the East, Who’s Who in the World, Who’s Who of American Women and Who’s Who in Science and Engineering.
Now in retirement, Dr. Dykstra Lynch divides her time between England and Nova Scotia, where she has a large garden.