This week in Library News:
By Ryan Johnson, technology training coordinator
With Lifecycle quickly approaching, it’s a good time to start thinking about what you can do to clean up your computer.
Here are a few ideas or tips to review:
1.) UCS — Check your current usage by reviewing your window header and your username. This will indicate your current quota usage. Review your email for large attachments and files in your briefcase that may be taking up space. Also, empty old email from the trash and email that is no longer needed. 
2.) Hard Drive — Clean out old files you may have on your Desktop or Downloads folder that you no longer need. 
3.) Review your Network Drives — Check your U, W or whatever letter drives you use for network storage including folders on ROO for committees and remove files that are no longer needed. 
By Peg Tromm, information resources and services supervisor-manager, Robert E. Eiche Library, Penn State Altoona
This is the time of year when circulation staff members hear a recurring question, “I just graduated and I want to check out library materials. I have a six month membership in the alumni association. Do I get an alumni card?”
While our first instinct is to assign them an alumni card, this is not the correct procedure. Actually, all graduates should use their Penn State access ID card for checking out materials. The ID with a Resident PA status gives them the same privileges that the alumni status would offer them. So staff, advise graduates to keep their ID card even if they hate the picture.
If staff members have any questions on what status to assign new library patrons, please review Access Services Training Bulletin #6 Registering and Issuing Resident Borrowers cards for New Library Patrons, Charging/Collecting a Fee for a Replacement Card, Issuing a Replacement Card. The training bulletin can be found at on the Access Services Training Bulletins web site at https://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/access/intranet/trainingbulletins.html.
And while they have their alumni association membership, direct them to the Alumni Library located on the Libraries web site at http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/alumni.html.
Barbara I. Dewey, Penn State’s dean of University Libraries and Scholarly Communications, has announced that a national search is underway to fill three new associate dean positions in the Libraries. The new associate deans, along with Librarian Lisa German, associate dean for collections information and access services, will help the Libraries advance the 21st-century research library for Penn State and the profession.
The positions include:
Penn State, a land-grant institution, is an active member of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation, a consortium of the Big Ten universities plus the University of Chicago. The Libraries are a strategic asset to Penn State, advancing intellectual discovery, information literacy, and lifelong learning, all in support of the University’s strategic goals in teaching, research, service, and outreach.
Based on current Association for Research Libraries investment rankings, Penn State is among the top ten research libraries in North America. The Libraries have one of the most extensive online and print collections in the world including many locally digitized collections covering a wide range of subject areas. There were more than nine million uses of the Libraries’ print and digital collections last year.
A Penn State student survey completed in 2010 found overall student satisfaction with the Libraries to be at the top of its category. Libraries’ faculty and staff have roles in the entire lifecycle of scholarship and research, from inception and creation to access and preservation. The largest public-mission library in the northeastern United States, the Libraries have with physical collections at each of Penn State’s 23 campuses found in all regions of the Commonwealth and serve approximately 6,000 faculty and 44,000 students at University Park, and approximately 97,000 students university wide.
For more information contact the Libraries’ Department of Human Resources at 814-863-4949.
The University Libraries announced the appointment of Sarah Pickle as the Social Sciences Data Curation Fellow, a two-year postdoctoral fellowship offered by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). Pickle will join Penn State’s Publishing and Curation Services Department in the Libraries on August 25, to work on an assessment and understanding of restricted-use data needs for social science researchers as well as provide data management services support.
According to Lisa German, associate dean for Collections Information and Access Services, “Pickle will collaborate with librarians, technologists and researchers, primarily in the social sciences, on building out a program of services for the lifecycle management of social science research data, including restricted data.”
Patricia Hswe, digital content strategist and head of ScholarSphere user services, noted, “Pickle will help us explore the further development of ScholarSphere as a data repository, especially for data that otherwise have no institutional, organizational or domain-specific base, in an effort to expand its state-of-the-art preservation technology, flexible access and permission levels, and robust file versioning capability.” Continue reading
The American Library Association’s (ALA) Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) and the Library & Information Technology Association (LITA) have named Penn State’s Information Technology Service’s One Button Studio a 2014 Cutting Edge Service. The selection designated the One Button Studio as an example of a creative use of technology that can and should be replicated by libraries across the country.
The One Button Studio is a simplified video recording setup that can be used without any previous video production experience, including lights and cameras. The design of the studio allows users to create high-quality and polished video projects. Users simply insert a flash drive into a studio computer and push a single button to start recording, and push the button again to end recording and save the video file to the flash drive. The award was given to the One Button Studio project team and the University Libraries based on the use of the One Button Studio in the Tombros and McWhirter Knowledge Commons in Pattee Library at Penn State University Park. “Students really appreciate how easily they can record their presentation or practice an interview. Fall 2013 semester, they made over 4,000 videos, and we anticipate that the demand will continue to grow. It is not only popular and easy to use but it helps students become better speakers,” said Joe Fennewald, head of the Knowledge Commons. Continue reading
James O’Sullivan will join Penn State’s University Libraries on Aug. 1, in a newly formed position as the digital humanities research designer (DHRD), reporting to the Publishing and Curation Services Department. In this position, O’Sullivan will work directly with members of the Penn State community, especially faculty and students as well as staff in the humanities. As the DHRD, he will consult on a variety of initiatives, advising scholars in the design and development of their projects, helping them apply various tools and methods in explorations of their research questions, and training humanists in the use of emerging technologies.
O’Sullivan is completing the requirements for a doctorate at University College Cork, part of the National University of Ireland, where he studied digital arts and humanities under Órla Murphy and Professor Graham Allen. He is active in a wide range of digital and humanities initiatives, and he is the recipient of a number of awards, including a Cork County and Coty Enterprise Boards CIT Prize for Innovation and an honorable mention in last year’s Global Outlook: Digital Humanities Essay Prize. He is founding editor of the New Binary Press, and his second collection of poetry is forthcoming later this year.
His appointment will add depth to the Humanities in a Digital Age (HDA) initiative, a partnership between Penn State’s College of the Liberal Arts and the University Libraries to enrich and promote digital humanities research. Through the HDA initiative, the University Libraries will plan and implement new services to support digitally enriched scholarship by graduate students and faculty in a wide range of fields. Librarians and digital research designers will partner with humanities faculty to identify and discover ways to use technology to enrich existing faculty research projects in the humanities and to explore and create new forms of digital humanities scholarship. Faculty scholars will continue to work on individual research projects, but they may also develop into a community of researchers that support the goals of the HDA.
“Getting Student Loans” will be presented from 5:30 to 7 p.m., on Wednesday, Aug. 6, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library. The workshop will help participants identify the difference between a variety of student loans, including Federal Perkins Loans and Direct Loans, and determine how much to borrow. It will also clarify the steps to take before borrowing, reveal the relationship between future income and current loan borrowing, and teach how to forecast a future budget.
Presenter Daad Rizk is a Penn State financial literacy coordinator, and the presentation is part of “Money Counts: a Financial Literacy Series,” a collaborative effort of the Penn State Commission for Adult Learners and the University Libraries.
Additional details are online at http://bit.ly/1rzz1Jw. Registration is requested at http://bit.ly/1tuXS0L.
For more information or if you anticipate needing accessibility accommodations or have questions about the physical access provided, contact Lauren Reiter at lmr29@psu.edu or 814-865-4414.
Please join us in welcoming the following new hires:
Part-time:
Riley Conway – George T. Harrell Health Sciences Library, Penn State Hershey
Rodney Hopkins – Receiving Room
Ryan Minato – Fletcher L. Byrom Earth and Mineral Sciences Library
Full-time:
7/28/14 Keifer Kemmerly, Information Resources & Services Support Specialist, Penn State Harrisburg Library
8/1/14 James O’Sullivan, Digital Humanities Research Designer, Publishing and Curation Services
Wishing the following employees well as they leave us:
7/31/14 Jeannette Sabre, Special Collections Library
8/1/14 Amber Hatch, Serials and Acquisitions Services
Tuesday, July 29, noon: Informal brown bag presentation by Giorgia Aquilar, travel grant award winner, on architect A.E. Bye. Join the Special Collections Library for lemonade and cookies and an interesting presentation from Aquilar, who has traveled from Italy for this research project.
Wednesday, June 30, noon: Informal brown bag presentation by Alan Kornspan, travel grant award winner. Join the Special Collections Library for this presentation on Dorothy Harris, a pioneer in sport psychology.
Wednesday, August 6, 9 – 10 a.m.: Share Training Methods and Best Practices, Mann Assembly Room. Join Rita Buhite, user services training coordinator, for an informal seminar to share training methods, materials and best practices. Building on what we learned in the adult learning styles workshop, we’ll discuss what learning style or styles are targeted in your training and how you can balance your training to meet the learning styles of more of your staff. This workshop is open to supervisors and staff who train and write training documentation. It will be a discussion format. Please bring materials to share with the group. Register in TechSmart. If you have any questions, please contact Rita Buhite at rbb21@psu.edu.
Wednesday, August 6, 5:30 – 7 p.m.: Getting Student Loans, Foster Auditorium. More information and registration here.
Thursday, August 7, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.: United Way Book Sale, Mann Assembly Room. We have lots of great stuff already but will accept donations of gently used books, cds, movies, puzzles etc. Donations can be given to Heather Ross in 208 Paterno. Contact Amy Miller for more details: arm107@psu.edu.
Submitted by LaDawn Benner, Cataloging Department
Cataloging and Metadata Services, Information Technologies (I-Tech), and Serials and Acquisitions Services held their annual joint service awards program on Wednesday, July 9. Associate Dean Lisa German welcomed everyone who attended, and Robert Alan, Annie Copeland and John Attig presented awards to employees in their respective departments.
Photo by Wilson Hutton
Employees who have achieved service milestones are:
By Diane Sawyer
Wondering why some of you might have seen Albert Rozo running around staging photo shoots with other members of his department last week? Well the department of Digitization and Preservation was actively participating in a project called #5DaysOfPreservation, an idea formed by Kevin Driedger, a librarian at the Library of Michigan in Lansing. Kevin’s idea was to invite libraries, archives, museums, commercial firms, and others to share photos each workday of what preservation looked like for them that day between July 14-18. Penn State’s Digitization and Preservation department jumped at the chance to showcase what all we had to offer and submitted photos each day to the tumblr page specifically set up by Kevin. Photos of our digital equipment, binding processes, staff cleaning sooty drawings from the Coal and Coke Heritage Center from Fayette campus, encapsulation, and moisture readings were part of our submissions. All in all, the #5DaysOfPreservation project turned out to be a huge success with over 300 photographs sent in from around the world.
Collage created by Albert Rozo
To view the submissions, follow this link: http://5daysofpreservation.tumblr.com/
To learn more about Kevin Driedger, his project, and his blog, follow this link: http://librarypreservation2.blogspot.com/
The Libraries are seeking volunteers to work at the East Welcome Desk for 1 – 2 hours each week. Training is provided and a flexible schedule is available. This is a great job enrichment opportunity! Join other employees from across the Libraries who volunteer at the Welcome Desks, interacting with students and visitors. Human Resources manager Rob Harris shares his experience: “I’ve been volunteering for over three years. My one-hour shift is one of the highlights of my week. It’s fun to help serve our students and other patrons. Because my job doesn’t involve providing library services, this opportunity helps me stay connected to our mission and share the sense of purpose all of our employees have. The training I received helped me learn more about library resources and services than I ever would have on my own. It’s a great job enrichment opportunity that anyone can enjoy and benefit from,” he says.
If you are interested, contact Sandy Hoffmaster, swf4@psu.edu, 865-2315.
By Ryan Johnson, technology training coordinator
Want to set or change your default printer in Windows?
Simply go to the Start Menu and type Devices and Printers in the search window. Select Devices and Printers.
The Devices and Printers window will appear. Next, find the Printers and Faxes section and choose the printer you want to use. Right click on the printer name and select Set as default printer.
Tuesday, July 22, 11 a.m. to noon: HR Forum, Foster Auditorium and MediaSite.
Wednesday, July 23: 2014 PA Forward K–16 Information Literacy Summit “Building Bridges: Extending the Conversation.” Foster Auditorium.
Wednesday, August 6, 2014, 9 – 10 a.m.: Share Training Methods and Best Practices, Mann Assembly Room. Join Rita Buhite, user services training coordinator, for an informal seminar to share training methods, materials and best practices. Building on what we learned in the adult learning styles workshop, we’ll discuss what learning style or styles are targeted in your training and how you can balance your training to meet the learning styles of more of your staff. This workshop is open to supervisors and staff who train and write training documentation. It will be a discussion format. Please bring materials to share with the group. Register in TechSmart. If you have any questions, please contact Rita Buhite at rbb21@psu.edu
Thursday, August 7, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.: United Way Book Sale, Mann Assembly Room. We have lots of great stuff already but will accept donations of gently used books, cds, movies, puzzles etc. Donations can be given to Heather Ross in 208 Paterno. Contact Amy Miller for more details: arm107@psu.edu.
By Nicole Miyashiro, Pennsylvania Center for the Book
Two feature articles from the PA Center for the Book’s Literary and Cultural Heritage Map of Pennsylvania have recently been republished for educational use. “Hires Root Beer: The Great Health Drink” by former Penn State student, Kate Patton was requested by WestEd — a nonprofit agency in San Francisco dedicated to improving learning for children, youth, and adults — for inclusion in their Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) Assessment. Data Recognition Corporation (DRC), a research partner to the Federal Government, asked to reprint “The Guitarist’s Guitar” by manuscripts cataloger and rock aficionado Sue Hamburger, a quick-study of the family and history behind the beloved C.F. Martin & Co. instrument. This piece will also be used as part of an assessment.
The original articles by Patton and Hamburger can be found on PA Center for the Book’s Literary and Cultural Heritage Map website:
http://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/palitmap/Hires.html
http://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/palitmap/MartinGuitar.html
Further updates to the Dean’s Office Page have made it easier for the public to find information on Endowed Chairs and other positions of note, including Distinguished Librarians and Early Career Librarians. Please go to http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/admin/endchdistlibr.html for the full list.
The list of Emeritus Faculty can be found here: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/psul/admin/emeritusfac.html