Daily Archives: September 14, 2015

Getting to Know You: Nick Smerker

man with beard sitting at table typing on laptop

Nick Smerker

by Andrea Pritt, Penn State Mont Alto Library

While he is not technically a University Libraries employee, Nick Smerker certainly has experience working with our Libraries colleagues. If your library is located in the western half of Pennsylvania, chances are that you and he have crossed paths before. From 2003 to 2007 Nick worked with Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) and since 2010 has been a member of the Media Commons team.

Nick works as a traveling media consultant and is based out of the Pittsburgh area. Much of his time is spent traveling to various campuses and consulting with faculty on their class projects. He often makes repeat visits to ensure that students know how to create effective storyboards and rough drafts for their media projects.

Nick, a native of Shippenville, Pa., now resides in Pittsburgh with his two cats, Clyde and Morgan; interesting fact: he is actually allergic to cats! In his spare time, Nick freelances as a web designer and has worked on multiple projects. Recently he redesigned the websites for Frank Lloyd Wright’s Kentuck Knob as well as Allegheny West neighborhood, where he resides.

Tips for Circulation Staff

By Peg Tromm, information resources and services supervisor-manager, Robert E. Eiche Library, Penn State Altoona

It’s the Fall 2015 semester, and as Libraries staff we are all working diligently to keep the Libraries running as efficiently as possible.

To assist you in this endeavor, we are offering you some tips that may help you in this process:

Where to go with a problem: Sometimes, staff members encounter a problem they are just not sure how to handle. To help, Access Services has created a resource that allows staff to ask the experts. This link can be found on the University Libraries Intranet “Resources” tab under “Ask the Circ-Reserves Expert Team a Question.”

Placing holds on “on-order” items: University Libraries staff are definitely customer service oriented, and often they go as far as they can to get materials for their users. Where this becomes a problem is when staff, with good intentions, place holds on “on-order” items using their override in Workflows. Holds should not be placed on an item in the “on-order” location. These holds will not be recognized and only delay the processing of the user’s request. Holds can be placed on newly purchased items once they have reached the “in-process” location status.

Reserve materials in “checkedout” location: Occasionally, faculty placing items on course reserve ask library staff to check out these items to them for the entire semester, so they can have the item without fears of it being recalled. However, reserve items with a “checkedout” location are “holdable,” meaning that other patrons could place a hold on the reserve item. In this case, the owner of the hold expects the item to be processed, but it will remain unfilled until the hold expires, the item is taken off course reserve, or a Libraries staff member intervene. This situation can cause unhappy customers, especially for popular items. To prevent this issue, try to work with faculty to find alternative methods rather than checking out a reserve item for the entire semester.

LHR News: Sept. 14

Please join us in welcoming the following new hires:

Full-time:
9/14/15 – Rachael Dreyer – Head of Research Services, Special Collections Library

Part-time:
Gaelle Duffault – Penn State Schuylkill
Sabrina Charles – Penn State Schuylkill
Jonathan Santos – Penn State Wilkes-Barre
Papa Adams – Penn State York
Makayla Tamborra – Penn State Berks
Smitkumar Patel – Commons Services
Sarah Mallon – Commons Services
Mark Hammond – Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library

Internal moves:
Nichole Corrigan – information resources and services support specialist, Collection Maintenance
Glenn McGuigan – head librarian, Penn State Harrisburg

LHR News: Child abuse clearance update

Pennsylvania enacted requirements at the end of 2014 to strengthen child abuse prevention efforts. At that time the University determined that all employees would need the three required background clearances in order to comply with the law. In June 2015 the state amended the law and clarified the coverage and definitions. The Office of Ethics and Compliance quickly identified some areas of the University for which the background clearances were no longer required.

The University Libraries is one of several areas where the compliance requirements were less clear, and the Office of Ethics and Compliance required that we continue to obtain clearances until further direction is given. We have been working with them to help them understand the nature of our services and potential interaction with minors and hope to receive clear long-term direction soon.

In the meantime, clearances are required for all new employees to begin working in the Libraries. There will be no follow up with current employees about compliance until we receive clarification from Ethics and Compliance. Current employees may wish to wait for further direction.

If you have questions about the Child Abuse Clearance requirements or process, please contact Libraries Human Resources at 814-863-4949.

Registering and canceling a training session in LRN

By Ryan Johnson, technology training coordinator

In last week’s tech tip, we discussed how to located training in the Learning Resource Network (LRN). Once you have located the training for which you would like to register, you can request the training and have it added to your transcript. Once the training is added to your transcript, you may complete the registration for the live course or make the online course, materials, tests, etc. available for you to complete.
1. Search for the training you would like to request using any of the methods reviewed in the previous section.
2. Select the name of the training within a search results list or the events calendar to view training details.
3. Click the Request button within the Training Details screen to add the training to your transcript.

request

4. For training with a fee, fill out the budget form provided with your department’s information, if applicable.
5. Within your transcript, click the Register button next to an event previously added to complete registration.
Note: not all training programs will require this step. If your transcript shows a View Training Details button, your registration is already complete.
6. Within your transcript, click the Launch button to view online courses, if applicable.

Canceling a Registration (Withdraw)
If you have registered for a training course offered at your campus or online via Adobe Connect, you can cancel your registration if you are within the cancellation time frame for the course. Different providers will have varying policies on cancellations.
1. Select View Your Transcript from the Learning menu.
2. Locate the training within your transcript.
3. Click the arrow next to the View Training Details button.
4. Select Withdraw from the drop-down menu.

screen shot of LRN page
5. Select a reason for your withdraw from the drop-down menu.
6. Type additional comments in the Comments textbox, if desired.
7. Click the Submit button.