Daily Archives: March 27, 2017

Dean’s Doings

by Barbara I. Dewey, dean, University Libraries and Scholarly Communications

Ann Snowman and I traveled to Harrisburg to meet with the other State Resources Centers. Penn State is the only academic library designated as a Center. We receive funds from the Commonwealth to support aspects of Interlibrary Loan, collections and digitization. Attending the meeting, in addition to us included:

Glenn Miller, Deputy Secretary of Education for Libraries (State Librarian)
Alice Lubrecht, Bureau Director, State Library
Mary Frances Cooper, President and Director, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Richard Kaplan, Manager, Reference Services, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Siobhan Reardon, President and Director, Free Library of Philadelphia
Tiffany Nardella, District Consultant, Free Library of Philadelphia

In addition to providing updates on our respective activities Maryam Phillips, HSLC, and Doreva Belfiore, Temple University (soon to be at HSLC) gave an exciting presentation about digitization efforts through the Power Library. We also discussed areas of continued interest including PA Newspapers, OER, workforce development and financial literacy, makerspaces, and other topics. The Center reps will now meet on a regular basis after several years in hiatus. They all thanked Penn State for continued leadership and hard work to support the Commonwealth.

Joe Salem and I traveled to Penn State Berks to attend the Transforming Education Strategic Initiative Forum. I met with the faculty and staff from Thun Library and also toured the library. It looks great with recent renovations and I was excited to sit down with the great folks who run Thun. Thanks John Shank and everyone.

Reminder: Dean’s Forum March 28

Join us for the Dean’s Forum at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, and on MediaSite Live.

Dean Barbara I. Dewey will present an impressive list of kudos and followed by a panel discussion to share the mission and relationship with the University Libraries featuring Patrick Alexander, Penn State University Press; Steve Hinckley, Penn State Law Library, University Park; Gail Partin, Penn State Dickinson Law Library, Carlisle; and Cynthia Robinson, Harrell Health Sciences Library, Hershey.

Please join us in person or online to learn more!

Reminder: Mann Lecture March 30 focuses on art and information of dance notation

Linda Tomko, a historian, performer, and embodier of dances past, will serve as the distinguished speaker for the 2017 Charles W. Mann Jr. Lecture in the Book Arts at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 30 in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library on Penn State’s University Park campus. Tomko will share her talk “Books, Bodies, and Circulations of Dancing in Early 18th-Century France and England” which includes references to items in the Mary Ann O’Brian Malkin Early Dance Collection (1531–1804). A reception following the lecture will be held in the Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library.

The Charles W. Mann Jr. Lecture in the Book Arts, named in honor of Charles W. Mann Jr., the first Dorothy Foehr Huck Chair for Special Collections in the University Libraries. This annual event featuring scholars with academic research areas connected to the materials held in the Eberly Family Special Collections Library is supported by the Mary Louise Krumrine Endowment.

Sundance Grand Jury winner “Sonita” featured for Docunight screening April 5

woman wearing a red baseball cap holds index holds her finger over her mouth to indicate "no speaking"

Sonita Alizadeh, who dreams of being a rapper, is the main subject of the 2016 documentary, “Sonita”

Valuable to her family as a bride to be sold, 17-year-old Sonita Alizadeh instead dreams of a becoming a rapper. As women are forbidden to sing in Iran, she performs only for her fellow refugees in a Tehran shelter.

“Sonita,” the April selection for the “Docunight: Iran via Documentaries” series, will be shown at 7 p.m. on April 5 at Mont Alto in the Mont Alto Campus Library and University Park. For the April event at University Park, the film screening will be held in 102 Chemistry Building. Co-sponsored by the Iranian Student Association and Penn State University Libraries, Docunight events are free and open to the public.

“Sonita” won the 2016 Sundance Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for best world cinema documentary. Directed by Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami, the film focuses on the efforts to end child marriage and shows the risks and traditional obstacles for an Afghani family living in exile in Iran.

The Docunight series is an initiative to encourage cultural exchange and understanding of Iran through documentaries. The films are about, around, or in Iran, or made by Iranians, and the American showings are part of a collaboration with the National Iranian American Council (NIAC).

The Penn State News article is available online and an 8.5×11 poster PDF is available for download here. For more information on this event, or for questions about accommodations or the physical access provided, contact Mark Mattson, global partnerships and outreach librarian, at 814-863-2480 or mam1196@psu.edu in advance of the event.

 

 

Brandywine designs discussion group using Libraries’ microgrant

group of students sitting at tables arranged in a U-shaped configurationArticle and image by Haleigh Swanson, Penn State Brandywine

Last summer, Penn State Brandywine instructors and librarians worked together to design a unique book discussion group for the Multilingual Student Course Cluster and Brandywine Learning. The Multilingual Student Course Cluster supports students who are non-native speakers of English and need assistance developing English language skills, while Brandywine Learning enhances academic achievement through free, on-campus tutoring.

“University Libraries offers innovation microgrants each year,” said Annie Jansen, assistant librarian at Brandywine. “Over the summer, we came up with this idea of using Kindle Fires so we could use a textbook and audio book simultaneously.”

The audio-visual options offered by a Kindle allow students to interact with the assigned book in a variety of ways, aided by embedded features like dictionaries and reference sites. After interacting with the books on their Kindles, students in the Multilingual Student Course Cluster and Brandywine Learning met for a joint book discussion. The coordinators also raffled off three Kindle Fires to student participants.

The book club format serves obvious educational purposes, such as encouraging intellectual discussion. It has also proven beneficial for social and nonacademic reasons. Christine Brown, coordinator of Brandywine Learning, Jansen and Deb Ousey, coordinator of the Multilingual Student Course Cluster, hope to continue exploring new possibilities with the Kindle-based book discussion, opening more students to a collaborative approach to reading.

The complete Penn State News article is available for online reading.

New exhibit explores the world of plastics

promotional graphic with colorful plastic letters spelling out PLASTICS

A new exhibit, “Plastics: Knowledge and Information Taking Shape,” offers an in-depth exploration of University Libraries’ materials related to plastic and demonstrates how plastics are now an indispensable part of our daily life. On display through Wednesday, Aug. 9, the exhibit is free and open to the public and is available for viewing during spring semester Pattee Library operating hours.

Curated by J. Harlan Ritchey, Penn State information resources and services support specialist at the Engineering Library, and Graham Berg, Media Commons consultant, the exhibit explores the various manifestations of plastic, from plastic surgery to the plastic arts.

Posters in Sidewater Commons detail a wide breadth of information on plastic production and engineering, recycling and sustainability, and environmental impact. Two central exhibit cases in Pattee Library also feature materials related to plastics. The first case focuses on moments from the “Great Book Move.” The other exhibit case focuses on the Makers Commons, a University-wide initiative to enrich the Penn State teaching and learning experience through 3D printing.

The Penn State News article about this exhibit includes additional details and accommodation information.

Lecture emphasizes importance of indigenous knowledge systems

man with black glasses and beard

Kyle Whyte, Timnick Chair in the Humanities at Michigan State University

A lecture by Kyle Whyte on the importance and opportunities for land-grant universities to collaborate with indigenous peoples and indigenous knowledge systems will be held at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 6, in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library. Whyte’s talk, sponsored by the Interinstitutional Center for Indigenous Knowledge, will also be available for public viewing at live.libraries.psu.edu.

Whyte, who holds the Timnick Chair in the Humanities at Michigan State University, will present “Why Indigenous Knowledge Systems Matter for U.S. Land-Grant Universities: Responsibilities and Challenges.”

Collaboration with indigenous communities presents important opportunities for university-based researchers to contribute to solving some of the hardest problems in the world. In the context of the United States, Whyte will discuss the potential, the responsibilities and challenges for land-grant universities creating programs and seeking greater engagement with indigenous peoples and indigenous knowledge systems, especially in states where no federally recognized tribes currently exist.

An 8.5×11 poster with information about the “Why Indigenous Knowledge Systems Matter for U.S. Land-Grant Universities: Responsibilities and Challenges” lecture is available as a downloadable PDF. The complete Penn State News article is available for reading online.

For more information on this event, or for questions about accommodations or the physical access provided, contact Mark Mattson, global partnerships and outreach librarian, at 814-863-2480 or mam1196@psu.edu in advance of your visit.

Cato-2 Annex continues to serve as a training site for K9 units

three uniformed officers each with a dog on a leash
On Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, the Penn State University Library Cato-2 Annex served as a training location for K9 Units from the Penn State University Police and Pennsylvania Capitol Police.

The Annex provides an environment for the K9 Dogs with lots of space to do their training.  We will continue to host emergency units to aid in their mission to protect all.

– submitted by Verne Neff, Collection Maintenance, Annex

Save the Date: Discovery Day 2017 set for June 1

The 12th annual Discovery Day is scheduled for Thursday,  June 1, 2017 with the program and registration opening on Monday, May 1, 2017.

The Discovery Day committee is hard at work to make sure this year’s event is a memorable one. Please be on the lookout for upcoming news regarding the event. Visit our website for more updates: tinyurl.com/discoveryday17.

– submitted by Angel Peterson, Discovery Day committee

Tech Tip: Adding external training to an LRN transcript

by Ryan Johnson, I-Tech

There will be times during your employment at Penn State where you will attend external training not provided by the University or attend a training not located in LRN. These training activities, sessions or courses can be added to your transcript manually.

  1. Click on My Transcript button on the LRN homepage or select View Your Transcript from the learning menu.
  2. Click the Options button in the upper right-hand corner of the transcript area.
  3. Select Add External Training from the drop-down menu.

screenshot of menu options for adding training to learning resource network transcripts

  1. Fill in the form provided with all of the information you have regarding the external training.

Note: only the title of the training is required; however, it is a best practice to include as much information as possible for accurate records.

  1. Click the Select a File button in the attachment(s) section to add a certificate, transcript, supporting documentation, etc. to this record, if desired.
  2. Click the Submit button.
  3. Click the Complete button next to the external training within the transcript once the training has been completed.

 

Events: March 27

Spring 2017

Through Friday, May 5: “From the Trenches: The Great War in Sepia” exhibit, spring semester hours, Special Collections Library, 104 Paterno Library, University Park.

Through Friday, May 5: “Research Wrapped in Aesthetics: The Air Wall,” documentary exhibit, spring operating hours, Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library, 111 Stuckeman Family Building, University Park.

Through Wednesday, August 9, 2017: “Plastics: Knowledge and Information Taking Shape” exhibit, Pattee Library operating hours, Sidewater Commons and central entrance, Pattee Library, University Park.

Through Friday, August 30, 2017: “100 Years of the Pulitzers: Celebrating Our Humanity,” exhibit, Arts and Humanities Library operating hours, Diversity Studies Room, 203 Patee Library, University Park.

Monday-Thursday, March 27-30: Maker Fair, week-long outreach event, Hazleton Library, Hazelton.

Tuesday, March 28: Diversity Committee Annual Potluck, noon-1 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Tuesday, March 28: Dean’s Forum, 1:30-3 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park and Mediasite Live.

Wednesday, March 29: The Many Faces of Intercultural Dialogue, presentations and conversations, 3-4 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Wednesday, March 29:  “The Ark Before Noah: Decoding the Story of the Flood,” lecture by Dr. Irving Finkel, 6 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Thursday, March 30: Charles W. Mann Jr. Lecture in the Book Arts, “Books, Bodies, and Circulations of Dancing in Early 18th-Century France and England,” by Linda Tomko, 4:30 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park, reception to follow in Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Monday, April 3: Centre County Reads: Rethinking the American West, panel discussion inspired by Stacey Lee’s “Under a Painted Sky,” 4-5:30 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Tuesday, April 4: Interactive Civility Workshop, 1:30-4:30 p.m. Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Wednesday, April 5: Undergraduate Research Exhibition, 9:15 a.m.-2 p.m. poster sessions; 4 p.m. awards ceremony, Alumni Hall, HUB-Robeson Center, University Park.

Wednesday, April 5: “You’re ‘kitten-me,’ it’s that easy? Tips and tricks for taming LionSearch and the CAT, 4-5 p.m. 211A Pattee Library, University Park.

Wednesday, April 5: Docunight: Iran via Documentaries, “Sonita,” documentary screening about, around, or in Iran, or made by Iranians, 7 p.m., 102 Chemistry Building, University Park.

Thursday, April 6: “Why Indigenous Knowledge Systems Matter for U.S. Land-grant Universities: Responsibilities and Challenges,” lecture by Kyle Whyte, 10-11 a.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Friday-Saturday, April 7-8: Boundaries of the Human in the Age of the Life Sciences Capstone Conference, presentations by ten renowned scholars, Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park. Register by March 17.

Tuesday, April 11: “Fantastic Beasts and How to Understand them: Godzilla, Kaiju, and the Nuclear Age,” lecture by Dr. John Haddad, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Harrisburg Library, Harrisburg.

Wednesday, April 12: Alumni Library event, 1-3 p.m., Earth and Mineral Sciences Library, Deike Building, University Park.

Wednesday, April 12: COP Discussion: ACRL Debrief, 2-3 p.m., via Zoom.

Thursday, April 13: Celebration of Scholarship Research Fair, noon-6 p.m., Gym, Athletics and Recreation Building, Wilkes-Barre.

Thursday, April 13: Art + Engineering = Creative Problem Solving, lecture by Penn State Laureate Rebecca Strzelec, 1-2 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park, and Mediasite Live.

Friday, April 14 through July 30, “The Painted Photograph: Selections from the B. & H. Henisch Photo-History Collection,” hours of operation, Paterno Family Reading Room, 201A Pattee Library, University Park.

Friday, April 14: Remembrance of Kiarostami: The Life of an Iranian Artist, all day event, multiple locations, Pattee Library and Paterno Library, University Park.

Tuesday, April 18: Tech Update, by Libraries I-Tech staff, 2-3 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park, and Mediasite Live.

Tuesday, April 18: “CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap” documentary, sponsored by the Libraries Diversity Committee, 7-9 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Wednesday, April 19: Poetry Slam, 7-9 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Thursday, April 20: Beyond the Database Demo: Information Literacy Instruction at the Foundational Level, 11 a.m.-noon, 211A Pattee Library, University Park.

Thursday, April 20: Earth Day Marigold Giveaway, by the University Libraries Green Committee, 2-4 p.m., Frankllin Auditorium, Pattee Library, University Park.

Thursday, April 20: “An Evening of Pennsylvania Poets” 2017 Public Poetry Contest winners public reading, 7:30-9:30 p.m., hosted by the Pennsylvania Center for the Book, Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Sunday, April 23: International Write-In, 3:30 p.m.-midnight, Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Wednesday, April 26: Financial Literacy Workshop, 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m.,
Black Box Theater, Slusser/Bayzick Building, Hazleton.

Wednesday, April 26: Conversations with Carmen, with guest speaker Bob Smith of the Center for Spiritual and Ethical Development, Pasquerilla Spiritual Center/Eisenhower Chapel, noon-1 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Friday, April 28: Last day of spring classes.

Sunday-Tuesday, April 30-May 2: DeStress Fest, 3-8 p.m, University Park library locations.

Monday-Friday, May 1-5: Final exams.

Wednesday, May 3: Docunight, documentary screening about, around, or in Iran, or made by Iranians, 7 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Thursday, May 4: Outstanding Undergraduate Thesis Award Public, Oral Defense, three award finalists, 3:30-5 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Friday-Sunday, May 5-7: Spring commencement weekend, most campuses.

Monday, May 8: MediaTech Expo, Media and Technology Support Services invites vendors to showcase the latest in technology products, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., President’s Hall, Penn Stater Conference Center, University Park.

Tuesday, May 9: COP Workshop, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Please submit event information to Public Relations and Marketing via the Library News submission form.