Daily Archives: April 3, 2017

Strategic Plan in Action: Expansive ideas in delivery of library materials

by Tim Auman, Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library, Strategic Action Plan Blogging Team

In keeping with the Libraries’ Strategic Plan value of “equity of access” the Materials Delivery Program Expansion Action Item Team was created in March 2016 and charged to “investigate the expansion of the delivery of Library materials.” The team, consisting of Barbara Coopey (chair), Amy Deuink, Jackie Dillon-Fast, Chris Holobar and Verne Neff considered several ideas using the following criteria to prioritize their recommendations:

target constituency
projected impact of the service
alignment with the Libraries Strategic Plan
feasibility and ease of offering or expanding the service

The resulting seven recommendations were then passed off to the appropriate stakeholders in order to come up with possible implementation plans. The following recommendations are in the final planning stages and are scheduled to be implemented sometime this calendar year.

Office Delivery for Graduate Students at University Park
Expanding the Office Delivery program to University Park graduate students is one of the larger endeavors proposed by the Action Team. This is a service that graduate students have requested, and with over 6,000 active University Park graduate student borrowers, Barbara Coopey anticipates that it will double the number of items processed for office delivery. Due to its anticipated popularity, a soft launch is planned to help estimate the increased workload on ILL, Receiving Room and Campus Mail staff and resources.

Home Delivery of PSUL Materials for Students, Faculty and Staff with Temporary Impairments
While the number of patrons needing this service is small, the benefit to those patrons is quite large. Since this service is already being provided informally, creating a formal procedure will be relatively simple. The Libraries’ Accessibility Committee is being consulted and the Libraries will formally roll out the service after details are finalized.

Reducing Turnaround Time for Delivery of Holds to all PSUL Locations
Due to concerns about turnaround time for delivery of holds expressed by campus librarians, an analysis of current holds processes is underway that will investigate average turnaround time, possible process improvements, and ways to expedite or improve delivery. The holds group will be presenting their report at the April Access Services Council meeting.

Delivery and Pickup of PSUL Materials to Schlow Centre Region Library (University Park)
In what can only be attributed to Town & Gown kismet, University Park and Schlow Centre Region Library staff began meeting to discuss possible collaborative efforts to expand access to and delivery of library material between the two libraries. While the Action Team was exploring ways of expanding delivery options to our patrons, the staff at Schlow were looking at ways to decrease their ILL shipping costs. A phone call and a few meetings later and the two ideas are quickly merging into a plan. The key to this collaboration has been the willingness of the Receiving Room to add a delivery/pickup for Schlow Library three times a week. This effort will begin by providing patrons the option of returning Schlow materials at the Pattee Commons Desk as well as patrons returning Penn State material to Schlow, and we hope to partner with Schlow on other initiatives in the future.

Looking to the future, the Materials Delivery Program Expansion Action Item Team has made additional recommendations that are still being explored:

office delivery to faculty and staff at the Commonwealth Campuses
self-service pickup of library materials
delivery and pickup of PSUL materials to the Village at Penn State (University Park)

Keep an eye on your inbox for further details.

National Library Week will celebrate how “Libraries Transform”

In early spring, Public Relations and Marketing (PRaM) and the University Libraries’ Exhibits Committee displayed an interstitial exhibit of posters informally referred to as “Library Idioms” or the “Because” statements. The series supports and extends the concept of the American Library Association’s “Libraries Transform” campaign.

With the approach of National Library Week April 9-15 and ALA’s continuing theme that week of “Libraries Transform,” PRaM is planning to expand the reach of our version of the “Because” statements. Look for them throughout that week on the Libraries’ social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and please consider retweeting/sharing our posts. (You follow us already, right? Please invite your friends to as well, to help extend the reach of our “Libraries Transform” awareness campaign!)

What one-line, clever “Because” phrases would you suggest to help remind all our visitors why the University Libraries is important and how it helps transform their lives and their pursuit of lifelong learning?

We encourage everyone in the Libraries plus our friends and visitors — who include Penn State students, faculty, and staff; alumni; visiting scholars; plus community residents and all of Pennsylvania’s citizens — to list your best suggestions in the comments below.

We would like to create a second series of “Because” statement posters and digital content, and we would love to include your phrases. (Thank you to those who submitted their ideas to us previously — they are great!)

Please also let us know which are your favorite among the original series. Here they are:

University Libraries Awards nominations due April 17

As Chair of the 2017 University Libraries Awards Committee, I am pleased to announce that the nomination process for the awards is officially open. Nominations will be accepted until midnight Monday, April 17, 2017. The University Libraries Awards celebration is May 11.

All award criteria and nomination forms are available at the Libraries staff and faculty awards page of our intranet. Nominations from previous years may be submitted for consideration in 2017. Briefly, the awards are as follows (see the website for more in-depth criteria):

Libraries Diversity Award — recognizes individuals and teams that have evidenced extraordinary commitment and/or contributions to enhancing our environment of mutual respect for differing backgrounds and points of view.

Libraries Teaching Award — honors an individual who has excelled in teaching and/or created an exemplary and innovative instruction program with an emphasis on the past year.

Margaret Knoll Spangler Oliver Award — presented for outstanding service and successful performance of an employee of the University Libraries.

Shirley J. Davis Staff Excellence Award — given for outstanding excellence and professionalism in their field

The University Libraries Award – recognizes the performance of any person holding an academic, staff, or technical service appointment in the University Libraries.

I encourage all of you to think about honoring a colleague who makes your job easier or who exemplifies the excellence of one of these awards.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you should have any questions about criteria or the nomination process.

– submitted by Joe Fennewald, Libraries Awards Committee

Sign up for you’re “kitten-me,” it’s that easy? Tips and tricks for taming LionSearch and the CAT

Have you ever been frustrated when searching in the CAT or LionSearch? Been puzzled when your search didn’t work or you had to wade through pages of results? We’ve all been there. Whether you’re a newbie to these search systems or just need a refresher, this

Whether you’re a newbie to these search systems or just need a refresher, this 50-minute class will showcase a few tricks and help bolster your confidence. You too can tame these systems and get them to work for you (and your searching needs).

You’re “kitten-me,” it’s that easy? Tips and tricks for taming LionSearch and The CAT
Wednesday, April 5
4-5 p.m.
Pattee 211A

If interested in attending, please RSVP: https://pennstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_d3RJYdn5a946MZf.

– submitted by Hailley Fargo, Knowledge Commons

Updates at PAMS Library include new collaborative learning spaces

Check out the new look of the Physical and Mathematical Sciences Library in 201 Davey Lab between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5.

The updates include a large area for collaborative learning and studying as well as a variety of technologies, such as MediaScape stations, a One Button Studio, Lightboard and audio recording booth, while managing to preserve all of the quiet study seating.

‘An Evening of Pennsylvania Poets’ public poetry reading April 20

Poems by James Brasfield, Meg Day, Fred Shaw and Laura Spagnoli were selected for the 2017 Public Poetry Project poster series, and each of the poets will read their works as part of “An Evening of Pennsylvania Poets: Readings in Celebration of the Public Poetry Project” at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 20. The 17th annual event will be held in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, s and will be available on Mediasite Live.

Started in 1999 by the late Kim Fisher, the first Paterno Family Librarian for Literature, the Public Poetry Project seeks to make poetry more available in the daily lives of Pennsylvanians by placing poems in public places. Posters of the winning poems are produced, and since 2000, more than 70 poets with a connection to Pennsylvania, either by birth or long period of residency, have had their work displayed as part of this series.

The hourlong poetry reading event will be followed by a 30-minute poster- and book-signing session. This year’s posters were designed by University Libraries’ Visual Communications Specialist Nathan Valchar and will be available at no charge at this event. The posters also will be distributed at the National Book Festival in September, an annual event organized and sponsored by the Library of Congress.

The Public Poetry Project is under the direction of Ellysa Cahoy, assistant director, and Caroline Wermuth, outreach coordinator, for the Pennsylvania Center for the Book, and is supported by the Paterno Family Librarian for Literature, William S. Brockman; the University Libraries; the Department of English in the College of the Liberal Arts; and the Pennsylvania Center for the Book, an affiliate of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

An American Sign Language interpreter will be provided for the April 20 Public Poetry Project event. For more information, including physical access and other special accommodations, contact Caroline Wermuth at cvw1@psu.edu or 814-863-5472. For more information about the Public Poetry Project, visit its website.

‘Godzilla Lecture’ comes to Harrisburg Library April 11

Dr. John Haddad, professor of American Studies and Popular Culture, will present a special “Godzilla Lecture” at the Penn State Harrisburg Library to celebrate a new collection of Godzilla and other “Kaiju” DVDs. From 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 11, Haddad will present his lecture, “Fantastic Beasts, and How to UNDERSTAND Them: Godzilla, Kaiju, and the Nuclear Age.” Interested individuals may bring a lunch or snack with beverages provided by the library.

This event was rescheduled following the March 14 weather closing. The previous event post lists additional details.

International Write-In to host two sessions on April 23

With the goal of helping individuals end their procrastination and move past writer’s block, the International Write-In has added a second session for its April 23 date. Writers may sign up for either or both of the two sessions for the event in the University Libraries’ Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park. The first four-hour session is available from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m., and the second session will run from 8 p.m. to midnight.

Free and open to Penn State undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff members, the International Write-In provides quiet writing spaces and areas for small-group collaboration as well as coffee, snacks and support from reference librarians and writing consultants. Free pizza will be provided to registered writers between the end of first session and start of the second session.

The April 23 event is sponsored by Penn State Learning, the Graduate Writing Center and the University Libraries. The Write-In at Penn State University Park offers not only support and motivation, but pizza, snacks, coffee and other caffeinated beverages as well.

Each session of the Write-In officially begins with writers stating their goals and then focusing on achieving those goals during the session. Both undergraduate and graduate writing tutors and librarians will be available to assist with writing and research needs. Participants are requested to register as early as possible through this Penn State International Write-In form to allow organizers to submit a crowd-appropriate catering order in a timely manner.

Writers who participate in the Write-In are invited to use the hashtag #IntlWriteIn and tag @psulibs to share their thoughts about the event on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

‘CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap’ film screening April 18

A public screening of “CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap,” a documentary that includes profiles of successful women in computer science careers, will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 18 in Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park. This event is sponsored by the Penn State University Libraries Diversity Programming Committee in collaboration with information science and technology and computer engineering liaison librarians Carmen Cole and Vanessa Eyer.

As tech jobs are growing three times faster than our colleges are producing computer science graduates, “CODE” exposes the shortage of American female and minority software engineers. “CODE” examines the reasons why more girls and people of color are not seeking opportunities in computer science and explores how cultural mindsets, stereotypes, educational hurdles and sexism all play roles in this national crisis.

A discussion following the film will be moderated by Karen Estlund, the University Libraries associate dean for technology and digital strategies.

The complete Penn State News article can be read online and an 8.5×11 downloadable PDF for “CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap,” is also available to share with potentially interested colleagues.

For more information on this service, or for questions about accommodations and the physical access provided, contact Sherry Roth, University Libraries Diversity Programming committee member, at 814-865-1011 or ssr11@psu.edu in advance of this event.

Winners selected in five categories in first-ever Edible Book Festival

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Thank you to everyone who helped out with judging the People’s Choice Award for the first-ever Edible Book Contest on Monday, March 20. “A Wrinkle in Time” by Preeya Kuray, a student in the Materials Science and Engineering graduate program, was selected as the winner! Other winners include:

Most Creative: Ashley Hoover with Animal Cracker Farm
Best Depiction of a Classic: Preeya Kuray with A Wrinkle in Time
Funniest/Punniest: Ali Zawoski with Twinkie Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Most Appetizing: Lourdes Bobbio with Quidditch World Cup

Images of all the submissions and their titles are in the gallery.

Thanks to Rebecca Miller, Joe Salem, Linda Struble and Ann Thompson for their judging talents, and Jose Guerrero for his creative edible book project.

– submitted by Hailley Fargo, Knowledge Commons

Providing effective internal customer service

When you do things to help other people within your company do their jobs better, you are providing internal customer service. The quality of that service often has a huge impact on the overall quality of service delivered to external customers.

In this course, you’ll learn about types of internal customers and how to identify internal customer service relationships. You’ll also learn about the importance of getting to know your internal customers, identifying their expectations of you, and taking action on those expectations. Finally, you’ll learn guidelines for providing internal customer service.

This 30-minute course is available at lrn.psu.edu. Log in and register here.

– submitted by Carmen Gass, User Training Services

Sheetz coupon books available

The University Libraries still has some Sheetz Coupon books available if you need a basket stuffer or want some for graduation gifts or for summer road trips.

Books are $10 each and good at any Sheetz for up to three years.

Please contact Amy Miller (arm107) if you would like to purchase.

All proceeds benefit the Centre County United Way and its partner agencies.

– submitted by Amy Miller, United Way Committee co-chair

Tech Tip: Adding contacts to a help desk ticket

by Ryan Johnson, I-Tech

Our new helpdesk system will open a new screen after clicking submit on the IT Request Form as in the example below:

This screen will contain several areas of data that is grayed out and contain the information you provided on the form. If you do need to add additional comments, please add them to this field at this time.

However, the main field to pay attention to at this time is the Contact Watch List. The Contact Watch list allows you to enter additional contacts to the ticket.

To add additional contacts, click on the lock button next to the Contact Watch list field:

This will open the Contact Watch List dialog box:

At this time, you can search by PSU UserID and select a contact or simply enter an email address in the field below.

When you are finished, click Update or Save.

LHR News: April 3

Wishing the following employees well as they leave us:
Trish Notartomas – Access Services

Internal Moves:
Sarah Billman, Architecture and Landscape Architecture Library to Life Sciences Library

Events: April 3

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, 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: Physical and Mathematical Sciences Library Open House, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., 201 Davey Laboratory, 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: Cancelled —“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: Collaboration without Cables with Solistice, presentation by Josh Wilkins, noon- 1 p.m., 302 Paterno, University Park.

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.

Monday, April 17: “A Vision of Excellence,” an open discussion on the Pulitzer Prize, its founder, history, and legacy, hour-long discussion with panelists Pembroke Childs, Alia Gant, Jose Guerrero, Jeff Knapp and Nonny Schlotzhauer followed by an optional tour, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. discussion; 12:30-1 p.m. tour, Mann Assembly Room, 103 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: Resiliency: Secrets of Successful Employees, presentation by Don Page, 2-3 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Thursday, April 20: Earth Day Marigold Giveaway, by the University Libraries Green Committee, 2-4 p.m., Franklin Atrium, 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.

Friday, April 21: “Collecting, Analyzing, and Responding to Data at the University of Minnesota: Using Library Data to Improve the Student Experience,” presentation by Jan Fransen and Krista Soria of the University of Minnesota, 9-10 a.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park and Mediasite Live.

Friday, April 21: “Developing a Research Agenda,” presentation by Jan Fransen and Krista Soria of the University of Minnesota, 1:15-2:15 p.m., Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park and Mediasite Live.

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: Religious and Spiritual Life at Penn State, 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.