Syracuse University Library Holiday Party & Recognition Event
Wednesday, December 14
11:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Goldstein Alumni & Faculty Center

Welcome, David!

David de Anguera, Library Technician in Access & Resource Sharing, previously worked at Borders Books and Music in a variety of roles, including: Inventory Supervisor, Special Orders Coordinator, IT installer for new stores and relocations, and MIS Liaison. He has a Communications Certificate from College of DuPage and a B.A. in Communications from Beloit College, where he worked as an assistant in the library archives. He also wrote Ethereal Messages, A History of Beloit College Radio (ISBN 978-1884941016).

It is with great pleasure to announce this year's DSA award recipient, Sue Ehlers, Library Technician in Acquisitions and Cataloging. The Distinguished Service Award recognizes a library staff member who has made a significant contribution to the user community.

Please give Sue a hearty congratulations when you pass her in the building and join us for the presentation of this prestigious award at the Library Holiday Party on Wednesday, Dec. 14.

Thank you to the DSA Committee (Patrick Williams (chair), Scott Warren, Donna Sullivan, Rob Capuano, Nicole Dittrich, and Russ Silverstein) for all of their hard work in getting this enormous job done!

The SU Board of Trustees recently approved the proposal to construct the Humanities Reading Room on the second floor of Bird Library. The project is budgeted at $3.7 million and will be phased in over two fiscal years. Construction will be performed during the summers 2012 and 2013.

With this announcement, the Library begins what will be a complicated and busy three years: renovation of the second floor of the Bird; re-opening the Carnegie Reading Room; construction of the library facility on the south campus; preparation for moving to what is now the Barclay Law Library; possible construction of a classroom and seminar room on the lower level of the Bird Library; and construction of the plastics reading room.

As these projects move forward, we will keep the campus community informed of progress through regular updates on the Library website and in our newsletters. We will also dedicate a portion of the monthly staff Brown Bag discussions to project updates.

The renovations to the sixth floor lobby in Bird are now complete. The space has the correct lighting fixtures and all four benches have been put out.

Given in memory of Robert G. Ortwine '72 by his brother, Bruce A. Ortwine '75, the foyer gallery will be formally dedicated in the coming months.

We are pleased to announce two long-awaited improvements made earlier this week to the Classic Catalog (formerly known as SUMMIT).

Titles can now be viewed in a Detailed format, by clicking the "Detailed view" link in the right column of the title-level display. This function was recreated from the former Classic Catalog (pre-July 2011). Bibliographic information can now also be emailed to any valid email address from the search results list via a new button at the top of the list, or from the title-level display, via a link in the right column.

Images with the new buttons and links circled in red can be seen here.

Many thanks to Jeremy Morgan for getting this working (despite working against faulty documentation) and activated, and to Augie Teska for coordinating the effort with ITS.

We have a new array of installations in place for this semester's Sculptural Fibers class. You'll see pieces in many locations on the first floor, one on the second floor (behind the stairwell to the third floor), and one on the fifth floor, tucked in near oversize. Themes include our natural environment and environmental pollution, homelessness, famine, and the effects of hatred and prejudice.

In addition, there are a set of fiber "thumbprints" installed on the window facing Schine on the first floor (near PGSC). These were done by the Introduction to Fibers class (each student created six). They are encased in little clear bags, and they gently wave in the breeze generated by the heat registers below.

Thanks to professor Mary Giehl for her interest and willingness to create this real-life, public art opportunity for her students!

Bird After Dark 2011, the 6th Annual Library Lock-In, proved once again that students DO love to party in the library! On Nov. 4 between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m., 104 students participated in this unique event. Co-sponsored by the Library and the Office of Residence Life, students chose to spend their Friday night exploring Library resources and spaces to find answers to questions, testing their skills in challenging and hilarious Minute-to-Win-It games, and just enjoying time with their friends.

As always, individuals from multiple departments - within and outside of the Library - were required to make this event a success. A big thank you to all those who assisted with the various stages of planning and staffing.

Thank you also to the Office of Residence Life staff for once again being collaborative partners, and for providing the food, decorations, special activities, and prizes, as well as coordinating the publicity and registration.

Check out pictures from the night on Flickr.

Recently some questions have arisen about where to find information about the Library's disability services. I want to draw your attention to the information on the library's website. The Disability Services Advisory Group is in the process of updating these pages, but the information that is there is pretty comprehensive and accurate. Please refer to these pages if you need information to assist a user or for other disability-related purposes. If you have a question that is not addressed on these pages, or have a suggestion for updates to these pages please contact Lisa Moeckel at ext. 9790 or at lemoecke@syr.edu.

One of the recent questions that has arisen pertains to wheelchair-accessible restrooms. The only restrooms that are completely accessible are on the north side of the first floor in the vending area next to room 123. Other restrooms may have "handicapped stalls" but these are not truly accessible.... the stalls are not large enough to fit a wheelchair inside, and in some cases the entry to the restroom itself is too narrow or has an angle that prevents an individual in a wheelchair from entering. New signage is now outside of each restroom in the Library, directing users to the first floor accessible restrooms.

Áine at the featured literary event in New York City

Dance Lessons by Áine Greaney was selected by the Women's National Book Association's National Reading Group Month's (NRGM) committee as a "Great Group Read" for their 2011 reading list. Dance Lessons was featured in events and promotions throughout the month of October.

Read more about Dance Lessons.
 

Thanks for your participation in the work of the Mentoring Group over the year. As the calendar year winds down, we thought we would share with you a year-end wrap up of the group's activities. 24 staff members have been engaged with the group this year as mentees, mentors, or both!

Since July, we've had three brown bag discussions on the following topics:

• 3 Minutes in an Elevator
• When Opportunity Knocks and it Wasn't What You Expected
• Social Media & Your Next Job 

The brown bags have been well-attended, provide lively discussion on timely topics, and provide a forum for staff members of all levels.

In addition to our Mentoring brown bags, we want to let you know that we host:

• An annual portfolio sharing open to librarians who'd like to see examples of peers successful files for all levels of promotion.
• A website providing information on the mentoring group, forms for interested participants, as well as a roundup of jobs and news in the library profession.
• This year, the group also contributed to the Library's new staff orientation checklist.

If you are interested in participating, as a mentoring group member, a mentee or a mentor, please contact any member of the SUL mentoring group: 

Nancy Turner, Coordinator; Marty Hanson; Susan Kline; Peter Verheyen. 

 

Don't forget to mark your calendar for our annual triple-threat United Way Auction Extravaganza on Friday, Dec. 2 in the Peter Graham Scholarly Commons. Those creatively talented among us: we need your photos, your jewelry, your needlecraft items, and/or your artwork for our art auction. And this year, we're suggesting you create your own team of family, friends, or co-workers to put together a bounteous basket to bid on!

This year, the Library United Way Campaign will introduce its newest fundraiser: "Library Day Off Donation Giveaway." One lucky Library employee's donation ticket will be drawn Friday, Dec. 2 during the United Way Auction. He or she will receive one extra full day off with pay during the current fiscal year. Tickets will be available for your donation of $5.00 each through December 2 in the Business Office. We heartily encourage you to increase your odds of winning by making more than one $5.00 donation!

Last but certainly not least, please start thinking about what you can contribute to those ever-popular brown bag ticket drawings. Your unwanted items may be someone else's treasure. You can drop off that extra measuring cup set that's been in your kitchen drawer or your latest landscape painting anytime between now and December 1 to any team member (Carol Cavalluzzi, Nancy Cohen, Sue Ehlers, Pat Hunt, Dorcas MacDonald, Matt Reschke, Penelope Singer) or to the Library Business Office.

Thank you for supporting our community through your participation in the Library United Way activities.

The Library has once again signed on to participate in the Holiday Sharing Program. Started in 1991, Holiday Sharing is a voluntary program -- organized by volunteers around campus -- that pairs SU schools, colleges, and departments with families who need a little extra help. We have a wonderful team of about a dozen "elves" at the Library who are working to keep us organized.

For those of you who love shopping for little boys, girls, and babies, this is your year!  Please contact Marianne Hanley with questions about gift specifics. Remember that the gift suggestions come from the families and are "wish/Santa lists" -- do not think that all gifts listed must be purchased or are expected.

Bring your donations to the Business Office by Friday, Dec. 16. Pickup and delivery of all donations takes place on two mornings in December, usually several days before Christmas.

All of this information, and much more, can be found on our Holiday Family Sharing LibGuide.

Where in the Library is Otto?

Many years ago, Niki Gilman, as part of the SU IQ Committee, started a program to reward Library employees for doing great work. Each month, a plush Otto (at right) is given to someone in the Library who is making a difference and a positive contribution. The employee keeps Otto for a week and then passes him along to a deserving co-worker.

Throughout his travels, Otto has accumulated a number of buttons, pins, and even a tattle-tape security bracelet to ensure he doesn't leave Library premises.

If you spot Otto in the Library, snap a picture and send it, along with details of where you saw him, to libcom@syr.edu. Each month, we'll pick one name from all of the "Otto Spotter" submissions to win a prize.

Since last month, we've received a number of suggestions and comments from the two-sided suggestion board, located on the first floor of Bird Library, as well as through social media outlets such as the Library's Facebook page and Twitter feed:

• The mobile site is great! Told me exactly what I needed to know quickly and efficiently  
• Thank you Bird Library for having outdated books
• Bird Library needs more tables and computers   
• The Library's computers are "impossibly slow"   
• Why does Pages stop selling coffee at 11 p.m.?  
• Pages should have cup sleeves for its hot beverages 

If you have a response you'd like us to post, please contact Pamela McLaughlin at pwmclaug@syr.edu.

Got news? Please feel free to send us any news items that you would like to share with colleagues -- graduations, weddings, new babies, travels, and such. As always, we welcome your feedback, comments, questions, or story ideas. Send your contributions to libcom@syr.edu.

Many thanks for your interest!