Library Bulletin

After following the yellow signs to the back of the Records and Acquisition Management (RAM) office, a gem appears to students who have completed a master’s or doctoral thesis. This gem, Library Assistant Veronica De Kowperlandth, handles the binding of theses for students and departments.

It was not always Veronica’s job to help students turn their intangible hours of research and work into the tangible form of a book, something that, as Veronica relates, makes most student extraordinarily excited. Rather, it was Veronica’s own desire to learn that helped her attain a position where she assists students in preparing the culmination of their own learning endeavors.

Veronica’s career at UIC started three blocks south of where her UIC career will end on June 30^th. Veronica began work for UIC in 1979 as a receptionist within the UIC Office of the Vice President. “It has been lovely ever since,” said Veronica regarding her 33 year employment by UIC.

Veronica wanted to learn more than her receptionist position allowed, and when a position as a Typing Clerk opened in the Library of the Health Sciences, Veronica applied, and eventually transferred to the position. “I’ve always enjoyed the learning aspect of the library,” said Veronica. In her time with the UIC Library she has enjoyed learning about the complex process behind the daily services provided through the UIC Library.

Eventually, the greater security guaranteed by a position as a Library Clerk drew Veronica to the Daley Library in 1988 where she began work in Acquisitions. Veronica’s title changed, and her department was combined with cataloging to create RAM, but Veronica continues her work in Acquisitions. There, she binds theses while also rebinding books as needed and completing special projects.

A title change and department merger are not the only changes Veronica has seen in the course of her 33 years at UIC. “I never thought something like [the IDEA Commons] was possible,” stated Veronica. She is still surprised by the changes of the Daley Library that turned the former Acquisitions office into a conference room and study area. Veronica also experienced the change technology has brought to the library, and the transition it prompted from process that were once mostly manual and are now primarily digital.

Veronica enjoys her work, and the people she does it with. “I feel like RAM is the most playful department. We complete our work, and have fun doing so,” said Veronica. This bond with coworkers makes retirement bittersweet for Veronica, though she intends to keep in touch with her coworkers and visit the Daley Library from time to time.

Still, Veronica is excited for her approaching retirement, and to have more time to spend with her friends and family, the people she feels have always been the most important aspect of life. She expects to donate her time to her grandchildren’s school and the food pantry, and continues to consider the idea of working part-time in a clothing store, where a passion for clothes would make her a perfect match, or as a home care provider.

Linnea Knapp cannot help being a trailblazer. She established the archives program for the University of St. Francis Library and worked as the Library’s first Archives Librarian.  Now, she brings this experience of creating new programs with her into the newly created role of Assistant Director, University Records Information Management Services.

Linnea’s position resulted from a push on the part of the University of Illinois for better records management practices. Her responsibilities helping departments establish the best records keeping and destruction practices for their needs formerly fell under the purview of the University Archivist.

This realignment of duties means that Linnea spends more time consulting and planning thanworking to preserve Special Collections material. “Halfway through Library school, I realized that archiving did not appeal to me as much as records management did,” said Linnea, who is excited about this concentration in her planning.

In this role, Linnea works with counterparts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Springfield campuses in creating a university-wide records management plan, something that has yet to be implementedat the University of Illinois.

Linnea’s precedent in creating new programs makes her well prepared for defining how her position will interact with the UIC Library and the departments she consults with regarding records management. It also means that Linnea is more excited than concerned regarding the rigors of working in a new and undefined position.

“It can get a little overwhelming when I look too far ahead, but otherwise everything is fine,” said Linnea when discussing her goals for the position. While her long-term goal is maintaining a well-tuned university-wide records management system, Linnea and her compatriots are in the process of creating the foundation that will make such a program possible.

Linnea’s short-term goals are easier to achieve, with a desire to become comfortable in the position a priority. She is also working to become more aware and educated regarding the Daley Library and UIC campus environment, and how her position fits into this environment.

Thanks to her work at the University of St. Francis, Linnea is well-acquainted with the university environment and library. The UIC Library is larger than the University of St. Francis Library, a positive fact for Linnea, which drew her attention to the UIC Library and prompted her to apply. She hopes to flourish in this bigger environmentand further develop professionally.

Libraries in general seem to be a good fit for Linnea. She took a library class in both middle school and high school that allowed her to work as a library aid. “I always enjoyed it, but I never realized there was this opportunity to be a librarian as a profession,” said Linnea.

Linnea worked for five years in retail before realizing that the opportunity did, indeed, exist. Now, after her 2007 graduation from Wayne State University with her Master’s in Library and Information Science and Archival Administration Certificate, Linnea is ready to tackle the challenges of establishing a new system to better organize the retention, destruction, and preservation of records.

For Rodney Chambers there is no such thing as a typical workday. He began work as Business Administrative Associate within the Daley Library Business Office on April 16, and is trying to discern underneath all his time spent in introductory training and building new processes what a typical day at the Daley Library will hold for him.

From previous experience in business administration, Rodney has some sense of what his typical day will be. Within the last ten years, Rodney had worked for the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) as Business Manager & Budget Director, Contract Compliance Auditor and Professional Development Administrator; Chicago Lakeshore Hospital as Business Office Director; and Governors State University as Assistant Director of Purchasing, Procurement and Auxiliary Services.

Rodney recently realized that his career path has led him to frequently working for public institutions in business administration roles. For someone with a passion for numbers, who appreciates exactness, and works to develop positive relations with fellow coworkers, such business positions prove appropriate.

Over the course of his work with these institutions, Rodney has developed the skills necessary to excel at a public institution, and to oversee the business office, as well as represent the Daley Library in fiscal manners to the greater UIC Campus.

The singular focus of the Daley Library is new for Rodney, who manageduniversity-wide responsibilities at Governors State University. “I like the focus, I allows for my entire focus and energy to be on the Daley Library,” said Rodney.

This focus has allowed Rodney to also quickly create specific goals for himself and the Business Office. His short-term goal involves getting a better feel for the unique fiscal aspects of a library, as well as to understand the culture and rhythm of the Daley Library, and he hopesto learn as much as possible in a reasonable time.

“I want to develop the Business Office into a strong right arm for the library,” said Rodney regarding his long-term goal.  Rodney sees the Business Office as a limb to the greater body of the Daley Library, which can, in conjunction with the Administrative Office, deftly handle all the unique aspects of customer service in a library, and make a valuable addition to the Daley Library environment.

Rodney has a history of bettering the community he is a member of. “My wife and I like to have an impact on whatever environment we’re in,” said Rodney. This led Rodney to become extensively involved in Oak Park, the town he lives in, serving as Community Relations Commissioner and volunteering as a track and cross country coach.

Rodney looks forward to a long career at the Daley Library, with his biggest goal to do a good job. As Rodney gets the feel for the Daley Library, and his fourth week draws to a close, he is ready to impact the environment of the Daley Library, and create in the Business Office, a welcoming, vital, customer service-oriented resource for Library staff.

Nora Buczek frequently performed triage as a resident. Nora’s patients did not ail from a broken arm or abdominal pain. Instead, Nora’s patients suffered from a lack of knowledge on where to find their secondary sources. Twenty-one years later, Nora notes that her need for such diagnostic measures has decreased as time has reshaped the landscape of the library.

After six months in a temporary Reference position with the UIC Library, Nora participated in the two-year UIC Library Residency Program, and jump-started a long-lasting relationship with the UIC Library, specifically with the Richard J. Daley Library, where she has spent the entirety of her 21 years with the UIC Library.

“When I first started here, we called working the reference desk ‘triage.’ You would have three reference librarians, each with lines five-students deep,” said Nora.

Nora notes that one of the biggest changes in her time at the Daley Library has been the shift away from reference librarians acting as an entry point into the collection and performing ‘triage,’ to patrons using the collection database to find sources for themselves.

As an Assistant Reference Librarian and Instructor, Nora knows that the reference librarian’s job did not stop with the introduction of online databases; rather it shifted. Nora spends a considerable portion of her time teaching the students in English 161 (the introductory research course all students must take) how to utilize the database collection and other research tools to find sources for their research papers.

Another large portion of Nora’s time is spent fulfilling her duties as Selector for Business and Economics, ensuring the continued growth of relevant and enriching titles for faculty and students. Nora committed more of her time to tackle the position, but she has not minded. Acting as Selector in concert with Marcia Dellenbach has been, as Nora recounts, a pleasure.

 Nora had a considerable history with the UIC campus before starting at the Daley Library, graduating from UIC after studying Russian language and literature. Nora also worked for a few years within the UIC Chemistry Department as an Administrative Assistant while attending Rosary College (now Dominican University), and before beginning at the Daley Library.

At the time of her graduation from UIC, Nora did not suspect she would return to the UIC Library as a Reference Librarian. A distant relative of Nora’s worked for the UIC Library, and informed her impression of academic librarianship. When Nora began to consider careers, that idea of librarianship stuck out in her mind, and she decided to pursue a Master’s in Library Science.

Now, after 21 years with the Daley Library, Nora has decided to retire. “I’m sad to say goodbye to my colleagues. They have stood out the most in my mind during my time here,” said Nora. Trips to Lithuania, Michigan, and Alaska will keep Nora busy during the summer following her retirement.

Yet, Nora does not think her relationship with the Daley Library will end with her retirement. She hopes to keep in touch with her colleagues and expects to return periodically to utilize the Daley Library collection she has spent the last year and half building.

Twenty-four years later, Deloris Thomas is back at the Library of the Health Sciences. Deloris began working for the UIC Library in 1988. She started LHS, and circulated from the Math Library, to the Art & Architecture Library, followed by the Daley Library. In August 2011, after 17 years in different branches in the UIC Library, she resumed work at LHS in Access Services.

“I’m not really ready to retire. I have more energy now than ever,” said Deloris. While she may not feel ready to retire, Deloris is ready for a change. She hopes that after taking two months to visit her family in Mississippi that she can return to part-time work in a library.

Her journey to Mississippi seems fitting after her retirement from the UIC Library. At the University of Mississippi, Deloris held her first library position as a student worker in the University Libraries. “I called my old supervisor when I got the job here, and he told me he just knew I’d end up working in a library” said Deloris.

After her graduation from the University of Mississippi with a degree in social work, Deloris moved to Chicago. A Mississippi native, Deloris was smitten with the city after a visit with family.  During her first eight years in Chicago, she held various positions from substitute teacher to administrative assistant before the recommendation of a friend brought her to LHS.

Despite a continued enthusiasm for the city, Deloris returns frequently to Mississippi to visit her family, and enjoys the slower pace of life. “It’s nice there, and in Mississippi I had the greatest childhood. People still wave to you all the time when you pass them in the car,” said Deloris.

Deloris has been a part of numerous branches of the UIC Library and seen a vast amount of change in 24 years. Throughout that time, Deloris has made providing patron services a priority in her work, and it will be the patrons she misses the most after what she hopes will be her final, but not all that final, day of work on April 30^th.

When Angela Mendez first began working at the UIC Library, her daughter was 4-years old. When Hector Mendez began working at UIC Library, his daughter was 11-years old. As the end of April nears and their retirement approaches, Angela and Hector’s daughter is now 30-years old, and their youngest grandson is 11-years old.

Angela’s life-long love of libraries prompted her to apply to the UIC Library in 1986. In the time since, Angela became well acquainted with all aspects of the library, beginning in Circulation, moving to the Math Library, then working as a supervisor in Book Stacks, and working in the Acquisitions Department where she has spent most of her 25 years with the UIC Library.

Coincidentally, Angela’s love of libraries also brought Hector to the UIC Library. While looking for a job, Hector applied to the UIC Library at Angela’s recommendation, and he began work in the Acquisitions Department in a temporary position. Hector always seemed to come back to Acquisitions, with stints in the Math Library, Book Stacks, and Circulation between his three periods with Acquisitions in his 18 years at UIC Library.

“There has been a lot of change in my time here – both in the way I do my job, and in the atmosphere of the library,” said Hector. Angela agrees, noting how extensively cataloging has changed in the past two decades. “I still love what I do,” noted Angela, and both feel they leave behind a big places to fill.

Angela and Hector have shared the same department for only the last two years of their time at the UIC Library. Outside of occasional meetings, and their usual Friday lunches, Hector and Angela would only see each other during the trip to and from the Library before a re-classification returned Hector to the Acquisitions department. “We didn’t want to get sick of each other,” said Angela on the infrequency of their interaction.

They are excited to spend more time together in their retirement, though Angela and Hector view their retirement as bittersweet. “I’m leaving behind some people I’ve known for 18 years,” said Hector, and Angela echoes him stating that they plan to stay in touch with their friends from the UIC Library, but it will be nothing like the day-to-day interaction they have now with them.

Angela and Hector have no immediate plans for their retirement, noting that not having to plan will be one of the luxuries of retirement. “That and possibly sleeping in to 6:00 a.m.,” said Angela, whose day begins at 5:00 a.m. now. They are looking forward to their grandson’s visit during the summer, the White-Sox game they are attending to celebrate their retirement, and enjoying their 30^th wedding anniversary.

The Mendez retirement party will be Thursday, April 26 from 2:00p.m.-3:30p.m. in Daley Library Room 1-470.