Warren Webb sent the card below to all of his colleagues at the UIC Library in appreciation for their concern and friendship.
Click here to see the Warren Webb Thank You Note
On the Front Lines conference registration opens
The On the Front Lines conference for “front line” library staff, sponsored by the State Library, takes place March 12–14 at the University of Illinois Springfield. Registration information is now available online.
Forty scholarships will be awarded to cover costs of the registration fee, conference supplied meals and a two-night hotel stay. The scholarship does not cover travel or incidentals. The deadline to submit scholarship applications is January 30. Scholarship recipients will be announced in early February. The scholarship application is online. For questions or comments, pleased email Gwen Harrison (gharrison@ilsos.net) or call her at 217-785-7334.
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New date/time: Thompson retirement party 1/30
Regina Thompson, Library Specialist in the Resource Acquisition & Management Department (RAM), will retire on January 31 after 30 years of service. Please join Library colleagues at 2:30 p.m. on Monday, January 30, in the Daley Library Staff Lounge to thank and congratulate Regina.
Registration open for 2012 IACRL conference
Registration is now open for the 2012 IACRL Conference – Adapt, Adopt, Accelerate. The conference will be held Friday, March 16, at the DoubleTree Hotel Oakbrook.
Steven Bell, ACRL 2011-2012 Vice-President and Associate University Librarian for Research and Instructional Services, Temple University, will present the keynote: Adopt a Design Approach to Accelerate Library Innovation.
Registration information and the preliminary conference program are available online.
Information literacy webcast 2/7
On February 7 from noon to 1:45 p.m., in 1-360 Daley, the faculty Teaching Support and Curriculum Committee will sponsor a webcast from Academic Impressions, “Integrating Information Literacy into the First Year.” Speakers will be Ian Benton, Public Services Librarian, Undergraduate Library, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Anne-Marie Dietering, Franklin McEdward Professor for Undergraduate Learning Initiatives, Oregon State University, and Adrianna Guram, Coordinator of Academic Initiatives, Center for the First-Year Experience, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Participants will learn to:
- Utilize librarians in curriculum planning
- Create research-based learning outcomes that address information literacy
- Develop authentic and engaging research experiences and assignments for first year students
- Foster collaboration between librarians and first-year seminar faculty
For more information, see the Academic Impressions Web site or contact wiberley@uic.edu.
Daley Library and the Library of the Health Sciences Deliver Joy during the Holidays
Santa Claus did not come in the form of a jolly man in a red suit this holiday season for four Chicago families. Rather, the Daley Library and Library of the Health Sciences, led by the efforts of Shirley Junius and Nancy Malinowski, brought joy and presents into four homes through the Operation Santa and Salvation Army Angel Tree programs without any staff needing to don a red suit.
Both Santa and the Library have busy Decembers; while Santa is busy answering letters and delivering presents, the staff of the Library is busy answering student’s questions while delivering 24-hour service during finals week. Just as Santa finds time to deliver presents around the world, the staff of both the Daley Library and Library of the Health Sciences found time to give, raising $385.68 to give presents into local families.
This was the Library’s first year of raising money for Operation Santa, and the fundraising project almost doubled its original goal of $200. Operation Santa began in 1912 when the Postmaster General authorized local postmasters to allow postal employees and citizens to respond to letters addressed to Santa Claus. “It was hard to pick the letters [the Library would fundraise for], especially because some of the kids we’re asking for things like beds,” Shirley noted regarding the heart-warming and occasionally heart-wrenching letters here and Nancy read through.
Thanks to the fundraising, undertaken by the Library Community Building committee and spearheaded by the efforts of Shirley and Nancy, the letters of two girls (5 and 13 years old) to Santa Claus were responded to with toys and clothing as well as a VTech computer and CD player. Since the program surpassed its original goal, two boys (5 and 13 years old) were picked through the Salvation Army Angel Tree program and had their wishes for a winter jacket, basketball, and WWE themed toys and clothing granted.
The overwhelming success of the program did not seem guaranteed in the beginning days of December, Nancy noted. With funds below the $200 goal, Nancy implemented a program called the “10 days of giving,” where, beginning on December 15th, she emailed staff daily to remind them of the fundraising deadline. From there, the fundraising project united Library staff over a common goal, and everyone pitched in for the program. “People were asking the electricians, facility management, and the movers if they wanted to help,” Nancy said regarding the late-December push that jump-started fundraising. Shirley and Nancy hope the success in uniting the library and bringing joy to Chicago families of this year’s program will be the starting point for a tradition of giving during the holiday season for the Daley Library and the Library of the Health Sciences.
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- These presents were given to a 5-year old girl thanks to the generosity of the Daley Library and the Library of the Health Sciences.
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- A 13- year old girl received a pair of jeans, a blouse, a pair of boots, an MP3 player and gift card for music in response to her letter asking for clothes and shoes and detailing her love of music.
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- A 6-year old boy has his wish of WWE toys and clothing fulfilled thanks to the Salvation Army Angel Tree and the Daley Library and the Library of the Health Sciences.
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- With the help of the Daley Library and the Library of the Health Sciences, a 10-year old boy had his wish for a jacket and basketball fulfilled.
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Pitol named University Archivist
Scott Pitol has the ability to convince anyone to become a university archivist. He enthralls when discussing his enjoyment of records management, special collections, and archives, and Scott brings that enthusiasm to the UIC Library with his January 3rd appointment as University Archivist and Assistant Professor.
Scott initially thought he would be a reference librarian. Shortly after his decision to attend Dominican University, Scott became interested in archives work. “There’s something about the fact that archives are unique… when you get into special collections, when you get into university archives, the things that we have are unique things, and it’s those things that are interesting and will differentiate libraries in the future,” Scott noted regarding his shift in interest and continued enthusiasm for archives.
A 1984 alumnus of Southern Illinois University, Scott earned his Master of Library and Information Science (with an archives concentration) in 2006. Scott described that his journey into library science was a surprising one. “I was a Web-developer when the bubble burst,” Scott detailed regarding one of the many factors that led to his consideration and eventual decision to pursue a Library and Information Science master’s degree. His path to UIC was as equally surprising. “I worked on the bioengineering department collection and the papers of two of the professors who were in bioengineering, so I did three collections while I was here [as a practicum student]… and I always hoped that I’d be back,” Scott said.
In the time between his internship and return to UIC, Scott worked as the Records Specialist/Compliance Specialist for The Pampered Chef. There, he worked initially as a Records Specialist handling such challenges as 7,000 boxes worth of unknownmaterials. He then became responsible for the entire Records Department and Corporate Archives of the Pampered Chef. Though his previous UIC experience has helped his transition, Scott noted that the change in size from The Pampered Chef (a company of between 700 and 800 people) to UIC (where his responsibilities are campus-wide) will be one of his biggest challenges.
While Scott is candid about the challenges that await him as the University Archivist, he also has many goals for his new position. “I’m here for the big picture of all the records… I would like to see more units comfortable in dealing with their records…I want to make sure people in different departments know that if they don’t know what to do, or if they have a question, they can come to me,” Scott said. With the help of the Library, Scott will be hiring dedicated records management specialists to make the University Archivist a resource to staff and faculty; when the time for record destruction comes (where his approval is needed to destroy anything), he and his staff will work to prevent large time delays. “I don’t want to be a bottle-neck,” Scott stated regarding one of his priorities as University Archivist.
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Records Manager position open
The University of Illinos seeks candidates for several Assistant Director of University Records and Information Management Services (RIMS) positions, located on all campuses including Chicago.
The RIMS Assistant Director oversees and coordinates the management of University records and supporting information resources. The RIMS Assistant Director plays a key role in planning, establishing and implementing an effective University records and information management program in a team environment.
For the full position description, see the University of Illinois Human Resources posting. Applications are due by January 9, 2012.
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Library awards nominations due January 15
The nomination period for the UIC Library awards program is open now through January 15, 2012. See the Library Awards Committee wiki for information about the timeline as well as links to descriptions of the six categories of awards.
Use the fill-in form (at the bottom of the page) to submit nominations.
If you have questions about the awards or the nomination process, email lib-awards@uic.edu or contact one of the committee members:
Robin Beck
Jessie Duran
Annie Marie Ford
Linda Naru
Erika Tenorio
Ann Weller
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Dorsch, Anderson elected to MLA committee
Jo Dorsch, Regional Head Librarian, Library of the Health Sciences-Peoria, and Max Anderson, GMR Program Coordinator, have been elected to the Medical Library Association 2012/13 Nominating Committee.
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