News/Alerts Archive
6/29 - Arthur Kiron Seth Jerchower
Everyone,

Seth Jerchower, the CAJS Public Services and Judaic Research and Instructional Services librarian has accepted the position of Head of the Isser and Rae Price Library of Judaica at the University of Florida, Gainesville. His last day at Penn will be Friday, July 20, 2007.

Seth has worked at the Penn Library since March 1, 2000. Over the course of these last seven years, Seth has responded to 21,728 reference questions. He has fixed 10,003 catalog records. He has made 1,325 high resolution digital scans and he has added 428 electronic resources to our on-line Judaica collections. Seth made fundamental contributions to the Penn-Cambridge Cairo Genizah project, helping us link digital images of medieval manuscript fragments to their cataloging metadata in order to provide on-line access to individual items physically dispersed around the world. During his tenure at the CAJS Library, Seth also designed and edited seven years of CAJS Fellows' web-exhibits and co-curated two of his own, including a marvelous physical exhibition honoring the 800th anniversary of the birth of Petrarch, and another about the history of Rabbinic Lexicography, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the death of Marcus Jastrow, the father of American rabbinic dictionary making.

We congratulate Seth on his appointment and wish him continued success in his career.
6/29 - Arthur Kiron New Web Exhibit about Religious Communites in Islamic Empires
Everyone -

The Center for Advanced Judaic Studies Library has just made public its seventh annual web-exhibit: "Religious Communities in Islamic Empires." The exhibit, an annual partnership between the CAJS Fellows and the Penn Libraries, documents the previous year's research theme at the Center and disseminates the fruits of the scholars' investigations through text and image via the web.

If you are interested in seeing the exhibit, please go to:
www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/cajs/ and click on "current exhibit."

or go directly to:
www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/cajs/fellows07/

Special thanks to Seth Jerchower, CAJS Public Services Librarian, for designing and editing the exhibit, to David McKnight, Leslie Vallhonrat, for their technical support.
6/29 - Amanda Lawhorn Staff Announcements

Please join me in welcoming the following staff - they will join us on July 2nd.

Tommy Barker - Tommy has accepted the two year position of Digital Library Applications Programmer. He holds a BA in Mathematics from Drew University and is pursuing a Masters in Computers and Information Technology at Penn. He currently works as an Intern in the Libraries' Management Information Services & Communication Department.

Andrea Baruzzi – Andrea has accepted the one-year position of Science Librarian. She holds a BA in English Literature from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro and an MLIS from Drexel. She currently works as a Librarian in our Research and Instructional Services Department.

Charles Cobine - Charles has accepted the position of Research & Instructional Services Librarian and Coordinator of Digital Outreach Services. He holds a BA in Foreign Languages and Literature from Lewis & Clark College and an MSLS from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He previously served as the Assistant Electronic Reference Services Librarian at the University of North Carolina's Davis Library.

Bing Li – Bing has accepted the position of Library Stack Attendant. He just graduated from Penn with a BA in Music and previously worked as a Music Library Intern at the Free Library.
6/28 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of July 2-8
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., July 3, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson

Thurs., July 5, 2007
Model UN Program:: 1:30-2:30pm: Class of '55
6/26 - Dick Griscom Penn Libraries Toolbar
Greetings,

The Libraries Toolbar team (Danianne Mizzy, chair; Laurie Allen, Melanie Cedrone, Dick Griscom, David Toccafondi) is pleased to announce the availability of the Penn Libraries Toolbar, a custom-made web browser extension for Penn students, faculty, and staff. It is available for Internet Explorer and Firefox.

It provides a persistent search box that allows you to search:
  • The Penn website using Google
  • Penn Library databases, e-journals, FAQs, Library web pages and more using FindIt!
  • Franklin Library Catalog by Title, Keywords, Author and Journal Title
  • VCat, the Library Video Catalog, for Videos and DVD Collections in the Penn Library
  • Databases such as EBSCO Megafile, JSTOR, ABI/Inform, PubMed and WorldCat
  • Google and Google Scholar
Please give it a try and send us your feedback!

DOWNLOADS:
  • Firefox
    labs.library.upenn.edu/toolbars/upenntoolbar.xpi
    Note 1:   A yellow bar will appear at the top of your screen alerting you that you are attempting to install software. Click "Edit Options" and "Allow", then try the download again.
    Note 2:   If you use Webmail, please click on the alternate link
    http://labs.library.upenn.edu/toolbars/toolbars.html
    Then click on "Firefox Toolbar Latest Version." This should initiate the installation of the toolbar.
  • Internet Explorer
    labs.library.upenn.edu/toolbars/upenntoolbarIE.exe
INSTRUCTIONS:
labs.library.upenn.edu/toolbars/toolbars.html

SURVEY:
www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=787823739583
6/21 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of June 25-July 1
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., June 25, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson

Wed., June 27, 2007
Summer Internship Program:: 10am-1pm: Class of '68 Seminar Rm, 1st fl, WIC
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Class of '54, 4th floor
ILLiad Training Session:: 8am-5pm: Meyerson

Thurs., June 28, 2007
Farewell Reception for David Unruh:: 3-6pm: 6th fl, Furness
6/19 - Tom Wilson Arrest of Theft Suspect
All,
All, a big THANK YOU to Sheryl Tisdale for noticing the suspect in the museum library and alerting security.
Tom

from Captain Joseph D. Fischer:

I am pleased to announce the arrest of the male with the tattoo of a cat on his neck. Yesterday afternoon an alert staff member observed this male inside the University of Pennsylvania Museum Library. University of Pennsylvania Police were immediately notified and apprehended this male as he was attempting to exit the building. Our Detective Division is in the process of preparing affidavits charging this male with additional crimes. The defendant was also discovered to be wanted in the state of New Jersey and will be extradited. This is another example of University of Pennsylvania staff members coordinating efforts with the Police Department to create a safe work environment.

On another note I did receive a correspondence from a University staff member reporting that she is unsure what number to call University of Pennsylvania Police. Our number is 215-573-3333 or 511 FROM ANY UNIVERSITY TELEPHONE. We also highly recommend that the 215-573-3333 phone number be programmed into your cell phones. We are looking forward to our BA meeting on Thursday morning at Huntsman Hall.
6/15 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of June 18-24
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., June 18, 2007
Center for Epidemiology and Biostatistics/CRCU Childhood Adenotonsillectomy Study (CHAT)::
7:30am-5pm
Class of '55/Meyerson & Goldstein Electronic Classroom
Tues., June 19, 2007
Center for Epidemiology and Biostatistics/CRCU Childhood Adenotonsillectomy Study (CHAT)::
7:30am-5pm
Class of '55/Meyerson & Goldstein Electronic Classroom
Wed., June 20, 2007
McNair Scholars:: 9am-noon: Class of '55

Thurs., June 21, 2007
McNair Scholars:: 9am-noon: Class of '55
6/15 - Tom Wilson Theft Information
All,

The suspect with the cat tattoo mentioned below was just observed in the engineering library. The police were called and the suspect left. If you see this man please call the police immediately. DO NOT TRY AND DETAIN HIM.

Police Description

Please be on the look out for a male matching the below description, this male was observed on Wednesday June 13, 2007 at Van Pelt Library and today June 15, 2007 in the Town building. The below male was observed on both occasions going through the personal belongings of others and on both occasions this male fled the area before the arrival of Police. If anyone see's this male please contact The University of Pennsylvania Police Department immediately. Please note this male has a distinctive tattoo on his neck of a cat, the tattoo could be of any type of cat i.e. Tiger, Cougar, Lion.
  • Black Male
  • Tattoo of a Cat on his neck (Tiger, Cougar, Lion)
  • Hair is braided
  • 20s to 30s
  • Light to medium complexion
  • Approximately 6 feet tall
  • Average weight
  • Today (June 15) he was wearing a gray shirt, dark pants maybe jeans and he was carrying a backpack.
6/14 - Tom Wilson for Capt. Joseph D. Fischer, Penn Police Dept. Street Closure

Starting on Monday, June 18th, 2007 @ 9:30am, it will be necessary to close all (eastbound) vehicular traffic on to Convention Ave. off of Civic Center Blvd. The hours of the closure will be from 9:30am until @ 3:00pm Monday thru Friday next week. All eastbound vehicular traffic attempting to enter the Penn Tower garage will be directed to Convention and South Streets. Vehicles will be permitted to travel west on Convention Ave. where entry to the Penn Tower garage can be accomplished.
6/14 - Tom Wilson for Capt. Joseph D. Fischer, Penn Police Dept. Theft Information

Yesterday a student observed a male (with a tattoo of a cat on his neck) going through her personal belongings inside the Van Pelt Library at approx. 1:50pm. When the student approached the male he fled from the building. At approx. 1:55pm a staff member observed a male inside an office at Huntsman Hall and when the staff member approached this male he fled from the building. Unfortunately there was a delay in immediately calling the police which reduced our ability to apprehend these males. Please inform the staff in your buildings to IMMEDIATELY call University of Pennsylvania Police when they observe suspicious behavior supplying us with a description of the person and last location seen. Physical descriptions such as race, approx. age, height, build, and clothing worn are beneficial in attempting to locate suspects. If there is something unique about the person i.e. a visible scar, tattoo, etc. this information will greatly assist our officers in apprehending the subject.
6/7 - Nick Okrent Education Extravaganza '07: Presentations and survey
Hi all,

The PowerPoint presentations from the 2007 Education Extravaganza: Information Literacy Assessment - Perspectives and Practice have been uploaded to the web: staffweb.library.upenn.edu/groups/tis/extravaganza07.html .

If you attended and haven't filled out an evaluation, please consider doing so now: www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=227823749099. Your opinion is important to us!
6/7 - Aleta Arthurs: Farewell Reception for Annette Day
YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED
to attend a farewell reception in honor of

Annette Day

Thursday, June 14, 2007
11:00am

Meyerson Conference Room
2nd floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
6/7 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of June 11-17
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., June 11, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Class of '55

Wed., June 13, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., June 14, 2007
Campaign Communications:: 10-11:30am: Class of '55
Annette Day Farewell:: 11am-noon: Meyerson
Equus Exhibit VIP Closing and Reception
5:30-7pm: Kamin Gallery, 1st fl, & Rosenwald, 6th fl
Fri., June 15, 2007
SAS:: 8:30am-2pm: Lea Library, 6th fl
6/7 - Tom Wilson Security Alert
All,

All, I just received a notice from the Penn Police that there have been reports of a male and female wandering around inside some of the buildings on campus. They are looking for open offices without occupants and rummaging through desks. Please close and lock your office door when leaving the space. It would also be wise to keep your valuables out of sight. Should you notice this type of behavior, call the security desk at 8-5444 or the police at 511. I will keep you posted as more information becomes available.
5/17 - David Azzolina Reader's Corner

The latest installment of the Reader's Corner has put up on the Libraries tab of PennPortal.

It is by David Nelson and is on a very important collection of Sanskrit texts in translation. Check it out.
5/18 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of June 3-10
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place this week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., June 5, 2007
Negotiating Meeting:: 9am-3pm: Class of '54, 3rd floor

Fri., June 8, 2007
Negotiating Meeting:: 9am-3pm: Class of '54, 3rd floor
DAR:: 11am-3pm: Meyerson
6/3 - Dick Griscom Summer renovation of Ormandy Music and Media Center
Greetings,

This summer we are undertaking a major renovation of the Ormandy Center to provide additional shelving space for our growing media collections. The areas affected are the staff area, the stacks, and the listening area (in other words, the left side of the center, as you walk through the entrance). During the renovation, service to the media collections will continue uninterrupted, but, because the collections have been relocated to several rooms outside the Ormandy Center, it will take us a bit longer to retrieve materials.

In order to provide additional space for collections, we are reducing the size of the listening area by one half. The remaining space will be outfitted with new, larger carrels. This work will be done at the end of the project, and I am told that the new carrels will not be ready until October or November.

The renovation of the staff area will require the Ormandy Center to be shut down completely during a week in August. At this point, we believe that week will be 13-17 August. During that week, circulation staff will be relocated to room 452 (on the Marian Anderson side of the Music Library), and service to the general and reserve collections will be provided from that office.

If you have any questions about the renovation of the Ormandy Center, please feel free to call me at 898-3450 or write me at griscom@upenn.edu.
6/2 - Marjorie Hassen New position posted

The library has created a new position, Scholarly Communication Librarian. This position will be responsible for promoting scholarly communication initiatives on campus, managing ScholarlyCommons@Penn, and promoting awareness of issues related to intellectual property in academic publishing. The position is posted on the Jobs@Penn site (full description linked below). Please feel free to disseminate widely.

I'm glad to answer any questions.
•  Job description
5/17 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice - Library Clerk (MPA/Chemistry libraries)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy in Chemistry and Math/Physics/Astronomy Libraries for a Library Clerk. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please email me of your interest by June 8, 2007. Job description is linkee below.

The hours for the position may be between 9am and 7pm. The schedule will be set at the time of hire.
•  Job description
6/1 - Nate Dougherty Scheduled Server Maintenance: Sunday, June 03, 2007

On Sunday, June 3, 2006, starting at 5:00pm, iTadd Staff will be performing maintenance on equipment in the server room.
  • Library Staff Files will be unavailable (Mapped Drives and most resources at "\\library\files\...")
  • All ILL Manager Servers will be unavailable
6/1 - Rick Bobst Staff Stairway

The Staff stairs in Van Pelt will be closed today from the ground through 2nd floor between 07:30 and 10:30 AM due to construction.
5/21 - Doug Smullens New employees starting in ITadd
Hi,

I'm happy to announce that two new Systems Technicians will begin work for the Libraries today.

Sara Sieteski comes to us most recently from providing support in the School of Arts and Sciences. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Ancient Greek and History here at the University.

David Yu is also no stranger to Penn as he's worked several years for Computer Fixer on Campus. He's provided hardware and software support in locations across our campus and Drexel.

We'll be introducing both of them to staff over the next few days. Please help us in welcoming them to the Libraries.

Thanks,
5/21 - Amanda Lawhorn REMINDER: Performance Appraisals Due Monday, May 21
All Professional and Administrative Library Staff:

The deadline to submit performance appraisals to Library Human Resources is today - Monday, May 21. If you have not already submitted your appraisals, please do so by the end of the day.

And to those of you who have submitted your appraisals, thank you!
5/17 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice- Library Clerk (MPA/Chemistry libraries)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy in Chemistry and Math/Physics/Astronomy Libraries for a Library Clerk. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please email me of your interest by May 25, 2007. Job description is linkee below.

The hours for the position may be between 9am and 7pm. The schedule will be set at the time of hire.
•  Job description
5/18 - Tom Wilson VPDLC Staff Entrance
All,

Due to technical difficulties, the project below has been rescheduled for Monday, May 23, 2007, as follows:

This Monday morning, May 23, 2007, the west half of the back lot (top of hill side) will be closed from 6am to 11am for materials to be transfered to the 6th floor. The east half (dumpster side) will be open for access to the staff entrance.
5/18 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of May 21-27
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., May 21, 2007
MLA Conference :: 6-10pm: Vet Library
5/16 - Dick Griscom Reminder: Webcast on Author Rights, Thurs., 17 May, 1pm
Greetings,

Just a reminder that the Libraries will be hosting an ACRL e-Learning webcast on author rights Thursday, 17 May, at 1:00 pm, in the Meyerson Conference Room. Linked below is the description from the ACRL site. The webcast should be of special interest to those of us working with faculty on ScholarlyCommons@Penn. I look forward to seeing you.
•  Details
5/16 - Tom Wilson VPDLC Staff Entrance
All,

This Friday morning, May 18, 2007, the west half of the back lot (top of hill side) will be closed from 6am to 11am for materials to be transfered to the 6th floor. The east half (dumpster side) will be open for access to the staff entrance.
5/14 - Amanda Lawhorn REMINDER: Performance Appraisals
All Professional and Administrative Library Staff:

REMINDER: The deadline for supervisors to complete and submit performance appraisals to Library Human Resources is one week from today - Monday, May 21.

If you have not yet completed and submitted your self-appraisal to your supervisor, please do so immediately.

Thanks you.
•  Performance appraisal forms and informative materials
5/11 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of May 14-20
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., May 14, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson

Tues., May 15, 2007
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson

Wed., May 16, 2007
Campaign Committee:: 10-11:30am: Class of '55
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., May 17, 2007
FIAS Candidate and Admin Council:: 3:30am-5pm: Meyerson

Fri., May 18, 2007
Piers Plauman Conf
Conference::1:30-3:30pm: Meyerson and Class of '55
Lectures::3:30-6:15pm: 6th Floor
Reception::6:15-7:15pm: 6th Floor
5/10 - David Mowl Summer construction activities
Dear Folks,

We are already out of the gate with several of our construction projects, but I wanted to take the opportunity to discuss them with you more fully as their presence makes itself known.

Closure of the Short Title Catalog Room (5th Floor Van Pelt, Room 504)

The Library is providing much needed swing space for the School of Nursing during their renovation work by transfering the photocopied and bound STC collection to High Density Storage. The transfer of the materials is already two-thirds complete, with the remainder moving Friday 5/11. This will allow us to spruce up the room before their needed occupancy in early June.

New Compact Shelving systems, Rare Book Dietrich closed stack

Work is well underway for replacement of three column bays (1800 SF) of static shelving with new mechanically-assisted compact shelving. This project will increase the shelving capacity in the affected area by some 34%. It is vital work to allow for our increased holdings as well as providing a "back of house" infrastructure for the Rare Book & Manuscript Library renovation plans.

The existing shelving is now removed, and concrete preparation and rail installation will follow over the next two weeks. On next Friday, 5/18, concrete delivery and pumping to the 6th Floor construction area will take place. More on our safety precautions for this activity will follow next week.

We anticipate completion of this project by mid-June.

Complete Renovation of Public Restrooms - 3rd, 4th, && 5th Floors, Van Pelt (east) side

Beginning immediately after graduation, the six Men' and Women's rooms on the 3rd, 4th, && 5th floors of VP-DLC will close for complete gutting and re-construction as restrooms fit for the 21st Century! This work is a result of hard lobbying by the Library and is funded by general University maintenance and renewal funds.

The work will proceed through the summer for targeted completion by mid-August. They will be beautiful and a joy to behold for at least the next generation of Penn folks!

Expansion of Music Library closed stack & renovation of a smaller Listening Center

Changes in our Music collection circulation policies and user habits have made the existing Listening Center a less-used space. On the other hand, our Music Library collection and demand continues to expand. This project will reduce the number of Listening Center to six workstations, and reconfigure the Music closed stack to house the larger collection. The architectural motif and finishes of Ormandy will be renewed in a beautiful new architectural interpretation.

The work will begin on 1 June with hazardous materials abatement and continue through the summer until its completion in September. The Music Library will continue to operate throughout the summer from within its disrupted geography in the building, and the Ormandy staff will receive new workstations.

As always, my thanks for your patience and understanding through the dust and noise.
5/9 - Marjorie Hassen Alumni Events in Van Pelt
On Friday evening (after the library closes), the Class of 1967 will hold its 40th reunion dinner in Van Pelt, on the east side of the first floor. Preparations will begin around noon, when facilities will move furniture, and will continue later in the afternoon with the arrival of the caterer, florist, and Alumni Events staff. A sign alerting patrons to the temporary disruption will be placed at the front door on Friday morning. Services should not be interrupted, but you can expect a flurry of activity throughout the day.

Additional Alumni Weekend events taking place in Van Pelt:
Friday, May 11
3-4:30pm, Rosenwald Gallery, 6th floor:
Muriel Pfaetzer Bodek Public Affairs Lecture (Kathleen Hall Jamieson)
Saturday, May 12
10-11am, Rosenwald Gallery, 6th floor:
Mixed Media, Mixed Company: Conjunctions at the Common Press
10-11am, Class of 1955 Conference Room, 2nd floor:
Last Harvest: Real Estate Development in America
Please let me know if you have questions.
5/8 - Amanda Lawhorn REMINDER: Performance Appraisals
All Professional and Administrative Library Staff:

Just another friendly reminder that you should have completed your self-appraisal and submitted it to your supervisor. The deadline for supervisors to complete your review and meet with you to discuss it is Monday, May 21st.

If you have not yet completed and submitted your self-appraisal, please do so without further delay.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thanks,
•  Performance appraisal forms and informative materials
5/4 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of May 7-13
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., May 8, 2007
ALSNA:: 10-11:30am: Fine Arts Library

Fri., May 11, 2007
Penn Fund:: 9:30am-12:30pm: Meyerson
Bodek Lecture:: 3-4:30pm: 6th floor
Class of '67 Reunion Cocktail and Dinner:: 6-11pm: 6th floor & 1st floor

Sat., May 12, 2007
Penn Design Book Talk:: 9am-5pm: Class of '55
Common Press Talk:: 10-11am: 6th floor
5/3 - Marjorie Hassen Upcoming Webcast

The Library has subscribed to the ACRL Webcast:
"The Classroom Will Now Be Podcast: Podcasting in Higher Education and Implications for Academic Libraries."
May 9
2:00-3:30 p.m.
Meyerson Conference Room

All are invited
5/1 - Tom Wilson VPDLC Staff Entrance
All,

Tomorrow at 7am there will be a crane in the west section (top of hill) of the back lot. The west wall opening will be closed. Please use the east opening of the wall (by the dumpsters) for access to the staff entrance. All work should be done by 11am.

Thank You
4/26 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Apr. 30 - May 6
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Apr. 30, 2007
SAS:: noon-1:30pm: WIC Seminar Room
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson

Tues., May 1, 2007
Tech. Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson
SAS:: noon-1:30pm: WIC Seminar Room

Wed., May 2, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
SIP Mentor Training:: 11am-1pm: Class of '54
SAS:: noon-1:30pm: WIC Seminar Room

Thurs., May 3, 2007
Dept. Heads:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
SAS:: noon-1:30pm: WIC Seminar Room

Fri., May 4, 2007
Office of the Provost:: 9:30-10:30am: Class of '55

Sun., May 6, 2007
Lehman Workshop and Dinner:: 5-10pm: 6th floor
2/26 - Jasmine Lim Job Posting Notice- Library Service Assistant I (High Density Storage Dept.)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

A new Library Service Assistant I position has been created in the High Density Storage Department under the direction of Andrea Loigman. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please email me of your interest along with your resume by May 3, 2007.

The hours for the position will be between 7:30AM and 6:00PM, Monday through Friday. The schedule will be set by a mutual agreement between the employee and supervisor.

A job description is linked below.
•  Job description.
4/26 - Dick Griscom Webcast on Author Rights, 17 May, 1pm
Greetings,

The Libraries will host an ACRL e-Learning webcast on Author Rights on Thursday, 17 May, at 1:00 pm, in the Meyerson Conference Room. This topic is of particular interest to those of us working with faculty on scholarly communication. A key component to this effort is educating faculty about issues related to rights and permissions and encouraging them to retain rights to their research so that it can be disseminated freely and openly.

Linked below is a description from the ACRL site. I look forward to seeing you on 17 May at 1:00 pm for the webcast.
•  Details
4/25 - John Pollack Rare Book & Manuscript Library: Service Disruption during Construction
Dear Colleagues,

Linked below is an announcement about major construction scheduled to begin soon in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library on the 6th floor of Van Pelt-Dietrich, which will seriously limit our access to many (but not all) of our collections.We appreciate your help in informing any patrons that might be affected -
•  Details
4/25 - Jasmine Lim Candidate Presentation
Hello all,

On Monday, April 30, 2007, we will be interviewing Douglas McGee, another candidate for the position of Asst. Dir. for Engineering and Physical Sciences Libraries. Please join us for the candidate's presentation in the Class of '55 at 2 pm.
4/25 - Amanda Lawhorn REMINDER: Performance Appraisals
All Professional and Administrative Library Staff:

Just a friendly reminder that the 2007 performance appraisal schedule is as follows:

Monday, April 30 – Suggested date for self-appraisals to be submitted to supervisors from their direct reports.

Monday, May 21 – Supervisor appraisals are due to me. Appraisal meetings should be completed prior to this date.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
•  Performance appraisal forms and informative materials
4/25 - Nick Okrent Education Extravaganza Details
Hi all,

The Education Extravaganza - Information Literacy Assessment: Perspectives and Practice - is on May 31. We now have a web page that describes the presentations and provides a registration form for people who are interested in attending a post conference lunch:

http://staffweb.library.upenn.edu/groups/tis/extravaganza07.html

Please contact me or another member of the TIS Working Group (Marcella Barnhart, Barbara Kountouzi, Danianne Mizzy, Anu Vedantham) if you are thinking of attending the conference. This year Drexel, Temple, Rowan and the Quaker schools will be participating, so we hope to have a good turnout from Penn.
4/23 - Nick Okrent Tracing Legislation Workshop Thursday!
Hi all,

The next Keeping Current Workshop will be in the Meyerson room this Thursday from 11-noon. Ellen DeMarinis will discuss the process of how a bill becomes a law, what kinds of publications are produced along the way and how to access them.

This will be the last Workshop until September, so we hope to see many of you there.
4/23 - Cathy Von Elm New staff member in Van Pelt Circulation
All,

I am happy to announce that Kevin Harris has accepted the Circulation Clerk position in Van Pelt Library Circulation, and will start work shortly after 4/30/07.

Kevin currently works part time in Van Pelt Interlibrary Loan. He is a graduate of University City High School, and an alumnus of the Penn Libraries' Group on Library Diversity summer 2005 internship program.

Please help me to welcome Kevin to the Penn Libraries' full-time staff!
4/13 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Apr. 16 - 22
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., Apr. 17, 2007
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies Lecture:: 7-9:30pm: Class of '55
John Keane's Retirement Reception:: 4-6pm: 6th floor

Wed., Apr. 18, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
Affirmative Action:: 2-4pm: Meyerson
P&SE:: 4:30-7:30pm: Class of '55

Thurs., Apr. 19, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 2-5pm: Meyerson
Beitler Reception:: 5-8pm: 6th floor

Fri., Apr. 20, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 8:30am-6:30pm: Class of '55

Sat., Apr. 21, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 9am-1pm: Meyerson
4/18 - John Pollack April 19 lecture and event in Rosenwald Gallery

All staff are welcome
University of Pennsylvania Library
Lorraine Beitler Collection of the Dreyfus Affair
cordially invite you to hear
Paula E. Hyman (Yale University), speaking on
The Dreyfus Affair and Contemporary Anti-Semitism
With a presentation by Yael Perl Ruiz, great-granddaughter of Alfred Dreyfus

Thursday, April 19, 2007, 5:30PM
Rosenwald Gallery, 6th floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library
•  details
4/16 - Marjorie Hassen New Staff Member

I am pleased to announce that Charles Cobine has accepted the position of Research & Instructional Services Librarian and Coordinator of Digital Outreach Services. He will join the staff on July 2nd.

Charles holds a BA in Foreign Languages and Literature from Lewis & Clark College and an MSLS from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He currently serves as the Assistant Electronic Reference Services Librarian at the University of North Carolina's Davis Library. In addition to participating in general reference and outreach activities as part of the RIS Department, Charles will oversee the library's virtual reference services as well as support new initiatives in digital outreach.
4/13 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Apr. 16 - 22
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., Apr. 17, 2007
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies Lecture:: 7-9:30pm: Class of '55
John Keane's Retirement Reception:: 4-6pm: 6th floor

Wed., Apr. 18, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
Affirmative Action:: 2-4pm: Meyerson
P&SE:: 4:30-7:30pm: Class of '55

Thurs., Apr. 19, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 2-5pm: Meyerson
Beitler Reception:: 5-8pm: 6th floor

Fri., Apr. 20, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 8:30am-6:30pm: Class of '55

Sat., Apr. 21, 2007
Africana Librarian Council:: 9am-1pm: Meyerson
4/9 - Aleta Arthurs: Invitation to John Keane's Retirement Reception
YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED
to attend a celebration in honor of

John Keane
Director, Financial & Adminstrative Services
as he retires from the
University of Pennsylvania

Tuesday, April 17, 2007
from 4 until 6 pm
Rosenwald Gallery
6th floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center

RSVPs appreciated but not required
RSVP to: arthurs2@pobox.upenn.edu or 215-898-1463
4/6 - Marjorie Hassen Penn Preview Days
Hi all,

Beginning today, through Monday, April 16th (weekdays only), the University is sponsoring Penn Preview Days. Students who have been accepted to Penn (and their families) are invited to campus for tours and information sessions. Van Pelt will be hosting an open house 2:45-4 each day of Previews. We will be offering building tours and guided visits to the Information Commons during open-house hours. You may encounter a number of groups in the building over the coming week, as well as prospective students and their families who may stop by at other times of the day.

If visitors have questions that you are unable to answer, feel free to refer them to the Reference Desk.

A full schedule of Penn Previews can be found on the web: www.admissions.upenn.edu/preview/index.php
4/6 - Nick Okrent Save the date!! Tracing legislation Keeping Current Workshop, Apr. 26
Hi all,

The next Keeping Current Workshop will focus on the process of how a bill becomes a law and what kinds of publications are produced along the way and how to access them. Ellen DeMarinis will present in the Meyerson room on Thursday, April 26, 11-noon.

You can see a preview of the presentation here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
4/5 - Amanda Lawhorn Open Enrollment 2007-08

Open Enrollment for the 2007-08 plan year begins tomorrow, Thursday, April 5 and runs through Friday, April 20.

Make your benefit changes on-line 24 hours a day at www.upenn.edu/u@penn (click on "Open Enrollment" under Announcements). Any changes will take effect as of July 1, 2007. Look for personalized enrollment information at your home address this week, and even if you're satisfied with your current elections, make sure you understand what changes are being made for the upcoming plan year. Please visit www.hr.upenn.edu/benefits/oeenroll.asp for more detailed information about Open Enrollment. You can also call the Penn Benefits Center at 1-888-PENNBEN (1-888-736-6236), Monday - Friday, 8am - 6pm, if you have any questions.
4/2 - Amanda Lawhorn Performance Appraisals

All Professional and Administrative Library Staff:

This is to announce that it is once again time for us to begin the annual performance appraisal process.

For those of you who are new to the University, the Performance and Staff Development Program provides staff and supervisors with a formal process to open the lines of communication and promote a productive work environment. It is designed to improve job understanding, promote more effective job performance and establish future goals for career growth. Performance appraisals are required for all regular full and part-time staff to inform and support salary decisions as part of the annual merit compensation program.

I would like to invite all non-bargaining unit staff (especially those who are new to the University) to a training session on the performance appraisal process. This session will give you an overview of Penn's appraisal program, its objectives and format.

Two identical sessions will be held on Tuesday, April 10, at 3:30pm, and Friday, April 13, at 10:30am, in the Meyerson Conference Room. Please RSVP by Monday, April 9, if you plan to attend. If you are unable to attend either of these sessions and would like to schedule an individual session, please contact me at x3-4361.

The 2007 performance appraisal schedule for the Libraries is as follows:

Monday, April 30 – Suggested date for self-appraisals to be submitted to supervisors from their direct reports.

Monday, May 21 – Supervisor appraisals are due to me. Appraisal meetings should be completed prior to this date.

Performance appraisal forms and informative materials are available at www.hr.upenn.edu/staffrelations/performance/default.asp

Should you have any questions or concerns about the performance appraisal process, please do not hesitate to contact me.
4/3 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Apr. 9 - Apr. 15
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place NEXT week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Apr. 9, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson
Dolce Suono Rehearsal:: 5pm: 6th floor
Chartier Book signing, lecture and reception:: 6:30-8pm: 6th floor

Tues., Apr. 10, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson
Mash-Up Contest
Presentations:: 6-7pm: Class of '55
Reception and viewing of films:: 7-8pm: WIC
Wed., Apr. 11, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
Library Overseers meeting:: 4-6pm: Meyerson
Study space for students:: 3-8pm: Class of '55
Penn Student Experiences Abroad:: 6-8pm: WIC
Dolce Suono Concert:: 7:30-10pm: 6th floor

Thurs., Apr. 12, 2007
Library Overseers Mtg:: 8:30am-4pm: Meyerson
Freedman Concert::
VIP dinner (by invitation only):: 6-8pm: University Museum
Concert (by ticket or invitation):: 8-10pm: Annenberg Theater
Fri., Apr. 13, 2007
Student Worker Party:: 11:30am-3pm: Class of '55
Lucid Memorial Service:: 5-7pm: 6th floor
4/2 - Marjorie Hassen Upcoming Event

6 pm
Class of '55 Conference Room, 2d floor, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center

Please join the Library, in conjunction with the Cinema Studies Program and College Houses and Academic Services, on Tuesday, April 10th, for the program:

Copyright in Action: Exploring Film Parody

Culminating event of the 2007 student Mashup Contest to create a trailer that parodies a well-known film.

Panel discussion with Peter Decherney (Cinema Studies) and Nelson Gayton (Wharton School) moderated by Provost Ronald Daniels.

The panel discussion will be followed by a viewing of top contest entries, the awarding of prizes for the best use of parody, and a reception in the David B. Weigle Information Commons.
•  Mashup_Invitation.pdf
3/30 - Amanda Lawhorn WPSA Career Week - April 2-6

The Weekly Paid Professional Staff Assembly (WPSA) will be sponsoring Career Week April 2-6, 2007.

Topics include:
  • Performance Evaluation Tips
  • Managing Conflict in a Diverse Environment
  • Career Advancement Solutions
  • Defining your Career Choices through Education
All staff are welcome to come and support these events! Refreshments will be provided.
For more information, the flyer is linked here.
3/30 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Apr. 2 - Apr. 8
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., Apr. 3, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson

Wed., Apr. 4, 2007
Campaign Communications Committee:: 9am-1pm: Class of '55

Thurs., Apr. 5, 2007
Department Heads:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
2/26 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice- Library Stack Attendant (Van Pelt Library)
/
ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library in the Access Services Deparment for Library Stack Attendant. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please notify me of your interest by April 02, 2007.

The hours for the position are expected to be Monday through Friday, 9AM to 5PM, subject to modification based on business needs, initial training schedules, etc.
3/23 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Mar. 26 - Apr. 1
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Mar. 26, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson
Illiad mtg:: 2-3pm: Class of '55

Tues., Mar. 27, 2007
School & Ctr:: 8:30-11am: Class of '55
Development:: 11:30am-1:30pm: Meyerson
AFSCME- Elections:: 5-8pm: Class of '55
Presidents Office:: 4-9pm: Meyerson

Wed., Mar. 28, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
HUP Radiology mtg & Reception:: 1-5pm: Class of '55
Bowman Memorial Reception:: 5-7pm: 6th floor

Thurs., Mar. 29, 2007
Service Recognition::
Presentation::2:30-3:30pm: Class of '55
Reception::3:30-4:30pm: Meyerson
3/22 - Marjorie Hassen Debut of self-service schedule system for Weigle group study rooms

The library is piloting a self-service online reservation system for group study rooms in the Weigle Information Commons. The room scheduler was developed by John Ockerbloom and his colleagues in iTadd and is linked from the Information Commons web page.: http://wic.library.upenn.edu.

Students can now reserve rooms directly (using PennKey authentication) instead of having to appear in person at the Information Commons service desk. This is a test phase and if all goes well, the next step will be to add study rooms in other library locations to the interface.

Feel free to try out the system (note the instructions and tutorial, developed by Anu Vedantham, adjacent to the "Reserve a Study Room" link on the web page). Since we are in a pilot phase, don't be surprised if you see changes over the coming weeks.

Questions and comments are welcome.
3/22 - Barbara Kountouzi Keeping Current Workshop - PubMed

Join us for another Keeping Current Workshop this morning (3/22) at 11am in Meyerson. Melanie Cedrone will shed light on PubMed, one of the most mystifying resources in the health and life sciences :)

See you there,
3/21 - Mike Winkler Wednesday's Power Interruption
All,

As you may have heard, many parts of the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center experienced a power outage about 12:50pm today (Wed) that lasted about 3 seconds. This brief interruption cause several Library services to have problems. The Voyager server required a restart. The network connections for the Library also got knocked out and required intervention by ISC Network Services to restart these services. Two of our services, the authorization services and the image server required more efforts to restore. Staff in iTadd restored most services within 30 minutes of the event, and had restored all services by 4pm.

The cause of the outage was a failure at the PECO Schuylkill substation; it affected buildings on campus and several segments of the University's network infrastructure. ISC reported that all services were restored within 2 hours of the event.

We appreciate your patience during the outages. If you are aware of any other service that has not been restored, please notify the Library Helpdesk (libtech@pobox or 8-4824).

Thanks
3/20 - MaryAnne Mongelluzzo Lippincott Announcement-Karen Anello

We are pleased to announce that our librarian Karen Anello and husband had a baby girl on Saturday, March 17, 2007. Sara was born on Saturday afternoon and arrived at 6 lbs., 10oz., and 20 inches tall. Parents and baby are doing fine.
3/16 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Mar. 19 - 25
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Mar. 19, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-12:30pm: Meyerson
P&SE:: 5-9pm: Class of '55
College Houses & Academic Services :: 5:30-7pm: WIC Seminar Room

Tues., Mar. 20, 2007
Summer Intern Program mtg:: 10am-noon: Meyerson
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson

Wed., Mar. 21, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
Provost Admin mtg:: 2-5pm: Class of '55

Thurs., Mar. 22, 2007
DAR Conf Committee mtg:: 9-10am: Meyerson
KCW:: 11am-12:30pm: Meyerson
3/14 - Jasmine Lim Annual Service Recognition Reception - March 29 at 2:30pm
ATTENTION: ALL LIBRARY STAFF

On March 29 at 2:30PM in the Class of '55, we will be hosting the Annual Service Recognition Award reception to show our appreciation to the library staff who have reached a length of service milestones of 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 years. WOW!! 45 years.! All staff are invited to join Carton Rogers in the celebration!

Due to space issues, the ceremony will take place in the Class of 1955 Conference Room (2nd. fl. VPDLC). A reception will follow immediately in the Meyerson Conference Room, 2nd Fl. VPDLC.

Please plan on attending! A list of honorees is linked below.
•  Honorees
3/10 - Martha Brogan Penn Program for Research on Religion and Urban Civil Society (PRRUCS) grant

The Penn Program for Research on Religion and Urban Civil Society has granted the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, working in conjunction with the University's School of Arts and Sciences, $10,000 to continue developing their joint initiative: "Integrating Information Technologies with the Humanistic Study of Religion and Urban Civil Society in the Middle East."

More information:

Contemporary scholars of the modern Middle East (since the 19th century) continue to seek ways to look beyond the artificial boundaries of nationality and fathom the complex and intimate character of inter-religious group relations in urban settings. At the same time, the academic study of Christian, Islamic and Jewish communities often has been and at times continues to be compartmentalized. The University of Pennsylvania Library, in conjunction with the University's School of Arts and Sciences, has initiated a new, integrated approach to teaching and researching religion and urban civil society in the Middle East. This grant project features three inter-related components: a web interface that provides integrated access to resources about Christians, Jews and Muslims in urban settings; funding to acquire contemporary, multimedia information resources urgently needed for undergraduate teaching and research; digitization, for the sake of access and conservation, to unique primary source rare documents. http://www.prrucs.org/courses/middle_east.html

Contact:
Arthur Kiron
Curator of Judaica Collections
3/9 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Mar. 12 - 19
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Mar. 12, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson
Closed Doors Open Democracies:: 1-2:30pm: Class of '55
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson

Tues., Mar. 13, 2007
Equus Unbound Exhibit Opening Reception:: 5:30-7:30pm: Kamin Gallery

Wed., Mar. 14, 2007
School & Ctr:: 8:30-11am: Class of '55
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., Mar. 8, 2007
President's Office:: 4-9pm: Meyerson
Dropsie Lecture::
5-6pm: Class of '55
6-7pm: Reception, 6th Floor
3/8 - John Keane Building Projects
All,

Two building projects are coming up in the next few days.

First, on Friday, March 9, a contractor will be installing valves in the hot water heating system of the Deitrich Building. This work will involve cutting pipe and welding. The contractor will begin in late afternoon and be finished by 10am Saturday morning. While preliminary set-up work will begin at 3pm on Friday, work involving loud noise and odors will not commence until after the building is closed at 6pm.

Second, on Monday, March 12, a contractor will begin installing wet standpipes in the Van Pelt building for fire department use in the event of a fire. On Monday morning the contractor will be drilling in the staff stair tower leading from the rear entrance hallway to the first and second floors. The stair tower will be closed from 7am until noon on that day. If you normally use this stair tower, please use the stair tower that opens into Mark's Cafe instead during that time period. Prior to 8:30 am, a guard will be present to grant you access to the stair tower that is normally locked until 8:30 am. As other work on this project is scheduled, we will keep you informed.

Please direct any specific questions on these projects to me or Tom Wilson.
3/5 - Nick Okrent Next Keeping Current Workshop: PubMed
Hi folks,

Come learn all about PubMed at the next Keeping Current Workshop, which will take place on Thursday, March 22 from 11-noon in the Meyerson conference room. Melanie Cedrone will discuss the ins and outs of this essential tool.
3/2 - Marjorie Hassen Voyager downtime Monday

On Monday morning, Voyager will be upgraded to version 6.2. This is primarily a maintenance release, one that (according to the vendor) will address a number of outstanding system bugs. While Franklin will be available for searching, circulation information will be frozen as of midnight. Voyager staff mode and patron initiated services such as My Account will not be available, however patrons will have access to BorrowDirect+ during this time.

We anticipate all patron/staff services to be restored at noon. This upgrade will require new staff Voyager clients. Installation instructions will be forthcoming on Monday from iTadd.

Alerts will be posted on the Library entry page, departmental web pages, and Franklin.
3/2 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Mar. 3 - 11
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Sat., Mar. 3, 2007
NECPAL:: 11am-5pm: WIC Seminar Room

Mon., Mar. 5, 2007
Employee Welcome Breakfast:: 9:30-11am: 6th Floor, Rosenwald
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-noon: Meyerson
P&SE:: noon-5:30pm: Meyerson


Tues., Mar. 6, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson

Thurs., Mar. 8, 2007
Wharton Security Execs:: 10am-noon: Meyerson
2/26 - Jasmine Lim: Welcome Reception!
Please Join Carton Rogers at the
Welcome Breakfast
For New Library Staff

Monday, March 05, 2007
9:30am-11:00am

Rosenwald Gallery
Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
6th Floor

2/24 - John Pollack Henry Charles Lea Lecture, Tuesday 2/27

All library staff are invited to:

The Henry Charles Lea Lecture, 2007
Pawel Kras, The Catholic University of Lublin, Poland
"John Wyclif's Writings in Fifteenth-Century Bohemia and Poland"

Tues., Feb. 27, 5:30pm
Rosenwald Gallery, 6th floor, VP-DLC

Reception to follow the lecture
2/23 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Feb. 26 - Mar. 4
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Feb. 26, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson
WIC Mtg:: noon-1:30pm: WIC Seminar room
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson
Rosenbach Lecture::
Lecture:: 5:30-6:30pm: 6th floor, Rosenwald
Reception:: 6:30-7:30pm: Furness
Tues., Feb. 27, 2007
Lea Lecture::
Lecture:: 5:30-6:30pm: 6th floor, Rosenwald
Reception:: 6:30-7:30pm: Furness
Wed., Feb. 28, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., Mar. 1, 2007
Dept. Heads:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
President's Office:: 5-9pm: Meyerson
2/23 - Marjorie Hassen Changes in public pc access

As part of the library's continuing effort to provide a secure environment for computing, most of the PCs in the Class of 1964 Look-up Center (the bank of computers opposite the Reference Desk) now require PennKey authentication. The northern-most bank of computers (located nearest the Walnut Street side of the building) will remain open access at this time and are available for visitor use.

A list of Van Pelt-Dietrich public computers that do not require PennKey authentication is included in the Library's Visitor Information guide, available at the Van Pelt entrance guard desk as well as at the Information and Reference desks (copy attached). We are also in the process of mounting this guide on the web.

Please let me know if you have any questions.
•  Visitor Guide
2/23 - Nick Okrent 2007 Education Extravaganza!!
Information Literacy Assessment: Perspectives and Practice

Thurs., May 31, 8:30am-noon
Logan Hall 14, Terrace Room

Hi folks,

In keeping with the spirit of collaboration that began with George Needham's presentation at Temple in the Fall, Penn, Drexel and Temple Librarians will all participate in the 2007 Education Extravaganza.

National standardized information literacy assessment tools are moving out of the pilot phase and into the mainstream. Universities as well as library systems are discussing what can be learned from such assessments, what the differences are between the major tools, and whether to deploy them.

Please join us for a stimulating program on information literacy assessment. Julia Blixrud, ARL Assistant Executive Director for External Relations will provide an overview of the current state of assessment as well as a discussion of the experience of ARL libraries with the Standardized Assessment of Information Literacy Skills (SAILS) instrument.

Alexius Macklin, Associate Professor of Library Science and User Instruction Librarian at Purdue will discuss the development of the Educational Testing Service's Information and Communication Technology Literacy Assessment as well as Purdue's implementation.

The program will conclude with a facilitated discussion during which attendees can pose questions and share their own experience with these and other information literacy assessment methods.
  • 8:30-8:45 - Coffee
  • 8:45-9:00 -Welcome
  • 9:00-10:00 - Julia Blixrud
  • 10:00-11:00 - Alexius Macklin
  • 11:00-11:15 - Break
  • 11:15-12:00 - Facilitated discussion and question
2/19 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice- Library Clerk (Post Cataloging Dept.)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library in the Post Cataloging Deparment for Library Clerk. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please notify me of your interest by February 26, 2007. Please see the job description linked below.

The hours for the position are expected to be Monday through Friday, 9AM to 5PM, subject to modification based on business needs, initial training schedules, etc.
•  job description
2/16 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Feb. 19 - 25
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Feb. 19, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson<

Tues., Feb. 20, 2007
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson
President's Office:: 5-9pm: Meyerson
Rosenbach Lecture::
Lecture:: 5-7pm: 6th floor, Rosenwald
Reception:: 7-9pm: Furness
Wed., Feb. 21, 2007
Medievalist:: noon-1pm: Meyerson
Provost Admin Group:: 2-4pm: Meyerson

Thurs., Feb. 22, 2007
KCW:: 11am-12:30pm: Meyerson
Middle East Center:: 11:30am-2pm: Class of '55
Rosenbach Lecture::
Lecture:: 5-7pm: 6th floor, Rosenwald
Reception:: 7-9pm: Furness
2/16 - John Pollack Rosenbach Lectures 2007
All library staff are cordially invited to:

University of Pennsylvania Library Rosenbach Lectures 2007 Rosenwald Gallery, 6th floor, VP-DLC

David Hall, Bartlett Professor of New England Church History, Harvard Divinity School
Pen and Press: Practices of Writing and Publishing in Colonial America

Tues., Feb. 20, at 5:30PM
"Not in Print, yet Published: The Significance of Scribal Publication"

Thurs., Feb. 22, at 5:30PM
"Social Authorship: Collaborations and the Making of Printed Books"

Mon., Feb. 26, at 5:30PM
"Authorizing Dissent: Can the Private be Made Public?"

About the speaker:
David Hall has written extensively on religion and society in Colonial New England as well as on the history of the book. He is the author of Cultures of Print: Essays in the History of the Book (1996) and co-editor of A History of the Book in America (2000-).
2/15 - Beth Picknally Camden IPC Conference Room
Colleagues:

The IPC Conference Room now has a plasma screen, computer, and wireless keyboard and mouse for projecting during meetings. To reserve, please use Meeting Maker - the IPC conference room can be added to the guest list for a meeting as a 'Location' (it is listed as "Conference Room IPC").

The room is located at the western end of the IPC (on the 1st floor of VPDLC) and seats 10-12 people.
2/13 - Marjorie Hassen Candidate presentations

In the coming weeks, we will be interviewing candidates for the position of Research & Instructional Services Librarian/Coordinator of Digital Outreach Services (position description attached). Please join us for the candidates' presentations, Class of '55 Room, 2-3 pm.
  • Charles Cobine - February 22
  • Ligaya Ganster - February 28
  • Larissa Gordon - March 2
  • Melanie Cedrone - March 6
•  job description
2/12 - Jasmine Lim Suspension of Normal Operations During Severe Weather
Hello all,

In anticipation of bad weather at this time of year, please review the University's Suspension of Normal Operations Policy, Number 707 at www.hr.upenn.edu/policy/policies/707.asp along with the Library policy at staffweb.library.upenn.edu/policies/closing_weather.html
2/12 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice- Evening Circulation Clerk (Circulation Dept.)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library in the Circulation deparment for Evening Circulation Clerk . Should you be interested in applying for this position, please notify me of your interest by February 19, 2007. Please see job description linked below.

The hours for the position are expected to be Monday through Friday, 10AM to 6PM, subject to modification based on business needs, initial training schedules, etc.
•  job description
2/9 - Marjorie Hassen Sunshine Week webcast

The library will be hosting a webcast as part of Sunshine Week 2007: Closed Doors; Open Democracies?

Monday, March 12th
1-2:30pm
Class of '55 Conference Room

See the press release, linked below, for details of the program.

Information on Sunshine Week may be found at openthegovernment.org/article/subarchive/94

Please feel free to forward this to faculty, students, and colleagues across campus.
•  Details
2/8 - Eileen Doyle Tune In Feb. 15: Information Commons and the Future of Innovation, Scholarship, and Creativity

Just to let you know of an upcoming EDUCASE Webcast on Thursday, February 15th at 1:00 in Meyerson.

You can see from the subject line what the session is about.

Hope to see you there.
•  Details
Summary:  This seminar will discuss how intellectual property law and communications policy affect competition, innovation, creativity, and free speech. Gigi B. Sohn will discuss current policy debates before Congress, the Federal Communications Commission, and the U.S. Copyright Office that could impact these values and the higher education community.
2/8 - Nick Okrent Save the Date: Keeping Current Workshop - the new ERM

 What is this ERM you speak of? What's in it for me? 

The next Keeping Current Workshop will take place in the Meyerson conference room on Thursday February 22 from 11 to noon. Katie Brady will be discussing the new ERM (Electronic Resource Manager). Learn what it does and what it means to us.

Hope to see you there.
2/8 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Feb. 12 - 18
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Feb. 12, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies:: 3-5pm: Class of '55

Tues., Feb. 13, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson
Verde Training:: noon-5pm: Meyerson

Wed., Feb. 14, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., Feb. 15, 2007
Educause Webcast:: 12:30-2pm: Meyerson
2/2 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Feb. 5 - 11
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Feb. 5, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson

Tues., Feb. 6, 2007
Film Screening:: 5-7pm: Class of '55

Wed., Feb. 7, 2007
Treasure's Gallery Closing Reception:: 5:30-7:30pm: 6th Floor Rosenwald
Film Screening:: 5-7pm: Class of '55

Thurs., Feb. 8, 2007
Religious Studies:: 3-5pm: Class of '55
P&SE:: 5-7:30pm: Class of '55
German Dept - Mohler Concert:: 8-10pm: 6th floor

Fri., Feb. 9, 2007
Advanced AV Service Contract::
9-11am: Class of '55
11am-noon: Meyerson
2/2 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice - Temporary Library Stack Attendant

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS: There is a job opening at Biomedical Library for Temporary Library Stack Attendant. This is a 1-year term appointment. Should you be interested in this position, please go to the Penn jobsite and apply directly to this position. (Job Reference # 070121380)
•  Penn jobsite
2/2 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice - Temporary Library Clerk

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a job opening at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library in Shared Cataloging Dept. for Temporary Library Clerk. This is a 1-year term appointment. Should you be interested in this position, please go to the Penn jobsite and apply directly to this position. (Job Reference # 070121468)
•  Penn jobsite
1/31 - John Keane Business Office Relocation
All,

The Office of Development and External Affairs has moved!

The Library Business Office (Jean Curcio, Bob Puri and John Keane) has relocated to suite 240 in the VPDLC. This is the suite formerly occupied by the Development Office. Our telephone numbers remain the same. Suite 239 will now be exclusively Human Resources and Staff Development.
1/26 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Jan. 29 - Feb. 4
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Jan. 29, 2007
Unit Mgr's Mtg:: 11am-1pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies:: 5-7pm: Class of '55

Tues., Jan. 30, 2007
DAR:: 3-5pm: Meyerson
Art of Reinvention Gallery Opening:: 5:30-7:30pm: 6th Floor, Rosenwald

Wed., Jan. 31, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., Feb. 1, 2007
Dept Heads:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson
Religious Studies:: 3-5pm: Class of '55
1/24 - Jasmine Lim Presentations by the Candidates for Assistant Director for Engineering and Physical Sciences
Hello all,

You are invited to attend presentations by the Candidates for Assistant Director for Engineering and Physical Sciences on the following dates:
  • Danianne Mizzy - Tues., Jan. 30, 2-3pm
  • Stephen Stich - Thurs., Feb. 1, 2-3pm
Both presentations will be in the Class of '55 conference room.
1/23 - Martha Brogan Tune In Jan. 30: EDUCAUSE Live! Web Seminar on Digital Libraries and Collaboration
Colleagues:

There is a wonderful opportunity next Tuesday, January 30th, from 1-2 PM, to tune-in to a free Educause Live session featuring the incoming director of the Digital Library Federation, Peter Brantley who will talk about "Architectures for Collaboration - Roles and Expectations for Digital Libraries." With Peter new to this position and the DLF's fall forum occurring in Philadelphia, Nov. 5-7, 2007, this is a great chance to hear his "visionv for the organization's role in encouraging partnerships. Mike and I have reserved Meyerson Conference Room where you are invited to join us (without advance registration) in a collective tune-in. Otherwise, you can also register individually (at no cost) and listen wherever is most convenient for you - although spaces are "limited" per Educause, so register soon if you are listening solo.
•  Details
1/23 - Regan Kladstrup IPC announcement

I am very pleased to announce that Liz Broadwell (Shared Cataloging) has accepted the temporary Bibliographic Specialist position in Original Cataloging. Her first day will be February 5. Liz will be cataloging rare books and processing University dissertations and theses. Liz has worked in the library since 1995 and been in Shared Cataloging for the past 8 years. Her impressive academic background and facility with languages will be of great benefit to our department and I am very much looking forward to her joining us.
1/18 - John Keane Gifts
All,

I am re-sending my message of 11-20-06 because I think some people have forgotten it. Please be advised that if you ignore it you may be personably liable for expenditures for which you cannot be reimbursed!
IRS and University regulations have put certain restrictions on purchases of gifts and prizes that are charged to University accounts. I won't outline the complex policies here, however, before purchasing a gift or prize you must first get written permission from the Senior Business Officer of the School or Center (me). I will review each request and advise if the purchase can be made and, if so, what procedures have to be followed. This would even apply to retirement gifts and prizes to students for contests, etc. This pre-purchase approval is for your protection. Welcome to the new world of accounting thanks to Mssrs. Sarbanes and Oxley.
1/19 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Jan. 22 - 28
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Jan. 22, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson

Wed., Jan. 24, 2007
AAG:: noon-1:30pm: Meyerson or Class of '55
Dolce Suono Concert:: 7:30-9:30pm: 6th Floor, Rosenwald

Thurs., Jan. 25, 2007
Religious Studies:: 3-5pm: Class of '55
1/17 - Jasmine Lim Posting (Vacancy) Notice - Interlibrary Loan/Access Services Clerk

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

There is a vacancy at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library in the Interlibrary Loan deparment for *Interlibary Loan/Access Services Clerk*. Please see attachment for job description. Should you be interested in applying for this position, please notify me of your interest by January 24, 2007.

The hours for the position are expected to be Monday through Friday, 9AM - 5PM, subject to modification based on business needs, initial training schedules, etc.
•  Details
1/16 - Patty Lynn "Texts and their Users"

On Thursday, January 18, 11am-12noon in the Class of '55 Conference Room, the Teaching & Instructional Services Working Group and Patty Lynn will be hosting four advanced doctoral candidates from the Graduate School of Education in a panel session, as part of the revived "Texts and their Users" series.

For the benefit of the librarians, our guests will discuss their research and use of the Penn Library. If you are free, please consider showing both your support for these students and your interest in graduate student research by attending this program.

Student panelists include:
  • Julia Lavenberg - Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Development and Campbell Collaboration
  • Mary Mazzola - Executive Doctorate in Higher Education & Director of Admissions and Recruitment at School of Social Policy & Practice
  • Francis Hult - Educational Lingustics
  • Kate Sedgwick - Dual PhD - Education/History
1/16 - Valerie Peña Announcement: Human Resources Director

I am very happy to announce that Amanda Lawhorn accepted our offer of the Human Resources Director position, and she begins her new job on February 1st. Amanda comes to the Penn Libraries from the Libraries of the University of California, San Diego where she served as the Recruitment/Review Specialist for two years. Previously she worked for three years as a Human Resources Associate at the Johnson School (Business) at Cornell University. A native Virginian, Amanda earned her Bachelor's degree in Political Science & Rhetorical Communication from the University of Richmond.

Unique among candidates for this position, Amanda comes to Penn with experience in an academic library environment working with unionized staff. Indeed, many of you who attended the finalists' presentations commented that Amanda seemed a good fit for our opening. We look forward to the strong contribution she can be expected to make to our operation, and we ask you to make sure to introduce yourselves and welcome Amanda to Penn when she arrives in a couple of weeks.
1/12 - Chris Foley The Development Office Has Moved
Dear Library Colleagues,

The Office of Development and External Affairs has moved!

We are now located in a suite of offices occupying the former ILL space on the balcony area above the Class of 1969 Current Periodicals Center in Van Pelt. Formally, the offices are part of suite 201. Our phone numbers remain the same.
1/12 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Jan. 15 - 21
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place next week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Tues., Jan. 16, 2007
Book Talk:: 1-2pm: Meyerson

Wed., Jan. 17, 2007
Admin Council:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Thurs., Jan. 18, 2007
Texts and their Users:: 11am-noon: Class of '55
1/8 - Barbara Kountouzi for TIS Committee second reminder - "Texts and their Users"

Hi folks, this is the second reminder for our next "Texts and Their Users" graduate student panel discussion.

On Thursday, January 18, 11am-12noon (*please note that there will be NO PSC meeting that day*) in the Class of '55 Conference Room, we will be hosting four Education School graduate students for a panel discussion about their research and information gathering practices.

Please join us for an interesting hour and for a small reception afterward.
1/8 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Jan. 8- 14
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place THIS week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Mon., Jan. 8, 2007
ISC:: 1:30-3pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies:: 5-7pm: Class of '55

Tues., Jan. 9, 2007
Tech Services:: 9:30-11am: Meyerson

Wed., Jan. 10, 2007
Corp-Found Relations:: 9-11am: Meyerson

Thurs., Jan. 11, 2007
Visiting Librarians from Denmark:: 9am-3:30pm: Meyerson
Religious Studies:: 3-5pm: Class of '55

Fri., Jan. 12, 2007
DVD-V-2 Preview:: 2:30-5pm: Meyerson
1/4 - Elizabeth Martin students and interns
Happy New Year!

Students have begun coming in asking for jobs! Please let me know what your needs are for student workers this semester. Use this link to download a request form which you can fill out and return to me at any point. Some of you already gave me the form, but if you have a more definite idea of how many you need or what hours, I will be able to help better. So far, many students have late afternoon, evening and late night hours available.

If you need a library school intern and have not yet communicated with me about it, please do. I have contacted Drexel and posted the positions on their job site and on our web page (click here to see the postings).

Also, the last day students can work up to 40 hours is January 7th.
1/3 - Aleta Arthurs Events, week of Jan. 1 - 7
Good Morning,

This is a summary of the events that will take place THIS week. If I have missed anything, please let me know. The events listed are all on the Events Calendar (linked here and from the sidebar of this page, under Calendars.)

Thurs., Jan. 4, 2007
Dept. Heads:: 10:30am-noon: Meyerson

Fri., Jan. 5, 2007
Vet Library Open House:: noon-2pm: New Atwood Vet Library
1/2 - Beth Picknally Camden New IPC employee
Colleagues:

I hope that you will join me in welcoming Laurie Sutherland to the IPC. She has been hired as the Metadata Specialist (an IT professional position). She comes to us from a position in the Towne Business Office in the School of Engin. & Applied Science, and she is currently in the Masters program in Computer & Information Technology in SEAS. She will be working with metadata, including MARC-record data loads and Voyager reports.

Laurie will be temporarily located in a cubicle in Original Cataloging. Her phone number is 746-6399 and her e-mail is lsutherl@pobox.upenn.edu.
1/2 - Amanda Chudnow Blackboard Training Workshops
Happy New Year!

The library's Blackboard Support Team will be offering some "hands-on" training workshops for library staff over the next two weeks. These sessions will review basic Blackboard functions and showcase some newer features, including:
  • Blogging
  • Wiki
  • Adaptive Release (advanced content management)
We will be offering three sessions this month:
  • Friday, Jan. 5th from 11am - 12pm
  • Thursday, Jan. 11th from 2pm - 3pm
  • Friday, Jan. 19th from 11am to 12pm
All sessions will be held in the Goldstein Electronic Classroom on the first floor of Van Pelt. Please register online for the session you plan to attend (click here). Please address any questions to bb-support@pobox.upenn.edu.
12/21 - Elizabeth Martin WEEKLY PAID: WORKING OVER THE BREAK

For those of you who work during the break, submit your timesheets by Tuesday, January 2nd at 12 pm. Since the HR office will be closed until that morning of the 2nd, you can put timesheets in my mailbox on the second floor (where the water cooler is), or put them in an envelope and slip them under the door of Rm 239. Checks will be available on Friday, Janurary 5th.

Happy Holidays!
12/22 - Adela Smith George Needham's Presentation Available Online

FYI - George Needham's December 14 presentation on College Students' Perceptions of Libraries and Information Sources is now available at http://www.palinet.org/documents/College Students Perceptions, Philadelphia, 12182006.pdf
12/19 - John Keane Free Coffee in Mark's Café
All,

Mark's Café will close Wednesday, December 20, at 3 pm and re-open on January 8. Mark's will be supplying free coffee on Thursday, December 21, in the staff lounge of VPDLC. Unfortunately, ARAMARK staff will not be on campus on Friday 12/22.
12/18 - Elizabeth Martin HR Director Presentations

This week there will be presentations by two candidates for the Director of Library Human Resources.
  • Amanda Lawhorn will present tomorrow at 10 AM in the Meyerson Conference Room.
  • Theresa Maher will present at 10 AM on Friday, December 22nd in the Class of '55 conference room.
12/14 - Jasmine Lim Posting Notice-Systems Technician/Operations Assistant I (iTadd Dept)

ATTENTION: ALL BARGAINING UNIT STAFF MEMBERS:

Two (2) new Systems Technician/Operations Assistant I positions have been created in the ITaDD Department at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library. Should you be interested in applying for these positions, please send a letter of interest, along with resume to me *by December 21, 2006.* Please see attachment for job description.

Please note that as per Article VII, section 17, these positions are outside of the seniority lines of promotion. Present B/U members will be given the first opportunity to apply for these openings, and will be given fair consideration along with other applicants. The hours for these positions are expected to be Monday through Friday, 9AM to 5PM, subject to modification based on business needs, initial training schedules, etc.