November 2007

Volume 54
Back Issues: Past Library Links Articles

In this Issue

New Library Staff

New Hires

Alisa Beer
Rare Book Team
Catalog Assistant
I began work on September 17th, and I am returning to Beinecke after a four-year hiatus, as I moved to NYC in 2003 for graduate school. I am from Brooklyn, NY, and I attended Yale University. I enjoy playing board and card games, reading, knitting, baking, and spinning, and I sing in the Camerata. I'm considering applying to Library School. If you see someone knitting a sock during her lunch break, it might be me.

Tam Rankin
Library Administration
Office Manager
I began work on October 15. I am from Pennsylvania, and attended Tulane University in New Orleans and the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

 

Adrienne Leigh Sharpe
Public Services, Beinecke Library
Library Services Assistant
I began working in Public Services on Monday, October 8. I am returning to the Beinecke after a four-year hiatus. From 1999-2003, I worked in the Manuscript Unit as the Catalog/Preservation Assistant III. I then moved to NYC to begin my graduate program. I am from New Haven originally. I attended Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA (1994-1998; BA, Art History) and the Bard Graduate Center for Studies in the Decorative Arts, Design, and Culture in NYC (2003-2007; MA, Decorative arts and design history, with a concentration in Museum Studies). I enjoy indie music, particularly attending live concerts, studying classical ballet, sketching, and writing. Since 2004, I have been a Governing Board member of the William Morris Society in the U. S.  

Elena Sokol
NERL
Financial Assistant
I began work on Oct. 22, 2007. I am from Moscow, Russia, but lived in New York for almost 10 years. I attended Fordham University in the Bronx, NY and enjoy travelling and amateur photography, as well as reading and learning Portuguese.

George Conroy
Library Administrative Services
Security Officer
10/14/2007

Sarah Kraus
Manuscripts and Archives
Library Services Assistant
10/14/2007

Susan Baker
Forestry Library
Catalog Librarian
10/15/2007

Richard Cantore
Library Shelving Facility
Materials Assistant
10/15/2007

Alice Peterson-Hart
Integrated Services Administration
Usability and Assessment Assistant
9/4/2007

Roque Roman
Library Shelving Facility
Library Services Assistant
9/28/2007

Promotions

Charles Riley
Librarian
Catalog Department

David Estep
Library Administrative Services
Supervisor

Eva Wrightson
Beinecke Library
Library Services Assistant

Leigh Golden
Beinecke Library
Accessioning Assistant

Antonio Malabag
Law Library
Library Services Assistant

Departures

Melissa Quinnones
Access Services
9/28/2007

Tao Yang
East Asia Collection
9/28/2007

Robert Daigle
Library Administration
9/28/2007

Staff In Focus

Robin Featherstone
~Lynn Sette

The Medical Library is pleased to welcome Robin Featherstone, a National Library of Medicine Associate Fellow, who will be part of the Yale Library community until September 2008.

The National Library of Medicine Associate Fellowship Program is a one-year postgraduate training fellowship at the NLM in Bethesda, Maryland, with an optional second year placement. The program is designed to provide a broad foundation in health sciences information services, and to prepare librarians for future leadership roles in health sciences libraries and in health services research.

Robin Featherstone completed the first year of the post-graduate fellowship at the National Library of Medicine in Bethesda, MD. During that time, she completed projects involving disaster response, radio frequency identification technology, and consumer health website development.

The second year of Robin’s fellowship will have three components: medical library immersion, public health library immersion, and personal education. At the Medical Library, Robin will be exposed to all aspects of library operations while working closely with the departments of Collection Development & Management, and Curriculum & Research Support. Robin has a keen interest in international health and will be working on initiatives concerning GIS technology and public health during her time with the Public Health Library. Finally, as part of her personal education, she will be continuing an investigation of disaster response roles for librarians that she began at NLM.

Karen Jutzi
- submitted by Claire Halloran


Since April 1, 2007, Karen Jutzi has been practicing her skills in the Conservation Laboratory. Her growing up years were spent in Southern California. In 1994 she lived in London for six months. When she returned to the
United States, Karen was in Boston until 1999, followed by Providence, and
Chicago in 2002 for graduate school. While studying there, at Colombia College, she completed an internship at the Conservation Laboratory of the Newberry Library.

Karen earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Book and Paper Arts from Colombia College. This specialization delves into the creative processes of actually making paper, binding books by hand, and other disciplines that have not changed since the 1500’s. It was the very satisfaction that Karen sought; a real change from the computer work which she did for six years prior to getting her MFA degree.

With her newly earned degree, Karen began work at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, in their Conservation Laboratory. Most of the book repairs were directed at the circulating collection, with an occasional old book needing her attention.

Now that Karen is at the Yale University Library, she works with books that call upon her true MFA expertise. In the Conservation Laboratory, which is housed in Sterling Memorial Library she handles rare and special materials, the majority of which belong to Beinecke Library. For the current “Celebrating Italian Festivals” exhibit, being shown at Beinecke, Karen repaired minor tears and helped place the delicate materials safely for their display.

Among the special jobs that she counts as a pleasure, was with a book from the Osborn Collection. She repaired the vellum (that is, animal skin parchment). The book was hand bound and hand written in the 1600’s. It was about spells and witchcraft. The handwriting was hard to read but you could make out a few of the spells. It was all black and white (no colors), written in Iron gall ink. For more information on iron gall ink, see the following link:
http://realscience.breckschool.org/upper/fruen/files/Enrichmentarticles/files/IronGallInk/IronGallInk.html

Outside of her fascinating work, Karen likes traveling , looking for junky antiques, and photography. Karen’s undergraduate degree was in photography.

Karen offers a reminder that Preservation has recently restarted monthly tours of all its departments: Collections Care, Reformatting and Media Preservation, and the Conservation Laboratory. Watch for the e-mail
announcements and sign up for an interesting tour.

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Tea with Alice

Event Highlights

YUL Staff Get Schooled on the MLS

Last month, SCOPA held a library school reception. The reception offered library staff a chance to learn more about the Master of Library Science (MLS) degree, as well as the opportunity to talk to library school representatives and alumni.

“Having an MLS degree is important for obtaining a librarian position, as librarian job descriptions tend to require this degree to signify you have the appropriate educational training,” says SCOPA Chair Este Pope

Pope adds, “Though not necessary for all positions in libraries, having an MLS is often preferred and is a credential that opens up many job opportunities.”

Those job opportunities Pope speaks of are just one reason why Lisa Thomas enrolled in Syracuse University’s Library and Information Science program. Thomas, who currently works in Manuscripts and Archives as a project coordinator, previously worked as an access services supervisor at the old Cross Campus Library.

“I was aware from reading job descriptions here and elsewhere that the [MLS] was a necessary step toward advancing my career in libraries,” says Thomas. “I do believe, also, that it enhanced the skills I developed here as a manager, and offered me new perspectives that I will bring to future positions,” she adds.

Success stories, such as Thomas’s, are exactly what SCOPA and the university library hope to achieve from programs like the library school reception.

Tom Saul, an acquisitions assistant at Sterling Memorial Library, stopped by the reception and came away with a positive attitude. When asked whether or not he would consider enrolling in an MLS program, Saul said that he would “definitely” consider it. In particular, he was interested in the online offerings because of the flexibility they allow.

While higher education brings tuition costs, there are ways to offset these costs. The university offers tuition reimbursement to those who enroll in an accredited, degree-granting program. The library offers learning plan funds, which may be used to pay for books and other items. Scholarships and financial aid are other avenues for would-be students.

More information about the MLS – and the schools that offer it – can be found through the following website: http://www.ala.org/ala/accreditation/lisdirb/lisdirectory.htm

-George Stranz

Diversity Initiatives at the Association of Research Libraries

Yale was honored to have two special guests last week, Jerome Offord and Allison Sutton, who spoke on Diversity Initiatives at the Association of Research Libraries. They presented a forum for all staff which included Alice Prochaska, University Librarian as well. Allison is assistant professor and psychology and social work subject specialist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library, and Jerome Offord is Director of Diversity Initiatives for the Association of Research Libraries (ARL).

Alice and Allison described their year-long experience as mentor and mentee in one of ARL's initiatives to develop mid-level librarians of color as future leaders.

A reception immediately followed the forum to allow staff to personally greet our guests.

Campus Safety

This column is about safety at Yale. In each issue, we will aim to provide tips and resources that will help keep Yale staff, collections, equipment, and facilities safe from harm.

Campus Security Services
~ George Stranz

Safety is a concern all across campus. That being said, the university offers a few services to faculty, staff, and students. These services range from a battery jump start service to shuttle service.

• Battery Jump Start Service

If your car battery is dead, you can call 785-5555 to get a jump start. Note that this service is only available to those who have parked in a Medical School garage or lot.

• Blue Phones

Blue phones are placed all around campus. These phones have a direct connection to the university police department and can be used to report an emergency situation, such as a fire or robbery.

• Escort Service

If it is late at night and you don’t feel safe walking back to your car, you can make use of the escort service. Just dial 432-9255, or 2-WALK from a campus phone, and a security officer will be dispatched to your location within 15 minutes. The officer will escort you to any location on campus as long as it is within a reasonable distance. The escort service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

• Lockout Service

If you find yourself locked out of a Yale building – and have no other means of getting in – you can call 785-5555 to get assistance. The dispatcher will ask you to wait by the locked door. An officer will then be sent to assist you. The officer will have you complete a lockout form and you may be asked to present your Yale identification.

• Nighttime Shuttle Service

The university offers a nighttime shuttle service that runs from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 a.m. just about every day of the year. The shuttles run on fixed routes from 6:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. After 1:00 a.m., service can be obtained by calling 432-6330 or 2-6330 if you are using a campus phone. Note that you will need a valid Yale ID in order to board the shuttle.

There is no reason to take unnecessary risks. If it is late, or if you are traveling alone, it is best to make use of the abovementioned services. The university provides them for your safety and the officers and drivers are eager to help.

HR in Focus

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Announcements

Open Enrollment

Open Enrollment begins Monday, November 5 and ends Sunday, November 18

Flexible Spending Enrollment ends December 31, 2007

Yale University continues to offer Faculty and Managerial & Professional staff competitive and high-quality benefits. For January 2008, the Yale Health Plan, Aetna plans and Delta Dental will continue with no changes in plan design. Depending on your plan choice, your contributions will increase no more than 10% and in some cases will remain the same or be reduced.

Additionally, based on feedback from the Yale community, we are pleased to announce several new benefit enhancements beginning January 2008:
* Elimination of the Yale Health Plan 19-Plus Premium: Your 19-25 year old dependent students will now have continued coverage through your Yale Health Plan membership without an additional premium.
* Addition of a Vision Plan: EyeMed, a leading provider of vision care insurance, will offer a vision plan at a modest monthly cost and will provide you and your family allowances and discounts on eyewear including frames, lenses, and contact lenses.
* Discount Plan for Hearing Aids and Accessories: AHAA (American Hearing Aid Association) will offer discounted hearing aids, exams, service and batteries. There will be no employee contribution for this discount program.

Within the next several weeks, you will be receiving Benefits 2008 Open Enrollment materials at home. We ask that you take the time to review the information, attend an upcoming Benefits Fair, and enroll via Employee Self-Service.

You are not required to take action unless you decide to make changes to your medical and/or dental coverage. Flexible spending elections do not carry over and therefore you must re-enroll for 2008.

STARS Training

Strategic Talent Management and Recruitment System (STARS) enables us to conduct efficient recruiting and staffing processes for all job openings. After attending this class you will be able to:
Topics Covered Duration

* Add, save, edit, and manage requisitions
* Check the status of a requisition
* Manage folders
* Run basic reports
* Respond to an eLink
* Identify the approval workflow process

https://xtrain.its.yale.edu/xtrain/courses/courseinfo.asp?CourseGroupID=134

Upcoming Events

Yale Holiday Calendar

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