2018 Faculty Staff Picnic

Before we get swept away in another fall semester, I’d like to take one last opportunity to thank everyone who attended the faculty/staff picnic in August. It was a fantastic event–dry despite the forecast of rain–and the catering, games, and decorations all came together beautifully to make it feel like we were really enjoying an afternoon spent down the Jersey shore.

As I mentioned during the picnic, I’d had some remarks prepared but decided not to deliver them lest I distract too much from the festivities. So I thought that my contribution to the Agenda this month should include a brief list of the many achievements we’ve had cause to celebrate in the past year:

• The successful implementation of QuickSearch, which was a true all-hands effort and impacted the work of just about everyone throughout the Libraries. I’m impressed with the way we came together to make the rollout happen and how diligently the Ex Libris Implementation Team has worked since then to make improvements in response to user feedback.
• The OAT Program continued into its second year, bringing the total savings for Rutgers students up to $2.1 million.
• The ORCID program exceeded its first year benchmark, facilitating over 1,800 ORCID connections at Rutgers.
• We took major strides to bolster our collections, including the addition of the complete Elsevier
• We began the extensive redesign of our website to make it more accessible and user friendly.
• And there have been countless local programs and initiatives that made sure you were meeting the unique needs of your users. To name a few:
  • RBHS hosted traveling exhibits from the National Library of Medicine in Piscataway and Newark
  • Dana held award-winning boot camps for graduate students and celebrated its 50th anniversary
  • The States of Incarceration conference and institute brought together partners from across Rutgers–New Brunswick and New Jersey
  • We spearheaded a campus-wide celebration of Paul Robeson’s 120th birthday in Camden
  • The IJS made the news with its acquisition of the Count Basie Collection, as did the New Brunswick Music Scene Archive, which earned an Innovative Archives Award from MARAC.

Though they are really just the tip of the iceberg, these achievements are important not only because they support the local missions in Camden, New Brunswick, Newark, or RBHS, but because they also position the Libraries as a good collaborator on university-wide initiatives.

I know there is plenty of work on the horizon—from improving QuickSearch and running a new round of OAT awards to enhancing our instructional technology support with the launch of products like Credo, Pressbooks, Leganto, and illumira—but we should be extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished together so far and excited about all that’s yet to come.

Of course, the picnic would not have been possible without the thoughtful planning of the major events committee, so I’d like to recognize them all for their hard work and creativity—Matt Badessa, Matt Bridgeman, Janie Fultz, Chantel Harris, Tad Hershorn, Tara Kelley, Megan O’Connor, Erica Parin, Jessica Pellien, Antoinette Perkins, Daphne Roberts, and Rich Sandler—and thank all those who volunteered on the day of the event.

Last but not least, I want to acknowledge our colleagues who stayed behind to keep the libraries open while we enjoyed the party. As I mentioned in an earlier email, we held a special “desk duty” prize drawing this year, and I’m delighted to announce that Irina Loutchkina, library assistant at Alexander Library, was selected as our winner. Irina has received a prize pack including four football tickets from Rutgers Athletics, an RWJ Medical School tote bag, a beautiful hardbound Zimmerli exhibition catalog, a drink coozie and ID holder from the Division of Continuing Studies, a Libraries coffee mug, and more. Congratulations, Irina!

Thanks again to each and every one of you for all that you do on behalf of the Libraries. I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish in the 2018–2019 academic year and beyond.