Author: Lara De Meo Hoyt

Renee Clark, a library technician in Interlibrary Loan Services, a part of Collections and Digital Strategies, is retiring from the Libraries. Her last full day will be November 4. She started her career at Rutgers on August 27, 1979, in the Library of Science and Medicine, and has since worked in a variety of roles within the Libraries. Since 2016, Renee has been based in TSB, where she has helped with tattletaping, stamping, packing, and shipping material from TSB to other Rutgers University Libraries locations: key parts of getting material into our patrons’ hands.

Raymon-Arthur George, lead library utility worker in Shipping and Receiving, became a regular full-time employee of Rutgers University Libraries on August 13. Previously, he has been a temporary employee.

Information Technology Services (ITS) is the new name for the unit previously known as Integrated Information Systems (IIS). Part of our ongoing reorganizational efforts, this change reflects a fresh start and more accurately represents the scope and mission of the unit. As ITS, the team will continue to provide robust technology solutions and support, while aligning more closely with our strategic goals and the evolving needs of our organization. As a reminder, members of the ITS unit include Kalivani Ananthan, Jonas Desir, Anna Huang, John Gibson, Albert Lee, Mary O’Mara, Tracey Meyer, Andrew Ruggiero, Chris Singh, Ed Smith, and Christopher Sterback.

Where should you store your work-related files? The answer is: it depends. Kalaivani Ananthan, manager, Information Technology, breaks it down in this article.

Survey tools: Qualtrics has significantly changed the terms of Rutgers’ license, resulting in the potential for a considerable increase in costs to the university. While Qualtrics is an important tool for Rutgers research and data collection, there are other simple survey tools that are available at no cost to the university. Microsoft Forms is appropriate for event registration and RSVPs, polls, questionnaires, and surveys that don’t require in-depth analysis or large-scale deployment. If you are planning a survey and believe that Qualtrics is the best platform to use, please first consult with central information technology support for guidance.

Mandatory training deadline: The executive vice president for academic affairs (EVPAA) sent an email on September 19 to announce an internal deadline of November 1, 2025, for completion of a mandatory ethics training module. To begin this ethics training, navigate to the RU Learning platform at https://rulearning.rutgers.edu and log in with your NetID and password. If prompted to enter a username, please enter your credentials beginning with your Net ID (do not include any extensions in your email address; use only the format [NetID]@rutgers.edu), which will direct you to the single sign-on page. Completion of this training is mandatory for all faculty and staff and should take approximately 30 minutes. Note: New employees are required to complete the training within 30-days of their start date and will be assigned the training automatically with the appropriate due date.

Revised guidelines for filming and photographing in library facilities include an important photo release notice, new sections on graduation photography requests, and clauses intended to protect the Libraries regarding responsibility for damage to library property and adherence to library staff instructions. All Libraries personnel should familiarize themselves with these new guidelines.

The Staff Advisory Committee (SAC) is still in need of members for the Governance Committee. This committee plays a key role in SAC’s leadership structure, ensuring the work stays aligned and effective. The work commitment is minimal, usually less than an hour per month, and in some months, no meeting is necessary. Staff members who are interested or have questions should contact Tracey Meyer. The SAC will hold a town hall on November 6, for which staff members should have received an invitation on 10/14/2025.

Nice to know:

The Busch Faculty Dining Lounge for Rutgers faculty and staff reopened (after a long closure during COVID) on September 8. Hours of operation are Monday to Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The address is 608 Bartholomew Road, Piscataway (Busch Dining Hall). If you enter Lot 59 in Piscataway into Google Maps, that is the appropriate faculty/staff parking lot closest to the entrance. Items are à la carte, and reservations are not needed (with the exception of upcoming Thanksgiving and holiday buffet events).

DEI Committee: Call for Members

The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee is looking for additional members starting this month. Stemming from a core principle and value of Rutgers University Libraries, this committee centers its work on system-wide collective learning and growth.

In the last two years, the committee has:

• published The ABCs of DEI: A DEI Glossary, a resource meant to provide Rutgers University Libraries personnel with a shared vocabulary related to diversity, equity, and inclusion
• facilitated a Virtual Learning Community Book Club focused on What if I Say The Wrong Thing? by Verna Myers
• developed 101 Self-Initiated Learning Journey, an asynchronous, self-paced Canvas course with eight modules

All of this work is intended to foster an inclusive environment and to equip Libraries colleagues to integrate DEI principles into their daily work.

We are looking for volunteers from all campuses and our central units. If interested, please contact Caroline Muglia (LLT liaison) and Zara Wilkinson (interim committee chair).

Visit the Staff Resources site to learn more about the committee and access The ABCs of DEI: A DEI Glossary.

Other links we like:

• Keeping Up With… Neurodiversity

• Creating Welcoming Spaces in Academic Libraries

Read a roundup of Rutgers University Libraries representation at the ALA conference in June. 

Consuella Askew, vice president for university libraries and university librarian, was invited to write an ARL Research & Analytics Impact Report on the Libraries’ recent assessment of the Open and Affordable Textbooks Program. “Impacting Teaching and Learning Through an Open Educational Resources Initiative” was published on the ARL website and promoted in Rutgers Today on July 30. It was then included in the August 1 issue of the Charleston Daily. 

Diane Biunno, metadata archivist at the Institute of Jazz Studies, is the NJ Caucus Representative to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC). In that role, she’s been organizing events across the state, including a recent virtual webinar focused on community archiving efforts at Newark’s Ironbound Community Corporation (ICC), which has been a vital part of Newark since the 1960s and serves as a key advocate for early childhood education, environmental justice, HIV health services, and immigrant support. The webinar mainly focused on how the ICC is using community archiving to preserve local memory and document decades of activism. 

Joanne Dera, science librarian at Dana Library, was a panelist at the New Jersey Association of School Superintendents Spring Leadership Conference. The panel, “People Power – The Human Connection in the Age of AI,” focused on AI in STEM education at the K-12 level and explored how to strike a balance between innovation and the irreplaceable human elements that drive learning, leadership, and student access.   

Rutgers Today featured summer reading suggestions from Becky Diamond, business instruction librarian at Carr Library, Joanne Dera, science librarian at Dana Library, Matt Bridgeman, information and education librarian at RWJ Library, Bart Everts, reference and instruction librarian at Paul Robeson Library, and Judit H. Ward, science reference and instruction librarian at Chang Library.

Becky Diamond, business instruction librarian at Carr Library, Dee Magnoni, former associate university librarian for Rutgers–New Brunswick, Sue Oldenburg, geographical information systems specialist at Rutgers–New Brunswick, and L.M. Miller, library associate II and branch manager at Math/Physics Library, wrote a chapter, “Nurturing Social Connections and Collaboration,” in the book Well-Being in the Library Workplace: A Handbook for Managers (ALA Editions, April 2025). 

Megan Lotts, art librarian at Rutgers–New Brunswick (Art Library), authored the article “The Power of Play in Libraries: Low Cost, High Impact Ideas” in the April 2025 edition of Public Library Quarterly, as well as the book The Playful Library: Building Environments for Learning and Creativity (ALA Editions, September 2024). Since the book was published, Lotts has given numerous invited presentations, including an appearance at the 11th Sharjah International Library Conference (SILC) in the United Arab Emirates and the keynote at the Virginia Library Association Annual Conference in October 2024, where she presented to more than 500 live attendees. 

Rhonda Marker, head of open knowledge strategies (Central), was featured in a DOAJ blog post about some of the organization’s longest-serving volunteers. DOAJ is a unique and extensive index of diverse open access journals from around the world.  DOAJ volunteers come from all over the world, from a variety of backgrounds, and speak many languages. 

Vincent Pelote, senior archivist and digital preservation strategist at the Institute of Jazz Studies, was featured in a Rutgers Instagram reel for International Jazz Day on April 30. The reel quickly went viral, with more than 15,000 likes and hundreds of comments to date. 

The New Jersey Jazz Society invited Pelote to contribute to Jersey Jazz Magazine via a monthly column called “Pelote’s Place,” taking over for the late Dan Morgenstern, whose column was called “Dan’s Den.” In his first column in March 2025, Pelote honored Women’s History Month with a column about “women who have played jazz from the earliest days of music.” 

John Powell, reference and instruction librarian at Robeson Library, was quoted in a Star-Ledger/NJ.com story marking the 155-year anniversary of the historic Atlantic City boardwalk on June 26. Powell’s expertise came from the research he had conducted to create the Boardwalk Empires exhibit at Robeson Library. The story was promoted in the July 1 edition of Rutgers Today. 

Jonathan Torres, business and data services librarian at Dana Library, has a YouTube channel where he creates video content about AI and business and data research strategies. Among his more recent efforts are his “shorts” in which he reviews academic publications and distills key findings via easily digestible, two- to three-minute videos. 

Mary Beth Weber, libraries coordinator for training and mentorship (Central), was interviewed in March for the Lost in the Stacks podcast. 

Elizabeth York, electronic resources librarian (Central), presented “Leveraging Alma for ebook EBA selection, purchased ebook management, and PO Line creation” at the Ex Libris Users of North America (ELUNA) 2025 Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, in June. She also presented “AI in Cataloging: Alma Developments and the Librarian Perspective” at the 2024 virtual Charleston Conference in December and was a panelist at the Library Journal and Ex Libris Webinar, “Enhancing Library Management with AI-powered Metadata Solutions” in March 2025. She also co-presented as a panelist at ALA Core Interest Group Week 2025 for the Catalog Management Interest Group. Her presentation, “Using & Contributing to the Alma Community Zone, ” was part of the virtual panel session, “Cataloging, Catalog Management & Sharing Metadata with the Community in an Era of Consortia, Linked Data and Machine Learning.” 

Zara Wilkinson, reference and instruction librarian, and Samantha Kannegiser, student success librarian, both at Robeson Library, recently performed an assessment of the Paul Robeson Library Undergraduate Research Award and published their results in The Journal of Academic Librarianship. The article, “Let’s tell them what they’ve won: Assessing an undergraduate research award,” is open access via the Libraries’ Read and Publish agreement with Elsevier. 

This infectious Instagram Reel, a collaboration between Rutgers University and Rutgers University Libraries, helped get the word out that Alexander Library was open 24 hours a day during finals and featured three Libraries student employees (and one friend to round out the group). The post has reached more than 17,000 unique users so far.

FlexWork@RU Update

University Human Resources announced on July 31 that in preparation for the implementation of the new Oracle HCM Cloud HR and Payroll system, the flexible work arrangements will be automatically extended through January 31, 2026.  This extension ensures continuity and provides a bridge to the new system.

A new FlexWork@RU application process will be launched in conjunction with the HCM Cloud implementation. Detailed instructions and training resources will be shared before the system goes live to ensure a smooth transition.

 

Travel Reminder 

All travel that occurs on work time requires approval from leadership and via Concur regardless of whether funding is required. The business team can assist with the Concur system as needed. Please also remember to set business team members as your delegates. Questions related to travel can be sent to libraries_travel@libraries.rutgers.edu.

 

Reorganization Announcements

Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Campus Libraries

Leslin Charles is the inaugural coordinator for instruction and reference services. She will be responsible for the planning, management, and delivery of a broad range of reference and programmatic instructional services in support of the university’s curriculum and mission. Reporting to the associate vice president for campus libraries (AVP-CL), this position will provide and promote high-quality and innovative services to a diverse community of university users and beyond. The coordinator will collaborate with the assistant vice president for scholarly communications and collections, the AVP-CL, and the executive director for administrative and information technology services, as well as with other subject librarians on these library services.

Joseph Deodato is the inaugural coordinator for research support services. In this role, he will lead the Research Support Services (RSS) Group. Reporting to the associate vice president for campus libraries, the coordinator for research support services will be responsible for the oversight of the RSS team that provides services, training, and programming that support the research lifecycle, including but not limited to data collection and analysis, citation management, copyright and intellectual property, and research visibility and impact.

 

Reporting to the Vice President for University Libraries

Mary Beth Weber has assumed the role of coordinator for training and mentorship. Reporting to the vice president for university libraries, Mary Beth will oversee the Libraries’ enrichment program initiatives and strategies, including mentorship, aimed at maximizing success and facilitating continuous learning across the organization. Partnering with Libraries HR, faculty, and staff, the training and mentorship coordinator identifies and/or develops, implements, and assesses professional enrichment programming to address organizational needs and promote overall institutional effectiveness while effecting positive organizational change.

 

Reporting to the Assistant Vice President for Collections and Digital Strategies

Caryn Radick is the inaugural digital strategies librarian. Reporting to the assistant vice president for collections and digital strategies, Caryn will provide leadership and advocacy for the continued development of the Libraries’ digital collections. Among her responsibilities will be the development and implementation of a programmatic strategy for identifying, building, and promoting digital collections in close collaboration with the coordinator for digital projects and other Rutgers University Libraries colleagues. This position serves as the central point person for the Libraries units engaged in digital collections to ensure shared understanding and practice for developing and assessing digital projects at the local level.

Melissa De Fino has assumed the inaugural role of team lead for cataloging and metadata services. In this role, Melissa’s responsibilities include working collaboratively to develop policies and workflows for resource description, serving as the voice of the department, and working with the newly established digital team on metadata for digital projects.

Holdings Management, led by Cathy Pecoraro, now reports to the assistant vice president for collections and digital strategies and is part of the Collections and Digital Strategies unit.

Interlibrary Loan, led by Orla Mejia, now reports to the assistant vice president for collections and digital strategies and is part of the Collections and Digital Strategies unit.

Isaiah Beard, digital projects coordinator, will report to the assistant vice president for collections and digital strategies and integrate into the Collections and Digital Strategies unit.

While day-to-day workflows across the organization will remain largely unchanged, we would like to highlight the following reminders and updates:

• For holdings analysis or project-related inquiries, please submit your requests via the Holdings Report Request Form. This form should be used for title- or item-level holdings analysis supporting collection evaluation projects such as weeding, overlap review, relocation, or withdrawal. It is also appropriate for generating lists related to space management or other system-wide holdings analyses involving one or more libraries. Please note: Projects will only proceed once reviewed, approved, and prioritized by RUL leadership.
• All requests or proposals for digital projects should be directed to: rul_digital@libraries.rutgers.edu

 

Updates related to Rutgers–New Brunswick libraries

Tao Yang is now interim associate university librarian for Rutgers–New Brunswick. He is based in Alexander Library.

Jeff Teichmann was promoted to the position of head of access services for the Rutgers–New Brunswick libraries. Previously, he served in the interim position for this role. He will continue to be based at Alexander Library.

Rose Barbalace was promoted to the position of library supervisor I at Alexander Library and Art Library. Previously, she served in the interim position for this role. She will continue to be based at Alexander Library.

Jill Morrow, administrative assistant, will officially start reporting to the associate university librarian for Rutgers–New Brunswick and will be based in the administrative suite on the first floor of Alexander Library.

The Shipping & Receiving Department, including Charles Casseus, Raymon-Arthur George, and Luke Sangiamo, will report through the Administration and Technology division.

Laura Friday, administrative assistant, is now working within the Shipping & Receiving Department, reporting to Luke Sangiamo and based at Alexander Library.

Kelly Worth, administrative assistant, now reports to Jeff Teichmann, the head of access services for the Rutgers–New Brunswick libraries, and will remain at Douglass Library.

Elena Schneider, events and program manager, now reports to Jeff Teichmann, the head of access services for the Rutgers–New Brunswick libraries.

 

In addition to these changes, the centralization of IT services within the Administration and Technology unit remains on track, and an update will be provided soon.

Awards & Honors

Fernanda Perrone, archivist and head of the exhibitions program for Special Collections and University Archives, will be inducted as a Fellow of the Society of American Archivists at the society’s 2025 annual meeting in August. 

Zara Wilkinson, reference and instruction librarian at Robeson Library, won the 2025 NJLA Research Award for “The prevalence of textbook affordability and OER initiatives at ARL libraries,” which was published in The Journal of Academic Librarianship in July 2024. After the award ceremony, she presented a summary of the research project and its findings. 

 

New Endeavors 

Kamilah Holtz, library associate II at Dana Library, has been admitted to the master of information program at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information in New Brunswick. She begins the program this fall. 

Ann Marie Latini, head of access services for Robeson Library, was elected as the academic library Representative for the LibraryLink NJ Executive Board. Her three-year term began July 1. 

 

Graduations  

The following Rutgers University Libraries employees earned advanced degrees in May: 

• Rose Barbalace, library supervisor I at Alexander Library, received a master of human resource management from the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations. 

• Bret McCandless, music and performing arts librarian at Douglass Library, received a PhD in musicology from Indiana University–Bloomington. His dissertation was “You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught: A History of Educational Programs for Musical Theater Writers,” advised by Judah Cohen, PhD. 

• Edward Robinson, library associate II at Robeson Library, received a master of information (MI) degree with a concentration in archives and preservation from the Rutgers School of Communication and Information. 

 

Service Recognition 

Multiple faculty and staff members from Rutgers University Libraries were recognized by the university at receptions held in May (faculty) and June (staff) for their years of service to Rutgers. The honorees are: 

40 YEARS

• Fatima Cunha, library associate II, Access Services, Dana Library

• Vincent Pelote, senior archivist and digital preservation strategist, Institute of Jazz Studies, Dana Library

20 YEARS

• Krista Haviland, library associate II, Access Services, Library of Science and Medicine

• Amy Joyner, business assistant II, Administration and Technology

• Soo Jung Lee, library associate II, Access Services, Library of Science and Medicine

• L. Miller, library associate II, Access Services, Math/Physics Library

• Gillian Newton, librarian II, Access Services, Alexander Library

• Michele Petosa, senior administrative assistant and coordinator of libraries human resources, University Librarian

• Caryn Radick, digital strategies librarian as of July 2025 (formerly digital archivist, Special Collections and University Archives, Alexander Library)

10 YEARS

• Christine Lutz, NJ regional studies librarian and head of public services, Special Collections and University Archives, Alexander Library

• Consuella Askew, vice president of university libraries and university librarian

• Mina Ghajar, education and research librarian, Smith Library

• Ermira Mitre, library technician I, Access Services, Smith Library

• Amanda Presler, business manager, Administration and Technology

 

Arrivals 

The following faculty and staff members joined Rutgers University Libraries during this fiscal year: 

• Paige Morgan, assistant vice president for collections and digital strategies, University Librarian (June 2025) 

• Stephen Bacchetta, metadata archivist, Special Collections and University Archives, Alexander Library (March 2025) 

• Quionne Scott, senior executive assistant, University Librarian (April 2025)                  

• Joanne Dera, science librarian, Dana Library (March 2025) 

• Michael Montalbano, history of medicine processing archivist, Smith Library (March 2025) 

• Benjamin Houtman, processing archivist, Institute of Jazz Studies, Dana Library (January 2025) 

• Amanda Clay Powers, associate university librarian for Rutgers University–Newark, Dana Library (January 2025) 

• Lara De Meo Hoyt, director of communications and marketing, University Librarian (August 2024) 

 

Departures 

The following faculty and staff members left Rutgers University Libraries this year. 

• Fatima Cunha retired as library associate II in August 2025. 

• Gillian Newton retired as library associate II in Access Services at Alexander Library in July 2025. 

• Julie Still retired as reference and collection development librarian at Robeson Library in July 2025. 

• Al King retired as records standardization designer for Special Collections and University Archives in July 2025. 

• Julia Maxwell resigned as social sciences librarian at Alexander Library in June 2025. 

• Mark Papianni retired as technical coordinator A/V services at Dana Library in April 2025. 

• John Brennan retired as senior executive assistant in the Office of the University Librarian in March 2025. 

• Lisa Ryder resigned as senior web content specialist in January 2025. 

• Dan DelMonaco resigned as education/research librarian at Smith Library in January 2025. 

• Laura Mullen retired as behavioral sciences librarian/open access specialist at LSM in July 2024. 

• Zohreh Bonianian retired as library supervisor II at Alexander Library in July 2024. 

• Geoffrey Wood resigned as metadata librarian at TSB in  September 2024. 

• Emily Cerri resigned as library tech I at RWJ Library in October 2024.