David Greenberg Republic of Spin AuthorTalk, July 2016
Janet Brennan Croft Perilous and Fair AuthorTalk, July 2016
David Bianculli Golden Age of Television AuthorTalk, January 2017
We are happy to announce that the Libraries are once again collaborating with Rutgers’ Office of Summer and Winter Sessions to cosponsor a series of talks at Alexander Library this summer. Save the following dates and stay tuned to the Agenda and our website for more information on the talks as they approach. We hope you will share the word with colleagues and students and plan to join us yourselves!
Azzan Yadin-Israel, Professor, Jewish Studies, Rutgers–New Brunswick
The Grace of God and the Grace of Man: The Theologies of Bruce Springsteen (Lingua Press, July 2016) Thursday, June 29, 4–5:30 p.m.
Bruce Springsteen’s words and music have been part of the American landscape for nearly half a century, and are today cherished by millions worldwide. Indeed, Springsteen has been known to inspire religious devotion among his fans, and his shows with the E Street Band are often compared to a revivalist congregation. However, there has not been a comprehensive scholarly study of the biblical and theological motifs in Springsteen’s lyrics until now. Reading Springsteen’s songs as one would a poem, The Grace of God and the Grace of Man sheds new light on Springsteen’s work.
John Bader, Former Dean of Academic Advising and Undergraduate Academic Affairs, Johns Hopkins University
Dean’s List: 10 Strategies for College Success (2nd ed., Johns Hopkins University Press, March 2017)
Thursday, July 6, 4–5:30 p.m.
Deans at America’s top institutions—including Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, and Columbia—join John Bader to tell students what they need to know to have a rich and rewarding college experience. A complete reworking, this second edition includes information on managing workloads and faculty relationships, as well as new material focused on first-generation challenges and international students. Dean’s List offers a thoughtful, commonsense approach to higher education that allows students to make the most of their four years on campus—and beyond.
The digital exhibit for the 2017 Celebration of Scholarship is now available for viewing. It features the works of 125 members of the Rutgers faculty in disciplines ranging from fine arts to pharmacology at Rutgers–Camden, Rutgers–Newark, Rutgers–New Brunswick, and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences.
Some highlights include:
A medical student didactic in which participants discuss episodes of Seinfeld through the lens of a psychiatrist;
The first-ever art history of video games;
A project to translate all 30,000 lines of extant Anglo-Saxon poetry into modern English verse;
A feature film about the life of the director’s grandfather, a 90-year-old Japanese-American widower living in Honolulu;
A blog presenting 20 years of research on eating, body image, and weight management so that it is accessible to a general audience;
A chapter celebrating the accomplishments of law librarians of color;
A book detailing research on mathematical models of vehicular traffic networks;
Histories of New Brunswick and Newark, as well as a look at life on the shore in the wake of Hurricane Sandy;
And many projects led by our colleagues, including Janet Brennan Croft, Bonnie Fong, Sarah Jewell, Marty Kesselman, Megan Lotts, Christie Lutz, and Judit Hajnal Ward.
In 2016, President Barchi asked the Libraries to pilot the OAT Project to address soaring textbook costs and to introduce more affordable materials into the classroom. The original plan was to provide 12 grants to faculty to incorporate low-cost course materials into their classes. Thanks to higher than expected faculty interest and the quality of their proposals, the Libraries quickly expanded the pilot program to 32 grants, impacting courses across the university in fields ranging from psychiatry, sociology, and public affairs to English, business, and physics. (For a complete list of grant recipients, please click here.)
Click here to read the news release, which includes reflections on the project from grant-winning professors Petros Levounis (Department of Psychiatry, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences), Neil Sheflin (Department of Economics, Rutgers–New Brunswick), and Matthew Giobbi (Department of Psychology, Rutgers–Newark).
Kilmer Library Named in Honor of James Dickson Carr
This month, the Board of Governors voted to rename Kilmer Library in honor of James Dickson Carr, Rutgers’ first African American graduate. He completed his degree in 1892, was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, and went on to attend Columbia Law School.
Chancellor Richard Edwards told Rutgers Today that the library’s new name will be a fitting tribute to Carr, who was a noted scholar.
“Having Mr. Carr’s name on a building that is a core part of academic life where students go to study and where research is conducted is an important way to recognize his accomplishments,’’ he said.
Following graduation from Columbia Law School, Carr went on to become an assistant district attorney of New York County and held other offices in New York City government. To learn more about this accomplished Rutgers alumnus, please read this article from the Journal of the Rutgers University Libraries.
31st Annual Bishop Lecture: “Through the Eyes of a WWI Combat Engineer”
The 2017 Bishop Lecture will be presented by Dr. Virginia Dilkes, whose father served in WWI as a combat engineer.
Join Rutgers Special Collections and University Archives for the opening reception and the 31st annual Louis Faugères Bishop Lecture by Dr. Virginia A. Dilkes on the subject of “Through the Eyes of a WWI Combat Engineer,” at 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 9, 2017.
The lecture will also be the opening reception of the Rutgers University-New Brunswick Spring 2017 exhibition “Heaven, Hell, or Hoboken!”: New Jersey in the Great War. The exhibition, commemorating the Centennial of the Great War, will examine the storied history of our state during the Great War, showcasing one-of-a-kind documents, photographs, and artifacts from Rutgers University’s Special Collections and University Archives, the National Guard Militia Museum of New Jersey, and the Johnson & Johnson Archives.
Virginia Dilkes was born and raised in Iselin, New Jersey. She earned her doctoral degree from the University of Michigan. Her interest in World War I stems from her father, who was a combat engineer in WWI. She has edited and published her father’s World War I memoirs in the book Remembering World War I: An Engineer’s Diary of the War. She is a volunteer for the U.S. WWI Centennial Commemoration Commission.
Celebration of Scholarship Takes Place in March
The annual Celebration of Scholarship will take place this year from March 27 to March 31. There will be coordinated events and displays across the Libraries, a social media campaign, a website presence, and more.
We need your support in soliciting submissions from Rutgers faculty of works to include in our showcase. In a departure from years past, we are accepting projects of all different types, not just books.
The submission forms and event info for Camden, Newark/New Brunswick, and RBHS are all available on the Celebration of Scholarship webpage.
Dana Library to Participate in Women in Media-Newark’s Annual International Film Festival
From the Rutgers–Newark press release: “Women in Media-Newark will hold its eighth annual International Film Festival March 28 through April 6 in celebration of Women’s History Month. Working in conjunction with Rutgers University–Newark, their major partner, WIM-N will host film festival over nine days at six venues. All events are free and open to the public.
“On Mach 31 – April 1, a symposium on Tayari Jones’ acclaimed novel ‘Silver Sparrow’ will take place as part of the film festival, in collaboration with Rutgers University-Newark’ s John Cotton Dana Library, as part of the Essex County Library Directors ‘Big Read Film’ screenings. A natural hair care demonstration and panel discussions also will take place at this free event. Dr. Consuella Askew, director of the Dana Library, states, ‘The John Cotton Dana Library at RU-N is a proud partner of the WIM-N Film Festival and the Symposium on Dr. Jones’ novel ‘Silver Sparrow’. Libraries are by design culturally based organizations. We acquire and make accessible many resources – not just books – that foster an informed citizenry in an increasingly global world. By virtue of its mission, our partnership with the WIM-N organization helps us meet this objective by enabling us to connect with our community in an engaging and meaningful way. We look forward to strengthening our partnership with WIM-N in the future.’”
READ Club Meets at Rutgers Art Library
A recent news story in the Daily Targum highlighted the READ club–“Rutgers’ first and only book discussion group,” according to their website. This group meets each month to escape the rigors of textbook and classroom reading and discuss a work of fiction, ranging from contemporary novels and literary fiction to poetry and short story collections.
The club meets in the Art Library and will be discussing Selma, 1965: The March that Changed the South at its February meeting.
#WednesdayWisdom Rolls Out in March
Wednesday Wisdom kicks off in March with an inspirational quote by Greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis.
In response to a student’s suggestion on Instagram, we’re taking steps to add an inspirational flair to our library spaces and social media accounts. Each Wednesday starting on March 1, we will post a motivational quote to our social media channels using the popular hashtag #WednesdayWisdom. The quotes will also be provided in advance for posting throughout the libraries. Special thanks to Mary Hasaballa for the idea and to all the volunteers who are helping to bring a little positivity to the everyday lives of our students!
New Acquisitions in Special Collections and University Archives
The latest post on the What Exit? blog details acquisitions from fall 2016 to winter 2017. Highlights include titles such as The Mass Grave at the First Reformed Church, Scarlet and Black Volume 1: Slavery and Dispossession in Rutgers History, The Ironbound: An Illustrated History of Newark’s “Down Neck,” Runaway Dream: Born to Run and Bruce Springsteen’s American Vision, and The Southern Education of a Jersey Girl: Adventures in Life and Love in the Heart of Dixie.
University of Oklahoma Libraries Survey
The University of Oklahoma Libraries invite you to participate in a research study being conducted under the auspices of the University of Oklahoma Norman Campus, entitled “Faculty Status: The Next Generation,” IRB #654523.
The purpose of this study is to investigate whether faculty status and the opportunity to earn tenure are important considerations for recent graduates of MLS/MLIS programs who are seeking professional jobs in academic libraries.
If you received a master’s degree in library or information science in 2012 or later, you are eligible to participate in the study. The findings from this project will provide information that will shed light on the preferences of job seekers who are relatively new to the library and information profession.
Your participation will involve completion of an online survey and should take about 5 to 10 minutes of your time. Your involvement in the study is voluntary, and you may choose not to participate or to stop at any time. This survey is anonymous. No identifying information about you will be gathered.
If you have any questions about this research project, please feel free to call Karen Antell at 405-325-4142 or email kantell@ou.edu. Questions about your rights as a research participant or concerns about the project should be directed to the Institutional Review Board at the University of Oklahoma-Norman Campus by phone at 405-325-8110 or via email at irb@ou.edu.
Back in August, Instagram announced a new feature called Stories. Similar to their counterparts on Snapchat, Instagram stories allow users to create a “slideshow” of images and/or videos that is viewable for 24 hours before disappearing.
As is suggested by their name, stories allow you to shape a narrative around your subject in a way that a single image or video may not.
Much like Snapchat stories, Instagram stories are well-suited to capturing action as it is happening. This allows you to leverage the “fear of missing out” to generate excitement around your programming.
When you post or update a story, your account appears in a list that runs across top of others’ Instagram feeds. This extra visibility is a welcome boon given recent changes to the platform’s timeline algorithm.
You can experiment with the story-based approach to social media without having to build a new audience from scratch on a different platform.
Cons
While you can download your story content to your camera roll as it is published, the preferred portrait orientation makes it difficult to repurpose your content elsewhere. Shooting in landscape orientation requires your viewers to either turn their heads awkwardly or rotate their phones, an inconvenience that puts your content at risk of being skipped over.
The 10 second limit on video clips presents some challenges. For example, a speaker’s comments can easily run over and get cut off, necessitating additional takes.
Viewing statistics disappear along with the image or video they are attached to, complicating assessment.
Instagram’s story editing tools (basic text and drawing) are limited compared to Snapchat’s, especially its robust filter system.
Next Steps
Identifying more story opportunities to allow for additional testing. (If you have any ideas, please get in touch!)
Incorporating stories into the Instagram content schedule.
Formalizing the procedure for recording and reporting story viewing statistics.
A recent policy change means that high resolution images from the Rutgers University Photo Gallery are now available free of charge for Rutgers projects.
Douglass Library. Nick Romanenko/Rutgers University
The gallery offers access to professional images of Rutgers buildings, faculty, staff, and students. Previously, low resolution images (72 dots per inch, suitable for projects such as PowerPoint presentations, email newsletters, and webpages) were available for free download, while high resolution images (300 dots per inch, suitable for print projects such as flyers, posters, and brochures) had to be purchased for $20 each. Now, however, because of changes due to RCM, the high resolution images are also available at no cost to the Rutgers community.
Finding the perfect image for your project is as simple as following these three easy steps:
Log in to the gallery using your NetID and password.
Browse through the categories to identify a photo you like.
For low resolution images, read and accept the terms and conditions to download the image immediately; or, for high resolution images, contact photo archivist Jane Hart with the file name and how you intend to use the photo.
In the event that you can’t find an image you like in the gallery, you may request access to the University Communications and Marketing Photo Archive, which contains thousands of additional photos for your perusal. Contact Jane for access to the archive.
The Libraries’ first Social Media Summit was held on Tuesday, April 19. More than 20 of our colleagues gathered at Alexander Library or attended remotely for a day-long program focused on all things social media at the Libraries and beyond.
The morning began with a presentation by Karen Smith, assistant director of new and emerging media for Rutgers University. Smith discussed the key elements of building an effective social media strategy as well as the most popular social media platforms and their uses. She also shared best practices developed from the experience of managing the university’s primary social media accounts (RutgersU on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).
The emphasis for RutgersU social media is encouraging conversation — asking questions, posting interactive materials, highlighting student contributions (everyone likes their 15 minutes, and the RU Speaks campaign featured below is a good example of this). Some takeaways:
Rutgers invites a student to guest post on their Instagram each week – creates lots of student-friendly content and interest.
Tease out big news by asking “Guess who?” or “Guess what?” questions. We tried this for our Rutgers Day John Morton reveal and it generated a lot of chatter and feedback.
Run lots of contests for prizes like mugs (they will do person on the street — “show us your follow on any social media and you can win a prize”)
Try to create an accessible, authentic space by avoiding overly moderating contributions and academic language and jargon.
The afternoon was highlighted by a presentation from Aaron K. Ginoza, social media and community engagement coordinator for the University of Maryland Libraries (UMDLibraries on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat). Ginoza gave an overview of the evolving social media landscape at the University of Maryland, provided case studies of UMD Libraries’ most successful social media campaigns, and offered his own set of best practices for generating online engagement.
During Exam Wars, UMD Libraries hosted yoga classes.
Some of the social media campaigns UMD has run in recent months are
Parody music videos
Light painting (great for nighttime study breaks!)
Exam Wars campaign (utilizing Star Wars visuals for reading time promotions and stressbuster activities)
Throwback recess (complete with potato sack and three-legged races)
Zombie, Pokemon, and Game of Thrones-inspired scavenger hunts to encourage exploration of the libraries
An extensive campaign for Alice in Wonderland exhibit.
The program was wrapped up by Jessica Pellien, director of communications, who discussed a proposal for a Social Media Taskforce that was recently reviewed and approved by Cabinet. The Taskforce members will be selected with input from the Libraries’ Cabinet and will hopefully begin work over the summer.
What would you feature in this spot on our homepage?
In order to better represent the magnitude and diversity of materials the Libraries hold, we are opening up the Featured Collections block on the Rutgers University Libraries homepage to submissions. We can include a photograph and a brief description of a physical or digital collection or other materials you think will be of interest to our users.
To be included, please send Mary Ann Koruth an image with a caption and a description with a link (if available) to any item that you feel deserves to be showcased on the homepage. These could include photographs, prints, videos, maps, books, collections, items relating to science and medicine, oddities from the archives–you name it.
We’d like to extend a special thanks to Caryn Radick and Tara Maharjan in Special collections in Alexander, for the wealth of material they have brought to our notice over the past years.
Please take some time to peruse through collections in your specialty and send in a submission that grabs your eye and piques your interest!
Micah Kleit, incoming director, Rutgers University Press
We are holding the reception for A Celebration of Books (previously called the Faculty Author Celebration) on April 12 at 5 p.m. in Alexander Library. In addition to a display of books and poster giveaways, we are delighted to announce that our featured speaker for the evening will be Micah Kleit, the incoming director at Rutgers University Press.
He will address the convergence of publishing, libraries, and universities and what it is that causes us to want to produce—and reproduce—knowledge. Exploring the landscape of publishing (generally) and university press publishing (more specifically), he will discuss how libraries, scholars, and universities with and without presses need each other now more than ever. The talk will take into account questions of risk, especially as the landscape of scholarly publishing and depositories is changing, and how the risks embedded in contemporary publishing offer new opportunities for scholars, students, and the general public.
Micah Kleit is the incoming director of Rutgers University Press. He has been at Temple University Press for the last seventeen years, first as executive editor, then as interim editorial director, and most recently as editor-in-chief. Before Temple, he was an editor at Beacon Press and the University of Minnesota Press.
The communications department is hosting a social media summit to kick off a discussion of social media strategy for the Libraries and introduce the formation of a Libraries’ Social Media Taskforce. All Libraries faculty and staff who are currently working on social media are strongly encouraged to attend. The summit is also open to anyone interested in learning more about social media and how academic libraries can best reach their audiences through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Date/Time: April 19, 2016
9:30 am -3:00 p.m. (lunch will be provided)
Location: Teleconference Room, 4th floor, Alexander Library
Guest Speakers:
Karen Smith (Assistant Director, New and Emerging Media, Rutgers University Communications and Marketing) will provide an overview of Rutgers University’s social media, visual identity, and editorial guidelines and discuss what to consider when making a social media plan.
Aaron Kenji Ginoza (Social Media & Community Engagement Coordinator, University of Maryland Libraries) will discuss how academic libraries can best reach their audiences through social media, describing some of his most successful social media campaigns and highlighting pitfalls to avoid.
Rutgers University Libraries website will be getting a slight facelift in order to feature more of our news stories and to accommodate our new events calendar. News and Events will now appear in separate sections and will contain more visual content.
The News Section
The News section will now feature a rotating gallery that displays four thumbnail images, each with a headline. Users can scroll to read additional stories or click on the thumbnails/headlines to read more. There will also be a jump button to the archives for news stories.
A rotating carousel of featured events will run in the Events section with a link to enter the calendar page. The content for this section will be selected from the events submitted by event organizers. There will also be a link to the complete events calendar which can be sorted or filtered by location, date, type of event, etc. For more information on how the Calendar will work, please scroll down.
The Featured Collection Section
The appearance of this section will essentially remain the same. Please continue sending submissions for this to Mary Ann Koruth.
Events Calendar:
The newly developed Libraries events calendar will include events hosted and sponsored by the Libraries, as well as events sponsored by other organizations that are using our facilities and may be of interest to our users. You can preview the calendar here (please note that not all the features may be functional yet and that this link can only be viewed from within the Libraries).
Event organizers can submit their events via a simple web form that includes a short description, an image for the event, location, date, time, and contact. The events will not be “live” on our public events calendar until they have been moderated by the Communications Department. It is recommended that you upload your event as soon as you have the information for the listing—event title, description, date, time, location, image. The Communications Department can make changes to the events posting after it is published on the Libraries website. Additional documentation on adding an event will be available at the event submission website.
Tisha Bender P.U.N.C.H. AuthorTalk, June 2016
![Download a flyer for this event [JPG]](https://agenda.libraries.rutgers.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/SOCIAL-MEDIA-SUMMIT1.jpg){kind=link}