The Agenda - Faculty and Staff Newsletter

Category: Department

  • Visual Identity Resources from the Communications Department

    Examples of signage templates that are available online in Word and Powerpoint. Users can modify the text and image to fit their needs.

    The central communications office faces a unique challenge. While we are tasked with improving the appearance of the signage and marketing materials used at the Libraries, we recognize that these signs must serve local needs and be tailored for local use. It is not always feasible for the communications department to create these local materials, so we must by necessity focus our efforts on providing resources and templates to make it easier for our colleagues to quickly and easily produce professional materials that fit with the Libraries’ and the university’s visual identity.

    Recently, we have expanded our visual identity resources to include a new logotype with the Rutgers shield, updated letterhead, and updated and expanded signage. To find these materials, navigate to the Staff Resources section of the website and click Marketing in the right menu. You should also review the revised visual identity guide for the university to learn how to use the shield logotype.

    We will continue to expand these toolboxes and add new resources (I have asked the university for a powerpoint template which I know would be useful to many of you). I also anticipate adding additional downloadable materials–brochures for undergraduate students, alumni and guest borrowers, graduate students, faculty, special collections and university archives, and more–in the coming weeks. This is a good time to reach out if you have an older brochure that needs updating or have a new service/information to promote.

    Signage Update

    At a recent cabinet meeting, I presented findings from a signage inventory the communications department undertook in March and April of this year to assess progress. The percentages of templated signs in the libraries range from 1% (Smith Library*) to 27% (Robeson). This inventory was our mid-year assessment of a year-long project (approved by Cabinet in September 2016) to implement new sign templates.

    As a result of our signage inventory, we are making new print-and-go signs to cover common needs—things like “Staff Only” to “Don’t Reshelf Books.” We plan to create two new templates each week through the summer. We also created “Welcome to X Library” signs for each library location that will soon be posted to the website that make it easy to post hours, policies, and additional information at entrances. Lastly, we are now providing templates in both Word and Powerpoint to accommodate users who prefer to work with Powerpoint.

    Our goal is to make signage templates that are easy to use and useful throughout the libraries—but we need your help. We are working to identify new signage needs, but we hope you will also share signs you design for your location so we can crowd-source signs that may be useful to others in the Libraries. If you use the template to create a sign that should be included in the signage library, send it to the communications department. We would also like to hear from you about your experience with the signage templates—what worked? What didn’t? What would make this work better for you? Please email Jessica Pellien with your feedback and suggestions.

    * Important to note that they have subsequently converted almost ALL their signs to the templates.

  • Rutgers Launches Rutgers Health – Here’s What It Means for the Libraries

    Rutgers Launches Rutgers Health – Here’s What It Means for the Libraries

    What is Rutgers Health?

    “Rutgers Health is the clinical arm of Rutgers–the areas of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences and other Rutgers units devoted to caring for patients. A single brand for all of Rutgers’ patient care and services.” (from: www.rutgershealth.org/about-rutgers-health/rutgers-health-structure)

    The Rutgers Health Group will serve as a single faculty practice, unifying existing specialties and clinical practices, comprising approximately 1,000 Rutgers-employed health care professionals. Members of the faculty practice will be from New Jersey Medical School, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, and other RBHS and Rutgers schools–dentists, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and psychologists, and other health care professionals working in clinical settings throughout New Jersey.

    The Rutgers Health Network will be an integrated network of Rutgers’ affiliated hospitals, community clinics, medical groups, wellness centers, and other affiliates collaborating to provide value-based care to patient populations across the state.

    How will the Rutgers University Libraries support Rutgers Health?

    There are two major user groups with full access to library resources–members of the RBHS faculty, students, and staff and members of the clinical (voluntary) faculty who oversee students and residents in affiliated hospitals and clinics throughout New Jersey.

    As Rutgers Health launches, it is challenging to predict how utilization and demand for libraries-licensed high quality clinical and patient care resources will grow. Should you encounter questions about Rutgers Health which impact the libraries, please contact your colleagues at the RBHS Libraries.

    Contributed by Judy Cohn and Victoria Wagner

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  • Summer AuthorTalks Return to Alexander Library

    • Tisha Bender P.U.N.C.H. AuthorTalk, June 2016

    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.

    Third talk TBA. More information coming soon!

  • Year End Carryover Accrual Review For Employees Who Accrue Paid Time Each Month

    Employees that are eligible to accrue paid time off should review year-end carryover accruals and discuss with supervisors to use excess vacation time prior to the June 30, 2017 deadline.  Staff may carry over one year accrual plus the time accrued for the month of June. ARS Administrators are strongly encouraged to review and insure that absence records are up to date as we get close to year end. Prior to approving time off supervisors may want to confer with the unit ARS administrator to confirm the accuracy of employees accruals.

    In accordance with University Policy 60.3.14, all earned compensatory time must be used prior to the first pay period in June; comp time not used by the first pay period in June will be paid out as overtime by the end of the fiscal year.

    Depending on specific negotiated agreements and university policy, excess vacation may be donated to the Compassionate Leave Program or the Staff Leave Donation Program for legacy UMDNJ.

  • Celebration of Scholarship Digital Exhibit Now on View

    The 2017 Celebration of Scholarship digital exhibit can be viewed at libraries.rutgers.edu/celebration.

    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.

    Learn more about these and other works by exploring the exhibit at libraries.rutgers.edu/celebration.

  • Excerpt from “Forgotten Heroes: New Jerseyans and Rutgers Alumni During the Great War” at What Exit?

    This month, What Exit? from Special Collections and University Archives featured two long forgotten New Jersey heroes, using materials from the Rutgers College War Service Bureau and the Terradell Family Papers.

    Excerpt:

    Portrait of Theodore Rosen. Undated, ca. 1926.

    With a growing number of Rutgers men in Uncle Sam’s olive drab, Earl Reed Silvers (RC 1913) established the Rutgers College War Service Bureau (RCWSB) in August 1917 to keep the 800 men in service up to date with frequent news of the college and each other. “As far as can be ascertained, no college or university in the United States kept in such close touch with her alumni and undergraduates in the army or navy,” reflected Silvers, “nor has any college the mass of material, war letters and relics, which were sent to old Rutgers by her appreciative sons.”

    Counted among the alumni who corresponded with Silvers and the RCWSB was Theodore “Theo” Rosen (1895-1940), Rutgers College Class of 1916, who served as First Lieutenant in the 315th Infantry, 79th Division.

    Creeping and crawling toward the German line in search of a machine gun nest on the early morning of November 4, 1918, Rosen found himself in the path of fire. One bullet rendered his right arm useless; the other tore through his left cheek, filling his mouth with blood and taking out seven teeth. The 23-year-old would lose the top of his left thumb, break his left wrist, have his right arm amputated, and suffer impaired hearing and vision before the onslaught was over. He only recovered consciousness as a P.O.W. on the operating table at Longwy, where he remained prisoner for the eight days before the Armistice in November 1918.

    Continue reading “Forgotten Heroes: New Jerseyans and Rutgers Alumni During the Great War” at What Exit?

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  • Rutgers Connect Tips and Tricks

    How to create a calendar appointment from an email message

     

    With so many events publicized via distribution lists like RUL_Everyone and other University-wide lists, it may be difficult to keep track of meetings, webinars, training sessions, speakers, and other events you might wish to attend.  The best way to make sure you do not miss these opportunities is to add them as appointments on your Rutgers Connect calendar.

    It is very easy to create an appointment on your Rutgers Connect (OWA or Outlook) calendar without having to retype the details from the email message. We have prepared step-by-step instructions to show you how.

    If you have questions, or need assistance with Rutgers Connect, please contact IIS via email at support@rulhelp.rutgers.edu, or by phone at 848-445-5896, option 7.

     

    Tracey Meyer, Information Specialist, Integrated Information Systems

  • Envisioning the Future: John Cotton Dana Library

    As the nexus of a dynamic university in the midst of transforming and reinventing its brand, Dana Library/Institute of Jazz Studies is poised to move into its next iteration. Our goal is to become a user-centered library that can nimbly respond to our users’ continually changing needs in innovative ways. The Dana Library/IJS faculty and staff embarked on a six-month process in order to identify our priorities and objectives needed to achieve this goal.  The resulting document, Framework for Change: Vision and Goals for the John Cotton Dana Library Rutgers University–Newark, provides readers with a high-level view of our path to success.

    We began our work in spring 2016 by identifying three high priority focus areas–services, collections and space. These focus areas supported not only the Rutgers University Libraries priorities, but also the Rutgers University–Newark Strategic Plan. Each priority area was given individual attention and consideration by a dedicated group of Dana faculty and staff who volunteered to compile and consider available data about the area, add their valuable expertise on the area topic, and provide recommendations for how we can enhance these areas to better meet the needs of our users in the 21st century. The resulting compilation of this work led to a 30+ page document which detailed specific services enhancements, space needs, and collection management activities. This document will serve as our road map for next several years.

    The Framework for Change document presents a broad overview of the detailed steps necessary for us to achieve success. This document will be used as an advocacy tool for our local university administrators and could also be used as a fundraising tool for donors. No matter how this document might be used externally, Dana Library has charted its course and is ready to embark on a journey to success!

  • Quick Takes on Events and News — May 2017

    StressbustersThe New Brunswick Libraries announced their schedule of #Stressbusters events for the spring exam period. Highlights include a photo booth at the Math/Physics Library, button making at the Art Library, and pet therapy sessions at Alexander, Douglass, Kilmer, and LSM.

    MARAC Spring 2017 was held April 20–22 in Newark.

    Don’t despair if you happened to miss out on the recent Mid Atlantic Regional Archives Conference in Newark, as Tara Maharjan put together a comprehensive Storify of the event (titled Adaptable Archives: Redefine, Repurpose, and Renew) that’s the next best thing to having been there in person.

    Several new exhibits opened across the Libraries this past month:

    At the Art Library, a display of undergraduate student work from the Environmental Planning Studio of the Department of Landscape Architecture will be on view through May 31. Students in the studio were challenged to create a master plan for the Bergen County park system, and the exhibit communicates their creative solutions and work through large-scale posters.

    There's a Run in My Tights

    At Paul Robeson Library, There’s a Run in My Tights: Classic Comic Book Covers from the Golden Age and Beyond is on display through May 4. This display, which opened in advance of the 2017 Camden Comic Con, highlights superheroes such as Bat Girl, Aquaman, Luke Cage and the X-Men, as well as villains like Cat Woman and misunderstood monsters like Werewolf By Night.

    A group exhibition of works by students in the Women, Gender, and Creativity House of Douglass Residential College is on display now at Douglass Library. Students in this community explore topics of gender, sexuality, identity, creativity, perception, and visual communication of women in the arts. The exhibition highlights the self-portraits, sculptures, video performances, and written works produced by the student artists during the course of the academic year. It closes on May 1, so be sure to check this one out while you can.

    Finally, many new resources were announced in April:

    • The Andrew Hill Collection at the Institute of Jazz Studies contains the papers, music, and audiovisual recordings of acclaimed pianist, composer, bandleader, and educator Andrew Hill (1931–2007). The collection was processed as part of the 2016 Jazz Archives Fellows residency.
    • Attitude Check - Independent voices
      Attitude Check (vol. 1 no. 1, 1969) via Independent Voices.

      JAMAevidence provides guides to the systematic consideration of validity, importance, and applicability of problems and outcomes in health care. It consists of three textbooks, user tools, and forms useful to the critical appraisal process. See more in our deep dive.

    • Academic Video Online Premium provides access to over 50,000 videos from reputable producers such as BBC and PBS, mostly on the subjects of social sciences, American history/American studies, music and performing arts, science and engineering, and health sciences.
    • Independent Voices is a full-text database of alternative press periodicals published in the U.S. in the second half of the 20th century. It includes publications like Aegis (1978-87), Death Ship Times (Fat Albert’s) (1972-74), The Feminist Voice (1971-72), Meatball (1969-71), Off Our Backs (1970-76), The People’s Voice (1980-1983), San Francisco Good Times (1969-72), Up from the Bottom (1971-74), Where It’s At (1968-70), the Yardbird Reader (1972-76), and Zeitgeist (1965-69), among dozens of others.

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  • The Numbers Are in! Rutgers Giving Day Final Report

    Back in November, we reported on the preliminary Rutgers Giving Day results and the news was good. Now the final numbers from the Rutgers Foundation are in, and we are proud to say that the news is even better!

    Our initial goal was to roughly double our number of donors from the inaugural Rutgers Giving Day and reach 50 donors this year, but we wound up seeing an outpouring of support that greatly exceeded expectations—thanks in no small part to your support.

    According to the final reports, the Libraries raised a total of $16,544.22 with gifts from 172 donors—a 647% increase in the number of donors and an 829% increase in the total amount of funds raised over the previous year. These numbers include the early give phase, the day-of-phase, and the challenge money leaderboard.

    The leaderboard was used to determine how $80,000 in challenge money would be awarded across the university ($20,000 each for Rutgers–Camden, Rutgers–Newark, Rutgers–New Brunswick, and RBHS). A unit’s standing on the leaderboard was based on the number of individual donors for that unit during the day-of phase compared to the total number of donors for its “parent institution.” So, in other words, if there were 100 gifts total to Rutgers–Camden and Robeson Library received 10 gifts, it would receive a bonus 10% of the $20,000 in challenge money, or $2,000. Here’s how the leaderboard numbers broke down:

    Unit Total distinct donors Total dollars Percentage of “parent institution” leaderboard donors Challenge money awarded (of $20,000)
    Robeson Library 9 $170.00 1.66% $331.49
    Dana Library 19 $1,433.08 2.61% $521.26
    Institute of Jazz Studies 2 $65.00 0.27% $54.87
    New Brunswick Libraries 95 $11,609.99 3.21% $641.46
    RBHS Libraries 6 $300.00 0.78% $156.05

    As you can see, we have much to be proud of. Many thanks to everyone who went out of their way to set up a donation station, make support sheets available to their patrons, or give a gift of their own to support the Libraries. Our tagline for this year’s campaign was “We can do great things together,” and you’ve all made it abundantly clear that there is real meaning behind those words. Thank you!