The Agenda - Faculty and Staff Newsletter

Category: Units

  • Ex Libris Implementation Project Update – November 2017

    Ex Libris Implementation Project Update – November 2017

    In spring 2017, the Libraries decided to adopt the new library service platform (Alma and Primo) from Ex Libris. The decision was made in support of two major librarywide priorities: improving information control and optimizing collection development and management. What this means to the Libraries is that Alma will replace the current SirsiDynix system and Primo will replace both the EBSCO Discovery Service and VuFind catalog. Unlike our current configurations, Alma and Primo are fully integrated with each other. They also provide other important benefits: a unified interface to manage our entire collections of electronic and print resources, rich analytics for making better decisions about collections, the potential of improving the discovery experience of library users, and the opportunities to collaborate with other Alma/Primo libraries.

    The Ex Libris Implementation Project officially began at Rutgers in late September, when the Implementation Team was formed and met for the first time. The team includes seven members from the Libraries’ infrastructure units – Tao Yang, Abbey DiPaolo, Joseph Deodato, Chad Mills, Gracemary Smulewitz, Chris Sterback, and Mary Beth Weber, with Tao and Abbey as the co-leads. The team has had a busy and productive month: we completed and submitted to Ex Libris the Alma Implementation Form, which is the first step of the implementation process. We have also begun to work on the validation of SIRSI Symphony data extracts, creation of the project website, and development of internal goals, among other things. As a happy coincidence, the Ex Libris Northeast User Group held its annual meeting in Jersey City in mid-October, so all the team members and several other colleagues had an outing to Jersey City and learned the experiences of many libraries who have adopted Alma and Primo.

    Currently, the project is still at the pre-implementation phase, which is when the library team works with an Ex Libris consultant to get ready for the implementation. The project will kick into high gear in early December, when the implementation phase officially begins. The new system is expected to go live on June 1, 2018. Between early December and June, there will be many opportunities for library colleagues to get involved in the project and become familiar with the new system. Please stay tuned. Thank you!

    Tao Yang & Abbey DiPaolo

     

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  • Humanism in Medicine: Teaching Poetry to Residents

    I serve as the clinical medical librarian for the Internal Medicine department at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark. This means I attend the residents’ morning reports every Thursday and Friday at 8 a.m. as they discuss patient cases to help them learn how to diagnose and treat the patients they serve. When a question comes up which can be answered by an article, I look up the answer in the medical literature and the chief residents share the results with the others via Sakai. I also train the residents in searching techniques in various databases such as PubMed, Scopus, or VisualDx.

    Dr. Mirela Feurdean, internal medicine residency program director at New Jersey Medical School, approached me in September 2017 about doing something a bit different with the residents. “I know you’re a poet,” she said to me. “Would you be interested in teaching a poetry workshop to the residents?” In my personal life, I’m a published poet who teaches a weekly workshop in Jersey City, and I just published my first chapbook this year. So of course, I said yes.

    The first workshop was held at noon on September 22, alongside free pizza for the residents. The residents were a bit shy, but 11 (out of 20 or so) ended up participating. I shared handouts with them that included a poem written by an award-winning internal medicine doctor, Rafael Campo, as well as a patient. I also shared a couple articles about how to use metaphors effectively when explaining science to patients. For example, research has shown that breast cancer patients who use battle or war metaphors to describe their experience with cancer have a higher incidence of depression than those who use positive words like “challenge” or “journey.” The words we use matter. The residents wrote poems employing medical metaphors, and some even submitted their finished poems to Ars Literarium, the literary journal of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and other RBHS Schools.

    The chief residents asked me to return the following month, and on October 20, we focused on short poems, learning a bit about the form haiku. This time, virtually all 20 or so residents participated. Even if they weren’t writing themselves, they snapped their fingers or clapped their hands to celebrate each other’s work as they started to share their writing. Dr. Ahmad Al Turk was inspired to write a clever quatrain, Odgen Nash-style.

    NSAIDs work for all
    Conditions that end with –itis,
    Summer, spring, or fall,
    But don’t get fooled with gastritis!

    By Ahmad Al Turk, MD

    The medical “joke” of the poem, for those without the medical background, is that NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like aspirin or ibuprofen) can irritate the stomach and cause gastritis.

    However, not all the poems were strictly linked to medicine, and some of the doctors wrote about other aspects of their lives. One resident was inspired to share a rap he had previously written, and he nervously approached the front of the conference room. As he closed his rap, which shared a story about a patient who survived a dire medical situation, he encouraged his fellow doctors not to “go numb” as they continue their work as physicians. His fellow doctors cheered and clapped, and there were tears in the eyes of many.

    I look forward to continuing these workshops to my residents, as I hope to help them de-stress during a hectic time of their lives.

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  • How Do We Handle New Requests in the Planning Process?

    How Do We Handle New Requests in the Planning Process?

    As busy as we all are, sometimes it can be difficult to see the tremendous progress we’ve made in the last couple of years—particularly with something as diffuse as the priorities planning process. Our most recent cabinet meeting provides a snapshot of how far we’ve come.

    As indicated in cabinet minutes, earlier this year cabinet produced a set of priorities to guide our activities over the next 18 months or so. These priorities have specific projects in mind and reflect the capacity of our central units. This planning document is intended to be the scaffolding for our collective work and, by definition, we must work within its bounds. While this may sound limiting—“We only do what’s on the list!”—when it is working well, the opposite is true. A good plan enables us to take advantage of unexpected opportunities as they arise. And in recent weeks, four such opportunities have been brought to the Libraries.

    These requests are for activities that are not currently part of our plan and must be weighed against our existing commitments. Our recent discussion at Cabinet illustrates the give and take negotiations that must take place when we consider new projects or services.

    Our shared list of priorities forms the foundation of purposeful discussions about tradeoffs and how best to shift priorities to new opportunities. For example, we have been asked to create space for a new OIT Lab in Alexander Library and to provide dedicated health sciences library services at LSM. Both of these requests stem from strategic initiatives within the university. We have also been approached about integrating ORCID into our journal platform and providing ETD support for honors undergraduate theses. Each of these is a reasonable request, but they require time and effort from the same central units that support our existing weeding projects, the implementation of ExLibris, and the development of digital projects templates, among other items identified through the planning process.

    Cabinet considered the source of the requests; the anticipated benefit to local users; staffing and capacity in the central Libraries units; the amount of development vs. coordination required; and more, before deciding which opportunities to pursue. The outcomes, communicated in the minutes, are to move forward with adding ORCID iDs to the Open Journal System workflow and to shift weeding priorities to accommodate the deadlines for the Alexander OIT Lab and the LSM renovations. We also decided to hold off on the development of honors ETDs process.

    This is not because including honors theses in RUCore is a bad idea—we simply don’t have capacity this year and we have other priorities to complete. But this is where the planning process kicks in. A local need has been identified, and while we don’t have capacity to follow through this year, the proposal will be moved forward to next year’s planning process for consideration.

    No doubt, there will be additional requests from the university and additional local needs identified throughout the year. In fact, I would argue that the level of attention we are receiving from the university is an indicator of the important role of the Libraries on campus. We are viewed as strong partners and collaborators, our spaces are appreciated student resources, and our services are recognized as key to student success.

    Thankfully, we now have a planning model that allows us to assess these opportunities in objective, realistic, and equitable ways that balance the needs of Camden, Newark, New Brunswick, and RBHS. We must continue to take on high priority projects for the university, but we must also make sure we have the capacity, technology, and resources to succeed. The only thing worse than saying “not now,” is saying “yes,” and not completing the task. These types of discussions are much easier to have when we have a shared understanding of priorities and capacity.

  • Rutgers Hosts Nobel Laureate for 14th Annual Weisse Lecture (with some librarian help!)

    On September 19, 2017, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School (NJMS) hosted the 14th Annual Weisse Lecture on the History of Medicine. This year’s Weisse Lecturer was Dr. William C. Campbell, who shared the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine with Dr. Satoshi Omura of Japan “for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites.”

    In his presentation, “Finding Medication: Ivermectin and Beyond,” Dr. Campbell recounted the story of Ivermectin’s development and its antiparasitic uses in both animal and human health. A single pill taken yearly is preventative against river blindness (onchocerciasis), a disease found in South America, Africa, and Yemen. Since 1988, Merck has donated the drug (under the name Mectizan) for distribution within affected regions, and river blindness has been eliminated in most South American countries, with efforts to eliminate the disease in Africa still ongoing. In what he termed a “tirade,” Dr. Campbell stressed the need for much more drug discovery in an era of increasing drug resistance. He concluded his presentation with charming photographs and stories about the Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquets in Stockholm.

    Since its inception in 2004, the Weisse Lecture has been overseen by Dr. Allen Weisse. He and his wife Dr. Laura Weisse have endowed the lecture, which is presented as a grand rounds by the NJMS Department of Medicine. Previous Weisse Lectures have featured prominent medical historians and physician-historians, including T. Jock Murray, Michael Bliss, Barron Lerner, and Nancy Tomes. Dr. Allen Weisse himself is an accomplished physician-historian, having published two volumes of oral histories (Conversations in Medicine, and Heart to Heart) and several volumes of essays on medical history.

    Caption: Nobel Laureate (left) and librarian (right). Photo credit: Devayani Kumaran, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.

    In 2016, Dr. Weisse designated me to assume the role of Weisse Lecture Coordinator. Over this past year, he and I worked together to organize this year’s lecture and luncheon. My duties ranged from choosing the luncheon menu with the caterer, to chauffeuring the Nobel Laureate to NJMS and back to the train station. Best of all, I had the honor of introducing Dr. Campbell to the standing-room-only crowd. I made sure to emphasize that even though he was born in Ireland, was educated at Trinity College in Dublin and the University of Wisconsin, and is now living in Massachusetts, his true home state is New Jersey. Both Dr. Weisse and Dr. Campbell served as presidents of the Medical History Society of New Jersey, an organization I have also actively supported, which has actively supported both Special Collections and me as well!

    With the support of colleagues in the NJMS Department of Medicine, I am assuming responsibility for the Weisse Lecture going forward. The annual Weisse Lecture is the premier medical history event at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Thanks to the generosity of Dr. Allen Weisse and Dr. Laura Weisse, and their love of medical history, the Weisse Lecture series is well positioned for a long and successful future.

  • The Budget Process and Library Impact on Student Outcomes

    With the last of the Welcome Days events now completed and the start of the fall semester fully complete, it is time to turn our attention to another annual tradition: the preparation of our annual budget request.

    Each year, we are asked to put together a budget request for the following fiscal year, so this October we are in the process of requesting budgets for 2018–2019. The budget process has changed quite a bit in the last few years. Historically, budgets were distributed through the ‘all funds’ budget process in which the ‘administration’ made decisions about how best to allocate resources. The process was not transparent, and in the last few years of the all funds process, the Libraries did not fare well.

    The shift to the RCM model may have been turbulent, but the result is a much more transparent budget process and a way for us to request needed funds. In fact, anyone can view a lot of detail related to the sources of allocations to cost centers (including the Libraries) at budget.rutgers.edu. In addition to being more transparent, RCM has moved decision-making from ‘administration’ to the chancellors and the chancellors are now in the process of engaging the deans.  This means that more of the budget decisions are being made by people who use our resources and services.

    I have now participated in two budget requests through the RCM process with some success (see reports on FY2017 and FY2018 requests). It is clear that the chancellors face difficult decisions in allocating funds because of competing factors, including other cost centers such as Student Affairs and Facilities and internal needs such as new faculty and startup packages.

    During this process, the Libraries are asked to provide a description of our services. We routinely include figures that demonstrate our impact on students or the use of our resources (such as the estimated savings of the OAT Program, the use of resources, or the cost per use for journal articles), so we know it is helpful to have strong evidence that Libraries make a difference. However, because of the complexity of the educational environment, it has been difficult to measure the impact that libraries have on student success.

    That is what makes this news out of the University of Minnesota so exciting.

    The Impact of Academic Library Resources on Undergraduates’ Degree Completion: https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.78.6.812

    A large, rigorous study by the University of Minnesota—“The Impact of Academic Library Resources on Undergraduates’ Degree Completion”—assessed whether first-year students who used the library at least once during their first year were more likely to graduate or continue to be enrolled in four years (indicating progress towards degree completion).

    The survey followed the 2011 entering class of 5,368 students, controlling for factors related to differences in students, including first-generation, socioeconomic status, participation in support programs for underrepresented students, on-campus vs. off-campus housing, SAT scores, AP courses taken, and enrolled college.

    They analyzed the students’ records to determine if they had used at least one of five major library services—borrowing books (including interlibrary loan and ebooks), using electronic resources, using a computer workstation, enrolling in library instruction, or asking a reference question—in their first academic year

    The results indicate that, overall, first-year students who used any of the library services at least once during their first year of enrollment were nearly 40% more likely to be enrolled in four years or 44% more likely to have graduated in four years than peers who did not use any library resources.

    Further analysis of the individual services showed that first-year students who used:

    • electronic resources at least once in their first year, were 45% more likely to continue to be enrolled and nearly twice as likely to graduate;
    • books at least once in their first year, were 34% more likely to graduate in four years; or,
    • instruction, either by enrolling for a class or having library instruction embedded in classes, were 40% more likely to continue to be enrolled after four years.

    There was no significant relationship with the use of workstations, reinforcing the fact that workstations are simply a tool. There was also no significant relationship with the use of reference services (including chat), perhaps because a very low number of students—only 5%—used this service.

    This survey is a tremendous accomplishment and is directly relevant to our work, in part because of the parallels between Rutgers and the University of Minnesota.  Like us, UMN is a large public land-grant institution and member of the Big10. I hope you will take time to read the report and think about how its findings might be useful to what we do and how we do it. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.

    These findings couldn’t arrive at a better time! Although I have never been asked to prove the value of the Libraries during the budget request process, evidence of library impact on student outcomes will be very useful in our budget request and I hope to have good news for the Libraries later this year when we receive our budget allocation.

  • University and City Celebrate 150 Years of Friendship with Fukui, Japan

    This week, Rutgers University Libraries and other New Brunswick institutions will welcome a delegation from Japan as part of the New Brunswick Sister Cities project. Fernanda Perrone is vice president of the group and has invited the delegation to visit Alexander Library and will give a presentation related to the Griffis Collection. The Global Experience Team is sponsoring refreshments after the presentation. If you are interested in learning more about this event, please contact Fernanda.

    Seems like a good time to revisit this terrific video:

     

    Sister Cities  Project Press Release:

    One hundred and fifty years ago, a young samurai from the province of Echizen (today Fukui prefecture) in the far west of Japan came to New Brunswick with the goal of entering Rutgers College. Kusakabe Taro arrived fired with the desire to “fulfill my duty to the Imperial realm by clarifying the defects in the relations between us Japanese and the foreigners in the light of the international law of all nations and universal principles.” Ranked number one in his class, Kusakabe became the first Japanese to graduate from Rutgers College, the first to become a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and, along with Niijima Jo at Amherst, the first to graduate from an American college. Tragically, Kusakabe died of tuberculosis on April 13, 1870, only weeks before commencement. He is buried in the Willow Grove Cemetery in New Brunswick along with seven other young Japanese. The following year, Kusakabe’s friend and classmate William Elliot Griffis traveled to Fukui to introduce Western-style educational methods into the local school system. Griffis would spend four years in Japan and a lifetime writing, teaching, and collecting information about Japan. His collection was bequeathed to the Rutgers University Libraries in 1928.

    Indeed Rutgers was an important destination for international students from Japan during the nineteenth century. Many of those who studied at Rutgers returned to Japan to become leaders in education, industry, and commerce. Although the last of this early group of Japanese students attended Rutgers in the 1920s, the relationship between the university and Fukui was re-discovered in the late 1950s by Rutgers administrator and professor of political science Ardath Burks. Working closely with the city of New Brunswick, programs and exchanges were initiated, and the William Elliot Griffis collection was organized and made available to the public. Rutgers and Fukui Universities became sister universities in 1981, and in 1982 New Brunswick and Fukui became sister cities. As well as the 150th anniversary of Kusakabe’s arrival, 2017 marks the 35th anniversary of the sister cities relationship.

    From October 4 to 7, New Brunswick will welcome a large delegation from the city of Fukui including the mayor and members of the City Council, members of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, and members of the Fukui International Citizens Association. Among the events planned are a Buddhist ceremony at Kusakabe’s grave on Thursday, October 5 and a lecture on “Kusakabe and His Friends,” which will held at Alexander Library on Friday, October 6. The delegation will also visit the Zimmerli Art Museum and the new Johnson and Johnson Museum and be entertained by the Rutgers Centers for Global Advancement and International Affairs, Rutgers Community Affairs, and Rutgers University Libraries at Rutgers University–New Brunswick. The Fukui Junior Chamber of Commerce will accompany two middle-school students who have written the best essays of the year about Kusakabe Taro. These children will have a chance to visit the New Brunswick Middle School and meet with their contemporaries there.

    In November 2017, New Brunswick mayor James Cahill will lead a delegation from New Brunswick to visit Fukui.

  • This Month in the Agenda: October 1984

    Welcome to the newest regular feature of the Agenda. In “This Month in the Agenda,” we’ll explore highlights from this month in the history of Rutgers University Libraries. For the inaugural column, we’ll travel back in time 33 years to October 1984. What news was buzzing around the Libraries?

    My, How the Times Have Changed
    A five year summary of library statistics spanning FY 79/80 to FY 83/84.
    East Asian Library Making Waves

    The East Asian Library and the International Center have received $14,000 from the New Jersey Department of Higher Education to establish an in-house automated information and delivery service to support East Asian research and curriculum development at Rutgers and within the New Jersey State Colleges System.

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 40 (October 1, 1984).

    Dinner, Anyone?

    Name the Libraries’ integrated system, commonly known as Geac, and win a dinner at The Frog and the Peach in New Brunswick.

    The online system now includes cataloging and circulation elements, but the name should be flexible enough to cover all additional subsystems as well as the online catalog

    Submit names to Kamala Truscott, Library Administration by October 31.

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 41 (October 8, 1984).

    The DeWitt Library Society of the Rutgers University Libraries invites you to share in the pleasure of an evening celebrating good books on Tuesday, November 13, 1984. The festivities celebrate the completion of a very successful year for our National Endowment for the Humanities Challenge Grant.

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 43 (October 22, 1984).

    Movin’ On Up

    Changes in Position

    Timothy Corlis, Library Assistant II, Central Technical Services

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 41 (October 8, 1984).

    Cabinet Report

    Edelman: Working on Title II-C proposals in Special Collections: Consumer Archive, Latin American Archive, Afro-American Archive. Proposal deadline is November 1. Reported on meeting to be held regarding Performance Appraisals. Discussed METRO: G. Neely will attend meeting on 10/25. Senator Case’s furniture to leave the Librarian’s office; to be placed in Special Collections Seminar Room.

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 43 (October 22, 1984).

    Spam Filter Needed

    Campus mail is designed to be used for University business between departments of the University. Campus mail should not be used for transport of personal mail, chain letters or other unauthorized uses. Employees who make unauthorized use of campus mail may be subject to reprimand.

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 43 (October 22, 1984).

    On Exhibit

    Elizabeth Cady Stanton Materials, Mabel Smith Douglass Library

    Through December 1 – “American Presidential Elections, 1904–1984,” Department of Special Collections, Archibald S. Alexander Library

    Through November 7 – Wood Sculpture and Drawings by Jane Teller, Mabel Smith Douglass Library

    –Weekly Agenda 6, no. 43 (October 22, 1984).

    Hopefully you’ve enjoyed this glimpse into the Libraries’ past! Special thanks to Erica Parin for her idea to start this column.

    Please send comments or suggestions about “This Month in the Agenda” to Matt Badessa.

  • Mid-Atlantic Futures Conference Report

    • Irina Radeva (r) and SC&I scholarship recipients.

    Last week, I attended the Mid-Atlantic Futures Conference held in Atlantic City, NJ. Four other School of Communication and Information students and I attended this exciting two-day event thanks to a scholarship provided by the Library and Information Science Department and were accompanied by two SC&I instructors, Dr. Ross Todd and Dr. Joyce Valenza. The gathering was a great way to come together with like-minded library professionals and discover how libraries can thrive in a world full of ever-changing technology and vast information.

    The main question posed by the conference was, “How do we predict the future?” Among those trying to answer were keynote speakers Kevin Mitnick, the most elusive computer hacker in history; David Pescovitz, the research director at the Institute of the Future; Nicole Baker Rosa from the Future Schools; and Rutgers’ own Dr. James Hughes, University Professor and former dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. Each speaker touched on the importance of knowing what libraries are and what they stand for, as well as keeping their eyes open not for trends, but for patterns that will point to the next big thing. There was a lot of discussion about artificial intelligence and virtual and augmented reality, and how they will affect both libraries and society. Acceleration strategist Phil Bowermaster proposed that the convergence of information and society is accelerating change, while communication specialist Rakia Reynolds shared a communication strategy that is both noticeable and disruptive.  Finally, Cindy Ball from Oculus Rift gave a demonstration of a virtual reality future that may be much closer than we think.

    So, how do we predict the future? We create it–with knowledge and imagination.

    I would like to thank Lilia Pavlovsky, director of the Master of Information program, who facilitated this opportunity for me, as well as Andy Martinez and Janet Croft for giving me approval to attend.

  • Quick Takes on Events and News – October 2017

    Chicago-Bound for Research Data Summit

    Congratulations to Yingting Zhang whose application for the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries’ Data Scholarship has been accepted. The award will support Yingting’s participation in the Research Data Access and Preservation Summit next year in Chicago. We look forward to hearing Yingting’s report from the conference!

    Fight the Flu. Get Your Shot!

    Don’t forget that Occupational Health will be providing flu shots for employees on Wednesday, October 4 from 11 a.m. to noon in the Pane Room of Alexander Library.

    Please RSVP to Michele Petosa at petosa@rutgers.edu by October 2. Be sure to download the consent form at http://occhealth.rutgers.edu/FluVaccine2017.html, print, complete, and bring it with you.

    It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s—The Artists’ Bookmobile!
    Peter and Donna Thomas return to Rutgers with their Artists’ Bookmobile on October 4.

    Rutgers University Libraries and art librarian Megan Lotts are delighted to welcome Peter and Donna Thomas and their traveling Artists’ Bookmobile back to Rutgers. Peter and Donna are known for their workshops in paper and book arts. Visit the Artists’ Bookmobile—a self-contained exhibit of book arts—and learn how they make their books. Join in a book arts sing along at 3 p.m. featuring a ukulele book.

    The Bookmobile will be parked outside Alexander Library on October 4 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. See you there!

    Carr is Cutting the Ribbon

    Join us on Tuesday, October 17 at 10 a.m. as we dedicate the James Dickson Carr Library in honor of Rutgers University’s first African American graduate. The program includes remarks by Rutgers–New Brunswick chancellor Debasish Dutta, an exhibit of materials about Carr and the history of the former Kilmer Library, as well as a reception. Please register to attend at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/carr-library-dedication-ceremony-registration-38281939311.

    #RutgersDana50 Kicks Off on a High Note

    Dana Library kicked off its 50th anniversary celebration with a birthday bash during Rutgers–Newark’s Fall Fest in September. The festivities included cupcakes and a live performance by hip-hop/jazz fusion band Nickel and Dime OPS. Check out a clip of the band courtesy of @RUNewark_Dana on Twitter.

    Exploring the Wonderful World of Illusions

    Thomas V. Papathomas, director of the Rutgers Laboratory of Vision Research, visited the Library of Science and Medicine last week for a special presentation on optical illusions, how our minds process perspective, and even how illusions can be used as accurate measures of schizophrenia.

    Aiding the Relief Effort in Puerto Rico

    Alexander and Dana Libraries hosted open data editathons last week in response to the Red Cross’s request for geospatial data to help with their relief operations on the island. Participants mapped from pre-hurricane imagery to give those involved in the relief efforts an operating picture of the island before the storm made impact. Kudos to our colleagues Francesca Giannetti and Krista White for their part in bringing this program together so quickly!

    New Video for Banned Books Week

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  • The Rutgers University Libraries Website Style Guide from Integrated Information Systems

    The Rutgers University Libraries Website style guide explains the rules and conventions that go into defining typography and the appearance of website elements on our website. Its goal is to provide a cohesive and coherent experience for website users and content creators. An internal style guide has been in existence since the redesign of the libraries’ website in June 2013. However, growing demand for custom content from colleagues and requests for mini-sites, established a need to make the style guide available to users across the libraries. Not everyone knows – or should be expected to know – how to create a webpage. The style guide provides a clear idea of what to expect when, for example, you want to display tabular data or, have an article on the website that uses pull quotes. Content creators amongst our library colleagues can use it when visualizing their pages. Developers can use it as a reference when coding new pages. It functions as a common reference for both.

    On a technical level, the style guide is structured such that it provides an example of the treatment of a website element, followed by the CSS code used to style the element, and the HTML code that displays it in the browser. On a general, stylistic level, it defines how pages are structured on the website, such as addressing questions regarding the appearance and location of navigational links within a mini-site. It also informs us about overarching style rules that users might be interested in knowing, such as the font family (Droid Sans) and generic typeface (sans-serif) that body copy defaults to throughout the site.

    The developers and designers in Integrated Information Systems are available to create webpages that use the style guide as a guideline, rather than a limitation, with possibilities for creativity and experimentation, to build the best experience for our users and our colleagues.

    Access the website style guide here: https://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/styleguide