THE FUTURE OF INFORMATION LITERACY: EFFICIENT, EFFECTIVE AND EQUITABLE

Purdue has made amazing progress with information literacy in the past few years! Few, if any, research institutions have prioritized and adopted information literacy to the extent that we have. This is largely because of a fortunate confluence of circumstances. The Libraries’ emphasis on information literacy as one of the three strategic plan pillars and through new hires in information literacy was critical. Significant opportunities then emerged with the development of the University core curriculum and the IMPACT program with Libraries faculty leadership. Through their influence, information literacy became a core learning outcome for all undergraduates both at a foundational level and as one embedded within disciplines! Libraries faculty have been leaders from the beginning in creating a Purdue-customized approach to student learning through the IMPACT program that integrates information literacy in course re-designs.

I believe that integration into curricula is the ideal way to approach information literacy. Students learn to apply information literacy best when it happens in the context of their courses and assignments. They are then more likely to transfer what they learn about finding and using information to other situations. Our Libraries faculty are working with course faculty in IMPACT and the core curriculum courses to help them understand how to integrate information literacy. Course faculty can then apply this understanding elsewhere and influence colleagues and graduate student teaching assistants. Not only is this approach effective, it is also equitable. The ratio of Libraries faculty who are involved with information literacy (around 20) to Purdue faculty (2500) and undergrads (30,000) is not sufficient for us to reach all students ourselves with a comprehensive and progressive approach. Any other approach would, in effect, privilege certain groups. Like many other academic libraries, we must find a way to teach information literacy to all of our students in a way that is both effective and efficient. Curriculum integration is the way to accomplish that. By teaching the teachers of courses, we are developing people who are knowledgeable about information literacy and who influence thousands of students, far more than we could by ourselves. We are the expert consultants, the information literacy pedagogy and theory experts and the campus information literacy leaders. Efficient, effective and equitable!

Sharon Weiner, W. Wayne Booker Chair in Information Literacy and professor of Library Science, introduces 2013 Information Literacy Research Symposium speaker, Mary Somerville, to attendees at the Purdue event held in October.

ORCID GRANT ENABLES PURDUE LIBRARIES TO CONNECT SCIENTISTS TO THEIR RESEARCH

As announced in Purdue News the Purdue University Libraries through its Distributed Data Curation Center (D2C2) is helping connect scientists to their research by participating in Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID), a nonprofit organization that registers researchers' identities and links them across different systems that manage scholarly information.

The connection associates researchers with their publications, grants and patents. ORCID also helps researchers, especially those with common names, to get appropriate credit for use of their work. For example, ORCID can enable people to search for the published work of a specific individual named "John Smith" without the ambiguity of different spellings or mixing up works from other authors who have the same name.

ORCID is working with major research institutions, funding agencies, publishers and professional societies to establish and link identities across different systems and publications.

It is free for researchers to register for an ORCID identifier and associate it with their publications, grants and patents. Researchers own their identifiers, which they keep for their entire academic career as they move from one institution to another.

With funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Purdue Libraries will encourage adoption of ORCID by integrating it into HUBzero, an open source software platform that was developed at Purdue for creating dynamic websites that support scientific research and educational activities.

"Integrating ORCID with HUBzero will enable hundreds of thousands of hub users to register their identifiers and make it easier for people to find their scholarly output,” said Michael Witt, an associate professor of library science, who is leading the effort at Purdue.

ORCID functionality will be piloted and tested on three hubs: the Purdue University Research Repository (PURR), nanoHUB.org, and HABRI Central — and then become available to more than 50 other hubs in September 2014.

LIBRARIES EXTENDED HOURS CALLOUT

The end of the semester is almost here and once again, in support of student success (and our strategic goal of Learning), we will extend hours in four of our libraries: Engineering (ENGR) and Hicks will be open 24-hours beginning Sunday, December 1. Humanities, Social Science and Education (HSSE) and Parrish will extend hours beginning Friday, December 6 through Finals week. All other libraries will remain open regular hours.

This schedule will have participating libraries open for many additional hours and staff are needed to help cover some of the extended hours. No reference experience is required. Training in circulation, building and emergency procedures and food and drink policies will be provided if necessary. Typically, shifts are scheduled to allow for maximum coverage. If possible, a regular staff member will be present for each shift. 

ENGR is seeking staff from throughout Purdue Libraries
Monday — Friday midnight–8 a.m.
Friday 6 p.m. — Saturday 11 a.m.
Saturday 5 p.m.— Sunday 11 a.m.
Contact Amanda Gill, gill3@purdue.edu

Hicks is seeking staff from throughout Purdue Libraries
Monday — Friday 2–7 a.m. 
Friday 6 p.m. — Saturday 1 p.m.
Saturday 6 p.m. — Sunday 1 p.m.
Contact RaeLynn Boes, rboes@purdue.edu

HSSE (HSSE staff/faculty — work with Linda Rose to cover extended hours)

Parrish (Parrish staff/faculty — work with RaeLynn Boes to cover extended hours)

If you are interested in participating or have questions, please send an email by Friday, November 22 to Amanda Gill for ENGR or RaeLynn Boes for Hicks.

Now that the Hicks ground floor is normally accessible 24/7 via PUID card swipe, the extended portion of the 24/7 library allows for access to the basement level and group study rooms. Staff are still needed for these two weeks, as the normal PSSP shifts are understandably not as reliable during prep week and finals week.

A combination of overtime and flex scheduling is possible, consistent with the pay period and supervisor’s permission. Biweekly staff and monthly non-exempt staff members who work hours in excess of 40 in a workweek (Monday through Sunday) will be paid time-and-a-half. No employee may work more than 16 hours (regular and overtime) in a 24-hour period. The maximum overtime an employee may work in any workweek is 20 hours. Monthly exempt staff and faculty could adjust their schedules as appropriate.

Thank you so much to everyone who has helped keep the Libraries open in the past and to new volunteers who are able to contribute a few hours of time at the end of this semester. Please respond to the appropriate person by the November 22 deadline. This greatly appreciated initiative would not be possible without your help!

For a list of all library hours check the Libraries Home page or click here.

50 YEAR COMMEMORATIVE DISPLAY OF JFK ASSASSINATION AT HSSE LIBRARY

The eye catching display includes newspaper articles published at the time of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, pictures of JFK and covers from books about Kennedy’s life and the assassination. The display brings back poignant memories for those alive at the time while educating those of younger generations. For all ages, it serves as a reminder of how the whole world can change in a heartbeat. The display was designed by and much of the contents were contributed by Kay Schurr.

Photo by Patrick Whalen, HSSE Library

PURDUE LIBRARIES PARTICIPATES IN NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

November is Native American Heritage month and the Purdue University Libraries worked with Felica Ahasteen-Bryant, Director of the Native American Educational and Cultural Center, to create display cases in the following Purdue Libraries to recognize and honor the Native American culture. The displays will remain up through November.

Engineering Library
Display focuses on Native engineers, including Mary Golda Ross and John Herrington, and Purdue AISES chapter. A variety of Native artwork is also included. Created by Sandy Galloway.

HSSE Library
Display focuses on the Navajo including Navajo books and artwork. Created by Patrick Whalen.

Physics Library
Display focuses on the universe, specifically Native American legends related to stars and constellations. Created by Becky Hunt.

Chemistry Library
Display focuses on sustainable and renewable energy. Includes posters, pictures and articles on current events taking place in Native communities. Created by Becky Hunt.

Hicks Undergraduate Library
Display shows a selection of titles available in the media collection that highlight several areas of Native American history, culture and portrayals in popular film. The corresponding LibGuide has also been updated to reflect recent acquisitions. Created by Ann O’Donnell.

For a list of this month's events visit the Native American Educational and Cultural Center's website.

Photo by Sandy Galloway, Engineering Library

LIBRARIES NEW STAFF

Nastasha Johnson
Physical and Mathematical Sciences Information Specialist

I bring you greetings from Greensboro, North Carolina. I am very excited to be here at Purdue University, and am still humbled at the opportunity to work with such a trailblazing library and institution. So much so, in the middle of October, I boarded an airplane headed north with two bags, a smile and no warm coat! But, luckily, I am a quick learner.

Looking ahead, I relish in the opportunity to work with the undergraduate and graduate students and faculty of the Math, Physics and Statistics departments. I also look forward to working with Michael Fosmire, Megan Sapp Nelson and all of the other members and departments of the PSET Division. At my former institution, I was departmental liaison for the Mathematics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computational Engineering and Liberal Studies Departments. I built some great relationships there and look forward to building even more here.

My first pivotal library position was as a teen library specialist in a public library. I can still organize a video game tournament in my sleep. What also remains with me from that position was the importance of advocacy for our customers and for Libraries as a whole. Many of the skills that I learned there about building partnerships with donors and constituents I still carry with me today. Despite the obvious differences between being a teen librarian and a STEM Librarian, a lot of the intangible and soft skills remain the same, like being mission-driven and adapting to change.

When I describe my current position to people outside of Libraries, I say that my job is to “teach and innovate.” I will build upon the work done with course-level information literacy and embedded librarianship. I will think “inside of the box” by building on what has been done, but I will also think “outside of the box” by forwarding the mission of the Libraries and the University into new territory. I’m really excited about the opportunities here and look forward to great things with this Library team.

On a personal note, my 10-year old son, Ajani, is here with me now and my very supportive husband, Jamie, will join us very soon hopefully.

I can be found in Room 350 of the Math Library or Room 290 of the Physics Library. I can be contacted at nejohnson@purdue.edu or 49-44851.

Marcy Wilhelm-South
Digital Repository Specialist
HABRI Central & Purdue e-Pubs

I was excited to start my new position with the Purdue University Press and Libraries on September 3. Even with the week being a shortened by Labor Day, before my first week was over, I had already been thrown into a conference alongside traditional orientation and training activities — I hit the ground running, but enjoyed every moment of it. With HABRI Central, I work to manage the repository and increase content offerings of the site, including adding resources freely available and licensing permissions for copyrighted material. In Purdue e-Pubs, I assist Dave Scherer with the repository, including managing the student workers. Temporarily, my office is on the third floor of HSSE, though I’ll eventually be moving into the Press office area.

Before coming to Purdue, I worked at the Butler University Irwin Library for six years in the circulation department, where I supervised students, managed circulation and stacks maintenance projects, and assisted with deposit activities in the repository (in between the customer service activities that come with the territory of circulation). In my free time, I worked a second job at Bath and Body Works, the preview-sized remnants of which will likely be found on my desk for years to come.

I went to Butler for my undergrad, where I majored in journalism and Spanish and was involved in the online campus news source, the student yearbook, and the marching and basketball bands and the band service sorority. I earned my MLS from SLIS-IUPUI, where I had some involvement with ALISS and had the opportunity to complete an internship through Databib under Michael Witt. Between my coursework and projects through SLIS and the work I was doing with the repository at Butler, I became interested in open access work and initiatives, which is what primarily drew me to the Digital Repository Specialist position.

Originally, I’m from Arcola, Indiana (not to be confused with Arcola, Illinois, which is apparently known for its Lawn Rangers precision lawn mower drill team; the Arcola I call home is known only for its tractor pulls). I grew up next door to my grandparents on the family farm, though I fortunately escaped many of the farm-related chores that I listened to my dad and his brothers complain about — I never milked a cow before going to school, and the closest I’ve been to driving a tractor was the time my dad tried to put me on the riding lawn mower to get me ready for driver’s ed when I was 15 (I ran over a shrub of a tree, proving that the other Arcola would have no interest in me anyway). I recently moved from Indianapolis to Thorntown with my husband and, on weekends, step-daughter. In my free time, I enjoy reading, writing, knitting and watching TV shows and movies I’ve already seen a million times (partly because they allow me to multi-task). I’m also known for my love of Steak ‘n Shake, which is probably something that should make me sad but actually doesn’t; I like being known as a girl who’s always down for a Frisco melt and a milkshake.

Until I’m relocated to the Press area you can find me in STEW 358 of the HSSE Library and contact me at wilhelms@purdue.edu or 49-46311.

OCTOBER'S SMILE AWARD

Joette Hutchcraft’s name was randomly drawn from all those who were SMILED upon in October. She received a $25 Von's Book Shop gift certificate.

All faculty, administrators and staff are invited to send a note of appreciation for a kindness or thoughtfulness given, assistance provided to or by a Libraries, Press or Copyright Office colleague.

To learn more about how to participate in our SMILE Program, please visit and bookmark this page on the Libraries Intranet: http://intranet.lib.purdue.edu/display/HR/SMILE+Program.

LIBRARIES STAFF A-Z