From the Dean's Desk
Dear Friends of the Library,
It’s been a wholly unique year for us all. I’m so proud of the Library personnel for rising to a challenge, being incredibly adaptable, and flexible in what felt like an ever-changing work and living environment. When the building closed last spring, our technology teams quickly began assembling technology for all personnel, including student employees, to move to work from home. Teaching librarians expertly pivoted their in-person instruction to online and supported faculty scrambling to do the same for their courses.
The world’s attention is rightly focused on equity. In the U.S., broader awareness of anti-black racism takes hold and University Library enhances our actions to address systemic bias. The pandemic shines a light on the crucial roles of front-line workers, and the Library’s public service personnel are no exception. When we reopened in August to support a reduced number of students returning to campus, members of our technology and Access Services Team mobilized. They did so under a painstakingly crafted set of safety processes and protocols developed by our Building Reopening Task Force over numerous summer afternoons on Zoom. We reorganized work library-wide so that all had an opportunity to work some hours from home.
We instituted regular in-building safety compliance rounds and recorded data about compliance that would later allow us to make focused adjustments. For example, our data indicated that mask compliance in study rooms was below 50%, while the rest of the building typically maintained 75-80% compliance. This information allowed us to increase compliance and thereby safety by closing study rooms.
The importance of the Library’s services and space, particularly reliable internet and safe, distanced group study space, continued to be utilized despite reduced numbers of students, staff, and faculty on campus.
A quick look at some library services in 2020:
- 400,651 views of our how-to-research help webpages
- 318 in-class, how-to-research sessions taught, 92.8% of them virtual
- 858 one-on-one research consultations provided
- 952 questions answered through online chat service
- 13,239 special requested articles were delivered to researchers fulfilling 93% of all articles requested
- 18,104 hrs. worked by library student employees, earning a total of $215,598
- $128,939 awarded through 7 grants, including support of both COVID and racial justice related work
Our connection to our Indianapolis community remained in 2020 as we:
- Partnered with the Indiana Family & Social Services Administration, health science librarians answered COVID-19 related questions for Indiana clinicians, government employees, and policymakers.
- Freely-shared COVID-19-related, IUPUI-authored research articles through IUPUI ScholarWorks digital repository.
- Captured Central Indiana’s Public Health and Social Economic Welfare Response to COVID-19 by digitally archiving websites for future pandemic response before they disappear.
We’ve learned a lot this year. Innovation is born of necessity and as we set our sights on planning for a Fall 2021 that we anticipate will include more on campus activity, we will take what we’ve learned to heart to support IUPUI’s students, staff, faculty, and community through expert, high-quality research, instruction, and technology collaborations and comfortable, welcoming study and respite space.
Sincerely,
Kristi L. Palmer
Herbert Simon Dean of IUPUI University Library
COVID-19
Our hours of operation have been modified this semester. Please refer to our website for current hours.
New Atrium Sculpture
Congratulations to Xiaoman Gu, an international student studying at the Herron School of Art and Design, for creating the latest sculpture hanging in the Library’s atrium. The sculpture is titled "Academic Without Borders" and in her artist's statement Gu shares, "The form of the piece is inspired by the chemical formula of a diamond. The idea behind [using] the strongest substance 'diamond' is that the shininess a diamond reflects is like the potential application of learned knowledge that would go beyond a cubical setting."
Old books form the 1.5 ft spheres, and the red yarn that is wrapped around the bonds symbolizes the desire for learning that runs throughout humanity.
As Gu says, "the library is a place where everybody goes, regardless of how they identify themselves," the text on the atoms is the phrase 'Academic without borders' in different languages spoken on the IUPUI campus. The creation of the piece included collaboration with the IUPUI Office of International Affairs (OIA).
To see more images of the sculpture as well as images of the installation process, visit our Facebook post on Gu's work.
We hosted IUPUI's first Certified Green Event
The IUPUI Office of Sustainability announced that IUPUI University Library in conjunction with our Library Green Team, hosted the campus’ very first Certified Green event in January 2020. Our biannual Org Week event gained green certification by incorporating sustainable practices throughout the event. During Org Week, Library personnel participate in workshops and training sessions that enhance professional development.
Faculty & Staff Recognition
Our Library has some pretty awesome faculty & staff members that are constantly serving as leaders, not just at University Library, but also in the overall academic library world. Please help us celebrate recent accomplishments by our some of our beloved faculty & staff members.
- Jennifer James (Resource Acquisition and Description Team) was quoted in the Dec. issue of Associates: The Electronic Library Support Staff Journal.
- Our virtual/augmented reality lab was highlighted in the following article from "The Connected Professor."
- Gary Maixner (User Experience/Project Management Librarian) had 3 chapters published in The Library Outreach Cookbook (2020) with colleagues from his former institution, Mari Kermit-Canfield and David Scott. The book is not your average cookbook – it has a collection of 110 recipes full of activities, strategies, plans, and tips designed for librarians of all stripes working within a variety of institutions, budgets, and needs.
- Jere Odell (Scholarly Communication Library) and Lyndsey Blair’s (UL graduate student employee and Wilma Moore Scholar) poster, “The Open Access Policy Citation Advantage for a Medical School” was presented at the joint Midcontinental Chapter of the Medical Library Association/Midwest Chapter of the Medical Library Association Annual conference and received an honorable mention commendation. The poster can also be viewed on Flipgrid.
- Steve Towne (Special Collections Team) has had his work, “The Many Social Selves of an Indiana Soldier: David W. Voyles, M.D.” published in the Indiana Magazine of History. It is an introduction to another author’s edition of letters by a Civil War soldier.
- Eric Snajdr (Science Librarian), Willie Miller (Assistant Dean for Communication & Technology) and Sara Lowe (Associate Dean for Educational Services) - along with Sean Stone (IU School of Dentistry Librarian) and Bronwen Maxson (formerly of IUPUI, currently at University of Oregon) – have had a second part of their Boolean research published in the Journal of Academic Librarianship. “ Boolean redux: Performance of advanced versus simple Boolean searches and implications for upper-level instruction.”
- Caitlin Pike (Research Engagement and Scholarly Services Coordinator) has co-authored an article with faculty from IU School of Nursing in Biomed Central titled “Individualized approach to primary prevention of substance use disorder: age-related risks”. The article has also been recognized in IUPUI news.
- Liz Vine (Assistant Circulation Supervisor and Student Employment Program Coordinator) had her article “Training Matters: Student Employment and Learning in Academic Libraries” published in the open access journal In the Library with the Lead Pipe.
- Jenny Johnson (Innovative Technologies Outreach Librarian) co-authored College & Research Libraries article, “3D Data Repository Features, Best Practices, and Implications for Preservation Models: Findings from a National Forum ”.
- Rachel Hinrichs’ (Health Sciences Librarian) co-authored article “Exploring interprofessional collaboration and attitudes of health sciences librarians,” was published in the Journal of the Medical Library Association.
Saying "Goodbye" to James Baldwin
Sadly, former Head of Acquisitions for University Library, James "Jim" Baldwin passed away in December 2020. James’ obituary can be viewed online.
Happy Retirement to James Kendrick
After more than 30 years of service, “Congratulations” are in order for long-time University Library staff member James Kendrick who recently started a new chapter in his life, aptly titled “Retirement”. Before retiring in December, James was selected as one of the “50 Faces of IUPUI,” and he established a scholarship in memory of his parents. The George Webster and Odesta Kendrick scholarship will help alleviate the financial burden of students.
To honor James’ work and dedication, please give to the George Webster and Odesta Kendrick scholarship.
Digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis
The Polis Center at IUPUI (School of Informatics and Computing) is collaborating with the Indiana Historical Society, and other major Indianapolis cultural and heritage institutions and organizations including IUPUI University Library in developing an updated digital version of the Encyclopedia of Indianapolis, originally published in 1994. The digital encyclopedia will include updated content from the print version as well as new entries on people, places, events, organizations, and topics since 1994. Content will be refreshed and added continually, with the opportunity for users to suggest corrections, new entries, and add relevant information. Once launched later this year, the digital encyclopedia will be transferred to Indianapolis Public Library, which will maintain and update it as a free resource available on desktop and mobile devices.
For more information see the Digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis.
A Conversation with Author Maurice Broaddus
University Library partnered with the IUPUI Office of Alumni Relations to host a virtual event featuring Indianapolis author and IUPUI School of Science alumnus, Maurice Broaddus. Humanities Librarian and Africana Studies faculty member, Dr. Gemmicka Piper spoke to the award-wining author about his journey as an author, specifically in the Afrofuturism genre and about being a 2020 Indiana Author's Award recipient.
IU Day
IU Day is Wednesday, April 21st! If you would like to support IUPUI University Library as part of your IU Day engagement, please consider supporting students by making a gift to one of our priority funds: Unrestricted Fund or Student Opportunity Initiative Fund. Be on the lookout for more information via social media.
Library Cards for Residents
Residents of the State of Indiana aged 18 years or older can get an IUPUI University Library Borrower’s Card if they visit our Reference Desk to complete an Indiana Resident Library Card/User Agreement and provide a photo ID and proof of current address.
Would you Like to Make a Gift?
If you are interested in making a gift to University Library, contact Tanika Scott (Director of Development) at 317-278-2322 or talscott@iupui.edu. You can also visit our Make A Gift page for additional information.
Photo Caption Contest
Our monthly photo caption contest, put on by the IUPUI University Library Special Collections and Archives, is a chance to attach your funny captions to some of our favorite IUPUI photos from our huge collection. Each month, the funniest caption (as judged by the expert judges in Special Collections and Archives) wins a fabulous prize! Click the button below to add your caption to this month’s photo and review previous months.