Monthly Archives: July 2023

July Library Office Notes

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

FACILITIES NEWS

HR NEWS

EVENTS AND TRAINING

ANNOUNCEMENTS: University Librarian Note

I have so enjoyed the conversations we have been having in my first month here at Illinois, and I look forward to our upcoming academic year with excitement, pride, and a sense of optimism: we really are well-positioned to build on our excellent history of leadership, and to deepen our collaborations across the university.

Unfortunately, as I was writing this edition of my note, the United States Supreme Court had just handed down a set of decisions in two affirmative action cases that will strike a heavy blow to our ability to continue to build a more diverse and representative student body. Read more…

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Library Building Project Update – 7/1/23
Tom Teper, Associate University Librarian for Collections and Technical Services | Project Manager, Library Building Project

General Update

As discussed at the June Library Hang-Out, the project to renovate the Undergraduate Library and transform it into the Archives and Special Collections Building ran into two delays during the 100% drawing review. In essence, Library and campus personnel objected to the status of two parts of the 100% proposal – the state of the AV/IT portion of the submission and the proposed HVAC system. Without relaying extensive detail, both Technology Services and Library IT personnel objected to the completeness of the AV/IT submittal. The recurring problem of the IT sub-consultant not making requested changes came to a head at this point. The second reason for the delay centered on objections to the proposed HVAC system. In essence, the system was projected to be far too energy and maintenance intensive for the value that it returned. After a series of meetings and redesigns, the mechanical sub-consultants and the architects developed a revised system in consultation with F&S personnel. This new system was developed and included in a revised 100% submittal.

The revised construction documents were submitted on June 8, 2023. Comments on the revisions were submitted one week later and design comment review meetings were held on June 16th and 20th, 2023. By June 22nd, all revisions were completed, and the final documents were posted for competitive bid. A pre-bid meeting was held on June 29th and the first of two walk-throughs was held for prospective bidders on the same day.

The anticipated schedule through the target date for start of construction is as follows:

As noted in previous updates, members of the Special Collections Division are working diligently with representatives of Bradford Systems and SpaceSaver to finalize a shelving layout for the facility. Meeting roughly every other week, this group made great progress on zeroing in on a final shelving layout.

A third stream of meetings is occurring around finalizing the furniture package for the building. This will be advanced further in July 2023 in order to take advantage of state-negotiated IPHEC (Illinois Public Higher Education Cooperative) pricing.

Other Activities

Personnel within the Library continue to meet on a bi-weekly basis to touch base on progress, and members of the Library’s Administration continue meeting with Capital Programs’ project team on a weekly basis to touch base and monitor progress associated with this project.

Efforts to barcode and improve inventory management continue. The Special Collections Division is continuing work related to their opening exhibit. As noted, work on the shelving layout continues. Once done, members of the units will need to start preparing models for where specific portions of the collection will sit in the planned shelving layouts in preparation for an eventual move of library and archival collections into the facility.

Proposed Project Schedule

As the project progresses, the schedule becomes increasingly more detailed and accurate going forward. At present, the schedule below outlines dates going forward for the development of construction documents (CD), their review, the bidding and negotiation phase, construction, and post-construction. This schedule was updated and is accurate as of June 8th, 2022.

We anticipate changes to be released once final bids are received and negotiations are concluded with the successful bidders. At present, however, we anticipate a construction period of approximately 18 – 20 months from the start of construction.

Communications

Individuals may have noticed the following news item related to the anticipated name change for the building: illinoisnewsroom.org/university-of-illinois-library-has-a-new-name/. All building name changes require Board of Trustees approval, and the item appeared in the May BOT meeting schedule.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: IOPN Updates
Dan Tracy, Head of Scholarly Communication and Publishing

  • The journal Research on Diversity in Youth Literature has published its first issue with IOPN journals after moving to the University of Illinois with iSchool faculty member Sarah Park Dahlen. Issue 5.1 is a special issue focused on Diversity in Graphic Novels.
  • The Illinois Open Publishing Network (IOPN) has released the beta version of a scholarly digital edition of Tropic Death by Eric Walrond. Originally published during the Harlem Renaissance, Tropic Death is a collection of short stories featuring Afro-Caribbean life and dialect. In addition to a reading copy of the original 1926 edition, the new edition by Ryan Weberling and Caitlyn Georgiou features textual comparisons of stories that Walrond significantly revised after their magazine publications, and a glossary of slang used in the stories.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Cheers for Peers
To view the full Cheers for Peers submissions please view the Growing People blog.

Library Human Resources is happy to announce this month’s Cheers for Peers submissions. The following Library employees have been cheered by their peers:

  • Theresa Appiah
  • Susan Breakenridge
  • Emma Frieden
  • Jennifer Gavel
  • Hanna Lafond-Hyman
  • Chad Lewis
  • Jake MacGregor
  • Norris Purdy
  • Katie Slough
  • Shelby Strommer
  • Rebecca Wright

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Update
Victor Jones, Jr., Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

Check back next month for an update from Victor and please see the DEIA Office Hour below.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Collection Development Committee Notes
The most recent meetings minutes of the CDC are posted at:
https://www.library.illinois.edu/staff/committee/collection-development-committee/

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Content Access Policy & Technology Meeting Minutes
The meeting minutes of CAPT (including workgroup reports) are posted at:
https://www.library.illinois.edu/staff/committee/content-access-policy-technology-capt/

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ANNOUNCEMENTS: Recognizing Excellence

Please share your award, recognition, or grant! To initiate a request for publicity, employees (or their supervisors) should submit this Awards/Recognitions/Grants Publicity Request Form.

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FACILITIES NEWS: Facilities Update

For a complete list of projects in planning and construction, please
see wordpress.library.illinois.edu/staff/facilities.

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HR NEWS: Filled Positions

  • Brett Hoffman – Library Specialist – Communications Library – 6/12/2023

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HR NEWS: Departures

  • Lucretia Williams – Administrative Assistant – Library Administration – 7/31/2023

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HR NEWS: Civil Service Vacancies

  • Multi-level ITTA Assoc Software Developer/Software developer – Library IT (SCaRS) – Decision soon
  • Multi-level ITTA Infrastructure Specialist – Library IT – Interviews soon
  • IT Specialists (2 positions) – Library IT – Interviews soon
  • Library Specialist – Central Access Services – Posting soon

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: Staff Events Calendar
To see the most up-to-date staff events calendar, please visit uiuc.libcal.com/calendar/staff.

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: DEIA Educational Workshop Series: DEIA Engagement

We are pleased to invite you to participate in the second module of the University Library DEIA Educational Workshop Series. This series was developed by Dr. Ellen Burts-Cooper of Improve Consulting in collaboration with the DEIA Task Force. Dr. Ellen was our guest speaker at the Library’s Annual Recognition Event. As with the previous workshop, this workshop is a mixture of presentation and discussion, led by two library facilitators. By attending this workshop, you will have the opportunity to meet colleagues from across the library and learn from each other.

This summer, we will offer 2 opportunities to attend the second module, DEIA Engagement. This workshop builds on the previous module and focuses on what DEIA is, personal engagement and allyship as well as biases and things that impede engagement. We request that you have completed the first module before taking this second DEIA workshop module.

DEIA Engagement module (second module) will be offered on Zoom on the following dates:

Please register to attend this virtual event.

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: LEITC Series: Generative AI – Impact on the Library Mission and Services
July 11, 11am

What are the implications of Generative AI technologies for the mission of the library and its services in support of the research and learning mission in higher education? In this session, we will talk about the many challenges and opportunities we currently experience in the library and may encounter moving forward with these technologies. As we build an understanding of how Generative AI may impact our mission, we can begin to work on how to adjust or build new services.

Speakers: Alex (Elisandro) Cabada, Celenia Graves
In-Person: Room 220, Scholarly Commons, Main Library
Zoom Link: If you registered with this form, the Zoom information will be emailed to you after June 13.

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: CARLI Professional Development Alliance Events

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: LEITC Series: Generative AI – Image Creation, Copyright, and Understanding Your Rights
July 25, 11am

You’ve asked an AI generator to create a cat portrait in the style of Picasso, now what? Although sampling the work of others has been a natural part of image creation since humans have communicated through art, new AI tools have complicated that conversation. This workshop will discuss the ways that people are using AI-generated images to create new bodies of work, streamline their research processes, and beautifully muddy current and future copyright waters. You’ll learn your rights as an image creator, and hopefully have a few more answers about where the machine’s art ends and yours begins.

Speaker: Siobhan McKissic
In-Person: Room 220, Scholarly Commons, Main Library
Zoom Link: If you registered with this form, the Zoom information will be emailed to you after July 11.

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: DEIA Educational Workshop Series: Library Culture and Engagement

We are pleased to invite you to participate in a new University Library DEIA Educational Workshop Series. This series was developed by Dr. Ellen Burts-Cooper of Improve Consulting in collaboration with the DEIA Task Force. Dr. Ellen was our guest speaker at the Library’s Annual Recognition Event. These workshops are a mixture of presentation and discussion, led by two library facilitators. By attending this workshop, you will have the opportunity to meet colleagues from across the library and learn from each other.

This semester, we will offer 3 more opportunities to attend the first module, Library Culture and Engagement. This workshop covers important foundational topics requested by library employees, including belonging, psychological safety, collaboration, and how to contribute to a healthy workplace. Attending this module will be very helpful for engaging with the additional four modules offered later.

The Library Culture and Engagement module will be offered on Zoom on the following date:

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EVENTS AND TRAINING: DEIA Office Hour
July 31, 11am

Victor Jones will be available to answer any questions you may have regarding DEIA at the Library or the DEIA Taskforce Final Report. A copy of the final report can be found at this link through Box.

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If you would like to submit content for the August issue of Library Office Notes, please submit it to Heather Murphy or Tom Teper by Friday, July 21, 2023.