In an effort to gather information about use of the Temple University Libraries’ electronic resources, an occasional web-based survey will be launched on July 31. The survey form will appear when connecting to any electronic resource including journal databases, online encyclopedias, music libraries, electronic books, and other e-reources. The online web survey must be completed in order to gain access to the desired electronic resource. This four question survey, while creating a momentary disruption, will only be conducted for two consecutive hours per month throughout the academic year, running through June of 2015.  The survey will be presented only once in the two hour interval as long as the browser window is not closed.  The survey is anonymous and will coincide with short on-site surveys of a similar nature taking place at some campus libraries.

The University Administration has requested that we conduct this survey to gain more information about how institutional investment in electronic information resources contributes to our scholars’ and researchers’ capacity to perform research that leads to new discoveries. While this survey will create some minimal disruption in the short run, the data gathered has proven to be of great benefit to our institution in the long run. Therefore, we will greatly appreciate your understanding and cooperation if and when you are asked to complete the survey form.

Should you have further questions, FAQ are appended to the online survey instrument. Further questions may be directed to the Controller’s Office, which is sponsoring the survey.

Celebrate National Library Week April 13-19, and see how lives change at your library. This year’s American Library Association theme emphasizes the variety of ways libraries can expand your horizons and create positive change in our communities. We’re demonstrating this with learning opportunities throughout the week and by hosting a Food for Fines food drive partnership with Philabundance.

Libraries are an Oasis for Learning

On Monday, April 14, at 2:30 PM in the Lecture Hall, the Libraries will welcome world-renowned sociologist Elijah Anderson to discuss his award-winning book, The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life (WW Norton, 2012).

On Tuesday, April 15, at 3:30 PM again in the Lecture Hall, join artist and Temple faculty member Peter d’Agostino for an interview with Reese Williams, founder of the influential Tanam Press. Over the course of five years, this influential press published LP recordings featuring talks by Buckminster Fuller and Susan Sontag, as well as lively individual and collaborative projects from writers and visual and media artists that utilize the page in innovative ways.

On Thursday, April 17, at 3:30 PM, the Libraries and the Center for the Humanities at Temple welcome anthropologist Paige West who has written about the linkages between environmental conservation and international development, the material and symbolic ways in which the natural world is understood and produced, the aesthetics and poetics of human social relations with nature, and the creation of commodities and practices of consumption.

Food for Fines

April 14-18 join Temple University Libraries as we team up with local food bank Philabundance to host the Food for Fines food drive. Stop by Paley Library’s circulation desk and we will waive $1 in library fines for each approved food item you donate.

We especially need your help collecting these high-priority items:

 Canned / shelf stable tuna

 Canned beef stew

 Canned chili

 Canned pasta / beef ravioli

 Peanut butter and jelly (plastic containers only)

 Macaroni & cheese

 Canned fruit cocktail

 Canned green beans

 Breakfast cereal or hot cereal

Please note: all food must be unopened and non-perishable

In January, Temple Libraries welcomed new Instruction Librarian and Team Leader, Caitlin Shanley. Caitlin is the Libraries’ primary coordinator for library instruction for the First Year Writing program and library liaison to Women’s Studies, Asian Studies, and American Studies. She will also provide staff development, training and assessment for the Libraries’ overall instruction program.

Caitlin comes to us most recently from the University of Pennsylvania Libraries where she was the Educational Technology Librarian at the Weigle Information Commons. Prior to that she served as the Instructional Design and Technology Librarian at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where she led initiatives related to instructional technologies in the library. Of note is her work on UTC’s redesign of first-year English composition instruction, and her role as co-creator of a zombie video game to complement library orientation tours which won the Association of College and Research Libraries President’s Program Innovation Award.

Caitlin is an active member in the Philadelphia community. She volunteers for Girls Rock Philly (GRP), a volunteer-based non-profit organization that empowers girls and young women through music education. Last year Caitlin served as a camp counselor and band manager during GRP’s week-long summer camp where girls ages 9-17 learned to play instruments and to compose and perform an original song. Since joining GRP Caitlin has developed a personal interest in music; she’s currently learning to play the bass guitar.

When she is not learning new songs on the bass or thinking about information literacy, she’s most likely hanging out with her two furry friends Maisie and Miss Mandible.

Caitlin holds a Master of Science in Library Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a BA in Literature and Women’s Studies from the University of North Carolina at Asheville.

Welcome, Caitlin!

Caitlin at Joshua Tree National Park

Classes end this week, which means Paley Library is gearing up for a 24-hour schedule during study days and finals. Beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, December 3rd, Paley Library will stay open continuously until we close at 5PM on Saturday, December 14. We’re here as your study headquarters! Check the schedule for information on other locations, staffed service points, and our hours subsequent to December 14.

During finals we’ll have some additional ways to relax and refuel. Every evening from Sunday, December 8 through Thursday, December 12 we’ll have coffee and cookies available beginning at 9PM Sunday and 10PM the following days. While supplies last!

The Libraries are also excited to welcome, for the first time, the pups of Therapy Dogs International. These furry friends will be at Paley Library Lecture Hall to help you relax and de-stress at the following dates and times: Monday, December 9 – 10AM-1PM, Tuesday, December 10 – 2PM-5PM, Wednesday, December 11 – 10AM-1PM.

Good luck with finals, and we’ll see you at the Libraries!