There will be a minor service disruption of OpenAthens on Friday, August 15, from 7am - 7:15am. A restart of OpenAthens is needed to renew the annual security certificate. The restart will impact those attempting to sign in to Alma/Primo or other online resources that use OpenAthens. However, it will not affect those who are already in the process of using electronic resources. If you have any questions, please contact Ramon Barcia (email: ramon.barcia@ucr.edu ).
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New Special Collections Hours for Summer 2017
Due to the staffing challenges in Special Collections and University Archives, service hours will be changing effective Monday, July 31, 2017.
Summer HoursJuly 31– September 22, 2017 |
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Monday - Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am: By appointment only to current UCR faculty, staff, and enrolled students* 11:00 am – 4:00 pm: Open to the general public |
Academic Year HoursSeptember 25, 2017 – June 15, 2018 |
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Monday - Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am: By appointment only to current UCR faculty, staff, and enrolled students* 11:00 am – 4:00 pm: Open to the general public |
*Appointments are pending staff and space availability. To request an appointment, email specialcollections@ucr.edu
Please reach out to the public services team (specialcollections@ucr.edu) with any questions.
Library Administration Welcomes New Administrative Assistant
UCR Library is pleased to welcome Rochelle Settle as the Administrative Assistant in Library Administration, effective April 3, 2017.
Rochelle's work station is at the front desk in suite 141 of Rivera Library. She will manage supply orders through the Library’s supply database, as well as scheduling, cash/check deposits, and other library projects and administrative duties.
Rochelle has over nine years of experience working in an educational environment. Most recently, she worked with the Raytown C-2 School District in Kansas City, Missouri.
Rochelle earned her Master of Arts in Theological Studies at the Central Theological Seminary, Shawnee, Kansas. She also has a Bachelor of Science in Biblical Studies from Calvary University, Kansas City, Missouri.
Smith Acorn Press Finds a New Home
A Smith Acorn Press, a historic toggle-style printing press made in 1828, is now on display on the first floor of the Tomás Rivera Library
Patented by Peter Smith in 1821, the Acorn Press is known for its acorn-shaped frame and precise printing capabilities.
The press on display was discovered in Philadelphia in the 1930s by Jackson Burke, who used it in San Francisco to produce “Pocket Press” editions. In the 1950s, Burke gifted the press to Lewis and Dorothy Allen of the Allen Press, where it was used to create 12 titles, including Dialogues of Creatures Moralised.
In 1967, the press moved to the University of California, Santa Cruz. There, poet and printer William Everson used it at the Lime Kiln Press from 1968 to 1981, producing works like West to the Water and Granite and Cypress. After the Lime Kiln Press closed, UCSC’s McHenry Library donated the press to UCR in 2005.
Previously kept in the stacks of Special Collections & University Archives on the fourth floor of the Rivera Library, the press is now accessible to all visitors on the first floor, located to the right of the Library Support/IT Support Desk.
Visit during the library's operating hours to get a glimpse into the history of printing and the craftsmanship that went into making printing presses.
Library Administration Welcomes New Communications Specialist
UCR Library is delighted to share that Melanie Ramiro has joined the Library Administration team as our Communications Specialist.
Melanie holds a BA in International Relations from Stanford University. She has over 15 years of experience as a communications and marketing professional in corporate, non-profit and academic environments. She has experience with brand development and developing communications plans.
As the Communications Specialist, Melanie will be responsible for developing, implementing, managing and contributing to a comprehensive communications program for the Library.
Zeta book scanner improvements at UCR Library
Recently, the UCR Library’s Cyberinfrastructure team updated the public Zeta book scanners with new software and upgraded touchscreens.
Now, library users will find that making scans is faster and easier than ever before. The new touchscreens have a larger display area and clearer controls, making navigation more efficient.
The updated Scannx software provides a powerful, easy-to-use solution for patrons to scan books, documents, and photos. It can scan, store, and send digitized content as searchable PDF files to Dropbox, Google Drive, email, smartphones, and tablets, as well as to local USB drives or printers.
There is also a new Scan-to-MP3 feature that lets users convert text documents into audio files, so students can listen to the text of the document. The Zeta scanner performs optical character recognition (ocr) on written text and then produces an MP3 file of a voice reading the document. This feature not only improves the accessibility of scanned documents, but makes them more portable so students can listen to them “on the go.” Additionally, this new output format upholds the library’s core value of inclusion by creating equitable access to resources for all patrons.
Digital Initiatives Program Manager
UCR Library is pleased to announce that the Digital Initiatives Program Manager position was offered to Eric Milenkiewicz, and he has accepted.
His new title was effective on June 1, 2017.
Eric joined the library in 2001. For the past 16 years, he has worked as the Manuscripts Curator in Special Collections and University Archives. Eric played a key role in the UCR Library's receipt of the CLIR Grant, which will fund a collaborative project to digitize the Sherman Indian Museum’s collection.
Eric’s key responsibility as the Digital Initiatives Program Manager, in the Digital Library Division, is to lead the library in both on-going and future development of a comprehensive program to generate, manage and preserve born-digital and digital surrogates, and to build value-added services on top of these digital assets.
He holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Riverside and an M.L.I.S. from San José State University with a specialization in archival studies.
Please join us in congratulating Eric on his new role.
Library Welcomes New Director of Distinctive Collections
Cherry Williams joined the UCR Library on September 6, 2016, as Director of Distinctive Collections.
Cherry will be located in Special Collections & University Archives on the 4th floor of Rivera Library, and will report to Alison Scott, AUL for Collections & Scholarly Communication.
Cherry earned her BS in nursing and Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Certificate from the University of Colorado, MA in humanities (with a concentration in art history) from the University of Chicago, and MLIS from UCLA.
She comes to UCR from the Lilly Library at Indiana University, where she has been Curator of Manuscripts since 2009, following work as Archivist, Special Projects Librarian, and Special Collections Librarian for the Sciences at UCLA’s Darling Biomedical Library. Prior to becoming a librarian, Cherry had a successful career as a medical professional.
Library Human Resources Welcomes New HR Analyst
UCR Library is pleased to announce that Danielle Sanders has joined the Library Human Resources (LHR) team as the HR Analyst.
Danielle holds her Bachelor of Science degree in business administration – management and human resources.
She most recently served as a Human Resources Manager at Cal Poly Pomona before joining the University Library as an affiliate HR Analyst in September 2016.
As a member of the LHR team, Danielle will support key initiatives through the administration and assessment of HR services and procedures including compensation/classification, training and development, and employee engagement and relations.
PDC Promotes Organizational Excellence
UCR Library’s Professional Development Committee (PDC) held its kick-off event on Wednesday, August 17, 2016. More than half of the library’s academic and staff employees came to one of the two sessions, held in Rivera and Orbach libraries.
The PDC comprises Library employees who volunteered to participate in cultivating opportunities for professional development. With members from the various employee groups (represented, non-represented, academic, non-academic, supervisor, non-supervisor), the PDC is positioned to advise Library Administration on an array of diverse professional development needs. This unique endeavor has the full support of Library Administration who looks forward to this feedback from employees.
“I was interested in hearing what type of professional development philosophies might come up,” explained Jacqueline Bates, Financial and Acquisitions Analyst. “Working with people to identify the best programs for them is vital. People are much more likely to engage fully and derive real benefit from any type of training and development program if they understand why the program is valuable and can contribute to their ability to do their job well. I am pleased that the Library envisions an idea that when you energize people to be at their best and make a positive difference, the organization will indeed obtain organizational excellence.”
At the top of the hour, PDC Chair Leslie Settle welcomed the group. Committee members guided employees through a peer-to-peer brainstorming session, with the goal of identifying professional development needs. “The warm-up exercises got our minds thinking and mental states in tune with sharing,” said Christy Brown Anderson, Monographs Receiving Assistant.
The session continued with an interactive, visual facilitation exercise with employees posting their suggestions, by category, onto the wall. Categories included: Customer Service, Leadership, Communication, Teamwork, Technology, and Diversity.
Similar to a silent auction, employees used stickers to select the development opportunities they felt would have the greatest impact. “It was great to see everyone’s ideas up on the wall,” said Carla Arbagey, Electronic Resources Librarian. “And to see which ideas got the most votes.” The PDC also sent out an email survey to solicit input from employees who were unable to attend the kick-off.
Popular recommendations included:
- Cross-training and job shadowing in other units, to better understand workflows
- Communication skills
- Sensitivity training (diversity and microaggressions)
- Conflict management
- Customer service
- Project management
- Grant and proposal writing
“I saw it as an opportunity to interact with staff members that I don’t typically work with, and to hear different ideas and perspectives about what others need to improve their knowledge base and grow professionally,” explained Eric Milenkiewicz, Manuscripts Curator. “I liked the collaborative nature of the event, specifically when the group came together as a collective to surface common professional development needs across the library.”
“I was interested in hearing what colleagues in other departments are looking for out of our organization, and where our goals and desires intersect,” said Alexandra Dolan-Mescal, Web Developer and User-Interface Designer. “I would love to partake in collaborative professional development rather than just individual, as I have so far. I greatly enjoyed the small groups talking through individual cards and grouping them together, as it showed clearly how similar our interests are and how there are categories of professional development interests that could be explored programmatically.”
“I like to be an active member of our library staff,” explained E-Resources Librarian Carla Arbagey. “I’m also interested in continuing my own professional development, so I was eager to see what kind of activities the committee was planning.”
Monographs Receiving Assistant Christy Brown Anderson was also curious about what the session might entail. “I wanted to take the opportunity to see what learning topics others were interested in, as well as be able to contribute to that,” she said. “I had wondered before the event whether there would be a focus on the technical or performance type of skills needed for the efficient and successful operation of the library, or on more visionary topics.”
“The Professional Development Committee is excited that our first peer-to-peer brainstorming session was a success. These sessions proved to be a benefit to everyone involved and allowed us a unique opportunity to suggest to Library HR what training and development we would like to see in this upcoming fiscal year,” stated Leslie Settle, Circulation Services Desk Supervisor and PDC Chair. “The post-it notes we collected represented our voice and we are privileged to draft a proposal that will encompass the voice of the team.”
Library Human Resources looks forward to crafting an implementation plan from the PDC’s proposal. “Library employees are engaged – driving their professional development. And Library leadership actively supports a culture of collaboration, creativity and learning,” said Lisa Dye, Director, Organizational Design and Human Resources. “It’s a win-win. It’s organizational excellence.”
Keeping with the strategic plan, University Librarian Steven Mandeville-Gamble is committed to providing development opportunities to all levels of library employees. His vision, and that of Library Administration, is to empower library employees to continue to build their skill sets and develop into contemporary professionals who contribute to UCR Library’s identity as an Association of Research Libraries organization. The Professional Development Committee will play a vital role by empowering library employees with a voice to propose solutions in a collaborative setting.
Future suggestions for professional development are welcome, and employees are encouraged to submit ideas to the Professional Development Committee via email at: professionaldevelopment@ucr.edu.
Spring '24 Finals Week Stress Relief: June 3 - June 13
Fun FREE Stress-Relieving Events at the UCR Library
The UCR Library's Finals Week Stress Relief is back, Monday, June 3 - Thursday, June 13. This quarter, we have craft events, food giveaways, contests, and more! Our partners this quarter are ASUCR Internal Affairs, The Well's Active Minds, Basic Needs, and the ARC!
Please note: Only currently enrolled UCR students are able to participate in Finals Week Stress Relief events (undergraduate AND graduate students).
Spring 2024 Finals Week Stress Relief Event Series
Instagram Contests
- Mon., June 3 - Fri., June 7 | Follow us on Instagram and comment on our daily contest posts for a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card. Winners will be chosen at random.
MONDAY, JUNE 3
- Tote-tastic Tote Bag Decorating
- 2 - 3 p.m. | Orbach | *While supplies last | Keep the tote bag you decorate!
TUESDAY, JUNE 4
- Taco Tuesday Giveaway
- 1 p.m. | Rivera | *While supplies last
- Surprise Snack Giveaway with ASUCR Internal Affairs
- Time is a SURPRISE | Rivera & Orbach | *While supplies last
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5
- Therapy Fluffies with The Well's Active Minds
- Noon - 2 p.m. | Rivera & Orbach | Please note, cats and dogs will be in Rivera. Orbach will only have dogs.
- Study Jam Snack Packs with Basic Needs
- Noon | Rivera | *While supplies last
THURSDAY, JUNE 6
- Key-p Calm and Make Your Own Beaded Animal Keychain
- 2 - 3 p.m. | Rivera | *While supplies last
FRIDAY, JUNE 7
- DONUT Give Up! You've Got This Giveaway
- 11 a.m. | Orbach | *While supplies last
- Painting and Planting
- 2 - 3 p.m. | Rivera | *While supplies last | Decorate a pot, choose your seeds, and plant!
SUNDAY, JUNE 9
- R'Finals Study Jam (Tutoring) with The Academic Resource Center (The ARC)
- 4 - 8 p.m. | Orbach
MONDAY, JUNE 10
- Boba Boost Giveaway
- 2 p.m. | Orbach | *While supplies last
TUESDAY, JUNE 11
- Bingo
- 2 - 3 p.m. | Orbach | *Winners receive an Amazon gift card
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12
- Virtual Kahoot!
- 2 p.m. & 6 p.m. | RSVP on Eventbrite to save your seat. Play via Zoom to win an Amazon gift card.
THURSDAY, JUNE 13
- Surprise Snack Giveaway
- Time is a SURPRISE | Rivera & Orbach | *While supplies last
Virtual Stress Relief Activities
Need virtual stress-reducing activities now? Our FWSR committee has curated a list of activities and services available remotely through online platforms that you can enjoy all quarter long! Visit our Virtual Stress Relief Activities page for more information.
Library Finals Week Hours
Study 24 hours in Orbach from 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 6 through 7 p.m. on Friday, June 14
During Study Hall, Orbach Library will be open for studying, scanning, and printing, including the use of public computers. The borrowing of materials and equipment (reserves, books, calculators, and/or chargers) will NOT be available during Study Hall.
Thursday, June 6
Service hours for Rivera & Orbach: 7:30 a.m. - 12 a.m.
Study Hall for Orbach Library: 12 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.
Friday, June 7
Service hours for Rivera & Orbach: 7:30 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Study Hall for Orbach Library: 10 p.m. to 8 a.m.
Saturday, June 8
Service hours for Rivera & Orbach: 8 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Study Hall for Orbach Library: 10 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Sunday, June 9
Service hours for Rivera & Orbach: 1 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Study Hall for Orbach Library: 9 p.m. to 7:30 a.m.
Monday, June 10 - Thursday, June 13
Service hours for Rivera & Orbach: 7:30 a.m. - 12 a.m.
Study Hall for Orbach Library: 12 a.m. to 7:30 a.m.
Friday, June 14
Hours for both libraries: 7:30 a.m. - 7 p.m. (Orbach ends 24-hour Study Hall)