reference services – Page 2

July 16, 2015July 16, 2015

Membership blog, RUSA Voices looking for bloggers!

The latest addition to RUSA is the new membership blog, “RUSA Voices“. We are looking for all RUSA and non-RUSA folks to contribute to share experiences, ideas and concerns with colleagues and fellow librarians.

A message from Editor David Midyette:

Writing a blog post can be simple. Your colleagues want to hear from you about your trials and tribulations, your successes and challenges, but mostly, they just want to hear what’s important to you in your professional lives. While RUSA is focused on reference and user services, that is still an incredibly broad category, and provides innumerable options for sharing of information. How is your transition to LibGuides 2.0 coming? What are your challenges in collecting quantitative and qualitative data to prove your worth? What new reference services are red hot topics? How are old concepts and techniques being applied in new and novel ways? Is Google still putting us out of business or is it just reshaping how we help people connect to information?

Still not convinced? Send me an email or give me a call! I’ll help you work through the process of putting fingers to keys. It really can be as simple as sitting down and typing out your string of consciousness about a topic. We can work from there to refine and shape your writing. Heck, it may be perfect the way it is! The point is that you have a Voice and it needs to be heard. You may think to yourself that you have nothing interesting or novel to say (I know I listened to my inner voice saying that for far too long), but in truth, you have a lot to say and it WILL interest people. While many of us live at the bleeding edge of technology, others bide their time and wait to see how these new technologies express themselves through patron usage. Twitter is an awesome tool, but it has changed immensely from the beginning. Think about what you do on a daily basis and simply report on some of the unique things, even if they seem mundane.

I love editing people’s writing and helping them shape their ideas. Send me something and let me help you get started. Write a blog post for RUSA Voices and put it in your resume. Posts can be more academic or more practical in orientation; it’s up to you and your interests. You don’t have to agonize over things, just get something down and send it in; we will go from there together . . . We will make sure that your colleagues hear your Voice and share what you have to say! I look forward to working with you, now sit down and write something!

David (dmidyette@roseman.edu)
Editor, RUSA Voices

March 2, 2015

Reference Services Section names Liane Taylor winner of outstanding service award

The RSS Service Achievement Award consists of a citation that recognizes a member who has made exceptional contributions to the Reference Services Section of RUSA. Liane Taylor, head of acquisitions, Texas State University, was selected for continuously playing a vital role in RSS, both in leadership and as chair, but also by representing RSS to RUSA and beyond throughout the library profession.

“The RSS Service Achievement Award honors people who have gone above and beyond in their support and advocacy for RSS. This support can be more visible with proposing new initiatives to add value to our members or more behind the scenes in providing support to committees and chairs to help them move their work forward,” said Section Chair Qiana Johnson. “No matter what form it takes, RSS Service Achievement Award honorees are those who have helped move the section forward.”

March 2, 2015

RUSA division level awards honor individuals, institutions and projects for excellence in reference services

RUSA has selected the winners of the 2015 achievement awards.Winners receive research and travel grants that recognize the profession’s most exceptional librarians, libraries and projects involving reference services today.

“RUSA’s Achievement Awards provide us the very special opportunity to recognize the most outstanding librarians, libraries and projects in the field. At this event we also highlight the successes of our future leaders on what they’ve worked so hard to achieve. These awards recognize important contributions and allow our next generation of leaders to gain further experience through attendance at the ALA Annual Conference and conduct further research,” said RUSA President Joseph Thompson. “I want to congratulate this year’s award recipients on their accomplishments. We look forward to celebrating with everyone in June at the RUSA Achievement Awards Reception in San Francisco — one of the signature events of the ALA Annual Conference. I would like to sincerely thank the members of our award committees for their invaluable volunteer work through the selection processes and our generous sponsors for their support.”

The RUSA division level achievement award winners are:

Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award, RUSA’s highest honor, sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, offers $5,000 and a citation to an individual who has made a distinguished contribution to reference librarianship. Denise Beaubien Bennett, engineering librarian, University of Florida, was selected for her instrumental shaping of the instructional program for thousands of students in many disciplines, with a reputation for inspired teaching and creation of many online and video tutorials and presentation of workshops nationwide.

Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Services, sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning, offers $3,000 and a citation to a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique resource to meet patrons’ reference needs. Lauren Comito was selected for the development of the interactive database “Where in Queens?,” which uses GPS technology to help users connect to social services that are closest to where they are located at any given time.

NoveList’s Margaret E. Monroe Library Adult Services Award, sponsored by NoveList, which offers $1,250 and a citation to a librarian who has made significant contributions to library adult services. Neil Hollands, adult services librarian, Williamsburg Regional Library, was selected for being a leader in the Readers’ Advisory (RA) world. Holland’s development and advocacy of form-based RA has been a tremendous advancement in RA services.

Reference Service Press Award, sponsored by Reference Service Press, consists of $2,500 and a plaque which recognizes an author(s) of the most outstanding article published in Reference and User Services Quarterly (RUSQ), RUSA’s research journal, during the preceding two-volume year. Pauline Dewan, Laurier/Nipissing liaison librarian for the Brantford, Ontario campuses of Wilfrid Laurier University and Nipissing University was selected for her article, “Reading Matters in the Academic Library: Taking the Lead from Public Librarians.” Summer 2013, Volume 52, Issue 4. This article explores the idea of revitalizing academic libraries by reconsidering the place of pleasure reading in them.

John Sessions Memorial Award, consists of a plaque sponsored by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, and recognizes a library or library system that has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and by doing so has brought recognition to the history and contribution of the labor movement to the development of the United States. The Calcasieu Parish Library System was selected for its Southwest Louisiana (SWLA) Workforce Resource Guide. The guide offers essential step-by-step instructions for job seekers and providing contact information and guidance for where to go, who to call and what to say.

The RUSA Achievement Awards Ceremony and Reception will be held from 5-6:30 p.m. Sunday, June 28 at the ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco. All conference attendees are invited to the event. Additional event details will be available on the conference website in April.

December 15, 2014

Deadline extended for some RUSA Achievement Awards

Didn’t have enough time to submit a quality nomination? Here’s your chance!

We’ve extended the deadline to Jan. 4 for the following achievement awards:

MARS “My Favorite Martian” Award is a citation presented annually in recognition of excellence in service to the MARS: Emerging Technologies in Reference Section of RUSA. The winner receives a citation.
ABC-CLIO Online History Award recognizes an individual or group that has produced a 1) freely available online historical collection or, 2) an online tool assisting users in finding historical materials, or 3) an online teaching aid stimulating creative historical scholarship. Sponsored by ABC-CLIO; $2,500* and a citation.
Zora Neale Hurston Award honors an individual ALA member who has demonstrated leadership in promoting African-American literature. Sponsored by HarperCollins; the winner receives $1,250* supporting travel to the ALA Annual Conference, a plaque, tickets to the United For Libraries Author Tea and a set of Hurston’s books in print with HarperCollins at the time of the award presentation.
Louis Shores Award recognizes an individual reviewer, group, editor, review medium or organization for excellence in book reviewing and other media for libraries. The winner receives a citation.
History Section Genealogical Publishing Company Award is presented to a librarian, library or publisher who is a RUSA member, and recognizes professional achievement in historical or genealogical reference, service or research librarianship. Sponsored by Genealogical Publishing Company; $1,500* and a citation.
Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Library Services is given to a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique resource to meet patrons’ reference needs. Sponsored by Gale Cengage Learning; $3,000* and a citation.
NoveList’s Margaret E. Monroe Library Adult Services Award recognizes a librarian who has made significant contributions to library adult services. Sponsored by Novelist; $1,250* and a citation.
BRASS Emerald Research Grant, is presented to an individual or group seeking support to conduct research in business librarianship. Sponsored by Emerald Group Publishing; $5,000* and a citation.

We look forward to your submissions!