Category Archives: UC Libraries

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Save the Date: GIS Day 2020

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GIS Day is an annual event for students, staff, faculty, and the broader community to learn more about Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and to celebrate the power of geospatial analysis and visualization in answering research questions and solving real-world problems. This year, GIS Day is happening on Wednesday, November 18, and we hope you’ll mark your calendars so you can participate. We’re excited to bring you a different kind of GIS Day experience this year and to tell you a bit about what we have in the works.

In the past, we’ve hosted in-person GIS Day events, but we decided early in the discussions about returning to campus for autumn semester that this would not be a good idea in 2020. The first important change for this year is that we’re going virtual!

A virtual GIS Day provides us with a great opportunity to broaden participation in the program. Another important change this year is that our GIS Day 2020 program will be a collaboration between The Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, and the University of Cincinnati. Get ready for 3C GIS Day!

We’re in the early stages of planning, but we look forward to an exciting program that will include:

  • Lightning Talks
    • Learn about the application of geospatial technologies in a wide variety of disciplines from faculty, staff, students, and GIS professionals across Ohio’s 3C Corridor (Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati).
  • StoryMaps Showcase
    • We’re inviting any students, staff, and faculty affiliated with The Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, and the University of Cincinnati to create and submit ArcGIS StoryMaps to showcase their work on GIS Day and beyond. More details about the StoryMaps Showcase will be coming soon!
  • Professional Networking
    • We will provide a venue for GIS professionals, researchers, and students from across Ohio to connect with one another and discuss experiences, opportunities, and current topics of interest in the world of geospatial.

In anticipation, there will be a StoryMaps workshop on October 5, 2020 from 10 am – 12 pm taught by the Research and Data Services team and hosted by the FEC.  Stay tuned for more information about this workshop and 3C GIS Day in the coming weeks and months, and mark your calendars for a great event on November 18, 2020!  The event is free and open to all.

The 3C GIS Day planning committee includes Josh Sadvari and Katie Phillips (OSU), Ben Gorham (Case), and Amy Koshoffer (UC). If you have any questions about 3C GIS Day or are interested in participating and want to receive updates, please email Amy Koshoffer at askData@uc.edu.

 

A Different Approach to Public Engagement with Science – Great Lakes Science Boot Camp Virtual Talk

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On Thursday, July 23rd, I gave a talk to ~60 Science Librarians across the country. This talk was a reflection on my experience taking a graduate course in the spring called “Public Engagement with Science” and was a way to inform fellow librarians on how they can make public engagement activities more intentional and meaningful. The final project of the course was to accomplish a public engagement with science activity in conjunction with a community partner drawing on the theoretical framework developed throughout the semester. My group worked with the Cincinnati Nature Center to host a poster contest that was in line with the mission of the Nature Center by aiming to increase awareness of the importance of native plants in the local ecology and to encourage people in the community to plant native plants.

I focused on ways the Center for Public Engagement with Science at the University of Cincinnati is working with community partners to engage in more intentional and informed science engagement activities. I discussed the process of working with community partners, the philosophy of public engagement that motivated our interactions and activity, the project we implemented including the development of relevant learning standards and a grading rubric, and shared some of the winning submissions.

If anyone would like to discuss my talk, my experience in the course, or see my slides, please email me at mark.chalmers@uc.edu.

Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.

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sourceRead Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.

In this issue of Source, Dean Xuemao Wang remarks on the national and global protests sparked off by the May 25th murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers and how libraries must join the fight against systemic racism.

Read about how when UC Libraries closed its physical locations in mid-March in response to COVID-19, student supervisors transitioned quickly not just their own work online, but that of their library student workers. In addition, this issue highlights work to provide library services and resources online to UC faculty and staff during a crisis.

While working remotely, consider suggestions of resource and tools from Maggie Patel, business and data analytics librarian. Download Libraries backgrounds for your next Zoom meeting or spend time with the labor collections in the Archives and Rare Books Library.

Elizabeth Scarpelli, director of the University of Cincinnati Press, announces the launch of Platforms and Pathways in Social Innovation as part of the Press’s dynamic, open access publishing platform.

While the University of Cincinnati Libraries remains open and available online to provide users with access to library resources and services, the Click & Collect retrieval and pickup service allows UC users to request print library materials in the Library Catalog for pickup at designated library locations.

Lastly, in this issue of Source, we remind UC faculty and staff to submit their 2019 creative and scholarly works for including in the re-imagined Life of the Mind.

Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the web at http://libapps.libraries.uc.edu/source/ and via e-mail. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list.

UC Libraries Expands Click & Collect Retrieval Service to Additional Library Locations

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Users can request print library materials by 9am Wednesday for Thursday pickup.

click and collect graphicThe University of Cincinnati Libraries is expanding its Click & Collect retrieval and pickup service providing users with access to print collection materials in order to support UC teaching and research. Users may now request print items for pickup at the following additional library locations:

  • College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS) Library
  • College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services (CECH) Library
  • Geology-Mathematics-Physics Library
  • Walter C. Langsam Library

Plans are underway to provide access to the John Miller Burnam Classics Library collection to Classics faculty and graduate students and details will be announced soon.

The Click & Collect retrieval and pickup service allows UC users to request print library materials in the Library Catalog for pickup at designated library locations. Requests made by 9am Wednesdays will be available for pickup between noon-4pm on Thursdays. Due dates have been automatically set for August 10. When searching for print materials in the Library Catalog, items with the status of “Held By Library” are available for request. Items from one library location cannot be requested for pickup at another library location. Continue reading →

Dorcas Washington takes on new role of data analytics specialist on the Research and Data Services Team

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dorcas washingtonDorcas Washington, formerly content analyst on the Content Services Team, has transitioned to the new role of data analytics specialist on the Research and Data Services (RDS) Team.

In her new role, Dorcas will provide leadership and expertise in the areas of quantitative and qualitative data analysis, as well as play a leading role in developing and executing a research reproducibility support program across disciplines. Dorcas holds a BA in mathematics, an MS in applied statistics with a concentration in bio-statistics and has recently been accepted into UC’s PhD program for environmental health: bio-statistics. In her new role, she will be able to utilize her knowledge and skill set to its fullest and to build upon her experiences gained as a member of the Content Services Team.

As data analytics specialist, Dorcas will be responsible for:

  • Leading library services related to the evaluation, manipulation and visualization of data and the use of statistical tools
  • Developing and delivering scalable research and data-related services and resources in collaboration with RDS, with the Digital Scholarship Center, and others as appropriate
  • Leading the development and implementation of consultation and instruction services for statistical and analytical methods
  • Promoting best practices for ethical and reproducible data production, analysis and dissemination
  • Developing and coding executable programs to automate processes to perform computational inquiries
  • Co-managing Informatics Lab operations within the Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library.

“I look forward to getting back to my roots of mathematics and statistics by utilizing those skills to help people further research at UC,” said Dorcas. “This position interested me because it’s doing work I enjoy with a diverse group of people (students, faculty, staff and more).”

Those interested in services, should contact RDS via e-mail askdata@uc.edu.

UC Libraries launches Click & Collect service to offer phased access to library print materials

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Request library materials by 9:00 am Wednesday for Thursday pickup at select locations.

click and collect graphicBeginning immediately, the University of Cincinnati Libraries is providing users with phased access to print collection materials in order to support UC teaching and research.

The Click & Collect retrieval and pickup service allows UC users to request printed library materials in the Library Catalog for pickup at designated locations. Requests made by 9:00 AM Wednesdays will be available for pickup between noon – 4:00 PM on Thursdays. Due dates have been automatically set for August 10.

At this time, Click & Collect is available for print collections in the Albino Gorno Memorial (CCM) Library, the Robert A. Deshon and Karl J. Schlachter Library for Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP), the Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library and to some degree the Archives and Rare Books Library (see details below).

Plans to expand the Click & Collect library collection retrieval service are underway for other library locations and will be announced soon. Continue reading →

Standing in solidarity against systemic racism

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The University of Cincinnati Libraries supports our colleagues from the American Library Association and the Association of Research Libraries in their statements and actions against racism and violence perpetrated against black men and women and all people of color. We agree with President Neville Pinto’s message “that the time to act is now.” As libraries, we provide access to resources and information professionals so that citizens can educate themselves on how to contribute to meaningful change and combat systemic racism.

stamped from the beginningBelow is a short list of UC Libraries resources. While some do require UC affiliation, there are others that are open access. It contains a mix of current and historical perspectives as this is not a new issue our country is confronting, but the time to listen and to learn is now. This list is not meant to be comprehensive, but a starting point for education and conversation.  

Videos

Current exhibit on display in the Walter C. Langsam Library

women of the movement graphic

The Urban Studies Collection of the Archives and Rare Books Library holds information on two of the women featured in the exhibit, Louise Shropshire, originator of the Civil Rights anthem “We Shall Overcome,” and Marian Spencer, local Civil Rights icon, as well as Theodore “Ted” Berry, the first African American mayor of Cincinnati.

The University of Cincinnati Press

  • Issues in Race and Society, biannual journal distinguishes itself as an interdisciplinary, comprehensive, and global examination of the increasingly racial and racialized world that connects us all.

UC Libraries planning to begin offering access to print collection materials

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book stacksWhile all UC Libraries’ physical locations remain closed until further notice, we are finalizing plans to provide users with access to print collection materials in order to support UC teaching and research.

A print collection retrieval and pickup service is being planned to begin soon after June 8. Once all preparatory activities are completed, we will announce an official start date of the service. Library users will not be allowed inside library spaces, but will be able to request and pick up library materials in designated locations.

Details on exact timing and how to utilize the retrieval and pickup service will be forthcoming. For updated information, please visit https://libraries.uc.edu/about/covid-19.html.

In the meantime, the University of Cincinnati Libraries remains open and available online to provide users with access to library resources and services.

Chat Service Unavailable Monday, May 25

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In observance of Memorial Day, UC Libraries’ Chat reference service will not be available on Monday, May 25. We will resume normal hours, 10am-3pm, on Tuesday, May 26. Users seeking library resources on Monday, May 25, are encouraged to visit the Libraries website or Online Library for direct access to essential resources and services to enable online research and scholarly work.