Today I determined it was necessary to complete a big chunk of the author information pages for the resource center web site. I finished a total of 14 authors, making my way through the alphabet to the letter "k." Therefore I checked holdings in the catalog, updated and expanded internet resources, researched in the databases and subsequently provided related periodical articles with appropriate APA formatting, cleaned all of the hazardous coding from old html pages, and placed all the new author information on new pages fourteen times. The lucky fourteen authors and illustrators were updated today were Karen Cushman, Roald Dahl, Leo and Diane Dillon, Lois Duncan, Lois Ehlert, Paul Fleischman, Nikki Grimes, Virginia Hamilton, Kevin Henkes, Karen Hesse, S.S. Hinton, Brian Jacques, Ezra Jack Keats, and Steven Kellogg.If you remove my lunch hour from the day, I completed a page every half hour. Not too shabby when factoring in regular management and library duties of helping students print, solving computer problems, laminating, and providing reference duties in my "office" (read wide open space without a door or privacy, better known as the resource center). So, pardon me if I feel a bit smug for a moment. The moment has passed. There are 62 author pages to complete before I can send the updated site to the server. If I do fourteen a day for the next four and a half days, I could conceivably finish before we close on Thursday afternoon for Easter Break. That has been my goal all along, but I am not sure if I could do four more days like today.
Add in to this mix the following fun-filled activity, it is time for yearly faculty librarian evaluations. The university and library director subscribe to self-evaluation. Each year we provide details concerning the positive impact we have made to the library and university community. Faculty librarians are responsible for setting goals, with input from the director, at the end of each academic year (we are on year to year contracts, non-tenured faculty). Part one of the process is to evaluate our contribution to the library mission and vision during the past year and comment on the aforementioned goals, part two details new goals for the upcoming year. Said document is to be completed and presented to the boss early next week for evaluation. Appointments are made for one-on-one meetings with the library director who comments on the evaluations and each librarian contribution and then recommends retention (in the form of another contract) or dismissal and corresponding salary increases.
While I dread the process, it can be a good thing because in essence we are asked to update our CV's. I learned early on to keep a monthly list of different things I do so at the end of the year I have a working document. Unfortunately, with my mother's hospitalization for the last four months, I have had other things on my mind and let the document lapse. Yesterday I pulled out my trusty calendar and filled in many blanks. In retrospect, I think the evaluation may be due on Monday. That will teach me to spend a day on web work.
I started a new book at lunch this afternoon but it will not end up here for some time. I still have a post to complete on the Wiley Miller book; yes I know the entry is empty save a short blurb and cover art, so first things first.
Tags: Resource Centers, Academic libraries, Web authoring, Web site redesign
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