A Message From Your Library Workers

You may be wondering what all of us who work at the library are up to while the physical libraries are closed. Please know that we are all continuing to support you and the online library is open. Visit our current updates page for the latest information regarding library services during this time. You can also get help from a librarian 24/7 through our Ask a Librarian service.

Here’s a peek at our remote work:

Nicole: I’m here to answer your questions via voicemail, email, or chat! Research, sources, citations, news, podcast recommendations —no query is too small.

Connie: Greetings! I am reaching out to students to ensure their technology needs are being met. Do you need a laptop, calculator, or hotspot for spring quarter? Please fill out a request.

Tammy: Currently, I am helping students and faculty stay connected through creating electronic library and class guides. Working in collaboration with my colleagues, I am looking forward to engaging with students and faculty during online library instruction sessions.

Serge: I support students by managing electronic magazine and journal access, by implementing user experience improvements to our online resources, and implementing accessibility customizations for our library search catalog.

Beth: I am learning about the technologies and resources that are available to the Clark community so that I can support online learning for faculty and students this term. I am also ready to answer your questions through our online chat service!

Sally: I support students by ordering online/digital resources for their courses and research needs.

Laura: Feeling even more information overload these days?! I can help you find the best resources and evaluate what you’re seeing, whether it’s for school or not.

Jonathan: Hi, I am helping make digital resources more accessible to students.

Tasha: Hello students! I’m here to answer your questions through email this quarter. I have also been working on creating virtual displays and blog posts about resources you can access from home!

Radka: I am helping students succeed by managing subscriptions for library electronic resources and coordinating the work of technical services employees working behind-the-scenes. We work to ensure those library resources are available to students 24×7. I also oversee troubleshooting of any access issues for library online resources and coordinate the work of the Library User Experience and Library Accessibility teams as we strive to make library online resources more user-friendly and accessible. My favorite responsibility is assisting students directly with research or efficient searching of various library online resources or helping them overcome related technical issues.

Roxanne: With my faithful feline friend, Teeny Tuxedo, I’m here to help with your research questions, from English to Nursing and beyond. If you’ve watched everything on Netflix and Hulu, try our streaming videos. Teeny is really grateful for “reality tv for cats” outside the window … deer, squirrels, rabbits, raccoons, possums, coyotes, frogs, butterflies, and birds aplenty, birds galore … One of the benefits of working from home!

Julie: Hello! I’m available to help you with research this quarter. Our online library resources are available, and I can make some recommendations for where to get started.

Cheryl: Hello all! I hope you are finding ways to connect with your trusted supports and communities to help navigate the challenges before us as we all start something new – an entirely remote quarter for Clark! My cataloging work in Clark Libraries Technical Services means I may not be a familiar face to you, but know that I am working diligently to ensure our e-content is available to you wherever and whenever your learning is taking place. In the last month, I have cataloged over 450 new ebook titles from Gale Virtual Reference Library, and over 250 new Open Educational Resource (OER) titles to expand your access to ebooks.

We recognize that you face unprecedented challenges this quarter, but know that all of us at Clark Libraries, both the familiar faces and those of us who work behind the scenes, are here to help you rise to meet and overcome these challenges to the best of our ability. We acknowledge this quarter that we will not get everything perfect. However, we are committed to learning right along with you and making student-guided changes to our services along the way. We miss you, we support you, we believe in you, and we welcome your input on what you need from us to help you succeed this quarter.

In addition to new learning modalities for you, you may also be trying to help your own children adapt to online learning. In our home, the dining room table now has now become my office and classroom for my youngest, while my other child performs school work at the kitchen counter and my husband works from the family room. It’s not ideal, nor is it easy, but we do our best to make things work, and the librarians and staff at Clark Libraries are here to support you and help you do your best, too. If your need is outside of what we can offer through library services, we’ll work to connect you with the appropriate Clark folx or student support service.