Reference point

              Personal Reference
Park Library reference librarian earns state award
Michael Lorenzen sits at the reference desk. The Park Library head of library reference
services answers the phone, helps a client locate books on Irish women in America,
then turns back to his computer and keys the URL: information-literacy.net.
Up comes Lorenzen’s “Information Literacy Land of Confusion” – a Web site for librarians he
started four years ago. The site lists library conferences, how to help patrons locate library
items, information about hoax Web sites and more – everything a librarian like Lorenzen
could want, including a catchy title.
“‘Land of Confusion’ is the title of a Genesis song from the 80s. The best music was in the
80s,” he says, pausing. “But maybe I prefer 80s music because that is when I was in high
school. People always like their high school music the best.”
In addition to starting a Web site and blogging frequently, Lorenzen has done many things
to increase information literacy. He has helped to create several library instruction projects,
including the PBS award-winning “Tales from the Stacks” CD multimedia project. He teaches
CMU’s LIB 197 – an introductory library course for undergraduate students – and he has
published many papers on library issues and library instruction.
For all of his efforts, Lorenzen has been named the 2008 Michigan Library Association
Information Literacy Award recipient.
“I found out in May,” he says. “I knew I had been nominated, but I was very pleasantly
surprised.”
REFERENCE POINT
U N I V E R S I T Y L I B R A R I E S N E W S L E T T E R • O C T O B E R 2 0 0 8
Continued on page 10
V o l u m e 5 , I s s u e 2
Michael Lorenzen, Park Library’s head of library reference services, shows junior
Alethea Hall where she can find the best research materials for her art class.
2
Dean’s Column
Reference Point is published
biannually by University Libraries.
Address questions and suggestions to:
Office of the Dean
Park Library 407D
Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
Editorial Board
Thomas J. Moore
Dean of Libraries
Anne Marie Casey
Associate Dean of Libraries
Jodi A. Robinette
Director of Development
Gerry Edgar
Manager, Library Business Services
Reference Point Coordinator
Production
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Writers
Tracy Burton, ’02
Sarah Chuby, ’03
Dan Digmann
Rachel Esterline
Editor
Dan Digmann
Designer
Amy Gouin
Photographers
Robert Barclay
Peggy Brisbane
Printing
CMU Printing Services
Libraries Web Site
www.lib.cmich.edu
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Library Hours
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(see www.cmich.edu/aaeo).
PRM 7915-4,713 (10/08)
REFERENCE POINT
Tom Moore
Dean of Libraries
Institutional budget losing pace with
rising scholarly publication costs
There are many warm and happy stories in the
CMU Libraries. Everyday our terrific librarians
and staff support student learning and faculty
teaching and research. That creates a large
reservoir of satisfaction for all of us, since
individually and collectively we’re committed
to doing our best to assist students, from
freshmen to doctoral candidates, and aid
faculty from across the academic disciplines
in the noble enterprises of teaching and
scholarship.
However, there is one story of recurring
attention and effort in the Libraries that
generates more challenge and concern than
satisfaction for our librarians and for many of
the faculty whose instruction and research we
support. It is the unremittingly rising cost of
scholarly publications, especially journals.
Since 2002 the overall cost of academic
books and journals has increased by about
58 percent while our institutional budget for
acquiring library materials has increased by far
less. We’re buying fewer books and journals,
in print and digital forms, at a time when more
scholarly materials are being published than
ever before. This is a troubling fact.
Here are some examples by subject area of
nationwide 2008 average annual single journal
subscription prices:
• Chemistry – $3,490
• Physics – $3,103
• Engineering – $1,919
• Health sciences – $1,330
• Business and economics – $897
• Psychology – $598
While historically the highest journal prices
tend to be in science-related disciplines,
from 2004 to 2008 some of the most severe
increases by percentage have been in other
areas: philosophy and religion, 99 percent;
anthropology, 55 percent;
sociology, 54 percent; and
history and music, both
49 percent.
The irony
of the situation
The CMU Libraries aren’t
alone in addressing the
challenges of providing
access to the literature
while the scholarly
marketplace undergoes
rapid inflation in journal prices. All college
and university libraries are affected. An
interesting irony is that most research reported
in academic journals has been conducted
by faculty at universities. Faculty are paid by
universities to do research, frequently with
funding by public agencies and tax dollars, and
then their refereed research publications are
sold back to universities by publishers. This
traditional model needs to change but will only
do so slowly.
The impact of steeply rising costs on
CMU library collections has been adverse,
though we’ve mitigated it by participating
at every opportunity in consortial purchases
and interlibrary resource-sharing and by
transitioning assertively to electronic-only
subscriptions, which save some funds and also
provide remote and 24/7 access.
Increasingly, replacing selected journal
subscriptions with quick purchases of journal
articles when needed will become more
common than in the past. Shifting from a
customary “acquisition in case of need”
model to an “acquisition on demand” one
for some journals will ensure both access
and financial sense. It also will require more
communication between librarians and faculty
in making decisions to get the greatest benefit
for learning and research out of every library
acquisitions dollar.
In this Reference Point issue there’s
information about many of the other library
stories, including a couple of exciting digital
service initiatives and glimpses at some of
our staff members who make our services
so good. As always, let us know if you have
questions, comments or a desire for more
information.
Purchase predicament
Tom Moore
3
Vatican archivist shares insight
with Friends of the Libraries
Increased computer usage and digital
archiving technologies are affecting libraries
today in ways similar to when the onset of
the printing press changed libraries in the
early 1400s.
This is according to Frank X. Blouin Jr.,
director of the Bentley Historical Library at
the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. At the
annual Friends of the Libraries event in the
Park Library Auditorium, Blouin
reflected on the challenges that
ever-changing technology poses
for libraries and his experiences
documenting the Vatican Archives.
“The Vatican Library and Vatican
Archives existed in a very formal
and organized way at a time when
the technology of information
and the use of information were
changing radically,” he said. “A lot
of the issues that the world faced
back when the library and archives were
established, we’re facing now, just with a
different technology.”
Such issues include authority of the
text, control of information and common
reference points.
Blouin, a professor in the Department of
History and the School of Information at
the University of Michigan, spent 20 years
documenting the Vatican Archives. He
published the results in his book, ”Vatican
Archives: an Inventory and Guide to
Historical Documents of the Holy See.”
The first
radical
change
for the
library and
archives
was the
invention
of the
printing
press,
which led
to the transformation from manuscripts to
print. Today, the transformation is from print
to digital.
“I think that it is important to understand the
past,” he said. “Archives and libraries really
are the principal entry into the past. That’s
where the voices of the past are recorded
and the actions of the past are documented.”
Perfect timing at CMU
Blouin’s presentation came at an ideal time for
the CMU Libraries, which recently introduced
an online institutional repository. The CMU
Online Digital Object Repository (CONDOR)
will provide a permanent, safe and accessible
collection of the academic and intellectual
output of the CMU community.
“What was truly challenging was to realize
that what is old is also new,” says Frank
Boles, director of Clarke Historical Library.
“Just as Vatican officials had to come to terms
with a world in which handwritten material
was in many ways replaced
by printing, we are coming
to terms with a world where
printed material is in many
ways being supplanted by
electronic media.”
Boles says the full
implications of the changes
that tools such as CONDOR
will bring are not yet clear.
“In a very real sense,
information professionals today are much
like the medieval scribes who knew that the
printing press would change their lives, but
could not predict how the change would take
place or what the end result would be,” he says.
To learn more about CONDOR, read the story
on pages 4 and 5 of this issue of Reference
Point or visit the Web site condor.cmich.edu. •
From print to digital
Be our friend
The CMU Friends of the Libraries
is a membership organization that
supports, through contributions
and volunteer activities, the
programs of the University
Library, the Clarke Historical
Library and Off-Campus Library
Services.
Members of this group receive
special invitations to:
• Volunteer opportunities
• Library-sponsored and Friends
of the Libraries events
• Behind-the-scenes library tours
and more
You are invited to become a
Friend of the Libraries today.
Call (989) 774-3500
‘A lot of the issues that the
world faced back when the
[Vatican] library and archives
were established, we’re facing
now, just with a different
technology.’ – Frank X. Blouin Jr.
Frank X. Blouin Jr. shares his insights
into the Vatican Library during his
presentation at the CMU Friends of the
Libraries annual event.
4
CONDOR takes flight
CMU scholarly works
are just a click away
Members of an interdepartmental team at
CMU are taking stock in the academic and
intellectual output of the entire university
community.
And with a keyword and the click of a mouse,
so can anyone else throughout the world.
The CMU Online Digital Object Repository
(CONDOR) is a new resource that collects
and permanently preserves the research and
creativity of CMU faculty, staff and students.
Repository items include articles, books,
theses, dissertations, simulations, and
published and unpublished research.
Indexed by Google and other search engines,
CONDOR enables these works to be shared,
discovered and disseminated electronically.
“The digital repository puts things into
one place that is accessible to everyone
throughout and beyond the university,” says
Ruth Helwig, university libraries systems
librarian and CONDOR team leader.
Libraries take the lead
Helwig and Anne Marie Casey, associate
dean of libraries, took note when national
conferences increasingly featured
discussions and programs about digital
repositories. The more they learned, the
bigger the benefit they saw in the university
developing its own central repository.
“We thought that we in the Libraries needed
to lead that movement,” says Casey,
explaining the public recognition of CMU
Libraries as a leading source of informational
and scholarly materials. “But we also knew
we’d be looking for collaboration and
working together with others to make it
happen.”
The repository officially registered its first
acquisitions on March 15. The first-day
acquisitions included an Off-Campus Library
Services presentation and two student
projects from the Student Research and
Creative Endeavors Exhibition. Since then,
many other CMU students and staff and
faculty members, such as Jeffrey Weinstock
and Twinet Parmer, have added and continue
to add materials to the repository.
Efforts are under way to encourage more
CMU community members to contribute
their materials to CONDOR. •
Ruth Helwig displays how the
results of a CONDOR search appear
on the computer screen.
During her presentation at CMU earlier this year,
Lee C. Van Orsdel, dean of libraries at Grand Valley
State University, offered faculty and library staff
members her perspectives on how open (online)
access and digital repositories, such as CONDOR,
offer universities alternatives to archiving the
intellectual output of the institution. Van Orsdel’s
study of open access is related to her research
into the correlation between scholarly publishing
patterns and the cost of journals.
5
Visit condor.cmich.edu
• View the scholarly and creative works posted
by CMU faculty, students and staff
• Learn more about the digital repository
Team at work
CMU Libraries manage the
software and are responsible for
processing repository objects,
and an interdepartmental team of
representatives from throughout
the university establishes CONDOR
policies and procedures. This team
also develops and offers training
on using the repository.
Areas represented and members
of this interdisciplinary team are:
CMU Libraries
• Frank J. Boles
• Anne M. Casey
• Pamela A. Grudzien
• Abby Kay Haggart
• Timothy John Peters
• Joyce Salisbury
• Barbara Ann Steffke
• Aparna V. Zambare
Counseling and Special Education
• Holly H. Hoffman
English Language and Literature
• Gretchen D. Papazian
Faculty Center for Innovative
Teaching
• Daniel J. Bracken
• Brian A. Roberts
Geography
• Bin Li
• Xiaolan Wu
Information Technology
• Gregory L. Dumont
• John M. Rathje
Off-Campus Programs
• Jeremy T. Bond
The Herbert H. and
Grace A. Dow College
of Health Professions
• Michael Hinko Jr.
• Wesley A. Leonard
On CONDOR
Name: Jeffrey Weinstock
Title: Associate Professor of English
Areas of expertise: Popular culture,
American literature, literary criticism
Weinstock says he likes how the repository
is making his works and research more
easily accessible to students, colleagues
and other people worldwide.
“Any database that makes it easy for others
to do research is amazing. The more people
who can read and cite my work, the better
it is for myself, the department and the
university.”
On CONDOR
Name: Twinet Parmer
Title: Professor of Counselor Education
Areas of expertise: Career development,
marriage and family, and sexuality, often
with an emphasis on African-Americans
and holistic wellness
Parmer says she takes great pride in her
work and likes that an online repository
such as CONDOR makes her research
and writing readily available to anyone.
She is anxious to have more of her pieces
posted in the repository but needs to be
more proactive in locating her coauthors
to receive copyright approval.
“Sometimes an article or book chapter
is not readily available, and CONDOR
makes the piece available to the world.”
6
Worthy of your support
Development Column
Greetings from the CMU Libraries! This is my
first column in Reference Point. In addition
to introducing myself, I’d like to address the
central development questions: Why should
you make a donation in support of library
services? What will your support benefit?
First, the introduction: I’m the new Director
of Library Development and Community
Outreach. I’m honored to work with great
people and look forward to meeting as many
library patrons and donors as I can. I know
many of you enjoyed the contact with my
predecessor, Brian Palmer, who is living out
west and is very happy. I also know I have
big shoes to fill, literally! I will do my best.
Please feel free to contact me with any
ideas, comments or questions.
Now, why are the CMU Libraries worthy of
your support? Let’s start from the beginning.
Why do people give? The list of answers
is endless, but here are a few reasons: tax
and income benefits, recognition, to make
a difference, belief in a cause, to create a
legacy, and to gain a deeper connection to
CMU. These are all great reasons to give
to any charity or nonprofit. So, why give
specifically to the CMU Libraries?
Here are some of the more common reasons
to give. Your donations help the libraries:
• Support the learning and research activities
of CMU students and faculty – on campus
and off campus – and across all the
academic programs
• Purchase books, periodicals, research
databases, and online resources to keep
the collections current and keyed to
academic needs
• Acquire and make available to researchers
unique or otherwise important historical
documents and materials of special
interest and research value
• Present speakers and exhibits in Park
Library
• Offer comprehensive information services
to the CMU and wider community.
While the reasons listed here are compelling
already, there are even more. Your gifts
ensure the CMU Libraries can provide
students effective tools for lifelong learning
and success. Charitable funds assist us in
keeping up with technology and trends,
enhancing the ability for our patrons to
navigate in an ever-changing world. Your
support helps keep the quality of education
and research at CMU strong for all students,
staff and faculty. In short, gifts to the library,
which I like to call the academic center of
CMU, help the entire university.
There are many reasons people are
motivated to give, and there are many ways
to give. Cash gifts, gifts of stock, planned
gifts, a pledged gift over a number of years,
memorial/honorarium donations, in-kind
gifts, and more. Please contact me
at 989-774-1826 or by e-mail at
jodi.robinette@cmich.edu. I would be
happy to help you with any questions or just
chat about your interest in the libraries and
CMU. You have the opportunity to make a
difference and be a true philanthropist!
Jodi A. Robinette
Director of Library Development and
Community Outreach
Jodi A. Robinette
7
Planned gift generates endowment
for resources and materials
Alice Jumper lived
quite simply in her
bungalow-style home
nestled in the St.
Johns area, where
she lived her entire
life ­–
all 101 years.
The 1963 graduate’s
living room was full
of books; everything
from children’s
literature to novels.
This love for reading stretched from the
children she taught for more than 38 years to
her work as a library volunteer.
And now, this love has returned to Park
Library.
Jumper, who passed away in March, left the
library an endowment of $284,603, which
will bring more resources and materials to
students, staff and faculty for years to come,
says Tom Moore, dean of libraries.
“Alice appreciated books and libraries, and
giving to the library appealed to her as part of
a theme of her life,” Moore says. “She loved
to teach children, and she loved to read to
them.”
Extended Hours Study
honors Jumper’s legacy
CMU recognized Jumper’s planned gift in
2002 by naming the library’s Extended Hours
Study in her honor.
Sitting at a computer in the Alice Jumper
study, Don Klein, a sophomore studying
computer science, says he appreciates
Jumper’s contributions to CMU.
“I think it’s awesome how people can put
others first like that and think of all the
people she never met who are going to use
this room because of her,” he says.
Jumper earned her teaching certificate from
the County Normal in Clinton County in 1928.
While she taught in country schools, she
traveled from St. Johns to Mount Pleasant,
taking courses at CMU in the evenings and
over the summers. Jumper never married or
had children of her own.
Alumna’s love for words rests at Park Library
Referring to CMU’s library director from
1930 to 1957, Jumper said Charles Park’s
dedication to the campus library was very
clear.
“Dr. Park was very careful about his books,
and he made sure that you took good care of
them,” Jumper said in 1999.
Sound investments and $6 a week
on groceries
Daniel Morrison, Jumper’s financial adviser
and a CMU alumnus, said Jumper’s savings
grew through careful
investments.
But she never
cared much about
money, Morrison
explains. She
spent an average
of $6 a week on
groceries. Her
furniture remained
1930s-style or
maybe even older,
and she walked
everywhere. In fact,
the last time she
drove her 1967 pea
green Malibu was in
the mid 1970s, he
says.
“She had specific
places where she
wanted her money
to go, and we made
sure it ended up
exactly where she
wanted it,” Morrison says. “CMU was one of
those places, and what an impact she’ll have
here.” •
1963 CMU alumna and longtime
library enthusiast Alice Jumper, right,
along with her niece Dawn Boechler
were among the special guests
who attended the 2002 Park Library
dedication ceremony. Jumper passed
away in March at the age of 101 and
left the library an endowment of
‘I think it’s awesome how $284,603 for resources and materials.
people can put others first
like that and think of all
the people she never met
who are going to use this
room because of her.’
– Don Klein, CMU sophomore
8
Software features keyword-based
and illustrated search options
Ask students how they plan to research the
subjects of their next assigned papers, and
many will say they will “Google” it.
Google, no longer viewed as just a search
engine, has become a verb. “Google” any
keyword and thousands of Web-related links
appear. While Google provides convenience
and access to variable quality information
resources, the Libraries’ collections provide
books, journals and other materials chosen
for their quality and academic value. Access
to the collections is through Centra, the
Libraries online catalog.
Libraries’ faculty member Krista Graham
describes the simplifying browser interface
currently under development for Centra as
“Googlesque.” It is planned that the new
software will be available for patron use late
in the fall semester.
“Libraries refer to this type of software as a
discovery layer tool,” Graham says. “It goes
over our existing catalog, Centra. It basically
gives us a new interface that allows the
user to search our data in new ways. This
makes accessing the items in the collections
easier.”
Libraries add ‘Googlesque’
browser to Centra
More familiar format
As an extension of Centra, which the
Libraries revamped and improved last year,
the new browser uses Centra’s data to
organize search results.
“Centra’s not going away,” Graham says.
“The new browser is using the exact same
library collection data but is manipulating it
in a different way.”
Graham says she believes students will
like the new system because it offers
an illustrated method of searching and
discovery, featuring keyword-based searches
and a visual map.
“We think it
gives students a
search interface
that they’re
probably more
comfortable
with than the
more complex
or advanced
interface we
already have,”
she says.
The new browsing software offers
specialized searching options to target
search results. The initial search results
can be broken down into categories such
as library material availability, format,
publication date, topics, author, and
language. Users also may choose to sort
their results by one or several of these
categories. •
‘The new browser is using
the exact same library
collection data but is
manipulating it in a
different way.’
– Krista Graham
Off-campus
library leader
CMU has hosted
biennial OCLS conference
since ’82
Central Michigan University
hosted the 13th Off-Campus
Library Services Conference in
Salt Lake City, Utah, this spring.
The conference offered off-campus
librarians, administrators
and educators nationwide
opportunities to meet and
exchange ideas on delivering
effective library services to
off-campus populations.
Most conference attendees
came from across the United
States. A few came from
Canada, the Caribbean and
Pakistan. CMU off-campus
librarian Jennifer Rundels was
a first-time attendee of the
conference.
“CMU has always been
considered a leader in off-campus
library services, not only
in Michigan, but throughout the
country. OCLS helps students,
sometimes in the military, from
as far away as Afghanistan and
Hawaii,” Rundels says. “CMU
also is respected as a pioneer,
having offered library services to
its off-campus students for more
than 30 years.”
According to Tim Peters, director
of Off-Campus Library Services,
CMU has unique off-campus
library services.
“Whereas other institutions may
have access to a single librarian,
CMU’s OCLS department is
comprised of six librarians and
six support staff,” Peters says.
CMU initiated this event and has
hosted it since 1982. •
Campaign biographies
displayed at the Clarke
The Clarke Historical Library’s latest
exhibit, “The Presidency and the American
Imagination,” features selections from the
library’s extensive collection of presidential
campaign biographies dating back more than
150 years. The exhibit is open and on display
through January 31.
“People want to know, ‘What does the
person who wants to be president look
like, act like and sound like?’” says Clarke
Historical Library Director Frank Boles.
“Voters want to know the character of the
person they are electing. That tradition goes
back 150 years.”
The Clarke Library collection began with a
gift donation from CMU’s Class of 1964.
After reading quite a few of the selections,
Boles concludes the basic elements of
presidential biographies have remained
the same throughout history, even if the
accomplishments worth highlighting have
changed.
Presidential hopefuls have issued
numerous authorized biographies and
other publications designed to introduce
themselves in a favorable light to the
American public. For example, in his early
1900s memoir, President Theodore Roosevelt
boasted that the “Intellectual Giant” had
killed three large lions when visiting Africa.
As recently as 2000, President George W.
Bush’s candidate biography mentioned he
enjoys painting and hymns.
A presidential exhibit
Character comes first
Boles says the campaign
biographies are a fascinating
way to learn about those who
sought the presidency and
how they tried to explain
themselves to meet perceived
public expectations. The books’
pages typically document how
well educated the candidates
were – and if they didn’t have a
formal education, like President
Abraham Lincoln, how they
overcame not having one.
“No one wants an uneducated person
running the country,” Boles says.
Another popular theme is the way most
candidates present themselves as average
people who have worked their way into
prominent positions.
“All presidents want to be born in a log cabin,
but in actuality only four were,” Boles says.
“Theodore Roosevelt talks about the ‘old
family home’ in his book. It sounds modest,
but in reality the ‘old family home’ was a
35-room mansion.”
This exhibit program also features speakers
addressing what it’s like behind the scenes
at primaries, how presidential biographies
are written, and how candidates present
themselves in televised presidential debates.
For more information about speaker times
and dates, visit clarke.cmich.edu. •
From left to right, College of
Communication and Fine Arts
professors Shelly Hinck, Ed Hinck
and Bill Dailey discuss what
communication choices viewers
should pay attention to in the
presidential debates. They planned
to lead a discussion as part of
‘The Presidency and the American
Imagination’ exhibit at 7 p.m. Oct. 16
in the Park Library Auditorium.
Selections from a collection of
campaign biographies are part of
‘The Presidency and the American
Imagination’ exhibit on display
in the Clarke Historical Library
through Jan. 30.
10
Personal Reference - continued from page 1
Lorenzen is humble about winning the award,
which is presented only once every two
years at the annual MLA Conference, and he
doesn’t talk much about it in person. But like
any good blogger, he does write about the
accomplishment on his Web site:
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
2008 Michigan Library Association
Information Literacy Award
“Much to my surprise, the Dean of the CMU
Libraries decided there should be a reception
held in my honor for this. While happy and
grateful, I also found this a bit awkward.
People usually only get receptions when they
retire....
“My thanks to all my colleagues I have either
worked with or have associated with through
professional associations, conferences and the
publishing process. My thoughts and work in
information literacy and library instruction have
been built through my association with all of
you and I am truly grateful.”
Lorenzen encourages students,
patrons to analyze Web sources
Leaving the reference area, Lorenzen heads
to an office with graduate diplomas, family
photos and published books and papers.
“This is the latest published paper,” he
says, holding “We Won’t Be Fooled Again:
Teaching Critical Thinking via Evaluation of
Hoax and Historical Revisionist Websites”
in the journal College and Undergraduate
Libraries. Lorenzen and fellow CMU
reference librarian Stephanie Mathson wrote
the piece after teaching LIB 197, a course
teaching students how to find, use and
properly cite library resources. Lorenzen
designs his lessons to teach World Wide
Web organization and how to analyze
information with search engines.
“Information is everywhere these days. You
go to Google, type in a word, and assume
it gives you the best information. That is
not always the case. There is plenty of
inaccurate information out there,” he says.
“That is where reference librarians come
in. We are the key to finding the best, most
accurate information.”
Lorenzen types the URL BBC.co.uk in his
computer. A simple search of the British
news organization’s site brings up “Blondes
‘to die out’ in 200 years,” an article citing
World Health Organization (WHO) research
that natural blondes will be “extinct” within
200 years because men prefer bottle
blondes to natural blondes.
“So is this a real story?” he asks.
It looks real. It comes from a reputable
news source and includes plenty of facts
and quotes from professors and field
professionals. But, as Lorenzen points out
correctly after a little more searching and
evaluation of the sources, it’s a hoax.
“If it seems like it could be a hoax or bad
information, it probably is,” he says, noting
that Google can’t filter out sites with
incorrect information.
“Yes, you can find information easily online,
but it is not always the best information,”
he adds. “If you have a question, reference
librarians can help point you in the most
accurate direction. That is what I do. That is
a reason I am here.” •
Stolen words
Tips on how to detect
plagiarism
In addition to filtering
information, writing about it and
assisting patrons in gathering
the right materials, Park
Library’s Michael Lorenzen is an
expert on plagiarism. Lorenzen
has given presentatiions on
plagiarism and consulted with
faculty on suspect papers for
years. He says plagiarism has
become a larger problem in
recent years because of the
Internet.
“Students in the past weren’t
more honest. It just took much
more effort to copy something
down word for word,” he says.
“Students today can just cut
and paste sentences from a
Web site.”
Lorenzen says
professors usually
can tell when
information is
taken directly
from a source,
but it’s more
difficult to prove
it than it used to
be because of the
great wealth of
online sources.
Just as the Internet
increases the
problem, it also
can alleviate it.
Online sites faculty
can use to check
for plagiarism
include:
TurnItIn.com. This service is
available to CMU faculty at
Blackboard.com under the
“Course Toolbox” menu. It
checks papers and assignments
against billions of Web sites and
several different databases.
Google.com. Faculty can simply
type a suspect sentence in
quotes in the search engine
box. If it is plagiarized from a
Web site, the site the student
used likely will show up. •
‘Claudene’ invokes childhood innocence
in Detroit’s glory days
When several of Detroit’s abandoned, decaying homes
were coated in bright orange, Deborah Friedman saw
her childhood memories disappearing beneath layers
of paint. It was the catalyst for her series of paintings,
“Claudene,” which she started more than two years ago.
“I do hope no one ever paints our houses orange or
tears them down ever, ever,” Friedman inscribes on
one painting.
Her paintings tell a story of what Detroit was like in
the ’50s. She wants people to remember Detroit as
the great city it once was.
“The paintings are about the past and the present,”
she says.
Art lends a voice
“Claudene” depicts Friedman’s childhood – a time of youthful naivete and careless
days of play – and reflects memories involving her childhood friend Claudene.
“Each painting is a vignette, or story, about what we did together,” Friedman says.
Through her art, Friedman sees how uninformed she and Claudene were at the time.
“We just didn’t know anything,” she says. “Childhood is so protective. You just build
your own little world. It was just about playing and being a child.”
Friedman says she feels that art gives her a voice, but before this series she had
never used words in her art.
“It just might be that I had such strong feelings that the image wasn’t going to be
enough,” she said.
Friedman plans to add more paintings to the series. •
Beneath the orange paint CMU Libraries’ exhibits
and events calendar
Megan Moreno, coordinator of exhibits and projects, hangs paintings for Deborah
Friedman’s ‘Claudene’ exhibit on display in the Park Library Baber Room through
Oct. 29. The exhibit also will be part of the Michigan Story Festival Oct. 24 and 25.
11
lib.cmich.edu/exhibits
‘Michigan Moments’ by Kent Miller
CMU journalism faculty member’s
photographs featured in the “Michigan
24-7 Coffee Table Book”
• Through Oct. 26
• Third Floor Exhibit Area, Park Library
‘Claudene’ by Deborah Friedman
Contemporary artist’s narrative capturing
the innocence of youth and the essence
of Detroit’s past
• Through Oct. 29
• Baber Room, Park Library
‘The Presidency and the American
Imagination’
Selections from Clarke Historical Library’s
collection of campaign biographies
• Through Jan. 30
• Clarke Historical Library, Park Library
‘The Presidential Debates’
Clarke Historical Library exhibit “The
Presidency and the American Imagination”
special presentation featuring CMU faculty
members William O. Dailey, Edward A.
Hinck, and Shelly S. Hinck discussing their
recently published book, “Politeness in
Presidential Debates”
• 7 p.m. Oct. 16
• Auditorium, Park Library
Michigan Story Festival Mural
Festival mural created by Tom Woodruff
and Morey Charter School students
• Oct. 13 through 27
• Park Library
Michigan Story Festival
Award-winning annual event showcasing
storytelling at its finest, including special
exhibits and presentations in Park Library
• Oct. 24 and 25
• Visit www.michiganstoryfestival.org
‘The Kyoto Calligraphy Lessons:
Cyanotypes by Nicholas Hill’
Inspired by images found in a Kyoto,
Japan, calligraphy lesson book
• Oct. 31 through Dec. 16
• Baber Room, Park Library
Rebecca Zeiss’ ‘Re-cognize’
Mixed media photography
• Jan. 6 through Feb. 26
• Baber Room, Park Library
University Libraries
Park Library 407
Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
Non-profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
Permit No. 93
Students are key to CMU Libraries
Ebony J. Brown understands that not all Park Library patrons know exactly where
to find what they need.
After all, it was only two years ago that the Detroit junior felt somewhat the same:
intimidated by the four-story building that offers tens of thousands of printed and
online resources, a large variety of services, and a great number of meeting and
exhibit rooms.
That’s why Brown takes care in helping others
while working at the CMU Libraries’ information
and reference desks as a student employee.
“People ask everything from ‘Where’s the
second floor?’ all the way to ‘Can you help me
find this book?’” Brown says. “You have to have
the answers, and if you don’t know yourself, you
need to know where people can get them.
“What I like is that at least once every shift,
somebody you helped will stop by to say,
‘Thank you.’”
Enrolling in the 1-credit course Introduction to
Library and Information Research her freshman
year introduced Brown to the Park Library and
generated her interest in working there.
“I feel very fortunate to have this job,” she says.
“I like to help people, and the staff here is great
to work with.”
Library employs about 200 students
Brown is one of approximately 200 student employees who work for the CMU Libraries
throughout the academic year and summer. Students are needed in all areas and
departments to do everything from assisting patrons at the service desks to helping
staff members, updating computer software and shelving books.
“We couldn’t run this library without the student employees,” says Gerry Edgar,
manager of business services.
To express appreciation for the students, the CMU Libraries host a Student Recognition
Week celebration each spring and offer students with four or more semesters
experience the opportunity to put a name plate in the library books of their choice.
Brown says she is considering putting her name in a book related to social work, which
is her undergraduate major.•
Essential employees
Park Library student employee Ebony J. Brown, right, enjoys
helping library patrons, such as Andrea LaLonde, who stop by
the information desk with many different types of questions.
‘The job is different every day,’ Brown says.