Contents
Polk Library in the 21st Century
What's in a Name? Forrest R. Polk Library
Database Changes
New Grove Dictionary
Criminal Justice Index
New Access to Books in Print
Eat Your Words!
Library Assignment Alternatives
On-Line Renewal
Presentations Lab Workshops
And the Winner Is...

Polk Library in the 21st Century
Patrick Wilkinson
wilkinso@uwosh.edu

The Forrest R. Polk Library was constructed in two parts with the first element constructed in 1962 and an addition built in 1969. Few changes have been made to the building since the 1960s resulting in physical and operational deficiencies. The State of Wisconsin recognized this and authorized a Polk Library Study by a professional library consultant. The study is currently in progress. The purpose of the study is to determine the long-range library needs of UW Oshkosh for the next 10 to 20 years and to develop a preliminary building renovation/expansion program to meet those needs.

The library staff has been looking at these issues since 1999 and developed a vision statement for “Polk Library in the 21st Century.” You can locate this statement on the web at: http://www.uwosh.edu/library/feedback.html. Polk Library staff anticipates that the expanded and remodeled Polk Library will be a patron-friendly facility that will successfully integrate the best of traditional library collections and services with the best of new and emerging library collections and services. It will symbolize UW Oshkosh’s commitment to students, faculty & staff, teaching & learning and the wise use of information technology.

Some of the issues that are receiving significant attention are:

• building sufficient space for traditional library collections
• creating attractive and functional group and private study areas for students
• providing a “wired” and “wireless” building to facilitate the use of laptops and hand-held devices in library research
• improving the physical environment for specific library units such as Archives, the Area Research Center and Special Collections, which currently has inadequate physical facilities

The Polk Library staff is interested in your ideas about Polk Library in the 21st Century. Please take a look at the vision statement. Use the web response form that accompanies the vision statement to tell us what you think. What do you like about the library’s vision? What don’t you like? What is missing that we should include in the study? If you have questions, please contact Patrick Wilkinson, Associate Director and Chief Operations Officer (Polk Library).

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What’s in a Name? Forrest R. Polk Library
Joshua Ranger
ranger@uwosh.edu

I hold in my hand a letter dated March 13, 1918, addressed to Lieutenant Forrest Raymond Polk of the 315th Field Artillery in Camp Lee, Virginia. It is a letter of promise. That the position of industrial arts instructor Polk left to become a soldier would be kept open for him to return. The letter pledges wistfully “…we shall be most happy to have you back with us whenever you decide to do so.” Eventually Lieut. Polk did decide to come back to Oshkosh and, eventually, he replaced the man who wrote him this letter, Harry Brown, when Polk became President of the Oshkosh State Teachers College in 1931. Polk continued to serve as president for 28 more years, becoming the longest serving leader of this school; a record that remains today.

Throughout his long tenure as president, Forrest Polk led the school through some of the most turbulent and fascinating times of its history. He guided the college through the Depression when resources were rapidly dwindling while enrollments increased; through World War II when the school was drained of its male students necessitating numerous faculty layoffs; and finally, through a post-War enrollment surge and a corresponding broadening of the school’s curriculum into liberal arts warranting a change in name to the Oshkosh State College (a popularized form of Wisconsin State College, Oshkosh). To serve a school population three times the size it was when he began to serve as President, Polk worked to break a de-facto building moratorium that began in the mid-1920s. He began a program of physical plant expansion that continued long into the tenure of Roger Guiles, Polk’s replacement.

While I may be a bit biased, arguably the most important building Guiles guided into completion was that of a much-needed library. Previously, the library was located in the center of Dempsey Hall, the reading room of which is now the Career Services Center. Much too small to serve the needs of the rapidly expanding student body, the library required larger digs of its own. And in November 1962, the new library was officially given the name of the very president who had led the school to a size and mission that required such a new facility. It was given the name of Forrest R. Polk.

Polk began his life in 1888 in Tobinsport, Indiana. After receiving a degree in engineering in 1909 at Valparaiso and one in engineering from Purdue in 1914, Polk took a job in Oshkosh in September of 1915 to teach Industrial Arts. World War I found Polk in the aforementioned artillery battery of the American Expeditionary Forces in France. When Polk rejoined the Oshkosh faculty in 1921, he taught mathematics but in the late 20’s left again to embark on doctoral studies at the Universities of Chicago and Wisconsin. Duty called him back to Oshkosh before his studies were completed when Polk was chosen to take over the Presidency.

And thus began the man’s second career at Oshkosh. In his 28 years here as President, Polk guided a typical teachers college to become the largest of the state colleges. He reworked the curriculum to respond to war time teacher shortages and hosted over 1200 Army Air Corps cadets to prepare them for military service. He slowly, quietly acquired numerous properties to expand the land of our small campus, including the beautiful Pollock Alumni House and oversaw the construction of its first permanent dormitory, Radford Hall. In many ways Polk set the scene for the massive expansion that was to occur in the decade that followed his retirement. For these and many other reasons this campus should be quite grateful that President Harry Brown kept Forrest Polk’s old job open for him; we should be even more grateful that the Lieutenant came back and claimed it.

For additional information pertaining to the history of the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and its distinguished faculty and staff, please consult with the University Archives, 3rd South, Forrest R. Polk Library.

Hours of Operation: Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM & 1:00 PM-4:00 PM
Tuesday (only & additionally) 6:00 PM- 10:00 PM

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Database Changes
Cynthia Huebschen
huebschc@uwosh.edu

To begin 2001, two of Polk Library’s database subscriptions have changed vendors and search interfaces. GeoRef, which has been available on-line to UW Oshkosh users since 1995, had been available from FirstSearch. The library’s Web page links to GeoRef will now take users to SilverPlatter’s WebSPIRS menu, where the database can be selected from a group that includes BIOSIS, MLA Bibliography, and PsycInfo. The change was made for reasons of price and a more flexible search interface; it is possible that future changes will occur for those reasons. The database content is the same; the product remains a bibliographic database only. Users both on- and off-campus, however, will no longer have to memorize the FirstSearch authorization and password. On-campus access will require no password; off-campus users will connect through the library’s proxy server, which gives access to this and other databases.

Also changing interfaces is Sociological Abstracts. Previously available from FirstSearch as “SocioAbs,” this database was discontinued by OCLC from the FirstSearch group to which Polk Library had access. A new subscription therefore became necessary, and the library has chosen to subscribe via Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (CSA). This change will actually enhance the database content, as this subscription includes the full Sociological Abstracts database, rather than the subset utilized in SocioAbs. Along with this database (which, like GeoRef, remains bibliographic only—no full text), our users will have access to Social Services Abstracts and another edition of the ERIC database.

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New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
Cynthia Huebschen
huebschc@uwosh.edu

Joining the other online resources from Grove’s is a new UW System subscription, the on-line counterpart of the print New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. This resource, which has also been purchased by Polk Library in print form, will update the 1980 print edition of twenty volumes, which presently is located in the Reference collection (ML 100 .G8863 1980).

According to Grove’s, a team of over 60 editors and contributors has been preparing this new edition of Grove’s since 1993. It will include over 29,000 articles on musicians, musical instruments, pieces, and musical topics. The online version of Grove’s will include: the full text of the printed version in searchable form, quarterly updates on works, biographical information and links, annual updates of new and revised entries, and links to thousands of images and digital sound.

You will find links to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians on Polk Library’s Web page, under “Articles and more by subject,” then under “Fine Arts, Music, Literature, and Philosophy” (along with the Grove Dictionary of Art , and the Grove Dictionary of Opera). There is also a link under “General Information Resources.”

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Criminal Justice Periodical Index
Cynthia Huebschen
huebschc@uwosh.edu

For the first time, Polk Library students and faculty have access to an online index to Criminal Justice journals, through a UW System subscription to Criminal Justice Periodical Index, through ProQuest. Based on the print index, this database provides indexing and abstracting of articles in over 140 journals related to criminal justice, most from 1981 to the present, with a few dating even earlier. Full text articles are also available from 45 journals, most from 1997 to the present, with a few offering text back to 1994. The journals with available full text include the American Journal of Criminal Law, the ABA Journal, Corrections Forum, Crime and Delinquency, Criminal Justice and Behavior, Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, Journal of Forensic Sciences, Law and Order, Police, Prison Journal, Social Pathology, and Trial.

Using the same search interface as other ProQuest (UMI/Bell & Howell) databases such as ABI Inform, the Wisconsin Newsstand, and CINAHL, users may search Criminal Justice Periodical Index by keyword, publication name, and date range.

The “Guided Search” offers additional fields such as author, geographical name, publication title, or subject. Searches may be limited to full-text retrievals or peer-reviewed journals.

This index may be found from Polk Library’s home page, under “Articles and more by subject,” then either the alphabetical database listing, or the “Law and Criminal Justice” links.

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New Access to “Books In Print”
Cynthia Huebschen
huebschc@uwosh.edu

The UW System subscription to Books In Print has changed vendors; the database is now available from Bowker, the company which produces the print product. This version of Books In Print has some added features. As before, it is searchable by author, title, subject, publisher, date, ISBN, format, language, price, series, and, for motion pictures, MPAA Rating or performer. In addition, some lists and sources of information have been added. Students and faculty may choose to browse the Forthcoming Book Room, Bowker’s Fiction Room, or the Children’s Room. In the last, one may search only for children’s and young adult books, audiocassettes, and videos, using special search criteria such as Lexile® Measures or Imaginary Settings. Users may also choose a list of “Favorite Characters,” for brief descriptions of characters in major children’s books; “Favorite Series,” for descriptions of series such as the Hardy Boys, the Berenstain Bears, Bunnicula, Chronicles of Narnia, Full House, or the Bobbsey Twins; or browse 1,500 “A to Zoo” subject headings.

Another added feature is a link to “Bowker’s Awards Database,” in which one can search for lists of award winners by year. Among the awards included are: Academy Awards (major categories), American Film Festival, American Library Association Notable Books for Children, Coretta Scott King Awards, Edgar Awards, Emmy Awards, Hugo Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Lambda Literary Awards, National Book Awards, National Society of Film Critics Awards, Newberry or Caldecott Awards, the Banta Award given by the Wisconsin Library Association, New York Times Notable Books of the Year, Thurber Prize, School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, the Walt Whitman Award, and the Pulitzer Prize.

The database also offers brief author biographies (supplied by publishers), links to publishers’ home pages and catalogs, and a special “In the Media” section, in which one can locate books or films mentioned by major media sources. Here you can find information on references from Booknotes C-SPAN, Entertainment Weekly, the New York Times Book Review, People, Time, the Today Show, National Public Radio, or the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Links to Books In Print may be found from the library’s home page (under “Articles and more by subject”), either in the alphabetical listing or under “General Information Resources” or “Faculty Research Corner.”

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Eat Your Words!
Vicki Woschnick
woschv11@uwosh.edu

If lunch is leaving you hungry for more, the Events Committee of the Human Resources Department’s LunchNet program invites you to “Eat Your Words!,” a lunch hour book club that will offer books and discussion on a variety of topics. 

In addition to books, “Eat Your Words!” will provide an opportunity for classified, academic and limited term staff members to become better acquainted with their colleagues in an informal setting where they can share ideas, laughter and a few good books. 

Details of the book club’s meeting times and locations are being finalized, but further information will be sent out via intra-campus mail.  Questions may be directed to “Eat Your Words!” Facilitator and Events Committee chair, Vicki Woschnick.

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Library Assignment Alternatives
Marisa Finkey
finkey@uwosh.edu

Need to familiarize your students with library research and resources? While papers and scavenger hunts are the most common ways of introducing students to library resources, there are other alternatives.

Anatomy of a paper- This assignment focuses students on the process of researching a paper topic instead of the actual writing. Students define their topic, prepare an annotated bibliography of sources, and provide an outline, thesis, and opening paragraph and summary of the “paper”.

Introducing relevant databases- This is a nice way to familiarize students with major databases in their field. Have students locate resources on a topic using a particular database, such as PsycINFO or GeoRef. Students will learn how to search the database, read and evaluate citations and locate the materials in the library. A variation of this assignment may be to have students perform their search in two different databases and compare the results. This variation can be used to illustrate why a specialized database like PsycINFO may be more appropriate than the broader Ebsco’s Academic Search.

For more ideas on library assignments take a look at the Queen Elizabeth II Library’s Ideas for Library/Information Assignments (http://www.mun.ca/library/research_help/qeii/assignment_ideas.html).

Librarians are happy to acquaint students with library resources or to discuss effective web-searching and web-site evaluation. Please contact Marisa Finkey if you are interested in scheduling a Library orientation for your students. Phone: 424-3436 or visit the Library Instruction Services web page at: http://www.uwosh.edu/departments/llr/instruct/

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On-Line Renewal Policies and Procedures
Jeanne Foley
foley@uwosh.edu

Since Monday, December 4, 2000, UW Oshkosh faculty, academic staff and classified staff have had the option to renew Polk Library materials on-line through the library’s catalog or in person at the Circulation Desk!  (Starting January 29, students and guest users, too, will be able to access this feature). Just remember, you will still need your TitanCard.

Renewing on-line is quick and easy.

• From the Polk Library Web Page, select the “on-line library catalog.” (http://www.uwosh.edu/library/)
• Select the “Your Record” button at the bottom of the menu options.
• Type in your 16-digit TitanCard number and last name.
• Select the titles you want to renew.
• Click on the renew button.

Be sure to check the screen to see that all the titles have been renewed and write your new due date on the date- due cards in the pockets inside the back cover of your books.

Some library materials cannot be renewed either on-line or in person.

• If there is a HOLD or RECALL on any item, it cannot be renewed.
• Interlibrary Loans cannot be renewed on-line or at the Circulation Desk. For any questions regarding ILL, call the ILL office at 424-3348.

Basic Library Circulation Policy Has Not Changed.

• Library materials still need to be returned or renewed on time.
• Recalled items must be returned when requested or all borrowing privileges will be suspended including Interlibrary Loan.
• The library reserves the right to recall materials to ensure their physical condition if needed.

If you have questions about on-line renewals, please call Jeanne Foley, Head of Access Services, 424-7315.

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Media Services Presentations Lab Workshops
Sean Ruppert
ruppert@uwosh.edu

The Media Services Presentations Lab offers a number of hands-on workshops each semester on computer, presentation, and multimedia topics. Workshops are about an hour long and are always free of charge.

Letter size or 11X17 posters of semester workshops are available for departmental computer labs or other locations where students routinely look for information. Send email to ruppert@uwosh.edu to request a poster.

Workshops this semester include:
Feb 5 Intro to Blackboard 9:10 AM Clow 238
Feb 8 Intro to Blackboard 8:20 AM Clow 238
Feb 9 Intro to Blackboard 3:00 PM Clow 238
Feb 12 Intro to Blackboard 9:10 AM Clow 238
Feb 15 Intro to Blackboard 8:20 AM Clow 238
Feb 16 Intro to Blackboard 3:00 PM Clow 238
Feb 22 Intro to Dreamweaver 8:10 AM Clow 238
Feb 22 Intro to PowerPoint 9:40 AM Clow 238
Mar 8 Advanced PowerPoint 8:10 AM Clow 238
Mar 8 Intro to Photoshop 9:40 AM Clow 238
Mar 29 Giving Good Present. 8:10 AM Clow 238
Mar 29 Intro to Flash 9:40 AM Clow 238
Apr 12 Intro to PowerPoint 8:10 AM Clow 238
Apr 12 Advanced PowerPoint 9:40 AM Clow 238
Apr 26 Intro to Photoshop 8:10 AM Clow 238
Apr 26 Intro to Dreamweaver 9:40 AM Clow 238

Introduction to Blackboard
Blackboard is quickly becoming the standard for online course material at UW Oshkosh. Learn the skills necessary for taking full advantage of Blackboard sites for your classes. Attendees will learn navigation, document retrieval, assessments, message boards, research and other Blackboard topics.

Introduction to Dreamweaver
Dreamweaver is a HTML design package that allows users to build great web pages in a matter of seconds. The workshop will cover basic use of Dreamweaver, as well as templates, stylesheets and web accessibility issues.

Introduction to PowerPoint
This workshop will teach the basics of Microsoft’s PowerPoint, the most commonly used presentations software at UW Oshkosh. Participants will learn how to create a slide show, apply a template to their slides, navigate through a slide show, and insert images and documents created in other programs. This workshop is a must for all UW Oshkosh students.

Advanced PowerPoint
This workshop covers topics including slide transitions, animations, sound, video, and other presentation enhancements. Students who attend this workshop should have already attended the basic session, or have a basic understanding of PowerPoint.

Introduction to Photoshop
Photoshop is the most powerful image manipulation tool available. Many also consider it the most daunting. This workshop demystifies Photoshop, explaining resolution, image types, Photoshop’s tools, filters, layers, and other items in terms the average UW Oshkosh student can understand.

Giving Good Presentations
Knowing how to use PowerPoint often times isn’t enough to give a stellar presentation. This workshop shares hints and tips for ensuring your presentation is as informative, entertaining, and to-the-point as you envisioned it. No prerequisites are required.

Introduction to Flash
Flash is a powerful web animation tool that allows users to easily create complex sites. This workshop will cover the basics of Flash, including symbols, layers, sound, and buttons. More information is available on the web at: http://idea.uwosh.edu/ruppert/

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And the Winner is...
Susan Kiedrowski
kiedrs96@uwosh.edu

It’s that time of year again when award-winning juvenile literature is announced! The EMC has many titles which have recently won prestigious awards. The widely known Caldecott Award for the artist of the best American picture book went to David Small for his caricature illustrations in So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George. The much debated and awaited Newbery Medal went to Richard Peck for his depression era vignettes in A Year Down Yonder. The Corretta Scott King Award for authors and illustrators of African descent was given to Jacqueline Woodson for her young adult novel Miracle’s Boys, and to Bryan Collier for his artwork in Uptown.

Lesser known but equally notable awards were also announced. The Printz Award recognizes excellence in young adult literature. It differs from the Newbery Medal in that the winning author does not have to be American. This year’s winner is David Almond for his book Kit’s Wilderness. A brand new award was given by the American Library Association this year named the Sibert Award. It is given for the best informational book for young readers and was won by Marc Aronson for Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado. Finally, the Batchelder Award fills a specific niche by recognizing translated books from all over the world. The award actually goes to the American publisher of the book in order to “encourage publishers to seek out superior children’s books abroad.” This year the honor goes to Arthur Levine/Scholastic Press for Samir and Yonatan by Daniella Carmi, originally written in Hebrew.

When selecting your light reading for the weekend, don’t neglect all of the Honor Books for these awards as well! All books mentioned are either owned by Polk library, or are already on order. Here’s a quick list:
Caldecott Honor Books:
Casey At the Bat illustrated by Christopher Bing, Click, Clack, Moo, Cows That Type illustrated by Betsy Lewin, Olivia illustrated by Ian Falconer.

Newbery Honor Books:
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo, Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer, Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos, The Wanderer by Sharon Creech.

Coretta Scott King Honor Books:
Let It Shine! Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters by Andrea Davis Pinkney, Freedom River by Bryan Collier, Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth illustrated by R. Gregory Christie with text by Anne Rockwell, Virgie Goes to School with Us Boys illustrated by E.B. Lewis with text by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard.

Batchelder Honor Books:
Ultimate Game by Christian Lehmann.

Printz Honor Books:
Many Stones by Carolyn Coman, The Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci, Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison, Stuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman.

Sibert Honor Books:
Blizzard by Jim Murphy, The Longitude Prize by Joan Dash, My Season With Penguins by Sophie Webb, Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned by Judd Winick.

Polk Library News is a publication of Forrest R. Polk Library, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh. The information and library worlds are changing quickly. The staff of Polk Library hopes this newsletter will keep the campus informed regarding innovations in library services and resources.

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Created for the Web, January 2001