Leadership lived: Student helps manage UIS Brookens Library

As a student manager at Brookens Library, Andrew Koontz, a senior University of Illinois Springfield computer science major, makes sure that patrons find the resources they need. He also trains new student workers and is responsible for special projects.

“The most rewarding part about working at the library is the feeling you get after helping someone, whether it be a patron that comes in, a student or a fellow worker,” he said. “It’s just a really great feeling helping someone achieve what they want to do.”

Koontz, who is from Belleville, Illinois, has worked at the library for the past year and a half and worked his way up to the student manager position. It’s the first time he’s ever held a management position.

“If a student worker needs help with a patron or gets asked something they don’t know they’ll come to me or another supervisor for help,” he said.

As a computer science major, Koontz likes to point out that Brookens Library not only offers books, but online databases for students to take advantage of while doing research.

After he graduates from UIS, Koontz wants to continue to work with computers and possibly become a software engineer.

“As long as it involves my major and I get to work with computers I’ll be happy,” he said.

Koontz chose the University of Illinois Springfield because of the right-sized supportive community. He says he came from a smaller higher school and didn’t want to attend a large university.

“UIS has many services and opportunities for students that really helps them feel welcomed into the school. I think this is a great school,” he said.

UIS Library Dean Pattie Piotrowski named the Illinois Academic Librarian of the Year

Pattie Piotrowski, university librarian and dean of library instructional services at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Brookens Library, has been named the Illinois Academic Librarian of the Year by the Illinois Library Association (ILA).

The award, presented by the ILA Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries Forum, recognizes an Illinois librarian who is making an outstanding statewide contribution to academic or research librarianship and to library development. The award is sponsored by the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois.

“It is an honor to be recognized by my colleagues in Illinois academic libraries,” said Piotrowski. “To have fellow librarians and library staff support me is truly humbling. As I glance over the list of past recipients of this prestigious award, I am quite honored to join them. Any success I’ve had is due to many colleagues, friends, and family members who have shown support, given mentoring and shared humor, and I thank them all.”

Currently the President of ILA, Piotrowski has been an active ILA member since 2003 and has distinguished herself through her service to the Illinois Association of College & Research Libraries (IACRL), ILA and the Illinois library community in general. As an active member of IACRL, Piotrowski participated in conference planning duties for three IACRL conferences, including serving as chair of the 2014 conference planning committee. She also served on the IACRL executive board from 2012-2015, as Vice President/President-Elect (2012-2013), President (2013-2014) and Past President (2014-2015).

During her tenure with IACRL, Piotrowski worked to create a more engaged and tangible environment for its members, including bringing the ILA lobbyist to speak at the IACRL Luncheon at the annual ILA conference, coordinating the IACRL booth at ILA conferences, and coordinating new-member recruitment efforts.

In presenting the award, the ILA stated “Piotrowski strives to create environments in which everyone—from students to administrators—not only feels welcome but also understands that they are part of a community that is dedicated to the enrichment of students’ lives. Piotrowski emphasizes that at higher education institutions, faculty, staff and administrators should be constant in their connection to their communities by remembering the significance of their roles.”

The Illinois Academic Librarian of the Year Award will be presented at the Awards Luncheon held on Tuesday, October 18, during the 2016 Illinois Library Association Annual Conference in Rosemont.

Pattie Piotrowski named the new university librarian and dean at UIS Brookens Library

Pattie Piotrowski has been named the new University Librarian and Dean of Library Instructional Services at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Brookens Library, pending University of Illinois Board of Trustees approval.

She comes to UIS from the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, where she has served as Assistant Dean for Public Services at the Paul V. Galvin Library since 2006. She is currently President-Elect of the Illinois Library Association.

“In assessing Ms. Piotrowski’s strengths, the search committee noted her experience, strong understanding of contemporary trends in library services, appreciation for the value of assessment, and commitment to diversity as well as to public service,” said Lynn Pardie, UIS vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost.

Piotrowski has a strong background in user-centered services and a collaborative orientation to her leadership responsibilities. She has also been successful in grant-seeking efforts, garnering support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and from the American Library Association for educational programming.

“I am excited to be joining UIS with its rich history and student diversity,” said Piotrowski. “I look forward to building on the success of the Brookens Library, and contributing to the achievements of the university system, its faculty, students and staff.”

Piotrowski is a member of the American Library Association and Illinois Library Association, and has held a number of associated leadership positions. She holds a master’s degree in Library and Information Science from Dominican University and a master’s in Business Administration from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Piotrowski’s appointment is scheduled to begin on August 1, 2016. She replaces former University Librarian and Dean of Library Instructional Services Jane Treadwell who retired in April.

UIS librarian Sarah Sagmoen named a "Mover and Shaker" by the Library Journal

Sarah Sagmoen, director of learning commons and user services at Brookens Library at the University of Illinois Springfield, has been selected as one of 50 “Movers and Shakers” in the annual award sponsored by Library Journal, the most prestigious trade journal in the library profession.

More than 225 librarians from all types of libraries throughout the United States were nominated for the award which recognizes early career librarians who are seen as emerging leaders in the field. The 50 individuals chosen for the award this year will be profiled in the March 15 issue of Library Journal.

In making the announcement, the Library Journal said “the 50 individuals recognized here are passionate about what all types of libraries can do to enhance lives—for adults, teens, school children, infants, and toddlers. If there’s a common theme among their profiles, it’s that as much as the library is a place to go, it is also a place on the go—to wherever patrons or potential patrons are.”

That description certainly fits Sagmoen. Early on in her now four year career at Brookens Library, she began to think of new ways to reach out directly to students. Research performed by the library had shown that students were more likely to ask for assistance from librarians if they knew librarians as people. Sagmoen set out to make that happen. She began volunteering at student activities on campus, such as Springfest, where she judged the “monumentally muddy” tug-of-war. She was a key member of the library committee that planned and implemented gaming days and poetry slams, and together with colleagues in the library and Student Life, conceived of and worked with students to produce the successful “Haunted Library” event held each year. The first Haunted Library was voted “Student Event of the Year.” Sagmoen’s impact has not gone unnoticed on campus—she was chosen as an Employee of the Month in 2013.

Sagmoen also took on more responsibility within the library, performing a variety of functions before being chosen in a national search for the newly created position of Director of Learning Commons and User Services. In this role, Sagmoen manages the Information Desk, Circulation, and Reserves as well as the installed base of over 100 public-use computers. She has created a successful training program for library student assistants that empowers them and prepares them to take on leadership roles. In addition to serving as the liaison to Student Life, Sagmoen, who is an assistant clinical professor, also is the library liaison to the College of Education and Human Services, offering information literacy instruction and doing collection development for the disciplines represented by EHS.

In her second year at UIS, Sagmoen was chosen as an instructor for ILEAD U (Illinois Librarians Explore, Apply and Discover), an Institute of Museum and Library Services Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian grant sponsored by the Illinois State Library. She was chosen for her social-networking skills, but her high-energy style of teaching and her ability to work with a wide array of people have meant that she has been asked to return in subsequent years.

“Sarah’s accomplishments point to her creativity, her energy and enthusiasm, her ability to connect with people and inspire a team and her sheer capacity for hard work. She believes that libraries can be both educational and fun,” said Jane Treadwell, university librarian and dean of Library Instructional Services.

Sagmoen, along with the rest of this year’s Movers & Shakers, will be honored at the American Library Association conference’s luncheon in Las Vegas on Friday, June 27, 2014.

UIS library dean elected to leadership post in global cooperative

Jane Treadwell, university librarian and dean at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Brookens Library, has been elected vice-chair/chair-elect of the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) Americas Regional Council of the OCLC Global Council.

OCLC is the 72,000 library member cooperative behind WorldCat, the world’s largest database of library resources. The system is used at Brookens Library to allow users to search other locally held databases and display results along with WorldCat results.

“I’m honored that my peers in libraries throughout the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Latin America have elected me to this post,” said Treadwell.

The OCLC Global Council and its regional councils provide an important avenue for member libraries of the cooperative in 170 countries to offer feedback to OCLC management and its Board of Trustees on significant issues and strategic direction.

“I will help to facilitate this process in the Americas and, as a member of Global Council Executive Committee, help to set the agenda for the work of that group,” said Treadwell. “Brookens Library should benefit from my involvement because I will be bringing back new ideas not only from OCLC, but from other libraries all over the world.”

Founded in 1967, OCLC is a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing library costs. The service allows libraries to locate, acquire, catalog, lend, preserve and manage library materials.

UIS to take part in innovative library technology institute

University of Illinois Springfield visiting instructional librarian Sarah Sagmoen has been selected to serve as an instructor in an innovative institute for Illinois library staff. The program is promised to be one of the most exciting Illinois library initiatives of 2011.

Sagmoen, who works at the Brookens Library at UIS will participate in ILEAD U (Illinois Libraries Explore, Apply and Discover), the 21st century technology tools institute for Illinois library staff. Sangmoen and other participants will implement web technologies that foster community participation and develop leadership, innovation and positive change. ILEAD U will encourage both the experimentation with and building of participatory web services and programs.

“I’m honored to have been selected as a member of the instructor corps. Technology in libraries is a vital conversation and I’m excited to be a part of it by sharing my experiences and learning from others,” said Sagmoen.

Amanda Binder and Janelle Gurnsey of Brookens Library participated in an ILEAD U team during the first year of the project. They and their teammates produced an innovative online contest, “Under the Influence: Music that Inspires Expression,” to launch the Big Read in Central Illinois on February 15, 2011.

Jane Treadwell, dean of Brookens Library at UIS, says, “The Brookens Library has benefitted enormously from faculty and staff participation in ILEAD U --in addition to Binder and Gurnsey, two other faculty members, Pamela Salela and Natalie Tagge participated in ILEAD U in 2010. In addition to the skills that they gained, they have brought back enthusiasm for reaching out to our patrons in new ways.”

The Center for Online Learning, Research and Service at UIS will continue in its role as a consultant to the ILEAD U program, and staff from the Center for State Policy and Leadership will serve as evaluators for the institute. The institute will help library staff understand and respond to patron needs through the application of participatory technology tools. ILEAD U is made possible by a Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program Grant awarded to the Illinois State Library by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

“The Illinois State Library is proud of its strong commitment to continuing education, and providing librarians with the tools and resources necessary to address the ever changing needs of their patrons,” said Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White. “Nowhere is the need for continuing education more important than in the area of technology. Librarians need to constantly enhance their skills to keep up to date with the latest technology, and ILEAD U represents an exciting, innovative new program to build technology and leadership skills among Illinois librarians.”

Examples of participatory technology tools will include: Blogging tools, digital audio/podcasting, digital photography, digital video, gaming, instant messaging, photo sharing site (e.g., Flikr), RSS, social networking (e.g., Facebook), tagging (folksonomies), videoconferencing, virtual reference, virtual worlds (e.g., Second Life), web conferencing, and wikis.

The ILEAD U schedule includes three in-person sessions to be held February 28-March 3, June 13-16 and October 24-27 at the University of Illinois Springfield. For more information contact Jane Treadwell at 217/206-6597 or email jtrea1@uis.edu.

Treadwell among honorees at ESGR Bosslift

Jane Treadwell, UIS Library dean, was among employers honored at the 131st Fighter Wing/Bosslift/Employer Appreciation Day on November 19. The annual event is sponsored by the Missouri Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) as a way to thank those whose employees include National Guard and Reserve members.

Megan Hunter, multimedia communications specialist in the Library, is a member of the Air Force 131st Fighter Wing National Guard unit in Missouri, based at Lambert Field. Former library staff member Rich Barnes was a member of the Army National Guard and served a tour of duty in Iraq while employed at Brookens. (The photo at the left shows Treadwell, left, and Hunter during the event.)

Bosslift participants have a firsthand opportunity to observe a variety of training and leadership activities of the National Guard and Reserve, as well as a chance to share insights on the challenges and benefits of having employees who serve in Reserve components.

The day's activities also included a tour of an F-15 tactical fighter jet and a flight on a Missouri Air National Guard C-130 Hercules to Whiteman Air Force Base, near Sedalia, Missouri.

Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve is a Department of Defense agency that seeks to promote a culture in which all American employers support and value the military service of their employees. The agency seeks to recognize outstanding support, increase awareness of the law, and resolve conflicts through informal mediation.

Mary Jane's Café celebrates opening

By Courtney Westlake

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Coffee, ice cream and other treats were passed around as the campus community celebrated the official ribbon-cutting for Mary Jane’s Café, the Brookens Library coffee shop, on Tuesday afternoon, April 29.

"This is a dream that has been a long-time coming, and I'm so glad to have all of you here today," said Jane Treadwell, university librarian and dean of Library Instructional Services at UIS.

Mary Jane’s is named after Mary Jane MacDonald, the first librarian hired at Sangamon State University. The space for the café had previously been called the MacDonald Lounge to honor MacDonald. MacDonald was on hand to participate in the ribbon-cutting on Tuesday, and Treadwell commended her for her work and dedication at the library.

Located on the first level of Brookens, the café features pastries and light lunch items as well as coffee, espresso and other gourmet beverages. Bevande Coffee out of Bloomington, which serves shade-grown coffee roasted in Seattle, has been chosen as the operator for Mary Jane’s.

"I remember when we started talking about this, to create a 'let's get back in the library, Barnes & Noble' kind of place right here on our own campus, and now we can all see it," said UIS Chancellor Richard Ringeisen. "You have to dream to have a dream come true, and the library certainly dreamed this."

In the strategic plan for UIS, education, research and study are greatly emphasized, and Mary Jane's falls into place with the plan, Treadwell said.

"What we were lacking on this campus was what is called 'third spaces', some really nice community gathering spaces, and here at Mary Jane's Café, we now have such a space," Treadwell said. "We had put the idea of a café in our short-term goals of the library's strategic plan. Dreams usually don't come through without money though; our chancellor made the funds available for us to have this cafe."

Bevande co-owner Tyler Buckley said the company is thrilled to be on campus and has found UIS to be an open and friendly environment.

"We're just excited to be here, we hope to live up to the expectations that Mary Jane's Café has been asked to do, and we hope to be here for a long time," he said.

Technology Day met with success

By Courtney Westlake

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With the theme of "Building iCommunity: Toolsets for Today," the 8th annual Technology Day was held on Wednesday, February 27 from 11:30 to 4:30 in the PAC Concourse and received a great turnout from the campus and local community.

"I thought it went great," said Tulio Llosa, director of Educational Technology at UIS. "We reached out to the entire UIS community; there were faculty, staff, students, and educators and technology coordinators from District 186."

Numerous participants stopped by to visit the various booths of poster sessions set up and take part in the educational and interactive workshops on subjects like online learning and teaching, job search in the digital age, technological resources available at UIS and much more.



Ann Peterson Bishop, professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and community organizer, spoke to a group of campus community members at 12 p.m. about the field of community informatics and using technology in innovative ways.

Community informatics is an interdisciplinary field that encompasses research, practice and policy, Bishop said. It has to do with how knowledge is created and mobilized and how information technologies help and hinder the sharing of knowledge.

"Community informatics kind of looks at one geographic community and looks at that entire community as a unit and asks how all relates together," Bishop said. "It is specifically grounded in community development. We're interested in how technology and knowledge play a role for good and really help communities and community members."

Bishop discussed her work with the Community Informatics Initiative - integrating technology within communities and organizations of all kinds - and showed numerous examples of the ways the initiative collaborates with communities.


"I really liked her presentation," Llosa said. "I like the concept of an iCommunity using technology not only in our work but in our community. It tied in really well with our theme."

Participants of all backgrounds were able to find something that interested them and were able to learn something new, Llosa said. There was a session on eDocs for faculty, one about Cisco communicators and IP Phones for staff, and employers from companies like ADM and State Farm that students were able to speak with about technology skills, he said.

"I'm very happy with the turnout, especially at the presentations," Llosa said. "It really gave us an opportunity to showcase the innovative ways we are using technology here at UIS."

Technology Day to educate participants

By Courtney Westlake

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The 8th annual Technology Day will be held Wednesday, February 27, from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the lower level of the PAC. The theme for the event is "Building iCommunity: Toolsets for Today."

"We chose this theme because we wanted to highlight the ways that technology is used to build community, particularly in education," said Tulio Llosa, director of Educational Technology at UIS. "Technology Day is important to participants because of the wide variety of learning opportunities that it affords. We believe that participants will walk away from Technology Day with at least one new idea or tool to implement in their teaching, learning or work."

Both UIS participants and community members will have no problem finding a presentation or poster session that suits their interests or needs, Llosa said.

"The purpose for Technology Day is to be an outreach not only to UIS community but to local school districts and community members who also might be interested in learning about new technology and how to use that new technology to do the things that make sense in their lives," said Vickie Cook, professor of Educational Leadership who is on the planning committee for the event.

The keynote speaker for the event is Ann Peterson Bishop, associate professor in the graduate school of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and co-director of the Community Informatics Initiative. She will speak at 12 p.m. about ways that technology is being used at UIUC to build bridges between the university and community, Llosa said.

There will also be a variety of poster sessions and workshops throughout the afternoon on topics like podcasting, E-waste recycling, Photoshop, public social networking, organization in online courses, and much more.

Technology Day organizers hope the workshops and sessions will be utilized by teachers, students and other community members to learn how to access more information using technology, how to create items that might be of interest to them personally and professionally or simply to learn how to communicate effectively, Cook said.

"We're hoping that presenters will able to share with participants they ways they can use different types of technology tools to do the things they might be most interested in," she said.

Everyone who is interested is invited to come share the day, which is free and open to participants, Cook said. Prizes and light refreshments will be provided, and the campus community is encouraged to stop by and take part. For more information, check out the Technology Day Web site.

"We hope to have a good turnout from UIS students, staff and faculty, so they can learn more about the resources available to them," Llosa said. "And we hope to provide each participant with relevant learning experiences and creative, new technology-related ideas."