Library Links

• Home
• Services
• Get Help
• About Us

Diversity Committee Minutes January 11, 2011

Library Diversity Committee
January 11th, 2010
10-11 a.m.

Emily Love, Chairing Meeting
Minute Taker, Paula Carns

Present: Cindy Ingold, co-chair; Paula Carns, Emily Love, Kim Matherly, Geoff Ross, Gennye Varvel, Pam Ward
Absent: Cindy Kelly

AGENDA

1. December 14 minutes approved

2. Faculty Retreat

Volunteers and Setup-The committee will be helping with seating at the upcoming Library-wide retreat.

Tasks to be done:

• Emily will generate slips of paper with numbers corresponding to the 24 tables.
• Kim will print them and bring them to the retreat.
• Cindy and Geoff have volunteered to come at 8 am and distribute the numbers to participants at the doors of the room. Participants are free to select their own tables, however, if they prefer to do so.
• Library Administration is making name tags and will have them at a welcome table.

• Cindy will bring gift bags to hold the numbers.

3. Spring programming ideas

• Communication with International Students? Cindy Kelly is planning a training session.
• Forgiveness Project-Emily updated us on the Foregiveness project. The exhibition is scheduled for April 20-27, 2011 in the North-South hall way of the Main Library. The Director for Center on Democracy in a Multiracial Society, Jorge Chapa, has agreed to donate $250. to help with expenses. In addition to hosting the exhibit, Emily has reserved 66 for April 26, 2011 for a talk to accompany the exhibit. As we might not have enough money for a speaker Emily has been talking to the cultural centers on campus to see if there might be someone to give an academic talk. Cindy suggested that she contact the Department of Social Work. 

4. Civility Task Force Proposal

The committee discussed how it might promote civility in the Library and brainstormed on ideas. As background reading, Cindy provided us with Penn State University's civility team charge. Ideas presented were: to ask the Library Executive Committee to consider charging a separate civility committee; to have the Diversity Committee take charge of this area; to have the Diversity Committee look at what has already been done on civility in the Library, such as through the Customer Services Survey, and to speak with various people in the Library about the best direction to take. After a lively brainstorming session, the committee agreed at present to fold civility into its activities and to focus on this area next year with the aim of coming up with a civility statement and some guidelines. The committee might use the Snack Break format to generate input. Cindy I. will set up a meeting with Beth Woodard, Scott Walter, Emily  Love and Cindy Kelly. 

5. New Business/Announcements

Kim raised the issue of how the Library can better support visiting scholars and faculty who tend to rely heavily on the Info Desk to help them with their research. Often these patrons lack a strong command of English and thus cannot take advantage of the Library's services and collections. Is there some way the Diversity Committee can help these patrons. At present, the Committee has no firm ideas on this issue but will consider it in future.

Emily alerted us to the fact that the postcards announcing the Library's Diversity Statement are done. She will print 100 copies and send them to each of the libraries as well as to Library Human Resources and the Library's Office of Advancement.

Geoff told us that the History, Philosophy and Newspaper Library now receives one more online African-American newspapers: the Baltimore African American both whose holdings go back several decades. Now the Library subscribes to six major African American newspapers online. 

Next Meeting:   February 8^th, 2011
Chair:  Cindy Ingold
Minute Taker: Kim Matherly

For comments on this page contact: Gateway Conversion

Last modified by: Chris Johns on 4/1/11