We are pleased to announce the appointment of Susan Edwards as the new Head of the Education/Psychology/Social Welfare Libraries. At Amherst College since 1992, Susan has held positions as a humanities librarian, internet/ documents librarian, and reference/library web manager librarian. She has been very active in instruction and outreach for psychology, sociology, political science, history, and education. Susan will begin her appointment on January 5, 2009.

Thank you to everyone for participating in the recruitment effort and on-campus interviews in August 2008, and special thanks to the Search Committee, chaired by Norma Kobzina (and members including Bette Anton, Brian Light, Jill Woolums, and Milt Ternberg).

Isabel Stirling
AUL & Director of Public Services

How do cells preserve or remodel their shapes in response to external forces like human disease?  In what ways was Beethoven engaged in political propaganda?  What is and what should be the relationship between African medicinal plants and U.S. pharmaceutical profits?

Consider these questions and more, and become inspired about scholarship by meeting three of Berkeley's most innovative and exciting young faculty featured in the new Faculty Spotlight exhibit which opened in Moffitt Library's lobby on August 6.   The work and inspirations of Professors Sanjay Kumar (Bioengineering), Abena Osseo-Asare (History), and Nicholas Mathew (Music) are highlighted in this exhibit, co-curated by campus librarians Lynn Jones and Pat Davitt Maughan and designed by Library Exhibits Coordinator, Aisha Hamilton.

Bioengineer and M.D. Kumar helps students better understand how the human body exhibits the laws of chemistry and physics in basic processes, like breathing, in ways that are as elegant and beautiful as a symphony.  Musician Mathew helps students recognize how deeply music affects us is therefore a powerful force in influencing our political loyalties and emotions.  Historian Osseo-Asare helps students make sense of the African continent by examining films, novels and readings that bring Africa's past to life.  All three share the common goal of guiding students in becoming better informed citizens capable of understanding complex and interdisciplinary topics.

Find out what attracted them to their fields and the books they recommend to undergraduates, and why through the Faculty Spotlight Exhibit.

Moffitt Library Lobby
August 6 through December 22, 2008

Doe/Moffitt Instructional Services welcomes Char Booth, who began September 8, 2008 as an E-Learning librarian. She comes to Berkeley from Ohio University, where she worked as a Reference and Instruction Librarian and Communications bibliographer. In addition to her Bachelors of History from Reed College and Masters of Science in Information Studies from University of Texas at Austin, Char recently completed a Masters of Education in Instructional Technology at Ohio University. Her experience with tutorial development, e-reference, web interface design, instructional design, and digital collection development, among other areas, will all be welcome here as we implement changes suggested by New Directions. Char?s contributions to the profession have been recognized by the American Library Association, who selected her for the Emerging Leaders program in 2007, and by Library Journal, which named her one of 2008?s ?Movers & Shakers.? Char?s new phone number is 643-1636 and email is cbooth. Please join me in welcoming Char to her new position! Jennifer Dorner Doe/Moffitt Instructional Services

The staff welcomed Laura Calverley to the Engineering Library on August 11, just in time to jump into orientation activities for Fall semester. Laura has a BA from UC Santa Cruz (Film & Digital Media) and an MLIS from UC Los Angeles. She previously worked as a circulation and interlibrary loan assistant at UC San Francisco and was an Evening Supervisor at the Pearson Library of the California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA. Laura has already designed handsome handouts for undergraduates and new engineering faculty, as well as attended many student orientations across the campus. When not at work Laura likes to knit, practice photography and explore the local parks and beaches with her dog.

Jean McKenzie, Head Librarian, Kresge Engineering Library

David Eifler and Matthew Prutsman from the Environmental Design Library have an article in the September, 2008 issue of ACSA News.  "Staying Cutting-Edge with Google's RSS Reader" describes ENVI's web homepage RSS feed of blogs, and gives directions on setting up your own.  The article is part of a series written by architecture librarians in the Association of Architecture School Librarians. The magazine is distributed to the thousands of architecture faculty who belong to the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.

Elizabeth Byrne, Environmental Design Library