BOOKENDS December 2019, Volume 3, Issue 2

KU Libraries are delighted to collaborate with the 'Center for Teaching and Learning' to bring you news from the department in addition to library news. Although both departments are away from each other in terms of location on the main campus, promoting learning and collaborating with our learning partners is our goal. Although the nature of this collaboration has yet to be defined, the aim is to provide a blended service to students, such as bringing research and writing skills under a single instruction session. Watch this space!

As KU Libraries continue to express their value to their campuses, it is important to align our services to other student-centered services that promote student success and excellence in student research. We hope you get a lot out of this collaboration.

Since the academic year 2019-2020 started in September, a lot has been happening across KU Libraries. Let's have a glimpse: 

• Hundreds of books have been purchased and added to our collections. Our Technical Services department has been very busy collaborating with faculty, Heads & Chairs to identify needed resources, order them through various sources and once received, preparing them physically to be ready for circulation. 
• IT is in the process of installing on all the main library computers write-n-cite tool, available through our citation manager 'RefWorks'. This will make it easier for students to do in-text citations and bibliographies from a word document, if not installed on their laptops. 
• Masdar library is closed. Most books have been moved to the main campus library, hence the large amount of books you see around.
• We are running out of space for our ever expanding medical print collection! A new shelving unit has helped a lot. Also, be aware that some topics have been shelved in this collection, such as exercise, nutrition, cookbooks, some self-help books. 
• Our five student workers this year have been trained and tested on the various jobs assigned to them and are thriving in our library environment. Their tasks could range from anything like checking in and out library material, shelving and shelf reading, to answering queries and supporting other students with printing issues. Student workers & volunteers are a great support for KU Libraries.
• Did you know that we have a humble collection of children's books? One great way to start the habit of reading from as young as possible!
• Now that we have finished our workshop presentations for this semester, the process of planning the spring semester is underway. 

Promoting KU libraries is one goal that keeps us as busy as bees. Some of the few projects completed recently or still to come, 

1. One of our Librarians has co-authored a paper published in November 2019 on the research performance of KU, in connection to other UAE educational entities. The findings are promising and act as an incentive for additional investigation. To access the full article, click here. 
2. We have a new promotional video featuring our services and student interviews. Check it out!
3. We are in the process of making slight esthetic changes across the first floor of the main library to give the place a fresh new look.
4.  More signage is on the way for easier navigation in the libraries and around the collections.
5. Research, copyright and Information Literacy posters are coming soon.

Women are leaders and powerful! Too often women are taught they have little power and there are limitations on what they can achieve. In this short book, Samar Shera shares her insightful and inspirational perspectives on how women can connect with their feminine side but still be in control of their lives. She believes that there are no limits to what women can do and labels are merely just labels. She also believes that anything can be overcome if we put our minds to it.

I loved reading Strut, and highly recommend this short and fast-paced read. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Samar shares her personal experiences and offers words of encouragement. She includes inspiring thoughts and instructions on how to recognize our weaknesses, admit to them, and make them our own. She also talks about self-reflection, and most importantly how to take care of one’s body as well. A very interesting read that I was delighted to have picked!

                                                                                                     - Book Review by Muna Abdulla, KU Librarian

About the author: Samar Shera earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from the University of Kent in the United Kingdom and studied theology and religious studies at King’s College in London. She works as an integrated clinical hypnotherapist and life coach and is certified in energy modalities such as Reiki, Theta Healing, and the Law of Attraction. Brought up in an Islamic Pakistani family living in Dubai, she defies stereotyping and dramatically expands the international conversation about the universal rights, needs, and desires of women and girls.  For more about the author and her work, visit: samarshera.com

At the end of September 2019, Khalifa University users of the online learning platform Lynda.com must have noticed the upgrade to LinkedIn Learning. Any user activity & data in Lynda.com was migrated to LinkedIn Learning successfully. There is no longer access to Lynda.cοm. Khalifa University users were sent an email to activate their LinkedIn Learning accounts. Those who were unable to activate their accounts can contact the Library for assistance.

Check out this page for information on upgrading to LinkedIn Learning and how LinkedIn Learning helps you to continue your career growth. New users can click here to activate their account while existing users can go to this link to access the site.

Librarians are always asked "What is your job and what do you do?" Although we are proficient in promoting our services, librarians have a reputation of keeping what they do very much undercover and in the quest of servicing the community, forget the importance of promoting their work and profession. So, we decided to start by introducing you bit by bit to our various functions. This December issue will be a general overview of a 'Circulation Librarian'.

The circulation manager oversees the process of all circulation duties such as checking materials in and out of the library. He/she is able to navigate through the library’s circulation software to find materials for patrons, and access the various features of the software, such as fines, inventory and patron lists. Knowledge of the library’s holdings is crucial to the success of a circulation manager, because he/she often directs patrons to the materials they are requesting. Since KU libraries have library workers, the circulation manager oversees their scheduling and work. Other duties vary from library to library, depending on the type of library and services offered.

"As a faculty member at Khalifa University for the past eleven years, I have been interested in the resources that suit my research and teaching needs, which led me to meet our outstanding librarians. It is a great asset to benefit from their expertise. I always feel welcome in the library, librarians are ready to listen and assist, guide me find my inquiries, whether they were actual resources, references, or electronic journals in English and Arabic.

"Their technical assistance and support has had a positive impact on my research, which cumulated in four published monographs with leading academic publishers in the field, in addition to over 20 academic journal articles. No matter what type of research material I am seeking for, either for my writing or for my student research projects, you guided us to find the rare resources, whether available at KU libraries or not. You went out of your way to recommend alternative solutions to acquire hard to find resources.

"For many of us, faculty, students, and staff, you are the gatekeeper and guide between us and a pool of knowledge. Thank you for doing what you do best. I am a frequent library visitor and user, positively influenced to achieve personal academic thought and depth, add value to my courses and my students’ research projects. Never compromise the quality of professionalism and scholarship you provide to KU community."

- Labeeb Ahmed Bsoul

Note: Dr. Bsoul is Associate Professor of Islamic History, Islamic Science, Islamic Law, Gulf Region, Near East Studies, and International Relations, Department of Humanities and Social Science. Khalifa University.

KU Libraries have recently analyzed the results of two surveys conducted with our patrons (Students, Staff, Faculty) regarding our electronic resources and the services we offer. Most of the results show the level of satisfaction to be on the high side with customer services, collections and Information Literacy leading the way.

We were pleased to know that out of the respondents, 71% have received training on the use of e-resources, stressing the thirst and usefulness of our timely workshops. Many students asked for additional study rooms, printing support and a quieter environment conducive to study.

The use of our OneSearch engine and navigating the ensuing search results seem to be a challenge to a lot of users, as some links do not work properly, and results are duplicated at times. KU Libraries are ensuring these matters are addressed so we continue providing access to relevant resources and services that are needed. Thank you for those who took the time to answer the surveys, your input paves the way forward.