• Century Chest
  
• New Option for Remote Access to Tutt Library Databases
  
• Tiger Catalog Enhancements
  
• New Databases
  
• First Year Experience and the Library
  
• Staff News

On January 1, 2001, three hundred citizens of Colorado Springs gathered in Tutt Library for the opening of the 1901-Century Chest. The Century Chest has spent the last 100 years on the Colorado College campus and the last thirty-plus years in Tutt Library. The tightly sealed Chest contained over 150 envelopes and packages filled with hundreds of individual letters, pamphlets, clippings and photographs. They represent a cross-section of life in Colorado Springs, including life at Colorado College. The citizens of 1901 took care to preserve their items in linen envelopes, real tin foil or heavy waxed paper; thus the materials are in excellent condition.

The opening of the Century Chest has stirred great interest in the media across the country and Canada. Archivist Ginny Kiefer has received numerous calls and e-mails about the chest. Many of these callers have also called to thank us for providing access to the materials on our Web site. The digital images of the letters and photographs are being added to the Web site daily. Please follow our progress and enjoy this wonderful insight into the life of the citizens of Colorado Springs and Colorado College in 1901.

New Option for Remote Access to Tutt Library Databases

CC patrons who connect to the internet without going through the CC modem pool can now access TIGER and (most of) our subscription databases from a remote location through a proxy server. (Instructions are on the "Article Access" page).

TIGER Catalog Enhancements

• Advanced Keyword Searching has been implemented on the TIGER catalog. Keyword searches now offer full boolean functionality, field searching and easy limit options.
• A Journal Title Index has been added to the search screen, so that users can easily search for journals, periodicals and newspapers.
  Reminder: Electronic journal titles are also cataloged in TIGER, and you can link directly from the bibliographic record.

New Databases-something for everyone!

For a complete list of Tutt databases, see "Article Access" page.

• CIS Universe. New collections added to the CIS Universe (Lexis-Nexis) family of databases include CIS History Universe Access to Women's Studies and African American Studies collections and CIS Congresional Universe Statutes at Large.
  
• CQ Library includes access to the Congressional Quarterly publications CQ Weekly and CW Researcher. Includes an index to the CQ Weekly back to 1983.
  
• FIS Online/Moodys. One year trial access to corporate profiles, business news, current and historical financials, and securities information for publicly traded companies.
  
• JSTOR. Expanded access to full text journals in General Science and Ecology and Botany collections.
  
• Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & Criticism Online.
  
• NBER Working Papers. Full text of the National Bureau of Economic Research Working Papers from 1984-.
  
• New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians and New Grove Dictionary of Opera.
  
• PsycINFO 1887- Access to the complete file of Psychological Abstracts available through June 2001 on First Search.

First Year Experience and the Library

The Tutt Library Staff participated actively this fall in the college’s new First Year Experience program. Staff were active in the planning sessions last year, participated in the faculty retreats during the spring and summer, and worked with faculty to plan and present library instruction sessions which were tied directly to course content. Library staff also participated in a variety of new student orientation activities, including an ice cream social/open house the week before classes began. Our goals were to familiarize students with library resources and to teach them the basic skills necessary to operate in an academic library environment. We also sought to make students feel comfortable in the library and to encourage them to think of it as a friendly place where they can get help with their research.

By all counts, Tutt Library had a much greater impact on First Year students (and vice versa) during Blocks 1 and 2 this year than it has during the same time period in previous years. Four measures of library use from Blocks 1 and 2 this year and Blocks 1 and 2 in 1999 showed dramatic increases.

overall gate count (i.e., number of patrons entering the library) - up 24%
circulation (books checked out to first years) - up 98%
overall questions at the reference desk - up 57%
first year students reached by library instruction sessions - up 398%.

Staff News

Please welcome three new staff members:

Karl Henson joined the Tutt staff as Library Systems Administrator in October. Karl was Systems Librarian at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania from 1996-1999. His previous experience includes head of Library Systems and the University of Texas at El Paso, and Automation Librarian at San Antonio Public Library.

Charity Hall has joined the Circulation Department as a part-time Circulation Assistant. Charity is a 1999 CC graduate and worked in the Documents Department of the library as a student. She has also worked for the CC Arts and Crafts Program, the Biology Department and the Palmer Foundation.

Daniela Kroon has transferred from Advancement Services, where she worked as a Records Specialist to a part-time position in the Cataloging Department.

Library Staff and Student Workers “Get Physical:”

“All work and no play” is not a phrase that pertains to the Tutt Library Staff.

This fall, organized by senior Amy Vasquez, the Dewey Decimators roused themselves and once again took to the intramural volleyball court. With the support of three library staff, three library student workers, and a number of “guest” players, the Decimators had a stellar season….their best ever. The Decimators lost only one game during the regular season and entered the tournament as the top-seeded team! Though they were eliminated early in the tournament and did not win that coveted “Intramural Champions” t-shirt, the season had to be counted a great success.

Then, in December, Tutt Library staff once again organized a “Tiger Claus” team to compete in the Arthritis Foundation’s annual Jingle Bell Run. In all, 7 library staff members pledged money or ran in the race and three student workers also participated (along with a significant number of other Colorado College students and staff). Unfortunately, we won neither the “largest team” award nor the “best costumed” (in spite of Robin Satterwhite’s creative efforts to fashion tiger “tails” for each runner on the team). But it was a beautiful day and all who participated had a great time.

What lies ahead? Several library staff members are training for marathons in the spring - watch this space for more details to come!