UK Libraries to Present Willis Award, Dean's Awards
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 9, 2016) — University of Kentucky Libraries will honor four members of its faculty and staff at the UK Libraries Spring Gala tomorrow evening. Frank Davis, a clinical liaison librarian in the Medical Center Library, will receive the 2016 Paul A. Willis Outstanding Faculty Award and three staff employees, Josh Monroe, Beth Reeder and Kopana Terry, will be recognized with the 2016 Dean's Awards for Outstanding Performance.
The 2016 Paul A. Willis Outstanding Faculty Award winner, Frank Davis, is a clinical liaison librarian in the UK Medical Center Library's division of Research, Education and Clinical Services. He has served more than 15 years at UK.
“Frank is a friend and valued colleague. He is actively engaged in the profession, contributes to the field of health sciences librarianship, and is a dedicated and devoted faculty member within UK Libraries,” said Rick Brewer, director of the Medical Center Library. Brewer nominated Davis for the award.
Davis is the liaison to the UK College of Pharmacy, the Markey Cancer Center and the Department of Internal Medicine within the UK College of Medicine. He interacts with a diverse group of patrons including students, faculty, researchers and clinicians throughout UK HealthCare and the health colleges.
The Willis Award winner has been commended for serving each of his areas in an exemplary manner. For the Department of Internal Medicine, Davis attends morning report three days a week and provides support for learning issues identified during case discussion. He also works with residents who request his expertise concerning case report publications and grand rounds presentations.
At the College of Pharmacy, “Frank is a valued colleague and appreciated for his commitment and service to this nationally ranked program,” Brewer said. He is an active member of the college's curriculum committee, where he employs highly specialized, expert literature searching skills and provides input on issues relating to information resources. At the request of faculty, Davis presented on options and procedures for electronic books. He has participated in two accreditation reviews for the College of Pharmacy, and in the most recent accreditation process he was instrumental in writing the standard focused on library resources.
The Markey Cancer Center utilized work by Davis in their successful application for National Cancer Institute status as an NCI designated research center.
“For years, Frank has maintained an EndNote library of publications authored by Markey researchers that has enabled faculty to track such scholarship,” Brewer said. “Frank has provided assistance on grant applications by conducting complex and intense literature reviews.”
Davis has also demonstrated leadership and service at the national, regional and local levels. He served as chair of the Cancer Librarians Section of the Medical Library Association (MLA) and was selected as a reviewer for submitted papers for the 2015 National MLA annual meeting. Davis has also served as web editor for topical areas for the MLA Cancer Libraries Recommended Web Sites project. Regionally, Davis has invested substantial time and resources in the work of the Midwest chapter of the MLA.
“Within UK Libraries, Frank has consistently volunteered for committee assignments. He is a respected colleague and valued for his input and contributions. Whenever called to step up, one can always count on Frank to do just that,” Brewer said.
In addition to his clinical and service work, Davis teaches more classes than any other MCL librarian. He lectures to upper level pharmacy students on evidence-based pharmacy resources and is regarded by pharmacy faculty as an expert on the topic. He is also an expert trainer on the use of EndNote — a product designed to manage bibliographic references.
The Willis Award is named for Paul A. Willis, former director of UK Libraries.
At the UK Libraries Spring Gala and the UK Libraries Employee Celebration, Josh Monroe, Beth Reeder and Kopana Terry will be honored with the 2016 Dean's Awards for Outstanding Performance. The Dean's Awards are the highest honor accorded to staff by UK Libraries.
Josh Monroe is a monograph library specialist at William T. Young Library. He is head of the monographs area, and provides support to all academic liaison librarians by sourcing print and electronic materials needed by UK faculty, staff and students. He was nominated for a Dean's Award by Jen Bartlett, head of Young Library Reference Services.
“I have frequently been amazed at the speed and efficiency with which Josh locates and orders materials,” Bartlett said. “Rarely has there been a situation in which Josh has been unable to find what faculty need, in whatever format; often he locates these materials at much cheaper cost than anticipated.”
Monroe is also active in UK Libraries committees and activities. He recently gave a presentation to LEX Week interns on the basics of acquisitions, and will be repeating the presentation for graduate assistant training. Every fall Monroe volunteers to work at the welcome desk to greet new students in Young Library.
Beth Reeder is a library technician senior in the Agricultural Information Center (AIC). She manages the public service operations of the AIC, including student hiring and supervision. Valerie Perry, director of the AIC and head of Branch Libraries, nominated Reeder.
“Not only is Beth completely reliable and dependable, but she is also an excellent problem solver and innovator,” Perry said. “Beth gained significant extra responsibilities in the past two years, as she coordinated and planned two major facility renovations and upgrades. We are fortunate to have such a fine employee leading our public service efforts.”
Reeder has taken on projects that were ongoing when she arrived at UK Libraries, including migrating VHS holdings to DVDs and major review of the AIC reference collection. She also serves on UK Libraries committees, and participates in numerous library workshops, campus activities, webinars and regional conferences.
Kopana Terry is an oral history archivist in the Special Collections Research Center Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History. She oversees the accessioning of new oral history interviews, the description of the existing collection, processing interviews, digitization and preservation of interviews, and preparation of interviews for reference requests. She also manages Nunn Center student employees. Terry was nominated by Nunn Center Director Doug Boyd.
“Last year we indexed a record number of interviews in a single year. Additionally, Kopana accessioned 624 new interviews in 2015 — also unprecedented,” Boyd said. “We have a very successful oral history archival operation. This is, in large part, thanks to Kopana’s determination, dedication and — most importantly — her focused attention on implementation.”
According to Boyd, “the Nunn Center’s success depends heavily on the oral history archivist position, and this year Kopana Terry has taken her role to a new level.”
As the premier research library in the Commonwealth, UK Libraries provides ever-expanding access to quality information resources, services and programs. UK Libraries locations include the William T. Young Library, the Agricultural Information Center, the Hunter M. Adams College of Design Library, the Education Library, the John A. Morris Library (Gluck Equine Research Center), the Kentucky Transportation Center Library, the Lucille Caudill Little Fine Arts Library and Learning Center, the Medical Center Library, the Science and Engineering Library and the Special Collections Research Center.
UK is the University for Kentucky. At UK, we are educating more students, treating more patients with complex illnesses and conducting more research and service than at any time in our 150-year history. To read more about the UK story and how you can support continued investment in your university and the Commonwealth, go to: uky.edu/uk4ky. #uk4ky #seeblue
MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Hale, 859-257-8716; whitney.hale@uky.edu