2009 University Libraries Distinguished Student Employee Award Recipient - Nancy Sciacca

Congratulations Nancy on being one of this year’s Award Recipients, we wish you much success in your future!

Nancy worked in the Department of Circulation Services from September 2007 until her graduation this May 2009. Nancy was a valuable part of the Circulation Services team, and she was entrusted with responsibilities not usually given to student staff, because of her exceptional work, her eagerness to learn, her attention to detail and her dedication to her job. Nancy is the only library student staff in the history of the library to be nominated for the Thomas Jefferson Award, the Stony Brook University Student Employee of the Year Award, the ALA Galaxy of Stars Student Worker Recognition, the Traveling Star Award (for commuter students) and a recipient of the 2009 University Libraries Distinguished Student Employee Award. This is an accomplishment to be proud of! Nancy obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology, with a concentration in social-cultural anthropology. . Nancy loves animals and has a love for cultures, she learned Indian Dancing through friends who also introduced her to their culture. Nancy was a commuter student and often faced bad weather driving conditions and traffic snarls yet she was never late for work. Nancy often helped train new student staff and she also was excellent with patrons, she was very helpful, provided accurate information, clear instructions and a friendly service at all times. Nancy unknowingly has thrown down the gauntlet for all who follow her, for she has set an example of the model student employee that will prove difficult to match, let alone surpass, she will certainly be missed. Nancy volunteer’s her time at the Radiology Library. Her work was exceptional and she has positively impacted the success of her department. Nancy’s been accepted in St. John’s University and plans to pursue a master’s degree in Library and Information Sciences; her goal is to obtain a position in a library or archives, where she can put her experience to practical use.

2009 University Libraries Distinguished Student Employee Award Winner - Dengfei Yu

Congratulation Dengfi on being one of this year’s Award Recipients, we wish you much success in your future!

Dengfei was employed in the Interlibrary Loan Department from January 2005 until his graduation this May 2009. He credits I.L.L. with learning the importance of responsibility, punctuality, teamwork and communication; these are skills he will carry with him the rest of his life. Dengfei evolved into an essential part of the I.L.L. team, and will be surly missed. Dengfei majored in biology with a neuroscience track, and will continue his education to Dental School. Dengfei was the treasurer of the Stony Brook Film Club; the film club promotes film making on campus, promoting appreciation of film, film criticism and holds discussions on themes and movie plots, using various clips and film styles. He was an active member of the Pre-dental Society and was involved in several community service events: cancer walks, blood drives, visiting hospitals. He also participated in community service through the Long Island Alliance Church in which he worked with Chinese exchange students attending Farmingdale State College and Stony Brook University whose lives were affected by the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. He volunteered his time to work with handicap children over the break to teach them snowboarding. Dengfei was the undergraduate teaching assistant for Biology 105 and was given the responsibility for a group over 50 students. He was accepted into a research position in the Anesthesiology Department of Stony Brook Medical Center where he was involved in a project that required intense study of both the structure and stereochemistry of morphine and related opioids that evokes analgesia and euphoria to release both acute and chronic pain. He obtained hands on experience in conducting experiments as well as being part of a team which performed pain-relieving operations upon patients. He also, was part of the shadowed a dentist program which helped him acquire his love for dentistry. The person who influenced Dengfei’s life the most was Franklin Delano Roosevelt because he overcame his disabilities, and was able to accomplish so much with his life, this inspired Dengfei to success in his life and overcome life’s obstacles with a never give up attitude. Dengfei plans on becoming a compassionate, dentist, still volunteering and possibly working aboard with the disadvantaged.

Student Staff Pizza Party Photos

The 6th annual student staff pizza party hosted by the library social events team was a hit! Each year we grow and change but what is unchanging is the library’s appreciation of all the hard work and dedication of our student staff. The luncheon is a wonderful way of the library saying “THANK YOU” for all you do throughout the year! Along with pizza the library faculty/staff contributed salads, soda, fruit, and delicious baked goods to this year’s luncheon. Golden Star stress relievers and SBU Libraries pens/highlighters were given to each student. We also had the pleasure of participating in this years presentation of The Thomas Jefferson Award plaques, and the University Libraries Distinguished Student Employee Award trophies to this year’s award recipients. A long with the food and camaraderie, a good time was had by all.

2009 Thomas Jefferson Award Winner - Daniela Doneva

Congratulations to 2009 Thomas Jefferson Award Winner, Daniela Doneva.

Daniela has been working in the Music Library as a work study student for the past 3 years; her supervisors rely on her to handle a multitude of tasks. She is wonderful with the patrons and is always very helpful. She is hard working and extremely reliable; she is diligent in both her work and her studies, she will be graduating with a double major in biochemistry and sociology. Daniela has a strong sense of community and spends most of her free time volunteering her services; she volunteers as an adaptive aquatic instructor, teaching children with disabilities how to swim, she also volunteers at the local veterans home, and serves as the treasurer of her residence hall LEG council. Upon graduation Daniela is pursuing a position as a biological scientist; she plans on working on the cellular level in the field of genetics. She will also be continuing her education to obtain a masters degree in biochemistry, and wants to continue for her PhD sometime down the road.

2009 Thomas Jefferson Award Winner - Anthony C. Cooke

Congratulations to 2009 Thomas Jefferson Award winner, Anthony C. Cooke.

Due to life’s circumstance Anthony dropped out of high school to take a full time job, and after a few years he returned to fulfill his educational goals, completing his GED and transferring to Stony Brook University in 2007, from Alamance Community College. He obtained a job in the library as a federal work study student in the Central Reading Room. Anthony has been very dedicated to his position and he is always reliable and efficient in carrying out his duties. He is enthusiastic to help patrons, patiently researching all possibilities. He takes pride in his job and goes the extra mile in helping patrons; his dedication to his position is outstanding. He would arrive to work early or stay late, and battled the elements to come to work during snow storms to be at the information desk. Anthony graduated this May and will be moving on to doctoral studies; he plans are to be a professor of writing.

Firefox 3.5 Users: Updated Version of LibX Available

LibX has updated their codebase to work with Firefox 3.5 which resulting in a new version of the Stony Brook University Libraries Edition of LibX. Please note that this version will not update automatically. You must uninstall the old version and then install the new version.

For more information about LibX or to get LibX for IE, check the University Libraries' LibX page.