[Libs-Or] Answerland Notable Transcript Award

[Sue Adams]

Chris, that was a marvelous reference interview. Great job! 

Sue 


Sue Adams, Reference Librarian 
sadams at orcity.org 
Oregon City Public Library 
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----- Original Message -----

From: "dan cawley" <librarybusiness at yahoo.com> 
To: "Emily PAPAGNI" <emilyp at multco.us>, "Libs-or" <libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us>, answerland at listsmart.osl.state.or.us 
Sent: Thursday, June 19, 2014 2:54:12 PM 
Subject: Re: [Libs-Or] Answerland Notable Transcript Award 



Textbook example a skilled reference interviewer. Chris's closing note is the cherry on the icing on the cake. 


Dan Cawley 
Seaside Public Library 







On Thursday, June 19, 2014 11:58 AM, Emily PAPAGNI <emilyp at multco.us> wrote: 






Hello, 


Answerland, Oregon's Statewide Virtual Reference service ( http://www.answerland.org/ ), recognizes Chris Jakel of Multnomah County Library for his excellent virtual reference work while staffing the service in January 2014. Chris’s transcript is online at 

www.answerland.org/awards 

Although the patron initially asked, “How many women received degrees in physical chemistry in 1920 to 1930 in the United States compared to other countries,” the patron actually had a very different question. It was through Chris’s skillful reference interview that the actual reference need was revealed. 

The patron, a college student, needed the information in order to write a blog post assigned to a class. The initial question transitioned into a question about Maria Telkes and women’s rights in Hungary and the U.S. Then it became a question about finding general statistics on the number of professionals in the solar energy field in 1948. And then it became a question about what was Hungarian and U.S. culture like for women in the 1920's. 

Chris ultimately identified the reference question as a query about how many women were trained for the solar energy field, how large the field was, and how many professionals were employed in the solar energy field after World War II. 

Throughout the chat Chris considered various options including a search of research on women and science degrees, authorship on scientific research in the field at that time, membership in professional organizations related to the field, and teaching positions held. 

As Chris worked with the patron to clarify the question, he noted that it can be challenging to find information on women's contributions in areas where traditionally (or institutionally) they have been marginalized. 

>From the beginning to the end of the conversation Chris was friendly and welcoming and used authoritative resources. Chris referred the question to email follow-up so that other librarians could work further on the question. He concluded the conversation by saying, “you have a fascinating, complex, puzzling and exciting task ahead of you! :-D.” 

We think that Chris’s work on this question is fascinating and notable. 

The Quality Team is impressed with Chris’s friendly tone, knowledge of authoritative resources, and work identifying the actual reference question. 

As an expression of our appreciation, Chris was presented with flowers and a certificate. Please join us in congratulating him! 

The Answerland Quality Team 


Stephanie Debner, Mt. Hood Community College ( stephanie.debner at mhcc.edu ) 
Joanna Milner, Multnomah County Library ( joannam at multcolib.org ) 
Hillary Ostlund, Hillsboro Public Library ( Hillary.Ostlund at hillsboro-oregon.gov ) 
Emily Papagni, Multnomah County Library ( emilyp at multco.us ) 
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