Maroon Opinions

Proper Attire

It is XXX and one of your employees is dressed incredibly immodestly. I prefer to not see so much of the body displayed when I am at the library.

We forwarded this to the relevant department head, but can offer a few general comments. The Library does not have a formal dress code, and on any given day attire varies from coat and tie to T-shirt and shorts. (Indeed, the Office staff is divided on this question, with one so-called "18th century Brit" strongly preferring neckties and their equivalent, while others ardently claiming the right to dress in the most comfortable clothes possible -- after all, who cares what one wears when answering online suggestions?)

However, department mores often include customary apparel, with those in public services adopting a stricter (if still permissive) tone.  If you notice someone egregiously and repeatedly in different attire -- or lack of such -- than their colleagues, a quiet request to the chief of department would be in order.

Happily, the  Chicago climate is about to render such concerns moot for another 9 months.

Kudos to David Rockwell

I would just like to highly praise and commend Mr. David Rockwell for his extraordinarily helpful preofessional service and his kind demeanor at the Circulation Desk. I also think that the students who are working there are well-trained under him and have the same professionally helpful and friendly attitude.

Thanks! The Library is fortunate to have David, whose steady hand has guided Reg Circ for almost 10 years. Running Circ often resembles herding cats, but David makes it look easy.

Volunteering

Dear Library Staff at the University of Chicago:

Hello! my name is [...].and I would like to know what would a person have to do if they wanted to do volunteer work at the University of Chicago Library.(For in-stance, reshelving books in the University Library etc,etc....)

Although we would love to further the long-standing tradition of volunteer work in libraries, the University does not allow us to officially use volunteers.

However, if you are a library science student looking to do a practicum at the Library, by all means let's talk.

UPDATE: The University does permit volunteers, is working on University-wide policies and procedures for allowing volunteers to serve alongside regular staff. So if you'd like to volunteer at the University of Chicago Library, contact the Personnel Office.

Staff Directory

Some mistakes in our new library web page should be corrected in order to improve its quality. For example, you can not find my name in library directory, however I have been working in Regenstein library for many years. Qinghua Guo

Mr. Guo, my apologies-- you put in so many hours at Entry Control that we really should list your name in blinking lights! (For those who don't know him, Mr. Guo is the gentleman who swipes your cards in the 24-hour study space.) I will get Personnel to fix this.