Dear Faculty and Students in East Asian Studies:

As I reported to you earlier, the C.V. Starr East Asian Library experienced a water leak in the stacks in the early morning of Sunday, September 16. Over the course of the four days that followed, over 100 volunteers from across CUL Libraries and University Facilities joined the staff of the Starr Library and Preservation & Digital Conversion Division to immediately remove over 51,000 wet volumes in over 3,900 boxes to our disaster recovery contractor for treatment. The timely manner in which all of this assistance was offered to Starr, as well as the capacity that so many volunteers provided, ensured that permanent damage to the collections was minimal.

Our contractor, Polygon, has been freeze-drying, dehumidifying, and cleaning the volumes we sent at their preservation facility in Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, in Starr, University Facilities and other contractors had been busy repairing and cleaning the four affected floors of the stacks, and completed their work in the end of December 2018. We have now begun the final process of returning the affected volumes back to their home in Starr. We are working toward a goal of receiving all treated materials and reopening our stacks in the end of March, 2019.  Before reopening our stacks, we will continue to provide the following services:

The main reading room in Starr remains open, as do all reference, consultation, and Interlibrary loan services. However, all stacks areas will remain closed for several weeks. Please check our library blog (https://blogs.cul.columbia.edu/starr/) regularly, where we will post updates on progress, specific timelines as they become better known, and any other information affecting the use of library spaces and collections.

Starr has implemented paging services that will allow users to request items currently in the stacks. These services will remain in effect until the stacks can be reopened to Library users. Paging will be performed according to the following regular schedule:

• Requests received by 11am (Monday-Friday) will be available at the circulation desk by 1pm
• Requests received by 6pm (Sunday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk by 8pm
• Requests received by 10pm (Monday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk the next day at 10am
• Requests received by 2pm (Saturday and Sunday) will be available at the circulation desk by 4pm

For items that remain in the stacks: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Please contact Starr East Asian Library staff for assistance in paging this item.” Requests to have these items paged from the stacks can be submitted as follows: in the CLIO record for the item, go to the ‘Requests’ tab above the CLIO record, and select “Item not on shelf?” (see image below):

For items that were removed from Starr for treatment: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Temporarily unavailable. Try ILL.” These items may still be available through our BorrowDirect and Interlibrary Loan partners, and Starr library circulation desk staff will assist faculty and students in locating and requesting such items.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work with University Facilities to ensure that the affected spaces are clean and safe for faculty and student to once again access and use.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly, or email starr@library.columbia.edu, and we will respond as soon as possible.

Jim Cheng

Director, C.V. Starr East Asian Library

Columbia University

Email: jc3685@columbia.edu

Cleaning and repair work in the stacks is progressing. The dehumidification process mentioned in an earlier blog post has finished. Unfortunately, all subsequent cleaning and repair work was delayed by a necessary asbestos abatement process, but is now again in progress. Once all cleaning and repair is done the books that had to be shipped out for drying and cleaning will gradually be returned and reshelved. We are working to complete all of these tasks as quickly as possible so the stacks and study spaces can be reopened. We will continue to communicate with you as timelines become clearer.

In the meantime all stacks will remain closed until further notice. The main reading room in Starr remains open, as do all reference, consultation, and Interlibrary loan services. Please check our library blog (https://blogs.cul.columbia.edu/starr/) regularly, where we will post updates on progress, specific timelines as they become better known, and any other information affecting the use of library spaces and collections.

We would like to remind you that we have implemented paging services that will allow users to request items currently in the stacks, even as cleaning, and space repair are being conducted. These services will remain in effect until the stacks can be reopened to Library users. Paging will be performed according to the following regular schedule:

Requests received by 11am (Monday-Friday) will be available at the circulation desk by 1pm

Requests received by 6pm (Sunday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk by 8pm

Requests received by 10pm (Monday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk the next day at 10am

Requests received by 2pm (Saturday and Sunday) will be available at the circulation desk by 4pm

For items that remain in the stacks: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Please contact Starr East Asian Library staff for assistance in paging this item.” Requests to have these items paged from the stacks can be submitted as follows: in the CLIO record for the item, go to the „Requests‟ tab above the CLIO record, and select “Item not on shelf?” (see image below):

For items that were removed from Starr for treatment: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Temporarily unavailable. Try ILL.” These items may still be available through our BorrowDirect and Interlibrary Loan partners, and Starr library circulation desk staff will assist faculty and students in locating and requesting such items.

For access to the rare books, archives, and special collections material, please report to the front desk during rare book room hours, and a librarian will accompany you to that room.

Thank you for your understanding and continued patience and cooperation as we work with University Facilities to ensure that the affected spaces are clean and safe for faculty and students to once again access and use.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us by email at starr@library.columbia.edu, and we will respond as soon as possible.

The Japanese government announced on Oct. 26 (Friday) that it has selected five people to receive the country’s top cultural award this year, including composer Toshi Ichiyanagi, 85.

Toshi Ichiyanagi, notable Japanese composer, was born in. Kobe, Feb. 4, 1933. He studied composition with Kishio Hirao and piano with Chieko Hara. He pursued training in New York at the Juilliard School of Music (1954-58), receiving instruction in composition from John Cage and in piano from Beveridge Webster. In 1967 he received a Rockefeller Foundation grant and was active in N.Y. as composer-in-residence. In 1976 he was the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst composer-in-residence in Berlin. In 1989 he founded and became artistic director of the Tokyo International Music Ensemble, a traditional Japanese orchestra with Buddhist chanting shomyo. He led the ensemble on many tours abroad, including visits to Europe and the U.S. Ichiyanagi’s compositions reflect his penchant for exploring both Western and non-Western musical traditions, as well as for a willingness to pursue experimental paths in both traditions.

Beginning with his first prize at 16 in the Mainichi/NHK composition competition, which he won again in 1951, he has been awarded many prizes including the Koussevitzky Prize at the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood (summer, 1956) In 1981, 1984, 1989, and 1990 he won the Otaka Prize, in 1985 he was made a member of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France, and in 1989 he won the Kyoto Music Grand Prize. The Order of Culture will be presented to the recipients at the Imperial Palace on Nov. 3, 2018.

Sachie Noguchi

On Sunday, September 16, the C.V. Starr East Asian Library suffered significant water damage in the library stacks as a result of a water leak in a component part of the HVAC system. The damage to spaces and collections in the stacks is extensive. Libraries staff immediately performed an item-by-item assessment of all collections. Libraries’ Conservation staff applied collections preservation protocols, and as a result of this effort, a significant number of wet books were quickly and safely transported to a vendor partner’s facilities for professional drying and dehumidification treatment. Thanks to swift action, we expect that very few, if any, collection materials are damaged beyond repair. Materials will return to the stacks and become available for use as soon as possible.

The main reading room in Starr remains open, as do all reference, consultation, and Interlibrary loan services. However, all stacks areas will remain closed for several weeks. Please check our library blog (https://blogs.cul.columbia.edu/starr/) regularly, where we will post updates on progress, specific timelines as they become better known, and any other information affecting the use of library spaces and collections.

Because the incident increased the humidity levels in the stacks, we‟ve already begun a comprehensive dehumidification process to ensure that there is no long-term damage to the collections that remain in the stacks, even if they were not exposed directly to water. This will be followed by subsequent processes to thoroughly clean the stacks, and to repair damage to the facilities that must be fixed in advance of reopening the stacks. We are working to complete all of these tasks as quickly as possible so the stacks and study spaces can be reopened. We will continue to communicate with you as timelines become clearer.

Effective immediately, Starr has implemented paging services that will allow users to request items currently in the stacks, even as dehumidification, cleaning, and space repair are being conducted. These services will remain in effect until the stacks can be reopened to Library users. Paging will be performed according to the following regular schedule:

Requests received by 11am (Monday-Friday) will be available at the circulation desk by 1pm

Requests received by 6pm (Sunday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk by 8pm

Requests received by 10pm (Monday-Thursday) will be available at the circulation desk the next day at 10am

Requests received by 2pm (Saturday and Sunday) will be available at the circulation desk by 4pm

For items that remain in the stacks: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Please contact Starr East Asian Library staff for assistance in paging this item.” Requests to have these items paged from the stacks can be submitted as follows: in the CLIO record for the item, go to the „Requests‟ tab above the CLIO record, and select “Item not on shelf?” (see image below):

For items that were removed from Starr for treatment: records are marked in CLIO with the alert “Temporarily unavailable. Try ILL.” These items may still be available through our BorrowDirect and Interlibrary Loan partners, and Starr library circulation desk staff will assist faculty and students in locating and requesting such items.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work with University Facilities to ensure that the affected spaces are clean and safe for faculty and student to once again access and use.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly, or email starr@library.columbia.edu, and we will respond as soon as possible.

Jim Cheng
Director, C.V. Starr East Asian Library
Columbia University
Email: jc3685@columbia.edu

Following up on our message of September 17 about the flood incident in the library stacks, here are some updates and instructions about access to books and other materials.

The damage is extensive, and a significant number of books were shipped out for treatment. While recovery, repair and cleaning work is in progress the stacks will remain closed.

All items that were shipped out will be marked as unavailable so they can be requested through BorrowDirect and Interlibrary Loan.

For material remaining in the stacks we will start paging services from Saturday September 22 according to the following schedule:

Requests received by 11am (Monday-Friday) will be available by 1pm

Requests received by 6pm (Sunday-Thursday) will be available by 8pm

Requests received by 10pm (Monday-Thursday) will be available the next day 10am

Requests received by 2pm on Saturday will be available by 4pm

We ask that you use the search feature in CLIO for your requests. It is called “Item not on shelf?” and can be found under the Request tab above the catalog record (see illustration).

Due to water leak in a component part of the HVAC system on Sunday morning, which resulted in flooding in parts of the Starr Library, our stacks, including access to the Rare Book Reading Room, are closed to allow for emergency work to take place. The main reading room in Starr remains open, as do all reference, consultation, circulation, course reserve, BorrowDirect, and Interlibrary Loan services. Starr Library’s open hours will also remain in place without change.

Over the coming two days, a significant number of affected books are being moved out of Starr for professional treatment. We are investigating options for marking the catalog records for those books, so it will be possible to request any of these titles through BorrowDirect and Interlibrary Loan for anyone requesting access. Additionally, we have brought in multiple dehumidifiers in order to reduce the humidity in the stacks to a level that is safe for the collections that remain. Collections that remain in the stacks will be paged by Library staff upon request until the stacks can be reopened to the public.

As soon as we know more about progress and procedures we will post further information. In the meantime, students and faculty are welcome to contact us at starr@library.columbia.edu or 212-854-4318, or by visiting the service desk in the main reading room.

We apologize for this major inconvenience, and thank you for your patience while we work with University Facilities to mediate the cause and the impact of this incident.

Welcome to Columbia to all new students, faculty, and scholars, and welcome back to all returnees!

As we do each year, we are presenting a number of options to get you acquainted with Starr Library, and get you started with your library needs:

Every weekday (except Labor Day) starting Monday, August 27 through Friday, September 7 we offer one-hour orientation sessions, including a tour of the library, with Ria Koopmans-de Bruijn

Come find out how Starr Library works, and what services are available to you. Join us and learn to find your way around!  No advance sign-up necessary.  All sessions start at 4:00 PM at the library’s front desk.

Orientation sessions to introduce resources in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Tibetan are scheduled for the last week of September as follows:

Tuesday, September 25, 2:00-3:30 PM, Chinese Studies Resources, with Chengzhi Wang

Wednesday, September 26, 2:00-3:30 PM, Japanese Studies Resources, with Sachie Noguchi

Thursday, September 27, 2:00-3:30 PM, Korean Studies Resources, with Hee-sook Shin

Friday, September 28, 1:00-2:30 PM, Tibetan Studies Resources, with Lauran Hartley

No advance sign-up necessary. All sessions will be approximately 90 minutes, and take place in our Kress Seminar Room.

Tibetan Studies Librarian, Dr. Lauran Hartley, moderates a discussion focusing on Tibetan women writers with Tenzin Dickie and Tsering Lama at the Rubin Museum of Art (New York City) on January 3, 2018.

The event launched a new anthology of Tibetan short fiction: Old Demons, New Deities (O/R Books, 2017), from which both writers read excerpts of their works. The editor, Tenzin Dickie, who also contributed one short story and translated others, is an alumnus of the Columbia University School of the Arts where she earned her MFA in Fiction and Literary Translation in 2014.  Tsering Lama earned an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia in 2013.

We are offering special sessions to acquaint you with resources and services in all our Asian languages. Come and find out about all the wonderful resources we have available, learn the basics of identifying and using them, and get up to speed for your next research project or paper.  No sign-up necessary.  All sessions will be approximately 90 minutes, and take place in our Kress Seminar Room (access via level 200 of the stacks).

Tuesday, September 26                  2:00-3:30 PM           Chinese Studies Resources

with Chengzhi Wang

Wednesday, September 27             2:00-3:30 PM           Japanese Studies Resources

with Sachie Noguchi

Thursday, September 28                2:00-3:30 PM           Korean Studies Resources

with Hee-sook Shin

Friday, September 29                     9:30-11:00 AM       Tibetan Studies Resources

with Lauran Hartley