Renata Sancken
Renata Sancken
Champaign, IL 61820
abqrmv@r.postjobfree.com
EducationM.S. in Library and Information ScienceExpected May 2012B.A. in English and historyMay 2007
Work ExperienceReference Assistant
Funk ACES Library, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
February 2011-presentAnswer patrons online, phone, and in person research questions at one of the nation's only agriculture librariesProvide excellent customer service for circulation, scheduling, and directional questionsCreate and maintain online subject guides for agriculture and nutrition classesMaintain and research new LibGuidesSupervise two undergraduate student assistantsIntern
New York Public Library, Bronx, NY
March 2012Staffed information desk and answered reference questions in English and Spanish at a neighborhood branch library serving a diverse communityLed a pre-school storytime and afterschool craft programAssisted with a bilingual storytime and science activity led by outside educatorsPracticum Student
(Adult and Teen Services), Champaign, Illinois
June 2011-August 2011Staffed information desks, providing reference help and readers' advisory at a busy public libraryAssisted librarians with collection development and weedingResearched and prepared four teen booklistsProgram Director
Camp Kiwanis, Mahomet, Illinois
June 2010-August 2010Supervised and assisted four staff members at a Girl Scout day campPlanned and scheduled a variety of weekly activities for forty campers ages 6-10Information Technology for Education Volunteer, Cabarete, Dominican Republic
February 2008-May 2010Taught English and computer skills classes for adults and youthFormed an IT youth group for high-achieving high school studentsMaintained computer lab as a community centerAssisted with the installation and utilization of ResourceMate software to catalog the community libraryServed as editor-in-chief of the Peace Corps DR volunteer magazineUnits Director
Camp Green Eyrie, Harvard, Massachusetts
June 2007-August 2007Supervised and assisted 12 unit staff members at an overnight Girl Scout campPerformed administrative duties in camp office, especially schedulingVaried other duties as needed to ensure a positive camp experience for staff and campers
Social Media ExperiencePaid Blogger
BuyFun.com
November 2011-presentWrite blog posts assigned to me by BuyFun.com to provide content for their partner sites
Publications and PresentationsSancken, Renata. The King is Dead, Long Live the King: Orientalism, The Sandman, and Humanity. The Sandman Papers. Seattle: Fantagraphics Books, 2006.Sancken, Renata. "Defining Ourselves, Defining the Other: The Use of Myth in Sandman #50, 'Ramadan'." Popular/American Culture Association National Conference, Boston, 2007.Sancken, Renata. Only the Gods Are Real: A Companion to Neil Gaiman's American Gods. Ossining, NY: Hill House Publishers, 2005.
Volunteer WorkTechnology Assistance Volunteer Program,, Urbana, Illinois
September 2010-presentAssist and instruct library patrons with document creation, internet searching, scanning, and other computer tasksAssist with basic computer and printer maintainenceCenter for Children's Books, Champaign, Illinois
September 2010-present, Champaign, Illinois
September 2010-presentCo-lead a troop of 16 second and third-gradersFacilitate council-wide outdoor activities for girls of all agesRed Cross certified boating instructorEarned a Leadership Development Pin, Champaign County Juvenile Detention Center, Urbana, Illinois
September 2011-December 2011Weeded and developed the collection at the juvenile detention center's libraryCreated displays to highlight the library collectionProvided readers' advisory to incarcerated teenagers
Computer SkillsOperating systems: Mac OS, WindowsWord processors: Microsoft Office Suite, Apple iWork SuiteAdvanced software: Adobe PageMaker, Adobe InDesign, Adobe PhotoShopWeb design: HTML, XHTML, CSS, Mozilla Sea Monkey, OpenCMSSocial media: WordPress, Blogger, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, PinterestLibrary systems: LibGuides, ResourceMate, Voyager, Horizon, and Millenium
Language SkillsFluent in SpanishScored 8/10 (Advanced Low) on the ACTFL Spanish examWorked and taught for two years in a Spanish-speaking country
Professional MembershipsAmerican Library AssociationMember of the International Libraries subcommittee at UIUC
Conferences Attended
New Orleans, Louisiana, June 23-28 2011
Dominican University, River Forest, Illinois, September 8-9 2011Popular/American Culture Association Conference
Boston, Massachusetts, April 4-7 2007Presented the paper "Defining Ourselves, Defining the Other: The Use of Myth in Sandman #50, 'Ramadan'"
Renata Sancken
307 S. State Street #4
Champaign, IL 61820
abqrmv@r.postjobfree.com