January 18, 2022
Raymond Deiser recognized as Professional Staff of the Week
Raymond Deiser, library specialist for K-State Libraries, was recognized as Professional Staff of the Week at the Jan. 15 men's home basketball game.
Faculty Senate, the Office of the President, K-State Athletics and the Division of Communications and Marketing wish to recognize his contributions to K-State.
Deiser's creativity and innovation have been exceptional over the past few years, specifically while Hale Library was closed because of the May 2018 fire. All physical material — books, maps, DVDs, etc. — were packed and shipped to a variety of locations for appropriate cleaning. Once the materials were returned, they needed to be directed to many different locations, some to storage and many to back to the stacks in Hale Library. Every book from the library needed to be touched and sorted — and the library has lots of books! Deiser spent many hours researching, learning, testing and editing to create a process that saved staff many hours and many computer clicks. His adaption of GRIMA APIs saved the library staff members time, allowing them to work more efficiently and quickly. With more than 800,000 items in the system, the process was going to take some time. Deiser's system reduced the process from taking months to taking weeks.
Not only did Deiser save the library staff time, but his work also saved time for contractor staff unpacking the boxes. Many of the staff did not speak English as a first language. Due to Deiser's work, they were able to scan the book and a color-coded screen told them where to direct the books.
Deiser has been patient with the concerns and questions of the staff during this time. The recovery of the fire is unprecedented on many levels — the physical building, the creation of new spaces within the building — to the logistics of bringing the books back into Hale Library. There was not a manual to follow, but the ease of following his direction made it seem like there was one.
The impact of Deiser's work to the university community may not initially seem obvious, but it becomes obvious when talking with researchers, students and faculty. The importance of getting the books back into the hands of the researchers, students and faculty cannot be overstated. Due to the amount of time library staff was able to save because of Deiser's determination and knowledge, library patrons now have access to these very important resources. Deiser's contributions to the Hale refill process have been exemplary.