Category Archive for Press Releases
February 05, 2008
Got Research? UT Libraries' Research Assist Provides Individualized Assistance
"Doing library research can be very challenging," Jeanine Williamson, a reference librarian who founded Research Assist, said. "With Research Assist, you can get one-on-one help finding, selecting and locating other sources that make a research project complete."
Students often rely too heavily on Internet resources that may not be reliable. Some universities, such as the history department at Middlebury College in Vermont, have limited students' use of sites like Wikipedia.
"Whereas Wikipedia is extraordinarily convenient and, for some general purposes, extremely useful, it nonetheless suffers inevitably from inaccuracies deriving in large measure from its unique manner of compilation," a statement from the Middlebury College department reads. "Students are responsible for the accuracy of information they provide, and they cannot point to Wikipedia or any similar source that may appear in the future to escape the consequences of errors."
Librarians at UT look forward to helping students identify appropriate scholarly sources for their research. "Internet sites like Wikipedia can be a great place to start, but it isn't the place to do real research," Rita Smith, associate dean of libraries, said. "We look forward to helping students broaden their information-gathering skills, and to teaching them how to analyze the accuracy of the information they use. Information literacy is one of the best ways to get ready for the world," Smith said.
Students can make an appointment for Research Assist by filling out the form at www.lib.utk.edu/refs/researchassist/. There are also drop-in hours described on the web page.
Posted by Martha Rudolph at 01:18 PM in Press Releases
November 08, 2007
A Tiny Gift of History
University of Tennessee Special Collections Library Acquires Miniature Literature
The Special Collections Library at the University of Tennessee has acquired a copy of the miniature book Orphan Willie, a story of a young boy who grows up to fight in the Union Army during the Civil War. Published in 1862, the book is 64 pages long and measures just over two inches tall and an inch and-a-half wide.
Miniature books, books that are smaller than three inches, are both a curiosity and a subject of serious scholarship. Miniature manuscripts occur throughout the history of human record keeping. Cuneiform tablets in miniature were in use as early as 4000 B.C.
Orphan Willie was published in Buffalo by Breed, Butler and Company and written by Frances Elizabeth Barrow. Barrow published under the pseudonyms "Aunt Laura" and "Aunt Fanny," and wrote a number of children's books with moral and religious themes. Nearly all of Barrow's publications were printed as miniatures. The Special Collections Library purchased the book in the spring of 2007 from eBay.
Printing in miniature is technically challenging, and miniature books were often produced to display the techniques of the bookmakers. In the letterpress era, this ranged from designing type, cutting punches, casting type, and developing paper and inks suitable for use with them.
Miniature books sometimes provided the medium for sensitive subject matter because they are easily concealed. The book will be of interest to scholars of publishing history, children's literature, the Civil War, and the Victorian era.
Only 11 other institutions own copies of Orphan Willie, including the Indiana University, the University of Virginia, and the University of Texas-Austin libraries. This portable treasure is now cataloged and available for use at the Special Collections Library, in the historic James D. Hoskins Library at the University of Tennessee. Visit www.lib.utk.edu/spcoll/ for more information.
Contacts:
Aaron Purcell, Special Collections Library, (865) 974-3674
Nick Wyman, Special Collections Library, (865) 974-4480
(image courtesy Bill Britten)
Posted by Laura Purcell at 02:51 PM in Press Releases
September 24, 2007
UT Libraries Help Preserve Education, Arts Literacy, History of Smokies
From Pi Beta Phi to Arrowmont: Bringing Education and Economic Development tothe Great Smoky Mountains, 1910-2004
KNOXVILLE -- With help from a nearly $250,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the University of Tennessee Libraries recently completed a project that preserves the history of education and arts literacy in the Great Smoky Mountains.
"From Pi Beta Phi to Arrowmont: Bringing Education and Economic Development to the Great Smoky Mountains, 1910-2004," is a digital project with a fully searchable Web site that includes almost 4,000 images of articles, photos, scrapbooks and letters. The site also has a 360-degree interactive gallery of art pieces from the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, historical essays and curriculum for K-8 students.
The Web site is www.lib.utk.edu/arrowmont.
The Pi Beta Phi fraternity for women opened the Pi Beta Phi Settlement School in Gatlinburg in 1912, beginning the fraternity's involvement in education, health care, arts and crafts literacy and commerce in the Smokies. It later became the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.
"This project chronicles the history of Gatlinburg, but it also tells a very important story about the history of women," said Anne Bridges, history librarian and co-principal investigator for the project. "The Pi Phis created professional opportunities for themselves when there were limited prospects for bright, highly educated, highly motivated women."
May Lansfield Keller, grand president of the fraternity, was sent to East Tennessee in 1910 to find a location for a settlement school as a philanthropic outreach project by the fraternity to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
At the time, the U.S. Bureau of Education had designated Southern Appalachia as "most in need of education," and the state of Tennessee was open to support and assistance from benevolent organizations.
The Pi Beta Phi Settlement School began integrating arts education into the curriculum in 1945. In the 1960s when the Sevier County Board of Education took control of education in the area, the fraternity changed the focus of the school to fine arts and crafts education. Today, Arrowmont attracts a diverse group of students, including professional artists, from all over the country.
The digital project began in 2005 and was supported by matching funds from UT.
Bridges and co-principal investigator Ken Wise, UT Libraries associate professor, were joined in the project by the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and the Pi Beta Phi Elementary School in Gatlinburg.
The project complements the UT Libraries' Digital Library Center and the Great Smoky Mountains Regional Project.
"This project not only tells an important story, but it illustrates the role of the emerging virtual library," said Barbara Dewey, dean of UT Libraries. "The collaborative work that made this project possible is an amazing example of sharing unique resources and expertise."
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is an independent federal grant-making agency dedicated to creating and sustaining a nation of learners by helping libraries and museums serve their communities.
Other staff on the grant were Steve Davis, research coordinator; Tim Lepczyk, digital coordinator; Melanie Feltner-Reichert, metadata librarian; Anthony Smith, Digital Library Center coordinator; Bridger Dyson-Smith, student digitization assistant; Kate Stepp, digital coordinator; Aaron Purcell, university archivist; and Jody de Ridder, Digital Library Center programmer.
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Contacts:
Elizabeth Davis, UT Media Relations, (865) 974-5179, elizabeth.davis@tennessee.edu
Anne Bridges, (865) 974-0017, abridges@utk.edu
Ken Wise, (865) 974-2359, kwise@utk.edu
Posted by Laura Purcell at 01:17 PM in Press Releases
August 22, 2007
Got Research? UT Libraries' Research Assist Provides Individualized Assistance
"Doing library research can be very challenging," Jeanine Williamson, a reference librarian who founded Research Assist, said. "With Research Assist, you can get one-on-one help finding, selecting and locating other sources that make a research project complete."
Students often rely too heavily on Internet resources that may not be reliable. Some universities, such as the history department at Middlebury College in Vermont, have limited students' use of sites like Wikipedia.
"Whereas Wikipedia is extraordinarily convenient and, for some general purposes, extremely useful, it nonetheless suffers inevitably from inaccuracies deriving in large measure from its unique manner of compilation," a statement from the Middlebury College department reads. "Students are responsible for the accuracy of information they provide, and they cannot point to Wikipedia or any similar source that may appear in the future to escape the consequences of errors."
Librarians at UT look forward to helping students identify appropriate scholarly sources for their research. "Internet sites like Wikipedia can be a great place to start, but it isn't the place to do real research," Rita Smith, head of reference services, said. "We look forward to helping students broaden their information-gathering skills, and to teaching them how to analyze the accuracy of the information they use. Information literacy is one of the best ways to get ready for the world," Smith said.
Students can make a Research Assist appointment by calling 974-4171 or emailing Jeanine Williamson at researchassist.jeanine@gmail.com. More information is available at www.lib.utk.edu/refs/researchassist/.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 11:26 AM in Press Releases
March 23, 2007
University of Tennessee Special Collections Library acquires rare invitation to Sam Houston's 1829 wedding
The Special Collections Library at the University of Tennessee recently purchased a copy of an invitation to the sudden January 1829 wedding of then-Tennessee governor Sam Houston and Eliza Allen. This rare item may be only one of its kind.
Aaron Purcell, university archivist, discovered the piece on eBay.com and purchased the invitation on February 14, 2007, just over 178 years after the wedding date. The invitation was kept by descendants of one of the wedding guests for five generations.
Sam Houston is an important figure in Tennessee's history, serving as governor from 1827-1829 and representing the state in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1823-1827. Born in Lexington, Virginia, in 1793, his family moved to Maryville, Tennessee, in 1806. Houston joined the army in 1813 and fought at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814. There he caught the attention of Andrew Jackson. Jackson became Houston's mentor and helped guide his political career.
While governor, Houston briefly courted 18-year-old Eliza Allen, daughter of a wealthy Gallatin, Tennessee, businessman. On January 15, 1829, the couple mailed a handful of invitations to a small January 22nd wedding at the Allen family home. It is one of these few invitations that UT was able to purchase.
The invitation UT acquired is addressed to Miss Harriet Roulstone, the daughter of George Roulstone, who in 1791 founded the Knoxville Gazette, the state's first newspaper.
Shortly after the ceremony, the newlyweds were at odds. After 11 weeks, Eliza Allen left her husband and returned to her family's home in Gallatin. There are many theories as to why the marriage was so short-lived, but none are substantiated. Allen burned all of her letters regarding the relationship and Houston was reluctant to speak about his brief marriage.
The invitation gives few details about the wedding, but the piece remained in the Roulstone family for many years, tucked in a trunk with other important family papers.
Shortly after his marriage dissolved, Houston resigned his position as governor and fled to Indian Territory. He married a Cherokee woman and became a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. Houston returned to public service in Texas, serving as president of the Republic of Texas, U.S. senator, and making several failed presidential runs. He died in 1863, leaving behind a complex legacy.
"Sam Houston materials are exceedingly rare and expensive," Purcell said. UT holds only one other Houston item in its collections, a letter to Colonel Ramsey, dated February 1829. Both items are available for research use in the Special Collections Library at 1401 Cumberland Avenue.
About the Special Collections Library
The University of Tennessee Special Collections Library was founded in 1960 and resides in the historic James D. Hoskins Library building. Materials in special collections include manuscripts, books and other rare materials for research use. For more information, contact the library at (865) 974-4480 or visit www.lib.utk.edu/spcoll/.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 11:10 AM in Press Releases
March 15, 2007
Nikki Giovanni to Launch National Book Tour from Knoxville on March 27
The world-renowned poet will be joined on stage by UT's Love United Gospel Choir
University of Tennessee's Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature is very pleased to host Nikki Giovanni for a special appearance at the Tennessee Theatre at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 27. The renowned writer/poet will be joined on stage by UT's Love United Gospel Choir. The event is free and open to the public. Carpe Librum Booksellers will provide books for signing.
Giovanni and her publisher, Candlewick Press, chose Knoxville for the launch of her new book, On My Journey Now - Looking at African American History Through the Spirituals. Giovanni's personal journey began in Knoxville where she was born in 1943 and where she and her sister spent subsequent summers with their grandparents after her family moved to Cincinnati, OH.
In her famous children's poem, "Knoxville, TN," Giovanni returns to her nostalgic roots with warm memories of summer in the mountains. There, she celebrates going to a church picnic where she listens to gospel music outside.
As a little girl, Giovanni was deeply inspired by the early gospel lyrics and beats of her ancestors. In On My Journey Now, she weaves the words of those spirituals with the inspiring story of Africans in America. As she paints compelling portraits of the lives of her ancestors through familiar songs such as "Go Down, Moses" and personal favorites such as "Ain't Got Time to Die," she celebrates people who overcame enslavement and found a way to survive, worship and build.
Giovanni is the author of the best-selling Rosa, a biography of Rosa Parks illustrated by Bryan Collier; The Sun Is So Quiet, illustrated by Ashley Bryan; and Shimmy Shimmy Shimmy Like My Sister Kate. Three of her poetry collections for adults have received NAACP Image Awards. She serves as University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg where she now lives.
"We are honored that Candlewick and Giovanni have chosen our event as the launch of this important book," says Ken Wise, co-founder of the Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature. "Her devotion to this area is a testament to the rich literary tradition in our own back yard. She will continue to inspire young people for generations."
The Love United Gospel Choir, which is celebrating their 30th anniversary this year, is a student organization at the University of Tennessee with 100 students who come together to serve the campus and local community through service and song. Jocelyn Milton is the faculty advisor for the choir. Gospel music is an integral part of the African American culture and represents the theme of Giovanni's latest book.
ABOUT THE CENTER FOR CHILDREN'S AND YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE
UT's Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature works to promote the use of literature in the education and lives of children and young adults by providing workshops for teachers and librarians, and sponsoring talks by authors and illustrators which are open to the public. Publishers of children's and young adult books provide review copies of their most
recently published books for study and examination within the center by librarians, students, teachers and the public.
The center is a partnership between the University of Tennessee Libraries, the School of Information Sciences, and the College of Education, Health and Human Services with participation from Knox County Public Library, Knox County Schools, Maryville City Schools, Oak Ridge City Schools, the Children's Defense Fund, and the Webb School of Knoxville.
For more information about this event or UT's Center for Children's and Young Adult Literature, please contact Ken Wise at (865) 974-2359.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 12:49 PM in Press Releases
May 18, 2006
Login Implemented for Guest Computers in Hodges Library
Effective Monday, May 22, 2006, non-UT affiliated visitors to Hodges Library will use a login account to access the guest computers in the Reference and Instructional Services room. Guest users will have two hours of computer access per day. The guest login account will be assigned at the reference desk and will be good for one year. These guest computers provide full Internet access.
Visitors must get a library card from the second floor circulation desk before setting up the guest login account. A photo ID is required to obtain the library card.
Guest computers that do not require a login are available on floors 3-6 and across from the 2nd floor Circulation desk. Visitors may use these computers to access the library catalog and other UT campus Web pages. These computers do not provide open Internet access.
For more information about visitor services at the UT Libraries, click here for our Services for Visitors and Alumni page.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 10:46 AM in Press Releases
March 27, 2006
Overdue? New Changes in Library Fines Policies
The Good News: No More Fines for Many of Your Overdue Library Materials
Regular overdue fines for books, monographs, serials, periodicals and some other items are now a thing of the past. After March 30, the UT Libraries will no longer charge the $.25-a-day fine for most materials that students, faculty and staff keep beyond the due date.
However, once materials are 21 days overdue, the libraries will declare the materials "lost." This means that the borrower will be billed to replace the item as well as a $20 non-refundable processing fee. If the patron returns the "lost" material, the library automatically cancels the bill for replacement and the processing fee.
"Our goal is to get the books back in the library," David Atkins, head of Library Access and Delivery Services, said. "We shouldn't have to penalize students after they return books. We're also glad to eliminate the negative experience of paying fines, for both borrowers and library staff," Atkins said.
Patrons can keep track of their checked-out library items by using the "My Account" feature located on the libraries' catalog Web page, www.lib.utk.edu/catalog. "We are able to send patrons emails or "snail mail" notices to remind them when books are overdue. We hope this can make the process easier and friendlier for everyone," Atkins said.
Still, not all fines are going away. The libraries continues to charge fines for other types of loans and has increased the rates on equipment and recall fines. All faculty, students, and staff remain liable for recall fines. If you have a book that is recalled, the due date is changed to ten days after the date of the recall request. If the recalled item is not returned within that ten-day period, you cannot borrow any items from the library, and will be charged $.50 per day until the recalled item is returned (to a maximum of $20). This rate is an increase from the previous $.25 a day rate.
UT Libraries still charges overdue fines for reserve, media, and equipment loans:
• 2-hour reserve/overnight: $.25 per hour per item; maximum of $20.00 per item.
• 1-day, 3-day/7-day reserve and equipment: $1.00 per day per item; maximum of $20.00 per item.
• 4-hour or 24-hour Equipment Loans: $.25 per hour per item overdue; maximum $20.00 per item.
• 3-day Media (e.g. video, DVD) loans: $.25 per hour per item overdue; maximum of $20.00 per item.
To see if you have any overdue items, visit the UT Libraries catalog at www.lib.utk.edu/catalog and click on "My Account." UT Libraries accepts credit cards, AllStar Plus, checks, and money orders, but no cash, for fee and fines payment.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 02:15 PM in Press Releases
March 21, 2006
John C. Hodges Sculpture Installed at Library
University Library is named for former UT Professor
A relief sculpture of English Professor John C. Hodges was recently installed at the Melrose entrance of Hodges Library. Dr. Hodges taught at UT for 41 years and wrote the Harbrace Handbook, the most widely used college textbook ever printed in America. Hodges Library is named in his honor.
Dr. Hodges joined the University of Tennessee faculty in 1921, and he served as head of the Department of English for more than half of his 41 years at the university. Dr. Hodges was one of the world’s leading authorities on English playwright William Congreve, and he also established and directed a statewide program dedicated to improve the teaching of English in Tennessee schools.
Before his retirement in 1962, Dr. Hodges accepted the appointment as coordinator of the Library Development Program. He remained a volunteer after his retirement and was successful in soliciting substantial gifts to enlarge the university's library resources. Dr. Hodges also made numerous anonymous gifts to the University Libraries during his lifetime and bestowed generous monetary gifts and his valuable personal collection of William Congreve materials to the university upon his death in 1967.
The six-story, 350,000-square-foot John C. Hodges Library building was constructed around the smaller, five-story, 100,000-square-foot John C. Hodges Undergraduate Library built in 1969. The present building was completed in 1987 and incorporated the collections of the former Undergraduate Library and the former James D. Hoskins Main Library.
The sculpture was a gift to Dr. Hodges from UT's Office of Development upon his retirement. Mrs. Cornelia Hodges recently gifted the sculpture to the library.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 02:37 PM in Press Releases
March 13, 2006
Calling All Student Artists: Exhibit Your Works at the Library!
Student artists can participate in Student Art in the Library, a juried exhibition that showcases only student art
Student artists are invited to submit their works to Student Art in the Library, a juried exhibition open to all undergraduate and graduate students currently enrolled at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Two Student Art in the Library exhibits are held each year, one during the fall semester and one in the spring. This is the third call for submissions to the competition. Artworks are displayed in the Reference room of Hodges Library.
Students do not need to be art majors to submit, but the works must be two-dimensional. "We've had a wide range of art works displayed, including photography, oil painting, architectural drawings, ink drawings, lithographs and screenprinting," Jennifer Beals, art and architecture librarian and exhibit coordinator, said.
Exhibit jurors examine submissions for quality, and try to choose pieces that work well together while representing a wide range of artistic styles and genres.
Students must be enrolled graduates or undergraduates and need to submit at least one digital image of their work along with the submission form. Submissions need to be received no later than midnight on April 20th, 2006. Submission details are available at the Student Art in the Library website.
The jury will review submissions and artists will be notified of their selections by May 2, 2006.
Email Jennifer Benedetto Beals for more information or call 974-0014.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 02:12 PM in Press Releases
February 17, 2006
"Love Your Libraries" 5K Run and Fun Walk, February 25
Race held earlier this year due to UT Men?s Basketball Game
The UT Graduate Student Senate continues their tradition of raising funds for the UT Libraries with the 14th annual "Love Your Libraries" 5K run and one-mile fun walk through the heart of the UT campus.
The race will occur on Saturday, February 25th. Race start time is 8:30 AM this year, due to the UT Men's Basketball game scheduled for that afternoon.
Monies raised by the race are used to purchase library materials that are crucial to student research and will help build the UT Libraries' digital collections.
Registration is 7:00-8:00 am in Circle Park. Interested participants can pre-register with a form available online at www.lib.utk.edu/funrun/. Registration is $15.
Send the completed form and a check made payable to "GSS Fun Run " to GSS Fun Run, 315E University Center, 1502 West Cumberland Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-4800.
The race is sanctioned and emceed by the Knoxville Track Club. An awards ceremony will follow the race; awards will be given to the top three runners overall, 1st Masters (40+) and 1st Grand Masters (50+), male and female -- as well as awards given by age and gender. T-shirts are guaranteed to all pre-registered runners.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 12:05 PM in Press Releases
February 02, 2006
Celebrate Language, Love and Poetry at Writers in the Library, Monday, February 13th
The romance of celebrity and the comforts of home reign at the UT Libraries this Valentine's Eve with a night of poetry at Writers in the Library. Poets Joseph Campana and Jesse Graves will read from their works on Monday, February 13th at 7 PM in the Lindsay Young Auditorium of Hodges Library. All Writers in the Library events are free and open to the public.
Joseph Campana grew up in the foothills of the Adirondack mountains. His poems have appeared in Poetry, Beloit Poetry Journal, New England Review, Conjunctions, Gulf Coast, and Colorado Review and are forthcoming in Triquarterly, Prairie Schooner and Michigan Quarterly Review. His first collection, The Book of Faces, is a poetic iconography of Audrey Hepburn published by Graywolf Press (2005). Campana currently teaches Renaissance literature and creative writing at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH.
Where are you tonight, Audrey Hepburn?
The stalls are empty, the boys are gone.
No one kneels at the feet of beauty.
A limp film slickens in the wind:
flaps on a wheel of fire.
--from the poem "Final Cut" by Joseph Campana
Jesse Graves was born and raised in Sharps Chapel, Tennessee, a farming community north of Knoxville, which has been the subject of much of his work and study. Jesse is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of English at the University of Tennessee, where he won the 2004 John C. Hodges Graduate Poetry Award and the 2005 James Agee Conference Award in Poetry. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Cornell University, and has taught literature and writing at Cornell, University of New Orleans, and U.T. His poems are forthcoming in New Millennium Writings and Crossroads: A Southern Culture Annual.
The dead move through us at their will, their voices chime just out of our hearing.
How else do we feel our names when no one speaks them?
How else do we still catch the echo of footprints decades after running through the grass?
Alone in the field, and never alone. Quiet and not quiet.
Home and away.--from the poem, "Tennessee Landscape, with Blighted Pine" by Jesse Graves
For more details about Writers in the Library, visit their Web site.
All Writers in the Library events are held on Mondays at 7 PM in the Lindsay Young Auditorium of the John C. Hodges Library on the UT Campus. Other Writers in the Library events for Spring 2006 include Marianne Worthington and Charles Morris on March 13, John Wranovics on April 17 and student winners from the UT Creative Writing Program on April 24.
The Writers in the Library series is sponsored by the University of Tennessee Libraries and the Creative Writing Program of the UT English Department. For further information, please contact Jo Anne Deeken, Head of Technical Services, UT Libraries, at 974-6905 or deeken@aztec.lib.utk.edu, or R.B. Morris, Jack Reese Writer in Residence, UT Libraries, at 974-3004 or rbmorris@utk.edu.
Posted by at 01:50 PM in Press Releases, Writers in the Library
Libraries' Culture Corner Features Gay and Lesbian Themes
Topics relating to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons (GLBTQ), as well as those questioning their sexual orientation, are featured this semester at the UT Libraries' Culture Corner.
Titles on GLBTQ history, family and parenting, coming out, education, employment, civil rights, and other topics are available for browsing or checkout.
"We chose this topic because we felt there was a need to show that there is more to GLBTQ culture than what we are often shown on tv or the stereotypes that are becoming all too common," Kawanna Bright, instructional services librarian and Culture Corner curator, said.
Each semester, the Culture Corner showcases books from the libraries' collections that focuses on a theme related to diversity.
Located just outside the Reference room on the first floor of the John C. Hodges Library, the Culture Corner is a cozy nook that has become a popular study area and meeting place.
For links to relevant web sites and bibliographies on related topics, visit www.lib.utk.edu/diversity/culturecorner/.
The Culture Corner is a project of the UT Libraries' Diversity Committee.
Posted by at 01:34 PM in Press Releases
November 16, 2005
Michael Clark Receives UT Library Friends Outstanding Service Award
Dr. G. Michael Clark, associate professor of earth and planetary sciences, received the University of Tennessee Library Friends Outstanding Service Award in a November 9 ceremony at the John C. Hodges Library. Clark was honored for his service -- both formal and informal -- to the UT Libraries.
Dean of Libraries Barbara Dewey made the award to Clark at a gathering of library faculty representatives.
"Mike has served as a library faculty representative for more than two decades and is a tireless advocate for library services. He effectively represents the interests of his colleagues and those in related departments in discussions of library issues," said Linda Phillips, head of collection development at the Libraries. Library representatives are important faculty liaisons to the Libraries who help to guarantee that the Libraries select the best resources to support teaching and research at the University.
According to Phillips, Clark is always ready with a comprehensive list of collection needs and always willing to search for extra funds to purchase materials.
Clark frequents many library departments and is well known to library staff as an enthusiastic library supporter. "Dr. Clark is a strong advocate for the Map Library, a place where he regularly holds classes," noted earth sciences librarian Kay Johnson. "He is proactive in requesting materials for his department and knows who runs all of the various service points he uses."
Dr. Clark's research focuses on Appalachian surficial geology and geomorphic history. His research projects range from studying Appalachian periglacial features, measuring the ages of surface rocks and sediments, to examining landscapes and regolith in the Dominican Republic. He enjoys teaching classes from introductory geology to graduate-level geomorphology, including a popular class on geology of the national parks.
Clark is committed to sharing his love of earth sciences with middle and high school students. He is currently developing a series of classroom activities for Tennessee students that integrate the geology and physical geography of the student's immediate surroundings with real-world problems such as land use, natural hazards, and environmental concerns. His other outreach efforts include working with interns in the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences, sponsoring workshops for in-service earth science teachers, and assisting in the annual Earth Science Fair sponsored by the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and the Frank H. McClung Museum.
The Library Friends Outstanding Service Award is made annually to a faculty or staff member of the university community who has made outstanding contributions, in the broadest sense, to the growth and welfare of the UT Libraries. Following a university-wide call for nominations, the Library Friends Executive Committee make the final selection.
Posted by Martha Rudolph at 10:30 AM in Press Releases
October 02, 2005
Exhibit on Knoxville's Only U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Edward Terry Sanford, 1865-1930
An exhibit on Knoxville's only U.S. Supreme Court Justice opens Monday, October 3rd, in the upper lobby of the Special Collections Library. The exhibit -- "Edward Terry Sanford, United States Supreme Court Justice and Trustee of the University of Tennessee" -- will run through December.
The son of Edward Jackson and Emma Chavannes Sanford of Knoxville, Edward Terry Sanford was the only Justice of the United States Supreme Court to have come from this city. He received the A.B. Ph. B. from the University of Tennessee, 1883; the A.B. from Harvard University, 1885; and the A.M. and L.L.B. from Harvard University, 1889; and was honored with an L.L.D. from the University of Cincinnati in 1908.A member of the Tennessee bar, he was in practice for eighteen years, in the firm of Lucky, Sanford, and Fowler. He married, in 1891, Lutie Mallory Woodruff, the daughter of a prominent Knoxville merchant. Among his service on various boards and associations, Mr. Sanford served as a trustee of the University of Tennessee, from 1897-1923. In 1907 he was appointed Assistant United States District Attorney, by President Theodore Roosevelt. Eighteen months following that appointment he became Judge of the United States District Court for the middle and eastern districts of Tennessee.
President Warren G. Harding nominated Judge Sanford to be an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court; and, after congressional confirmation, he assumed this appointment on February 19, 1923, and served until his death in March of 1930. Well regarded by history, Justice Sanford is remembered as one of Knoxville’s most distinguished citizens.
The UT Special Collections Library is located in the west wing of the James D. Hoskins Library, 1401 Cumberland Avenue. For further information, phone 974-4480 or visit www.lib.utk.edu/spcoll/.
Posted by Martha Rudolph at 04:57 PM in Press Releases
September 14, 2005
UT Dean of Libraries to Serve on Statewide Advisory Council
Barbara Dewey, Dean of Libraries at the University of Tennessee, was recently invited to serve on the Tennessee Advisory Council on Libraries as a representative of academic libraries. She will serve a three-year term beginning October 1, 2005.
The Advisory Council counsels the State Library and Archives regarding their ongoing five-year plan and other long-range planning, policy matters, program evaluations, services and other activities. The council is comprised of public, school, academic, special, and regional libraries as well as the Tennessee Library Association and Tenn-Share, an organization that promotes statewide library resource sharing.
For more information about the Tennessee Advisory Council on Libraries, please visit their Web site at the Tennessee State Library and Archives.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 11:03 AM in Press Releases
June 15, 2005
Exhibit Features Smoky Mountains Photographs
Trailblazers: Jim Thompson and Albert "Dutch" Roth Photographs of the Early Years of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on exhibit at the Ewing Gallery through August 28
Images of the Appalachian Trail, the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club, moonshiners, logging, road building, and the majesty and beauty of the Smoky Mountains are featured in this photographic exhibit at the Ewing Gallery, which runs from June 17 through August 28, 2005.
Amateur photographers Jim Thompson and Albert "Dutch" Roth were among the first to photograph the area that would become the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Thanks to the efforts of the University of Tennessee Libraries, their photographs have been preserved and digitized as part of a project through UT's Digital Library Center.
For more information about the exhibit, please visit the Ewing Gallery Web site.
For more information about the Digital Library Center, visit their Web site.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 03:14 PM in Press Releases
June 03, 2005
Culture Corner to feature Appalachia
University Libraries encourages patrons to 'hear' native voices
The Diversity Committee of University Libraries has unveiled its new theme - Appalachia - for the Culture Corner, located in the first floor galleria of John C. Hodges Library. Visit the Culture Corner Web site.
"This summer's Culture Corner theme of Appalachia is the Diversity Committee's effort to make the UT community aware of a region that many have heard of but may not know much about," said Kawanna Bright, reference librarian and Culture Corner coordinator. "The selection of Appalachia is also done in recognition of the diversity that is the Appalachian region, emphasizing topics and issues that illustrate the people, history, culture and environment that encompass the region."
The broad range of topics covered provide patrons with the "voices" and "experiences" of the peoples of Appalachia through their religion, music, storytelling, arts and crafts, food and drink, literature and language, education and notable people - as well as through the flora, fauna and the environment. Bright said that one of the key objectives of the Culture Corner is to introduce the university community to different cultures, both near and far, while showcasing library resources on particular topics.
"This is one of the main goals of the Culture Corner in general: to bring together books, videos and electronic resources related to a topic into one easy-to-access location, thus allowing users to browse and view many different aspects of a topic without having to go from floor to floor and shelf to shelf to locate the items," Bright said.
In addition to the books collected together in the galleria, a bibliography is available that includes juvenile, electronic, reference and media resources. For a complete list of all titles and resources, please visit the Culture Corner Web site.
This semester marks the fifth that the Diversity Committee has collected resources on a specific theme in order to expand the educational horizons of library patrons. Previously featured themes have been Islam, the environment and topics related to the university’s Life of the Mind book program, which is a shared reading experience for first-year students. For more information, please stop by the first floor galleria display, visit the Culture Corner Web site or contact Kawanna Bright.
Posted by at 01:10 PM in Press Releases
May 03, 2005
Documentary film presentation Argentina: Hope in Hard Times
Presented as part of the Global Studies Association Conference
The documentary Argentina: Hope in Hard Times will be shown Saturday, May 14 beginning at 1 p.m. in the Hodges Library Auditorium as part of the Global Studies Association Conference Crosscurrents of Global Social Justice: Class, Gender, and Race. The event is free and open to the public.
The film explores the economic depression in Argentina that began in 2001, when one of the most prosperous countries in South America was thrust into poverty. Argentina had been a poster child for corporate globalization before its economy collapsed.
Unemployment reached 40%, and people who where middle class learned how it felt to be powerless, hungry, and poor. The country's entire political system was discredited, and Argentina went through a dizzying changeover of four presidents in less than one month.
With times so hard, people might have turned on each other in fear and desperation, but instead they turned toward each other in mutual support.
This special screening will be followed by a discussion.
Argentina: Hope in Hard Times
a documentary
Saturday, May 14
1 p.m.
discussion to follow
free and open to the public
For more information about the documentary, visit the Argentina: Hope in Hard Times Web site.
For more information about the conference, visit the Global Studies Association Web site.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 04:22 PM in Press Releases
April 25, 2005
UT Libraries Celebrates Students
Three events in April celebrate student artists
As the semester winds down, students feel more pressed upon to complete projects and prepare for exams. To honor the creative efforts and hard work of UT's students, the UT Libraries has taken time to dedicate three events during the last week of April to the achievements of student artists on campus: Writers in the Library, Student Art in the Library, and the Recycled Video Contest Festival.
On Monday, April 25, Writers in the Library concludes their Spring 2005 lineup with readings by Jessica Weintraub, Brad Tice, and Casie Fedukovich, all winners of the John C. Hodges Graduate Writing Prizes. Weintraub won first place in the fiction contest for her story Base Pairs. Tice won second place in the fiction contest for his story How to Become an American Boy and first place in the poetry contest for his poem "Arabesque." Fedukovich won second place in the poetry contest for her poem "Dichotomy of Fur and Feather."
Monday, April 25 also marks the date of final selections for Student Art in the Library, a new juried exhibit of student art to be presented in Hodges Library. More than 75 submissions were entered into the contest, and the exhibit will be installed in June.
On Wednesday, April 27, the Recycled Video Contest Festival will begin at 7 p.m. in the Hodges Library Auditorium. Films of the contest winners and finalists will be viewed. The contest is the culminating event for the Environmental Semester in the Libraries. All films have an environmental theme, and were created using public domain footage from the Prelinger Archives.
"The Libraries are always a little busier near the end of the semester," Barbara Dewey, Dean of Libraries, said. "I'm pleased the Libraries can hold these events in honor of our students, and I hope students can take some time from their busy schedules to celebrate the works of their classmates."
Posted by Laura Purcell at 03:15 PM in Press Releases
April 14, 2005
James Agee Collection finds new home at University of Tennessee Libraries
The Special Collections Library at the University of Tennessee is the new home to one of the largest collections of James Agee materials. The collection, spanning nearly 15 linear feet, includes letters, fragments of stories and screenplays, and poetic scratchings written by Knoxville's native son. Deedee Agee, James Agee's daughter, and her husband, Paul Sprecher, head of the James Agee Trust, brought the materials to Knoxville on April 12, just before the start of the James Agee Celebration at UT.
"These materials are from the family household, that just didn't happen to get caught up in other collections," Sprecher said. By depositing the materials at UT, the family hopes the materials will be more available and useful to scholars.
One of the most unique items is a brown spiral notebook Agee used as a journal, writing in his "miniscule, unreadable handwriting," Deedee Agee said. Some of the material from this notebook and others is contained in James Agee Rediscovered, edited by Michael Lofaro and Hugh Davis and recently published by UT Press.
"This is a goldmine of information for Agee scholars," Barbara Dewey, Dean of Libraries, said. "It compliments the Agee materials we already own so well. We're pleased the family has chosen UT, and we look forward to being good stewards of the collection."
Currently, the materials are contained in a variety of file boxes and need to be arranged and organized so scholars can find what they need. Special Collections staff will process the collection this summer.
An exhibit of the Libraries' James Agee Collection is currently on display at the Special Collections Library, and will remain open until August. For more information about the exhibit, visit their exhibit Web page.
For information about viewing the collection, contact Aaron Purcell, University Archivist, at 865-974-0048. The Special Collections Library is located in Hoskins Library, 1401 Cumberland Avenue, at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 12:36 PM in Press Releases
April 04, 2005
One-man show pays tribute to famed native son
R.B. Morris channels James Agee in The Man Who Lives Here is Loony
As part of the James Agee Celebration, the University Libraries' own writer-in-residence, R.B. Morris, will pay tribute to his fellow Fort Sanders resident in his one-man show The Man Who Lives Here is Loony on April 10 at 7 p.m. and April 11 at 8 p.m. at the Ula Love Doughty Carousel Theatre. The event is free and open to the public.
"The mere attempt to examine my own confusion would consume volumes." ~James AgeeAdapted from the tormented life and renowned works of Agee, The Man Who Lives Here is Loony gives audiences an inside view of the lengths Agee took to develop the “participatory narrative” of which he was known, especially in Let Us Now Praise Famous Men.
"As a whole part of 'psychological education' it needs to be remembered that a neurosis can be valuable; also that 'adjustment' to a sick and insane environment is of itself not 'health' but sickness and insanity." ~James AgeeMorris and his one-man show faced copyright difficulties in the 90s, and the video version of the play has only been publicly shown once at the Bijou Theatre in 1992.
For more information about the play or about the James Agee Celebration, visit the Web site. The James Agee Celebration is made possible by the University of Tennessee, Tennessee Arts Commission, the Knoxville News Sentinel and WUOT-FM radio. Key community partners include the City of Knoxville and Knox County governments, libraries and schools, the Arts and Cultural Alliance, Keep Knoxville Beautiful, the Dogwood Arts Festival and the Knoxville Tourism and Sports Corporation.
For more information about R.B. Morris, Writer in Residence, UT Libraries contact him via phone or Web at 974-3004 or rbmorris@utk.edu, or visit his Web site: www.rbmorris.com.
Posted by at 05:16 PM in Press Releases
March 11, 2005
Student Artists--Make Your Break into the Art Scene
Students can submit their work to a juried exhibition
Student artists have a new opportunity to show off their works--the University Libraries are sponsoring "Student Art in the Library," a juried exhibition that will showcase only student art.
"This is a great opportunity for students to exhibit their artwork in a professional venue," Jennifer Beals, Art and Architecture Librarian, said. Students who are interested in pursuing graduate work or professional positions in the arts need exhibit experience in their resumes, Beals continued.
Students do not have to be art majors to submit, but the works must be two-dimensional. "We hope to display a variety of genres," Beals said, "like drawing, graphic design, printmaking, photography, ceramics, painting, architectural drawing, costume design--I think the possibilities are quite varied."
Students must be enrolled graduates or undergraduates and need to submit at least one digital image of their work along with the submission form. Submissions need to be received no later than midnight on April 11, 2005, to be considered for the fall display.
A committee will review submissions, and artists will be notified of their selections by April 25. The selected artwork will be installed in the exhibit space this summer and will remain on view throughout the Fall 2005 semester.
For details and copies of the submission forms, visit the Student Art in the Library Web site.
Contact: Jennifer Benedetto Beals, Art and Architecture Librarian, jbeals@utk.edu or 974-0014
Posted by Laura Purcell at 03:08 PM in Press Releases
March 01, 2005
Ready for midterms?
If not, Hodges Library Reserve may have the class resources you need
Rest easy during midterms because the Hodges Library Reserve has many important class materials needed for success.
Unfortunately, the myth of the "Library Test File" has to be put to rest, since the only materials put on Reserve are provided by the faculty themselves. Most materials are required reading articles, but some materials include finance and accounting solutions manuals and even course textbooks.
Almost every resource offered is available online, which is the most popular method of retrieving information from the Reserve. Online materials can be accessed from anywhere via the Course Reserves on the Library Web site.
The biggest draw for last-minute midterm crammers is the Reserve's operating hours, open 24 hours from Sunday afternoon at 1 to Friday evening at 8 and 7:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday. The Reserve offers an ideal environment for individual and group study areas as well as a computer area for surfing and printing.
Also, the deadline for filing income tax returns is fast approaching, and the Reserve has all the forms needed. Once you have filed, don't forget to grab a Free Application for Student Aid form, also available in Reserve.
For some study downtime, other features of the Reserve include the Juvenile and paperback collections.
Posted by at 02:48 PM in Press Releases
February 18, 2005
Student Artwork to be Showcased in the Libraries
Students can feature artwork in juried exhibition
UT Libraries invites all current graduate and undergraduate students to promote the cultural diversity and creative expression of our campus by submitting their artwork for the libraries' first Student Art in the Library juried exhibition. Selected artwork will be exhibited in the Hodges Library Reference room each fall and spring semester.
The exhibit will "give students an opportunity to exhibit their artwork in a professional venue," Jennifer Beals, Art and Architecture Librarian, said. The displayed works will also help make Hodges Library more visually appealing.
Only two-dimensional works--including drawing, graphic design, printmaking, photography, ceramics or painting--may be entered in the call for submissions. Both undergraduate and graduate students currently enrolled at UT may submit entries, and registrants must provide an image of the completed work they hope to exhibit. Students do not have to be art majors, but they must have submission forms and at least one digital image of the piece must be received no later than April 11, 2005, for the fall display.
Submitted art will be selected by a reviewing committee, and winners will be notified by April 25, 2005. Artwork selected in the spring will be installed in the Hodges Library Reference room in the summer and remain on view throughout the Fall 2005 semester.
"Hodges Library serves as a center for learning and cultural enrichment for the University of Tennessee community," Beals said. "The exhibition area in the Reference room creates an area of visual interest, encourages artistic appreciation and provides a venue for our students to display their artwork."
For more information and the necessary forms for submission, please visit the Student Art in the Library website or contact Jennifer Beals Art and Architecture Librarian.
Posted by Laura Purcell at 04:48 PM in Press Releases
February 17, 2005
Save the public domain and make a statement
Hurry! Register for the Recycled Video Contest
Time is running out! Don't lose your chance to flaunt your creative side and make an environmental statement in the same stroke. The deadline for registering for the University Libraries Studio’s Recycled Video Contest is March 4.
The contest directly correlates to this semester's overall environmentally friendly theme, albeit in a more figurative way. The original idea for this contest stemmed from congressional extension on copyrighted material, which essentially makes the public domain obsolete.
"That's where the irony is," Troy Davis, Media Services Librarian, said. "Without the public domain, this contest wouldn't exist."
While the focus of the contest is on the environment, rhetorically, the contest promotes the same idea both in the content of the films used and in the method of filmmaking.
"You don't have to be a filmmaker; it's already all there," Davis said. "This is essentially an editing contest. Everybody gets the same footage, and the challenge is to create a film from this disparate footage that coherently touches on the environmental theme."
Both the environment and the public domain have limits, but infinite variety can exist within those limits, Davis added. The challenge of the contest is to reuse and recycle parts of the public domain to create a totally new creative work.
The contest is limited as well, when it comes to rules. The lack of guidelines should spark the fires of creativity and allow for more flexibility. The only rules are a time limit of 5 minutes and the work must contain the footage pre-selected from the public domain.
Once registered, participants will receive an NTSC miniDV tape with the permissible footage. The independent films can be edited in the Studio, and anyone who feels queasy at the sight of technology should not forgo the contest.
"All you really need is a plot," Davis said. "The Studio can show you how to use the software."
The deadline for submissions is March 28, and the film festival showcasing the winners and selected entries will be the final showing of Documentaries in the Library on April 27. Anyone interested in seeing films using domain footage should see two Documentaries in the Library screenings: The Corporation on March 16 and Fed Up! Genetic Engineering, Industrial Agriculture and Sustainable Alternatives on April 6.
This inaugural contest is set to continue in upcoming years in order to build awareness about the public domain as well as the resources available at University Libraries. For more information or to register, please visit the Recycled Video Web site or contact Davis via email or at 865-974-4726.
Posted by at 04:48 PM in Press Releases
December 22, 2004
Search Engine May Widen Access to UT Library Materials
KNOXVILLE -- Books in the University of Tennessee library system will be more visible to those searching the Internet, thanks to two new projects by the search engine Google.
UT libraries dean Barbara Dewey said Wednesday that one project is the Google Scholar service. When a user searches for a topic, a list of books and scholarly journals relating to that topic is generated.
The user can then input their zip code and see if any of those books are geographically close to them. The search results will show any related materials in the UT Libraries collections."We have so much unique material here at UT," Dewey said, "such as East Tennessee regional history and special collections like those of Andrew Jackson and Estes Kefauver, that aren't available anywhere else.
"This will be a great way to let people see these historical documents."
Another project by Google, to digitize much or all of the library content of universities such as Harvard and Stanford, has drawn national media attention.
Dewey said the books that will be digitized and posted to the Internet are those that have passed their copyright date and are now in the public domain.
"Materials that remain under copyright protection will not be viewable online, but they will still be searchable by zip code," Dewey said, "and if any are available here at UT, people can come to the library and check out the material or read it here."
The Google Scholar Web site is located at http://scholar.google.com.
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Contact: Barbara Dewey (865-974-4127); Charles Primm (865-974-5180)University of Tennessee Communications
(865-974-2225) http://pr.tennessee.edu/news/###
Posted by Laura Purcell at 10:19 AM in Press Releases
November 16, 2004
Start the Environmental Semester Early: Enter the Recycled Video Contest
Budding Filmmakers can win great prizes
November 16, 2004 Reduce, reuse and show off your artistic skills by participating in the University Library Studio's Recycled Video Contest and Festival. Contestants will use footage from public domain films to create their own movies.
"This is essentially an editing contest," Troy Davis, Media Services Librarian, said. Contestants can choose footage from over 40 short films that are in the public domain, and then can add titles and sound, rearrange the order of clips, and "recycle" the images to produce their own creative work.There are few rules and guidelines for the contest. "We hope this will allow for maximum creativity and flexibility in making the videos," Davis explained. The movie can be no longer than five minutes, and must feature the public domain footage that is provided. "The footage we have selected is generally environmental in its focus," Davis said. "The works should push the boundaries about the accepted notions of what constitutes the environment," he continued.
All the materials needed to create the films are available in the Studio at Hodges Library. Once contestants register using at the Recycled Video Contest web site, they will receive an NTSC miniDV tape with the video footage, which can be picked up at the Studio or mailed. Ready-to-edit footage will also be available in the Studio as an iMovie and Final Cut Pro project.
Interested contestants shouldn't be put off by not knowing how to use the technology, however, because the Library is already prepared to help. "Not knowing much is not a bad thing," Davis said. "Register and come by the Studio. We can show you how to use the software ... it's up to you to make it artful."
Students, faculty, and staff are eligible to enter the contest, and prizes will be provided by Apple and the UT Computer Store. Registration began November 15 and will continue until March 4, 2005. Films must be submitted by March 28, 2005. A festival gala will be held during the Environmental Semester to show the top entries and award prizes.Posted by Laura Purcell at 02:06 PM in Press Releases
November 04, 2004
Poet Laureate to Speak at UT Libraries
The Poet Laureate of the United States, Ted Kooser, will speak on the UT campus at noon on Friday, November 5, in the Lindsay Young Auditorium of Hodges Library. The event is free and open to the public.
The Library of Congress announced Kooser's appointment in August. Notable poets who have also served as Poet Laureate include Robert Frost, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Rita Dove. Kooser, 65, replaces Pulitzer Prize-winner Louise Gluck in the eight-month position.
"Ted Kooser is a major poetic voice for rural and small town America, and the first Poet Laureate to be chosen from the Great Plains," said Librarian of Congress James Billington.
"Poetry can enrich everyday experience, making our ordinary world seem quite magical and special," Kooser said in a New York Times interview. Poetry critic Dana Gioia, author of Can Poetry Matter, said "Kooser has written more perfect poems than any poet of his generation."
Born in Ames, Iowa, in 1939, Kooser graduated from Iowa State University in 1962. He received a master's degree in 1968 from the University of Nebraska. While in graduate school, he went to work for an insurance company. This connection often causes him to be compared to poet Wallace Stevens, who was also an insurance company executive.
"I wanted to be a writer from the time I was a young man, but realized I'd have to make a living somehow. I tried high school teaching but was incapable of maintaining discipline in the classroom and the students ran right over me. In 1964, after being tossed out of graduate school because I was a completely undisciplined scholar, I went to work at an 'entry level' job in a life insurance company and over twenty-five years was gradually elevated to a vice presidency," said Kooser, in an interview with Barnes and Noble.com.
"During those years, I wrote every morning from 5:30 until about 7:00. I never saw myself as an insurance executive, but as a writer in need of a paying job."
Kooser has written 10 collections of poetry, most recently Delights and Shadows, published by Copper Canyon Press this year. His work has also appeared in a number of periodicals including The New Yorker, The Hudson Review, and Prairie Schooner.
This event is sponsored by the John C. Hodges Better English Fund, Writers in the Library, and the Library Development Fund.
For more information about Ted Kooser, visit his page on the Library of Congress Web site.
For more information about Writers in the Library, visit our Web site.
Ted Kooser
Friday, November 5
Noon
John C. Hodges Library Auditorium
free and open to the publicPosted by admin at 01:07 PM in Press Releases