From the Library Director

The Fall 1997 semester was not a typical Fall semester for the Weinberg Library. Most Library departments experienced record-breaking use. Circulation transactions, reference inquiries, and bibliographic instruction classes all saw an increase over previous years. We attribute it to the Library's recent introduction of full-text databases, the Library's greater emphasis on the importance of information literacy, and the Library's participation in the new Freshmen Seminar course.

 

I am pleased to announce that the University of Scranton and the Weinberg Library have received a grant of $10,000 from the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation to assist in the development of the Library's endowment for the humanities collection, which includes Judaic studies.

 

The grant will support the following goals: To develop the Judaic studies curriculum with adequate Library resources to support independent research.

 

To acquire materials identified in standard bibliographies and through the Collection Analysis Compact Disc (CACD) gap bibliography as priorities for the collection so that the Library's collection includes both recognized scholarly resources, curriculum support materials, and current topics related to programs and speakers.

 

To help to meet the National Endowment for the Humanities Challenge and enhance the Weinberg Memorial Library's Judaic studies collection.

 

For the National Endowment for the Humanities Challenge Grant. the Library has begun the expenditure of the $100,000 allocated in the areas of humanities, cultural diversity, women's studies, and Judaic studies, Library staff members have ordered media materials that cover all humanities disciplines as well as women's studies, cultural diversity, and Judaic studies. Included in this category are some CD-ROMs that are collections of images, text, and sound, e.g., the Multicultural America Documentary Archives.

 

In women's studies, Dr. Linda Ledford-Miller has worked with the Library in selecting appropriate new titles, and in Judaic studies, Dr. Marc Shapiro and Professor Carl Schaffer have made recommendations for new acquisitions. In the humanities in general, the Library has begun ordering critical works based on the recommendations of the reaching faculty and Library faculty.

 

The Library will again celebrate Scholarship Month during the month of May with an exhibit of faculty publications, Please remember to send me your publications produced since June 1, 1996 or any other publications not already in the Library's Faculty Publications Collection. Please join us in celebrating the scholarship of our faculty by visiting the exhibit.

 

The Friends of the Weinberg Library recently began its fourth year. Over the last three years the Friends group has blossomed into a dynamic force. The year of 1997 in particular was outstanding with increased membership, a wonderful Distinguished Author Award Dinner with Mr. Jack Palance, the realization of our goals of a Friends' endowment, and outstanding acquisition of The Book of Kells which was celebrated with a lecture and reception, a scholarly presentation on Stephen Crane as well as a much larger Annual Book Sale, thanks to the efforts of Ann Hatala and Betsey Moylan. A special thank you to all of our friends and supporters and to our outstanding Library staff who supports the Friends' activities.