• Knapps Fund Media and Technology Center
  
• Authors on Stage to Aid Book Fund by Mary Ellen Ames '40
  
• Back to School with Multimedia Pizzazz! by Pattie Orr, Manager, User Services
  
• The Art and History of the Book: 1997 Summer Symposium
  
• "Thank You" From Barbara Beatty
  
• New Reference Desk in Clapp Library
  
• Friends' Notecards
• Calendar

Wellesley has received a gift of $2 million from Cleon T. and Betsy Wood Knapp of Los Angeles to establish the Betsy Wood Knapp Media and Technology Center. This multimedia facility, to be built in the summer of 1997, will incorporate advanced computer and electronic technology into teaching and learning across the curriculum.

by Mary Ellen Ames '40

Florence Ladd, Janet Wallach, and Jill McCorkle will read from their recent works on Tuesday, November 12, at the Wellesley College Club. Through this annual event, the Wellesley Alumnae of Boston raises money for the Clapp Library Book Fund.

Florence Ladd's first novel, Sarah's Psalm, focuses on the struggle for identity of a young black Harvard graduate in the 1960s, whose growing love for Africa conflicts with her husband's immersion in the Civil Rights movement. Ladd draws upon her experience as a social psychologist and as an administrator at Wellesley (former Dean of Students) and at Radcliffe as current Director of the Bunting Institute.

Janet Wallach will read from her biography entitled Desert Queen: The Extraordinary Life of Gertrude Bell: Adventurer, Advisor to Kings, and Friend of Lawrence of Arabia. Wallach, known for her expertise in politics and history of the Middle East, has co-authored three books on that region with her husband, John Wallach.

Jill McCorkle, a Southern-born novelist and short story writer now living in the Boston area, will read from her sixth book, Carolina Moon. This new novel contains her usual lively characters and witty dialogue. McCorkle teaches at Harvard and Bennington Colleges.

The readings begin at 10:30, following coffee at 9:45 a.m. The cost is $12. Reservations must be made in advance with Barbara Levings at (617)235-7644.

by Pattie Orr, Manager, User Services

An exciting part of the Wellesley "Back to School" rush this year was a new multimedia training event attended by all of the Information Services (IS) student workers. Working side by side with the librarians and staff members across campus, our 300 IS student workers are a tremendous resource. Think about it--that's more than 10% of the student body! That is an army of energy and expertise!

Training and orienting the students to their new positions is a formidable task. In the past each supervisor has taken responsibility for the training, but this has become difficult with the other responsibilities of getting the year started and the vastly increased number of students resulting from the merger of the Library with Telecommunications, Media, and Technology Services campus-wide.

The goal for the training was to identify core elements that all students in the greater Information Services area should be taught, such as professionalism, safety, and communication. Additionally, we wanted to emphasize that we are now one large team, under the direction of Micheline Jedrey, Vice President of Information Services and College Librarian.

Our newly formed IS Supervisor's Forum planned the training, then appointed a team of students to create the presentation. Representing the library was Leslie Lapham, '97, a library intern (see adjoining profile). Leslie gathered information for the training, wrote scripts for the presentation, and photographed supervisors and students at work in the Library. Sheila Somani and Kelly Caballero, both seniors, represented Information Systems and Telecommunications. Cregan Montague, '99, represented Media Services and was our videographer, and Robin Broshi and Esther Andrews, juniors, represented Information Technology Services.

Together they created a spectacular multimedia training program. It included a computer-generated slide show with animation and pictures, video clips of Micheline Jedrey welcoming the students to IS, an extensive video on telephone use and courtesy featuring Kelly Caballero, the Student Telephone Manager, and a very informative video clip on safety presented by Frank Urbano, College Police Chief. Using a digital camera which can take pictures and then load them directly into the computer, the students created a spectacular photo album of IS supervisors and students at work. Esther Andrews reflected afterward: "Working on the project was a learning experience in many different ways. I learned to work as a team member, to use new software and to develop new skills."

The training was presented four times to accommodate students' schedules, in Science Center classrooms with the latest computer, sound, and projection equipment. All students working for IS were required to attend. The strong support of the staff was shown in part by the fact that over fifty staff members attended the evening sessions. The reaction to the program was very positive! Sally Linden, Research Librarian, wrote: "The show was so much fun while being very substantive, and the group spirit just shone. All the aspects - impressive student participation, sparkling multimedia, inclusion of potentially dry but important info - demonstrated your capability and creativity. Glad I had the chance to experience it."

The IS Training and Education Group plans similar future events for training students in the newest technologies and excellent service in the work they perform. Our partnership with students is a relationship we value and have a responsibility to nurture.

Does the digital age spell the doom of the book? How accurate are recent prophecies that "virtual books" flickering on a computer screen and massive electronic databases existing only in cyberspace will replace the book as we know it? Come to Wellesley June 1-6, 1997 to investigate these questions. Participants will also learn more about the ancient origins of the book and its contemporary forms and have hands-on experience with bookmaking.

Co-directed by Katharine Park, Professor of History, and Ruth R. Rogers, Special Collections Librarian, this symposium will examine the development of the book through time and cultures using fine examples from Wellesley's own Special Collections. They and other college faculty and guest speakers will give slide lectures on topics such as the illuminated manuscript, the invention of printing from moveable type, the spread of printing throughout Europe and the New World, book illustration and type design, the private press, artists' books, and the electronic book.

Afternoon activities in the Book Arts Laboratory, coordinated by Marilyn Hatch, Special Collections Assistant and Printing Instructor, will demonstrate printing on the handpress, bookbinding, and paper decoration.

Inside Special Collections, bookbinder and conservator Betsy Palmer Eldridge '59 will give an illustrated talk on 15th - 18th century binding styles.

The Symposium is open to all on a first-come first-serve basis. For further information contact Leigh Maccini at (617) 283-2333.

The Steering Committee of the Friends of the Library recently received a thank-you letter from Barbara Beatty, Associate Professor of Education, for the Friends' contribution to a new Curriculum Resource Collection at the Clapp Library. This collection was established by the Education Department to provide necessary materials for students seeking state certification in elementary school teaching. Following are excerpts from Professor Beatty' s letter:

"...As a small department we were unable to purchase the kinds of mathematics and science manipulatives and other materials we needed. Now, thanks to your support, we can. We are expanding the collection to include more multicultural materials and units on themes such as plants, animals, weather, geography, and other topics....

Please know how important this resource is to the college and to the schools in which our students do fieldwork.... We require all of our students to do some urban fieldwork and many choose to student teach in Boston classrooms which are woefully undersupplied....

Though still small, with the gift from the Friends of the library, [this collection] is growing and we hope it can continue to expand. Thank you again for your support."

The wood panelling and portraits of the Clapp Library Reference area are now complimented by a reference desk which stretches for 16 feet, in a graceful arc, across the center of the room. The low, cherrywood installation, topped with brass strip inset and gray-green surface material, gives an inviting focus for the area. The desk provides workstations for two librarians, a feature which has greatly facilitated smooth collaboration in service during peak hours. The desk is the gift of Anne Thompson Shafer '46, of West Palm Beach, Florida, a regular contributor to the Library.

Spread the joy of winter and the holidays with these endearing notecards from the Friends of the Library! On sale now are boxes of 8 cards with illustrations by Hilda van Stockum from A Day on Skates; the Story of a Dutch Picnic (New York, Harper, 1934, reprinted by Bethlehem Books, 1994). Each box (with envelopes) has 4 different images. Cards come either as blank inside or with the message "Wishing you Joy this Holiday Season." Boxes cost $10.00 each, with an additional $2.00 shipping and handling charge. Make checks payable to the Wellesley College Library. Send to Librarian's Office, Clapp Library, Wellesley College, 106 Central Street, Wellesley MA 02181-8239. Don't forget to specify blank or message.

April 9, 1997
Jay Panetta, Assistant Professor of Music, will present a mixed media program entitled "Hep Cats and Philistines" in Conversations with Faculty Authors. Sponsored by Friends of the Library. Collins Cinema. Time to be announced.

June 1-6
"The Art and History of the Book," annual summer symposium (see article, and further details in spring newsletter).

Thanks to Betty Febo, designer of the Newsletter,
and Carl Jones, who did the HTML version.

Friends of the Library-1996

• Honorary Chairperson Diana Chapman Walsh '66
• Founding Member Mary E. Jackson '24
• Co-Chairpersons Ruth R. Rogers, Lia Gelin Poorvu '56
• Newsletter Editor Elizabeth K. Cabot '60

Claire M. Broder '61
Eleanor A. Gustafson
Ann Hayden Hamilton '67
Janice G. Hunt '52
Cynthia Johnson '72
Jean Kendall CE '88
Mary Ann Lash '52
Bettina Antonia Norton '58
Ruth Rogers
Jane Sibley '54, CE '89
June Stobaugh '66
Elinor Bunn Thompson '37
Kathleen Thompson CE '80
Sigrid R. Watson '47

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• Betty Febo - efebo@wellesley.edu
• Wellesley College Library
• Date created: January 28, 1997
• Last modified: February 11,1997
• Expires: September 1, 1997