During our strategic planning process in Fall of 2012, Butler Libraries identified key areas for developing and strengthening library services that will support the University’s academic mission now and in the future. We are pleased to introduce three new employees who will help us meet our goals:
Akeira Jennings is the first studen
t to be employed as Library Student Liaison at Butler Libraries. Akeira is a junior majoring in Journalism and International Studies, and last year she participated in Butler’s Global Adventures in the Liberal Arts study abroad program. As a journalism major, Akeira is well suited to enhance communication between Butler Libraries and the students we serve. She is currently job-shadowing with library faculty and staff to learn more about our services, as well as attending meetings of student clubs and organizations to introduce the liaison program.
Amanda Starkel joins us as our Information Commons and eLearning Librarian. Amanda has an MLS from Indiana University Bloomington. She recently worked at Defiance College, where she established the library instruction program and served as interim library director. Amanda will be co-coordinator of the Information Commons, a joint program of Butler Libraries and the Center for Academic Technology. This program employs students to provide peer-to-peer research and technology assistance. Amanda also brings expertise in Moodle, the learning management system currently in use at Butler to provide web-based and -enhanced courses.
Mary 
(Franny) Gaede is our Scholarly Communication Librarian. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in May 2013 with an MS in Information Science with an emphasis on digital libraries. She was a graduate technician at the University of Texas Digital Repository. Franny will coordinate and develop digital initiatives such as the Digital Commons, provide expertise in intellectual property and copyright, and monitor the dynamic landscape of scholarly publication. Her first project at Butler Libraries has been to create a virtual version of Celebrating the Past, Envisions the Future: 50 Years of Irwin Library 1963-2013, an archival exhibit developed by Associate Professor Sally Childs-Helton.
Please join us in welcoming Akeira, Amanda, and Franny to Butler Libraries!
Join us on Monday, Sept. 9, from 2:00-4:00 pm as Butler University celebrates the 50th anniversary of the day Irwin Library opened!
2:00-2:45 Mingle, enjoy refreshments, and tour the exhibit
2:45-2:55 Announcement of winners of the Spring 2012 Irwin Library Photo Contest (Atrium)
3:00-3:15 Student Fashion Show (Collaborative Learning Space)
3:15-3:30 Brief remarks by Julie Miller, Dean of Libraries, and Craig Fisher, SGA President (Collaborative Learning Space)
Designed by renowned architect Minoru Yamasaki, Irwin Library opened on Sept. 9, 1963. The Irwin-Sweeney-Miller Foundation of Columbus, Indiana, donated more than $1.5 million of the $2 million construction costs for the library.
This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Regan Bright at (317) 940-9926 or rbright@butler.edu.
Irwin Library is celebrating its 50th Anniversary Celebration on Sept. 9, 2:00-4:00 pm, and we want YOU, the students of Butler University, to be a part of it!
We are seeking student volunteers for a fashion show featuring styles of 1963, the year Irwin Library opened its doors. The fashion show, which will take place on Sept. 9 at 3:00 pm in Irwin Library, is a senior capstone project for Butler student Kelsey Nylin. Clothing, along with hair and make-up assistance, will be provided by Butler’s Department of Theatre. We need both men and women models. So what are you waiting for?
To be a model:
- Contact Kelsey Nylin at knylin@butler.edu by Wednesday, Sept. 4, to sign up for a fitting.
- Arrive at Irwin Library on Monday, Sept. 9, no later than 2:00 pm.
We hope that everyone will come out to celebrate Irwin Library with us!
Save the date! Irwin Library may be a bit noisier than usual on Monday, Sept. 9, from 2:00-4:00 pm as Butler University celebrates the 50th anniversary of the day the library opened. Join in the fun as we eat cake and share memories to the Billboard top 100 hits of 1963. Guests are encouraged to wear vintage ‘60s attire, so put on your letter sweater, tease your hair into a beehive ‘do, or just come as you are!
The celebration will be held in the atrium and Collaborative Learning Space on the main level of Irwin Library. Two exhibits, “Irwin Library: Celebrating the Past, Imagining the Future” and a juried photo display, will be open for viewing during the party. The winners of the Irwin Library photo contest will be announced.
Designed by renowned architect Minoru Yamasaki, Irwin Library opened on Sept. 9, 1963. The Irwin-Sweeney-Miller Foundation of Columbus, Indiana, donated more than $1.5 million of the $2 million construction costs for the library.
This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Regan Bright at (317) 940-9926 or rbright@butler.edu.
Irwin Library Then: Card Catalog, 1963
Butler University students had just returned from summer break to find the campus transformed. Some described the building as a riverboat, some as a wedding cake. The Butler Collegian described it as a “floating palace of light” and “a dream come true for every student” when Irwin Library opened its doors to Butler faculty and students for the first time on Sept. 9, 1963.
Join us as we celebrate Irwin Library’s past and imagine its future with events throughout the 2013-14 academic year. Highlights include:
- an open house at Irwin Library on September 9 with complete with cake and a display of the building’s history from the University Archives;
- two art contests( featuring the library as subject) and displays;
- speaker events focusing on mid-century architectural design and renowned architect Minoru Yamasaki.
Yamasaki, whose most famous architectural achievement was the World Trade Center in New York, designed Irwin Library not only to house knowledge, but also to stimulate thought. He created the central atrium with its large skylight and fountain to provide an “unexpected experience” upon entering the library.
Irwin Library Now: Librarian Teresa Williams and a student collaborate on research
A reporter for the Collegian lauded Irwin Library’s “modern accommodations which serve the student in his every need for academic excellence” in 1963. Today’s students have different information needs, and Irwin Library is changing as well. Print journals and books are being replaced by Web-based databases and e-books, requiring wireless Internet access throughout the building. The library’s classrooms are outfitted with instructional technology. Study spaces designed for collaboration have replaced some of the study carrels for individual study.
Watch Library News for details about Irwin Library anniversary events or contact the Dean’s office at 940-9926 for more information.
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t to be employed as Library Student Liaison at Butler Libraries. Akeira is a junior majoring in Journalism and International Studies, and last year she participated in Butler’s Global Adventures in the Liberal Arts study abroad program. As a journalism major, Akeira is well suited to enhance communication between Butler Libraries and the students we serve. She is currently job-shadowing with library faculty and staff to learn more about our services, as well as attending meetings of student clubs and organizations to introduce the liaison program.
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