The Libraries enhances the delivery of the University's Land Grant mission through community engagement.
Community Engagement
January
Cardwell on Sagebrushers season 2 ep. 19 with President Sandoval
During the podcast episode, Sandoval and Cardwell discussed the impact of the Libraries, the University's Sesquicentennial Celebration and the archivists who are helping to bring stories to life, open educational resources, the ways in which the Libraries support students and researchers at this Carnegie R1 institution, and more.
April
Make your 'Mark Pride Art Contest
The Libraries IDEA Committee organized the "Make your 'Mark Pride Art Contest" in the Spring of 2024. The Committee accepted bookmark designs from students and one winner was selected. The winning design was used to create a Pride-themed bookmark to be handed out at the Northern Nevada Pride Celebration.
Rewriting: Archives and Contemporary Art
The Libraries' SCUA department welcomed writer and visual artist Todd Gilens for an evening discussing his artistic process using archives for the creation of a public artwork. "Confluence: Stream Science, Handwriting, and Urban Curbs," was installed on the sidewalks of Reno in fall, 2023, and uses a cursive font based on the handwriting of deceased Federal Water Master Claude Dukes. At the event, Gilens described his process of researching and creating the font, which began in 2015 and took him to archives and rare book collections in California and Nevada, as well as Washington DC, Philadelphia, and Northern Ireland.
Archival source materials for Gilens' art installation, "Confluence," were on display and a Q & A session followed the talk.
May
The University Libraries congratulates the graduating classes of 2024!
Student assistants play a key role in the day-to-day operations of the Libraries and make a meaningful impact across a wide range of departments within the organization.
Bobbi Lazzarone '96 M.S. (human development and family studies) Libraries 2024 Distinguished Alumna
Bobbi attended the University of Missouri School of Journalism and graduated from Boise State University with a BA in English before attending graduate school at the University of Nevada, Reno. Much of Bobbi's career was spent fundraising and marketing for non-profits. Several years ago, Bobbi and husband Dale established the Dorothy Lazzarone Endowment to purchase book art for SCUA and the Libraries in honor of his late mother, a Navy librarian. Bobbi continues to serve on the University Libraries board and is a former chair of Nevada Writers Hall of Fame.
June
Nevada Museum of Art, Libraries partnership: A 360-degree view of Seven Magic Mountains
Luka Starmer, manager of Student Digital Media Technology for the Libraries, discussed the process used to capture a large-scale art installation using 360 video and other new/emerging technologies to create an immersive and realistic VR experience.
September
Dr. Baligh Ben Taleb is the inaugural winner of the Bruce and Nora James Visiting Scholar Award for the Study of Nevada Politics and Public Service
The Libraries, with the help of Bruce and Nora James, launched the University's first ever visiting scholar support award dedicated to research in SCUA. The Bruce and Nora James Visiting Scholar Award for the Study of Nevada Politics and Public Service funds travel, lodging, and expenses for one out-of-state scholar per summer to spend an extended amount of time working with the unique historical political and public service materials available only in SCUA.
Dr. Baligh Ben Taleb was the inaugural winner. He is a former Fulbright Scholar, and Assistant Professor in the American Indian Studies Department of San Francisco State University. Dr. Taleb's research made use of SCUA's extensive records on Newe (Western Shoshone) land and treaty rights.
University Libraries' Vault Studio Classroom: A rare gem in academia
The recently renovated classroom comfortably accommodates 36 students with 18 tables. One of the major instructional tools in the space includes a cutting-edge, ceiling-mounted, high-tech document camera.
At the grand opening event, Dean of Libraries Catherine Cardwell, University President Brian Sandoval, former three-term Nevada Attorney General and former University of Nevada, Reno student body President Frankie Sue Del Papa, director of Distinctive Collections and head of SCUA Kimberly Anderson, and Outreach and Public Services Archivist Elspeth Olson interacted with guests, donors and VIPs.
During his remarks, President Sandoval said, "Innovative teaching is at the core of the University's academic mission. Now, it will come alive in a new, progressive environment inside the Knowledge Center that speaks to the academic and scholarly excellence of our Carnegie Rl 'very high' research institution."
October
Edible Banned Books Festival
Each fall semester the Libraries Outreach Committee, faculty and staff host the Edible Banned Books Festival to show their shared support of the freedom to read. Banned Books Week helps draw local and national attention to the harms of censorship. Event attendees were presented with opportunities to learn about banned and challenged books, view and vote for their favorite edible banned book creation. Each of the clever, food-related, edible banned book themed entries included in the Festival were created by Libraries faculty and/or staff.
'A Journey Through 150 Years' celebrating the University's history and accomplishments
The Libraries served the campus community, providing helpful, informative, user-friendly resources to help guide and assist those celebrating the 750th. Libraries experts and librarians assisted users in finding materials in the collection, locating historical photographs, identifying event planning resources, sharing lendable technology and providing printing support.
University Libraries Exhibits and Displays:
First floor
- Notable alumni
- President Sandoval Commencement Celebration
Second floor
- Milestones display
- Innovations display, Summer 2024
- Interactive University timeline
- Paint the N diorama
- University Presidents
- Aerial campus photography
- Patents
Third floor
- Special Collections and University Archives-specific exhibits:
- Building a State University, Oct. 2023 - Feb. 2024
- Building a Campus Community, Feb. 2024 - June 2024
- Building a Team, June 2024 - Oct. 2024
Fourth floor
- Traditions display
Libraries launches ScholarWolf
ScholarWolf is the institutional repository for the University of Nevada, Reno. Managed by the Libraries, ScholarWolf is an open access database and the home of scholarly works by University members, including the electronic theses and dissertations of our graduate students.journal articles, conference presentations, and more.
'Nevada's Silver Lady: Barbara Vucanovich and Nevada Women in Politics'
"Nevada's Silver Lady: Barbara Vucanovich and Nevada Women in Politics" explored the multi-decade political career of the first Nevada woman elected to federal office, Barbara Farrell Vucanovich. Vucanovich was a trailblazer for Nevada women in federal office. The Libraries extends its appreciation to the Cafferata family for their donation of Barbara Vucanovich's political papers to SCUA, and for their financial support in processing the collection and creating this exhibit.
November
Nevada Writers Hall of Fame
2024 honorees include Hall of Fame inductee Michael Branch and Silver Pen awardee Laura Newman.
Dean Cardwell hosted the event which took place on the first floor, inside the Mathewson-lGT Knowledge Center's Marilyn R. Melton Nevada Writers Hall of Fame Gallery, the Leslie Harvey and Robert George Whittemore Tower Entry and Reception Gallery, and Wells Fargo Auditorium.
Inductee Michael Branch said, "Like many writers, I do much of my work in relative isolation, without the camaraderie inherent to a collaborative art form like filmmaking. To me, the Hall of Fame has always been a home for writers in our state, and its inductees are literary artists whose work I've studied, taught, and been inspired by throughout my career. Having the opportunity to join that group means helping to strengthen a mutually supportive community of writers in order to share with others the encouragement I've long received from the NWHOF and its supporters."