Welcome to November and where has the time gone!? In October I was able to attend the rededication ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of Memorial Stadium, which was moving and exciting in equal measure. And I finally had a chance to admire some of the great work University Archives has been doing in collaboration with the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics. If you haven’t yet seen the exhibits I highly recommend them.
This month, we will be hosting two big events in the Reading Room of the Main Library. This week, we celebrate the Bookplate reception, which is the Provost’s event to honor faculty who have received promotions and/or tenure. Each honoree has an opportunity to select a book for our collection that is meaningful to them, and to which we add a bookplate commemorating their achievement. Then, during Foundation Weekend the following week, we are thrilled to be co-hosting a luncheon with the Foundation, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Main Library, and renaming the grand Reading Room in honor of our great friends and supporters, Megan and Steve Shebik and their family. So much work over so many months has gone into these events, and the care and sense of joy the planners are bringing to both of these are wonderful and I deeply appreciate them. We also will be highlighting 1920s-related material from our collections, and these exhibits, too, have been a huge amount of work. THANK YOU to everyone who is working so hard to make these meaningful and fun events. Look for a full KUDOS post soon to thank everyone by name.
Finally, we can’t forget that this year we are electing a new President of the United States. This is a momentous and important event in the life of our nation, and, as you all know, it unfortunately is taking place at a time when our society is deeply divided and in-civility seems at an all-time high. I know how stressful this is for many of us. I want to thank those of you who have organized voter drives and civic engagement events, and those of you who are there for our students and faculty, day in and day out as they work to maintain their focus, learn, and conduct research. I appreciate you all. Please remember to take care of yourselves, and be well.
Claire Stewart
The Juanita J. and Robert E. Simpson Dean of Libraries and University Librarian