auburn libraries press kit

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Auburn University Libraries • 231 Mell Street • Auburn University, AL 36849

April 24, 2009

Dear Ms. Blackmon,

Despite the extreme decrease in students during the summer months, the Auburn

University Libraries don’t slow down. Students still make regular appearances at the library, and

even though the university pretty much shuts down during breaks, the AU Libraries’ doors are

always open.

The Libraries do a lot with Camp War Eagle, and really take the parents of future

students under their wing. While the students are engaging in other activities, “Snacks in the

Stacks” is held in the Ralph Brown Draughon Library. Snacks in the Stacks is an interactive

session where parents are given free food and the chance to pick the brains of library staff.

The AU Libraries also hold an event called “Christmas in July,” where the first and

second floors of the RBD Library are decorated in red and green, and students, faculty, and staff

are allowed to roam around and use the resources while munching on holiday foods. Games are

also set up, with a giant moon-walk set up on the second floor.

Research and study don’t cease just because it’s summer, and would love for you to be a

part of utilizing the media for outreach. It would be a great

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opportunity to get the word out to people who don’t necessarily know about how resourceful the

Libraries are during the summer. Add to this the extensive history and surprise housed in the

Special Collections and Archives Department (see inside). Please contact me at (334) 555-9090

or [email protected] if you would like to learn more about this.

Sincerely, Kelly Adams

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The Auburn University Libraries consist of the Ralph Brown Draughon Library, the Library of Architecture, Design and Construction, and the Charles Allen Cary Veterinary Medical Library.

• The Libraries own about 2.9 million books and subscribe to over 39,000 journals.

• The RBD Library was named in honor of Ralph Brown Draughon, the president of

Auburn University from 1947 to 1965.

• RBD has a seating capacity of 2,500, after an addition to the building in 1991.

• The first floor of the RBD Library includes a Circulation Desk, a Service Desk, and a Multimedia and Digital Resource Lab.

• The second floor of the building includes a Main Reference Desk and an Information

Desk.

• The ground floor contains the Special Collections and Archives Department, which has 10,000 feet of archival and manuscript materials.

• The RBD Library is open 24 hours a day from Sunday at 1:00 p.m. through Friday at

6:00 p.m. Saturday hours are 9:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.

• Auburn’s Night Security Transit operates from 6:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. and there is a security guard available to escort students to their cars.

• The Office of Information Technology computer lab and help desk is located on the third floor. OIT assists faculty, staff, and students of Auburn University with their technology needs and provides them with public computer labs all over campus. The Copy Cat Center, where students may make photocopies, is also located in the RBD Library on the second floor.

• The fourth floor is designated the Quiet Study Floor.

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Greene Hall houses the Veterinary Medical Library. While the library is open to the public, all visitors are requested to sign a visitors’ log upon entering.

• The Veterinary Medical Library provides services and resources that mainly support the

College of Veterinary Medicine at Auburn, but also assists other students, faculty, and staff with materials in the fields of agriculture, biological sciences, nursing, and pharmacy.

• The building contains over 30,000 volumes and about 500 active subscriptions. This collection includes scientific dictionaries, encyclopedias, manuals, and biomedical periodicals.

The Library of Architecture, Design, and Construction is located in Dudley Hall. It houses architecture, interior design, building science, industrial design, and art materials.

• This library contains 35,000 volumes and 85 current periodicals.

• The collection also includes over 80,000 slides of architecture and landscape

architecture, visual arts, interior and industrial design, all of which are available to faculty and students.

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Bonnie J. MacEwan Dean of Auburn University Libraries

Auburn University is privileged to have Bonnie MacEwan as its

current Dean of Libraries. MacEwan has been with Auburn for

almost three-and-a-half years and has implemented many

positive changes for the university libraries.

When asked why she came to Auburn in the first place, MacEwan responded that helping

people was the most important factor, and she had a lot of ideas about different services

that could be offered to students. So far those services have proven successful.

MacEwan has created partnerships with the Student Government Association to extend

hours during final exams and also with the Office of Information Technology to

implement a learning commons model. MacEwan also serves on various local, regional

and national boards that represent Auburn and better the university.

Auburn University Libraries has always been strong when it comes to outreach. Although

according to her staff, MacEwan has big and great ideas, and when she came to Auburn

saw a blank canvass with limitless potential.

MacEwan received her bachelor’s degree in English at Whittier College and her master’s

degree in Librarianship at the University of Denver.

Previously, she served as Assistant Dean for Collections at Penn State University and

then was promoted to a scholarly communications position designed to explore new

endeavors in collaboration with the Penn State University Press. Before that she was a

Humanities Area Librarian for the Central Missouri State University Library and the

Chair of the Collection Committee at the University of Missouri Libraries. She has also

held a number of offices in the American Library Association and in the Office of the

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Provost at Penn State. MacEwan is a member of several national editorial, library, and

publishing boards.

Along with holding those positions, MacEwan has authored numerous publications. The

50+ publications include “Virtually Yours; Models for Managing Electronic Resources

and Services” and “Community, Collaboration and Collections.”

MacEwan’s job isn’t limited to the administrative offices at the Ralph Brown Draughon

Library. Every Wednesday morning she works a shift at the information desk on the

second floor. Even with her impressive qualifications and reputation, Bonnie MacEwan

still enjoys helping students out on a personal level.

MacEwan loves Auburn’s students. According to her, they are “smart and the Auburn

spirit is wonderful.”

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NEWS RELEASE CONTACT: Kelly Adams, Director of Media Relations

April 24, 2009 Office: (334) 555-9090 Email: [email protected]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

AUBURN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY’S SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AND ARCHIVES IS MORE THAN JUST BOOK STACKS

AUBURN, Ala. – The Ralph Brown Draughon (RBD) Library isn't just a place where students

spend countless hours studying and writing papers. It isn't just where books are located. It's a

place open to the public to learn about America's rich history and how it's changed throughout

the years.

When people ask him what he does for a living, Dwayne Cox doesn’t go into too much

detail. The responsibilities of the head of Special Collections and Archives Department at

Auburn University Libraries aren’t always easy to explain to the “non-library world.” So now he

just tells them he “collects old stuff…kinda like Indiana Jones.”

Welcome to the Special Collections and Archives Department, where shelves full of

priceless documents are ready to feature stories untold.

The ground floor of the RBD Library houses the Special Collections and Archives

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Department, which holds internationally recognized collections of books, periodicals, maps and

other publications that require special handling and care. The collections include sources of

university history, Alabama state history and rare books and visuals.

Anyone can come research the rare books and archives, provided they sign in at the front

desk and abide by a set of displayed rules. An employee is always present in the research room

for security purposes. The 10,000 cubic feet of archives contains about 10 million items,

according to Cox. Photographs, flags and even old civil war guns adorn the walls of the rooms.

In addition, there are stacks of books on hand.

Most items in the collection are gifts, some coming from within the university. Those that

are not donated are bought with gift money.

So how many people actually know about the Special Collections and Archives

Department?

“Most people are referred down here,” said Cox. “A lot of freshmen in their introductory

classes and students writing papers come in here. It’s a great resource for history papers and

such.”

Bonnie MacEwan, Dean of the Auburn University Libraries, sends her new staff down to

the archives department upon coming to work for the Libraries.

“In fact, sometimes I have to go get people from down there!” said MacEwan. “The

Special Collections and Archives Department is so interesting that when we send staff to check it

out, they get immersed and I have to retrieve them. It’s happened twice so far.”

According to Cox, others familiar with the department are graduate students and faculty

from other universities. Auburn has a lot of items no one else has, and people often request

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photocopies of those pieces. Aaron Trehub, head of Technology Systems for the Libraries, has

made these resources more available to others not located in Auburn. Under his direction,

Auburn University was the first college to digitize its collections. Because of this, the archives

collection is accessible on the internet.

Scholars and family historians also frequent the archives department in order to use their

genealogy research guide. Here they can gather information about family members by using

family Bibles, journals, letters, newspapers, obituaries and a resource called “ask relatives.”

“The digital library is extremely important for the university,” said Cox. “It helps other

departments decide what university records to keep, and also proves to be useful for marketing.”

Auburn often uses photographs from the digital library to use in alumni magazines and

publications. Having the collection digitized is also important in case tragedy strikes. “It would

be heartbreaking if anything happened to the collection. But if it did, we’d have a backup

system,” said Cox. Allowing access to historical documents online also reduces the handling of

valuable and fragile artifacts, preserving them longer.

Perhaps the gem of the archives department is the Treasures Collection. It's the home to

first editions of many rare books, Bibles and sermons, civil war memoirs and other publications.

Works with fascinating photographs and paintings make up a large part of the collection,

including one of the largest early Bibles, La Sainte Bible en Latin et en Francais. The first page

of each book in the 1717 Bible has an engraved illustration on it. The collection also holds a

complete set of The Botanical Magazine founded by William Curtis, which includes a hand-

colored engraving of an Orange Lily.

In addition to these valuable publications, the Treasure Collection contains 15th century

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manuscripts of the book of Isaiah, in which a number of initials in the book are decorated with

color and gold leaf. Woodcut portraits by Tobias Stimmer in a biographical dictionary also

inhabit the collection. Most of the Treasures collection is located in closed stacks and is not for

reference. This is because of their value and condition.

An artifact that’s kept under close watch is the flag carried by the 37th Alabama

regiment. The 37th Regiment included students and faculty members from the East Alabama

Male College, Auburn University's earliest name. The local chapter of the United Daughters of

the Confederacy donated the flag to Auburn University. Recently, the state UDC and the

University Libraries paid for its restoration.

In 1836 Charles Bird King was commissioned to paint portraits of Indians who came to

Washington, and his portraits are reproduced in 120 hand-colored lithographs in three volumes

of History of the Indian Tribes of North America by Thomas McKenney.

Of most interest to Auburn students is probably the issue of Orange and Blue, the

precursor to The Plainsman. In the 1911 issue, Coach Michael Donahue declares it possible for a

good season, "in spite of the fact that some of our rivals are sending out reports of having the

best teams in the history of their institutions." Auburn also has a Football Programs collection,

which includes descriptions of games from The Glomerata and covers of Auburn Football

programs from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s.

So how do all these relics and archives stay preserved? According to Cox, the Special

Collections and Archives Department has a halon gas fire suppression system. Halon forces

oxygen out of the atmosphere, which smothers fire. But don’t worry, it is not harmful to humans

in the amounts released by their system.

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The Auburn University Libraries are a part of The Association of College and Research

Libraries (ACRL). ACRL is a professional association of academic librarians and other

individuals, and the Auburn Libraries are considered very elite to be a part of it.

Libraries have so much more than just books, and they are not just quiet places with

librarians saying “Shh!” A picture of this description is the Auburn University Special

Collections and Archives Department, a place that tells us who we are and where we came from.

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Kelly Adams, Director of Media Relations Total Time: 00:30 Office: (334) 555-9090 Email: [email protected]

THE STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION OF AUBURN UNIVERSITY IS

SPONSORING “UP ALL NIGHT” IN THE RALPH B. DRAUGHON LIBRARY DURING

FINAL EXAMS. BETWEEN MAY 1ST AND MAY 7TH, STUDENTS WILL BE TREATED TO

JUICE AND DONUTS AT 2 A.M. EVERY MORNING BEFORE EXAMS. SCANTRONS

AND BLUE TEST BOOKS WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE ON A FIRST COME FIRST

SERVED BASIS. ALONG WITH FOOD AND DRINKS, STUDENT COUNSELING

SERVICES WILL BE PROVIDING STRESS TESTS AND OTHER GAMES FOR THOSE

STAYING UP ALL NIGHT. FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE AUBURN LIBRARIES ARE

ALSO LOOKING TO BRING IN THERAPY DOGS FOR STUDENTS TO PLAY WITH

OUTSIDE. SO COME JOIN YOUR FRIENDS AT THE LIBRARY FOR A BREAK FROM

STUDYING!

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Kelly Adams, Director of Media Relations Total Time: 00:60 Office: (334) 555-9090 Email: [email protected]

THE STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION OF AUBURN UNIVERSITY IS

SPONSORING “UP ALL NIGHT” IN THE RALPH B. DRAUGHON LIBRARY DURING

FINAL EXAMS. BETWEEN MAY 1ST AND MAY 7TH, STUDENTS WILL BE TREATED TO

JUICE AND DOUGHNUTS AT 2 A.M. EVERY MORNING BEFORE EXAMS.

SCANTRONS AND BLUE TEST BOOKS WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE ON A FIRST

COME FIRST SERVE BASIS. ALONG WITH FOOD AND DRINKS, GAMES WILL BE

AVAILABLE. STUDENT COUNSELING SERVICES WILL BE HOSTING STRESS TESTS

AND COLORING AREAS FOR THOSE STAYING UP ALL NIGHT. STACKS CAFÉ,

LOCATED ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE LIBRARY, WILL BE KEEPING

EXTENDED HOURS, AND FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE AUBURN LIBRARIES ARE

ALSO LOOKING TO BRING IN THERAPY DOGS FOR STUDENTS TO PLAY WITH

OUTSIDE. THE DOGS ARE TRAINED TO BE AWARE OF A PERSON’S STRESS LEVEL

AND RELIEVE IT. SEVERAL LOCAL BUSINESSES SUCH AS PANERA BREAD,

STARBUCKS AND BIZILIA’S CAFÉ WILL BE SPONSORING THE EVENT WITH SGA.

SO IF YOU’RE SICK OF STUDYING AND NEED A BREAK, COME JOIN US UP AT THE

LIBRARY FOR “UP ALL NIGHT”!

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CHILDREN BETWEEN WORLDS EXHIBIT IS COMING TO AUBURN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

AUBURN, Ala. – The Children between Worlds: Intercultural Relations in Books for Children

and Young Adults exhibit from the International Youth Library in Munich will be on display in

the Special Collections and Archives Department at the Auburn University Library from May

until June.

The exhibit is in cooperation with the International Goethe Institute, with the goal to

promote intercultural dialogue. The traveling exhibit is sponsored by the Auburn University

Libraries and the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts & Humanities in the College

of Liberal Arts.

It features 65 books, which were specifically selected for their treatment of tolerance and

open-mindedness, and are divided into five categories: stories in pictures, novels for children to

age twelve, for readers 13 and over, for readers 15 and over, and nonfiction books on the topic.

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Since 2006, this exhibit has been displayed in thirteen locations in nine states including

eight universities, two public libraries, two school libraries and the International Board on Books

for Young People (IBBY) Regional Conference in Tucson. Additional sets are currently

traveling in Europe and the Far East under the auspices of the International Youth Library.

Monday, May 11th from 3:30-5:00 PM, Special Collections and Archives will host

special guest speaker Dr. Judith Lechner, Professor in the Department of Educational

Foundations, Leadership, and Technology in the College of Education at Auburn University.

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AUBURN UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES STAY ‘UP ALL NIGHT’ WITH STUDENTS For some, staying up all night is a normal occurence. For others its rare. No matter who

you are, participating in Auburn University’s “Up All Night” event in the Ralph B. Draughon

Library is an experience like no other.

Between May 1st and May 7th, the Student Government Association senate will sponsor

the highly popular event, treating students to free juice and donuts at 2 a.m. every morning

before final exams. There are nearly 8,000-9,000 visitors per day at the RBD Library during this

time.

This year the Libraries are kicking it up a notch.

Along with food and drinks, fun and games will be provided for a study break for

students. On May 4th from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m., Student Counseling Services will be hosting stress

tests for those staying up all night. Areas for coloring and playing with play-dough will also be

available.

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Stacks Café, located on the ground floor of the library, will keep extended hours and after

they close, will leave a carafe of coffee on the Circulation Desk.

“Up All Night” is sponsored by Winn-Dixie, Kroger, Panera Bread Company, Starbucks

and Bizilia’s, to name a few. Others involved include Auxiliary Services, Building Services and

Dining Services.

According to the AU Libraries Marketing Specialist Donna Walker, students line up for

the services.

“I even come up to the library in the middle of the night during exams just to see the

students having fun,” said Walker. “It’s worth it to see them enjoying a break after all the

studying they do.”

Last year for the first time the Libraries gave away free Coke at the entrance to the

building. This year, they’re looking to bring in therapy dogs for students to play with outside.

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CONTACT: Kelly Adams, Director of Media Relations

April 24, 2009 Office: (334) 555-9090 FOR EDITORIAL CONSIDERATION: Email: [email protected]

THE IMPORTANCE OF ARCHIVES TO THE STATE OF ALABAMA

I remember vividly the day I came to work for the Auburn University Special Collections

and Archives Department. I looked around and saw more than just dusty archives and books

sitting on shelves. I saw history making its imprint on the university.

Found in this department is an unmatched and irreplaceable record of Southern history

and culture, which includes collections of manuscripts, rare books and periodicals. The

department also holds the official records and history of Auburn University.

Without the Special Collections and Archives from Auburn University, history might be

lost from the state of Alabama. Such a statement might be a surprise to most people, considering

a majority of students, faculty and staff don’t even know about this department. But we need to

understand the vital importance of the department to the history of Alabama.

It’s probably safe to make the general statement that archives are the collections of

documents which people in the past have produced and which archivists now preserve.

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This includes newspapers, magazines, photographs and even films. Our archives also include

people’s personal letters, diaries, even their bills. Auburn has a lot of items that no one else has,

and there is popular demand for copies of those items. A man contacted me just last week about

ordering 500 dollars worth of photocopies.

Archives tell the stories of the people who wrote them or made them. On one level, a

receipt for a new radio in a house in 1936 tells us that that family got a new radio. However, it

also makes us wonder whether the lucky family with the new radio was typical, or whether every

family had a radio in 1936. We might then go and look at the accounts of the radio shop and see

how many radios were being sold. In this way archives can give us a pathway into the little

stories and the big stories which make up the past.

The archives on Alabama from the Auburn Libraries can tell us the stories of individuals

and how they fit into America’s history. They can tell us about a man’s travels, but also how

those travels helped to develop colonies in history.

The Special Collections and Archives Department at Auburn benefits Alabama culture

because it tells us who we are and where we came from. It benefits the business world because it

keeps university records up to date and keeps internal operations running. Furthermore, you just

don’t destroy heritage to merely “simplify” life. The government wouldn’t even think of tearing

down the Washington Monument just because it sits there. It represents the values this country

was founded on. In the same way, our archives need to be preserved and kept because they

represent the values of Alabama.

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This is attributed to: Dwayne Cox, Head of the Special Collections and Archives Department at

Auburn University. You can reach them at (334) 555-9191 or at [email protected].

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Students study from the privacy of a study room. Study rooms are located on the third and fourth floors

and can be reserved by presenting your Tigercard.

Parents enjoy “Snacks in the Stacks” during Camp War Eagle in the RBD Library. “Snacks in the Stacks” is a question-and-answer forum for parents of incoming freshmen.

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Dr. Jay Gogue reads Jack Kerouac’s On the Road at the marathon reading to celebrate the book’s

anniversary.

Ladies from the Daughters of the American Revolution look through genealogy materials located

in the Special Collections and Archives Department.

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Studying isn’t just for inside the library. Beautiful surroundings and shady trees outside the RBD

Library provide students with another place to look over notes.

Students even show up in their pajamas to come get juice and donuts at “Up All Night.” The

study break is sponsored by the Student Government Association at Auburn.

auburn libraries press kit

Documents

rbd library

students of auburn university

president of auburn

library of architecture

mell street auburn university

ralph brown draughon

brains of library staff

escort students