NMSU Library Announces El Dia Programs
The New Mexico State University Library announces two free public programs on Saturday, May 4, in celebration of El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day).
Author Vaunda Micheaux Nelson will read from her Coretta Scott King Author Award-winning picture book Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshall at the Thomas Branigan Memorial Library at 10:30 a.m. All ages are invited. A free copy of Bad News for Outlaws will be given to every family while supplies last.
Nelson will also present a talk on the importance of genealogical research and writing on the fourth floor of NMSU’s Branson Library at 3:00 p.m. This presentation will highlight her young adult novel No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller. This book received a Coretta Scott King Author Honor and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award.
Nelson blames becoming an author on her loving parents who relentlessly read to her every night.
Who Will I Be, Lord? Almost to Freedom, Ready? Set. Raymond! and Mayfield Crossing are among her other books. She co-authored Juneteenth with her husband, Drew Nelson.
Nelson has been a teacher, newspaper reporter, bookseller, school librarian, and has served on the Newbery and Caldecott award committees. She holds master’s degrees from The Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College (Vermont), and from the University of Pittsburgh School of Library and Information Science. In addition to her work as an author, Nelson is a youth services librarian at the public library in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.
El día de los niños/El día de los libros was founded by Santa Fe author Pat Mora in 1997. The purpose of this internationally observed day is to celebrate children, families, reading and multiculturalism. The NMSU Library’s celebration is funded by a grant from NMSU’s Southwest and Border Cultures Institute, and is co-sponsored by the NMSU Library and the Thomas Branigan Memorial Library.
For more information, contact Sarah Baker at (575) 646-6087 or Mardi Mahaffy at (575) 646-6925.
Final Library Bond Figures Announced
The final distribution figures for the 2012 GO Bond for Libraries have been announced. Publicly funded libraries throughout New Mexico, including the NMSU-Las Cruces Library and NMSU-affiliated libraries, are included in the distribution, which is based on student enrollment data for Fall 2012.
NMSU students for libraries
The NMSU-Las Cruces Library will receive $375,562 and the Doña Ana Community College Library will receive $83,482. The NMSU-Alamogordo Library will receive approximately $23,951, the NMSU-Carlsbad Library will receive $14,271 and the NMSU-Grants Library will receive $8,427. The funds will be used for the purchase of library materials.
NMSU Library Dean Elizabeth A. Titus said “The NMSU Library relies on bond funds in order to maintain its collection. We thank our community so much for its continuing support of the bond initiative.”
For more information, contact the Library Administration at (575) 646-1508.
NMSU Murals Walking Tour Announced
The NMSU Department of Art, the University Art Gallery and the NMSU Library are co-hosting a walking tour of murals on NMSU’s main campus, including works by Ken Barrick, Olive Rush and Tom Lea. The free tour will begin in the lobby of Hadley Hall on Thursday, May 2, 2013, at 10 a.m.
The discussion and tour will be led by art experts Adair Margo, Silvia Marinas-Feliner and Stephanie Taylor. The Ken Barrick paintings in Hadley Hall will be discussed, followed by a trip to nearby Foster Hall to view the Olive Rush mural.
The tour will conclude in the Branson Library lobby where Margo will discuss the Tom Lea murals and the preparatory drawing for one of the murals, which will also be displayed. Discussion will include historical, artistic and conservation perspectives on these cultural treasures. Refreshments will be served.
Margo is an El Paso gallery owner and Tom Lea expert. Marinas-Feliner is Director of the NMSU Art Department Conservation Program, and Taylor is the Interim Director of the NMSU University Art Gallery and an Assistant Professor of Modern and Contemporary Art History.
For more information on this event or to RSVP, please contact the NMSU Library at (575) 646-1508.
Zuhl Library Offers Extended End of Semester Hours
The NMSU Library announces extended end of semester hours at Zuhl Library only:
- Monday, April 29 through Thursday, May 2, 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
- Friday, May 3, 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sunday, May 5, 9 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
- Monday, May 6 through Wednesday, May 8, 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 a.m.
- Thursday, May 9 through Friday, May 10, regular hours
Branson Library will maintain regular hours during finals week. Both libraries are closed Saturday, May 11 through Sunday, May 12.
Coffee will be served during the evening hours at both Branson and Zuhl libraries Thursday, May 2 through Thursday, May 9. The NMSU Alumni Association will sponsor goodies in both libraries from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday, May 5 through Tuesday, May 7.
For more information, find the full schedule of Library hours at http://lib.nmsu.edu/aboutlib/libhours.shtml and on a voice recording at (575) 646-4749.
Wendy Simpson Awarded Scholarship
NMSU Library staff member Wendy Simpson of the Reference & Research Services Department was awarded a $200 Professional Development Scholarship by the New Mexico Consortium of Academic Libraries.
The New Mexico Consortium of Academic Librar
ies offers up to $2,000 each year in professional development scholarships to assist academic librarians/paraprofessionals with event expenses for professional development purposes.
Simpson used the funding to attend the New Mexico Library Association conference in Albuquerque April 17-19.
Simpson is a Senior Library Specialist who joined the Library staff in 2001. For more information, contact the Library Administration at (575) 646-1508.
NMSU Library Staff Members Win Scholarships
NMSU Library staff members Jonathan Butz and Felipe Castillo of the Library’s Reference & Research Services Department were both awarded scholarships to attend the New Mexico Library Association conference in Albuquerque April 17-19.
The scholarships were made available by the New Mexico State Library to support professional development among librarians and library staff in New Mexico. Applications from employees of all types of libraries in the state were considered and a total of nine scholarships were awarded. Each stipend provides up to $300 to reimburse registration, hotel, travel and meal costs.
Castillo is the Business Librarian and Butz is a Senior Library Specialist. Both joined the Library staff in Fall 2012.
For more information, contact the Library Administration at (575) 646-1508.
National Library Week 2013: Communities Matter @ Your Library
The New Mexico State University Library joins libraries nationwide in celebrating National Library Week, April 14 through 20. The week’s theme for 2013 is “Communities matter @ your library.” National Library Week is an annual celebration of the contributions of our nation’s libraries and librarians. All types of libraries – school, public, academic and special – participate.
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.
American Library Association officials said that National Library Week is a time to highlight the value of libraries, librarians and library workers. Libraries today are more than repositories for books and other resources. Often the heart of their communities, campuses or schools, libraries are deeply committed to the places where their patrons live, work and study. Libraries are trusted places where everyone in the community can gather to reconnect and reengage with each other to enrich and shape the community and address local issues.
The NMSU Library is asking you to choose National Library Week as the occasion to make your next gift to the Library. Libraries play important and diverse roles in the lives of students, faculty and the broader community. Today the NMSU Library is more relevant than ever to the needs of our users. Your contributions truly help the Library provide world-class resources for students
Library Development Officer April Anaya invites you to visit the NMSU Library at any time. Let her know in advance that you are coming and she will gladly provide a personal tour. Anaya can be contacted at (575) 646-3642 or aanaya@nmsu.edu.
Winners of Sunshine Week Essay Contest Announced
To celebrate Sunshine Week (March 10-16), the New Mexico State University Library held a student essay contest and hosted a reception, co-sponsored with NMSU alumnus Tim Parker and NMSU’s Department of Journalism and Mass Communications.
NMSU students were invited to submit an essay of 600 to 800 words explaining how New Mexico’s Sunshine laws encourage citizen participation in state government. 
After reviewing all of the entries, a panel of judges awarded 1st prize to NMSU Journalism student Phil Davies and 2nd prize to NMSU Journalism student Dana Beasley. Davies received a $200 gift certificate from the Barnes & Noble at NMSU Bookstore, while Beasley received a $100 Barnes & Noble gift certificate.
The March 13 reception featured keynote speaker Walt Rubel, Managing Editor of the Las Cruces Sun-News, who shared with the NMSU and Las Cruces community his own experience in news media fighting for open government.
“There are no special privileges for newspapers, radio or TV stations,” Rubel later wrote in a column for the Sun-News. “Everyone has the same right to inspect public records and attend public meetings.”
Sunshine Week is an annual national celebration of open government, transparency and freedom of information. The aim of the local event was to raise awareness of New Mexico’s Open Meetings Act and the Inspection of Public Records Act.
For more information, contact Library Specialist Jonathan Butz at butz@nmsu.edu or Government Documents & Maps Librarian Josefine Smith at jmasmith@nmsu.edu.
Bill Boehm Authors Book on Historical Residence
Historian Bill Boehm, a former New Mexico State University Library staff member, is the author of a new book, Quarters One: The Story of a Historic Home and Its Residents (Arlington, VA: National Guard Bureau, Directorate of Public Affairs & Strategic Communication, Historical Services Division, 2012).
This volume details the history of Quarters One, the official residence of the Chief of the National Guard Bureau from 1978 to 2012. It was constructed and made ready for residence in 1905 as part of the famed Army War College complex. The commission to design the buildings was undertaken by McKim, Mead and White, a famed New York architecture firm. Fifteen officers’ homes and fifteen non-commissioned officers’ homes were constructed at opposite axes across the length of a parade field which lay north of the Army War College building, at the tip of Greenleaf Point.
Quarters One is the northernmost residence, located along the eastern bank of the Potomac River. The linear design of the larger complex was inspired by the “City Beautiful” movement which transformed the appearance of Washington, D.C. (as well as other American cities at the start of the 20th century) into grander public spaces and emphasized more spacious accommodations.
Quarters One also contains a brief history of the Army post on which the residence is located, Ft. McNair, in Washington, D.C. Previously known as Washington Arsenal and Washington Barracks, the garrison is the third-oldest installation in the U.S. Army behind West Point, NY, and Carlisle Barracks, PA. It too has a rich and interesting history among the annals of the nation’s capital.
Boehm now works as an historian in the Public Affairs Office of the National Guard Bureau in Arlington, Virginia. He donated copies of Quarters One to the Library with his compliments. For more information on the book, contact Boehm at wbboehm@gmail.com.
McKee Foundation Gives $11,500 to NMSU Library
The New Mexico State University Library has been awarded an $11,500 gift from the Robert E. and Evelyn McKee Foundation of El Paso, Texas. The gift will be used for the purchase of current engineering reference materials which will build the collection to better serve the needs of not only New Mexico State University’s engineering students, but also faculty and researchers within our region and the state.
Engineering Librarian Paula Johnson said that the gift will enable the Library to offer electronic engineering resources which are critically needed in this field. With the rapid advancements in engineering, the acquisition of current resources is critical to students and researchers alike. The Morgan & Claypool Synthesis Collection 3 & 4 will add 125 titles and provide not only a valuable source of information but also an ideal introduction to new fields. With these acquisitions being electronic in nature, more students, faculty and researchers will have increased access to these resources and be able to download PDF versions of the titles.
The McKee Foundation has supported the Library since 1995. Robert E. McKee is remembered as the “master builder” whose construction company, McKee Construction, built seven buildings on the NMSU campus.
For more information, please contact Johnson at paulacj@lib.nmsu.edu or (575) 646-7251.