Library News

The School of Library and Information Science (SLIS), in the University of Iowa Graduate College, was awarded a three-year, $918,589 grant to recruit and train 20 students in the area of digital librarianship. Padmini Srinivasan, professor and project director, was the recipient of the prestigious Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

The project enables the school to contribute to the national pool of well-trained library professionals firmly grounded in librarianship and digital services. Co-principal investigators on the project are Jim Elmborg, SLIS associate professor, and Paul Soderdahl, director of library information systems for University Libraries.

Students supported by the grant will participate in digital library projects and services across campus units including the UI Libraries, the WiderNet Project, the International Writing Program and Academic Technologies.

“By educating students to become excellent digital librarians, we will contribute future leaders who promote information literacy and lifelong learning — capabilities recently proclaimed as a basic human right in a digital world by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions,” said Srinivasan.

“We are extremely excited by the possibilities offered by this grant,” adds Professor Jim Elmborg, director of the school. “It will allow us to work at the very cutting edge of libraries and librarianship and will help us prepare our students for an exciting future.”

Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program grants are designed to help offset a current shortage of school library media specialists, library school faculty, and librarians working in underserved communities, as well a looming shortage of library directors and other senior librarians, many of whom are expected to retire in the next 20 years.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. Its mission is to grow and sustain a “Nation of Learners.” To learn more about the institute, visit: http://www.imls.gov.

A rare film produced by noted social psychologist Kurt Lewin, a member of the University of Iowa faculty over 60 years ago, has been restored thanks to a National Film Preservation Foundation grant to the University Archives, Dept. of Special Collections in the University of Iowa Libraries.

The film, “Experimental Studies in the Social Climates of Groups, Parts I and II,” was produced by Lewin in 1938 to demonstrate patterns of group behavior that result from different types of environments, according to a 1940 UI Extension catalog describing the film. His pioneering research at Iowa suggested that one’s surroundings, not their individual traits, largely shape their actions.

Lewin (1890-1947) fled his native Germany in 1933 following the rise of Hitler and was a member of the UI faculty from 1935 to 1944. After moving to Boston in 1944, he established the Research Center for Group Dynamics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A 1984 survey identified Lewin, with Sigmund Freud, as the greatest influence on the thinking of contemporary psychologists.

The grant, for $4,760, provided for the cleaning and restoration of the original film, as well as production of digital and videotape copies for researchers to use.

The UI Libraries has partnered with the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum on this project. The UI Libraries will maintain DVD and VHS copies of the film in Media Services, which will be available to researchers. The original film and a preservation master (Beta tape) will be located in a climate-controlled facility at the Hoover Museum.

At the American Library Association (ALA) annual conference this summer, Conservator Gary Frost was honored by the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services, a division of ALA, with the Paul Banks and Carolyn Harris Preservation Award. This award recognizes Gary’s contribution of significant ideas and leadership to the field of preservation through his work as a conservator, entrepreneur and instructor.

Award Jury Chairwoman, Patricia Selinger noted, “Gary inspires individuals to utilize their talent to benefit libraries. His publications and teaching challenge current thinking and dares us all to persevere in our quest for knowledge.”

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