March 7, 2022
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“Staff Picks” Book Display

We at the JKM Library know how difficult COVID-19 has been on our Chatham community. Many of us have never had the opportunity to meet, when in normal circumstances there would have been plenty of moments for librarians and library staff to meet you, help you personally, and put faces to names. Now that we are mostly back on campus, and some faces are being revealed, we decided to put together a fun “Staff Picks” book display and Spotify playlist to help you get to know us a bit better!

Stop into the JKM Library in March to browse our physical book display showing off some of the library staff’s favorite books from our collection, and visit our Spotify account to listen to a playlist of some of our favorite songs. We have a broad range of tastes, and we’re always delighted to talk to you about books, music and more! If you’d like to get in contact with one of the librarians, you can find our emails on our Staff Directory page of our website. All books included in the display are available for you to checkout and read yourself. Perhaps you’ll discover a new personal favorite.

Keep reading to learn more about your library staff, our areas of academic expertise (that we’re more than happy to help you in), fun facts and interesting hobbies about each of us, and then the book and song we each picked!

Jill Ausel

  • Job title: Library Director
  • Favorite part of job: I really enjoy my job, and the best part is helping students and making the library a place of learning and fun.
  • A fun fact: I’m an Ancient Greek History nerd!
  • My book pick: The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women Across the Ancient World by Adrienne Mayor
  • My song pick: “In These Shoes?” by Kristy MacColl

Kate Wenger

  • Job title: Head of Access Service
  • Liaison areas: Accounting, Business, Economics, Criminology, Psychology, Social Work
  • Favorite part of job: Working with students, including our wonderful student workers!
  • An interesting hobby: I enjoy vegetable gardening, and I love the snow and am excited to use my new cross-country skis again soon!
  • My book pick: Think Again by Adam Grant
  • My song pick: “That Was a Crazy Game of Poker” by O.A.R.

Dana Mastroianni

  • Job title: Head of Public Services
  • Liaison areas: Health Sciences, Art & Design, Communication
  • Favorite part of job: Being a practical help to students. Helping them discover, think and rethink, and successfully fulfill their information needs. And my fellow librarians are pretty awesome 😊
  • An interesting skill: My car karaoke skills are on point.
  • My book pick: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
  • My song pick: “Where the Streets Have No Name” by U2

Daniel Lincoln Nolting

  • Job title: Head of Technical Services
  • Specialty areas: Data and materials management.
  • Favorite part of job: Stickers! Putting call numbers on books! Never gets old…
  • An interesting skill: Along with an MFA in painting, while in NYC, I also learned an old Japanese woodcut method.
  • My book pick: These Truths: A History of the United States by Jill Lepore
  • My song pick: “Keep It Comin’ Love” by KC & The Sunshine Band

Molly Tighe

  • Job title: Archivist & Public Services Librarian
  • Academic expertise: Archives, preservation, and museums
  • Liaison areas: History, Political Science, Policy Studies, Bio, Chem, Math, Physics
  • Favorite part of job: Sharing and discovering (or helping others discover) Chatham history and how it informs campus activities today.
  • An interesting hobby: I sew my clothes! While I still wear a fair bit of ready-to-wear, I try to include a me-made in every outfit.
  • My book pick: Ramp Hollow: The Ordeal of Appalachia by Steven Stoll
  • My song pick: “Jolie Holland” by All the Morning Birds

Jocelyn Codner

  • Job title: Reference & Outreach Librarian
  • Liaison areas: Food Studies, Sustainability, Environmental Science, Education, English, Creative Writing/MFA
  • Favorite part of job: Working one-on-one with students!
  • An interesting skill: I play Irish flute.
  • A fun fact: I used to DJ my high school dances.
  • My book pick: The Diviners by Libba Bray
  • My song pick: “No Quiero Saber” by Selena

Carina Stopenski

  • Job title: Access Services Associate
  • Academic expertise: Gender and cultural studies, media studies, comics
  • Favorite part of job: Getting to see all the interesting titles that patrons request!
  • A fun fact: I love to collect natural curios, like rocks, herbs, crystals, and resins!
  • My book pick: Pet by Akwaeke Emezi
  • My song pick: “Calamity Song” by The Decemberists

Jennifer Langilotti

  • Job title: Technical Services Assistant
  • Favorite part of job: Learning from more experienced librarians.
  • A fun fact: Good at Tetris!
  • My book pick: A Lost Lady by Willa Cather
  • My song pick: “Dennis Quaid” by Taylor Janzen

Alley Lindner

  • Job title: Reference Associate
  • Specialty areas: English Literature with a focus in Queer Theory
  • Other areas of interest: Juicy pop culture takes!
  • Favorite part of job: I love working with students–helping with research, talking through book recommendations, etc.
  • A fun fact: I was named after my grandmother’s three-legged dog.
  • My book pick: Undead Girl Gang by Lily Anderson
  • My song pick: “Motion Sickness” by Phoebe Bridgers

Chelsea Gabrielson

  • Job title: Reference Associate
  • Specialty areas: Health Sciences and Children’s Literature
  • Favorite part of job: I love when I can help students with research!
  • A fun fact: I once did a 185-mile bicycle ride down the coast of Oregon.
  • My book pick: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
  • My song pick: “Dark Red” by Steve Lacy

Amy Melnyk

  • Job title: Reference Associate
  • Specialty areas: Social Sciences
  • Favorite part of job: Definitely helping students!
  • A fun fact: I have 51 tabs currently open.
  • My book pick: Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong
  • My song pick: “Family Affair” by Mary J. Blige

Jackson Adkins

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Management Information Systems, Data Science minor
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Getting journals and scanning them from the basement!
  • A hobby: I have been snowboarding for 12 years.
  • An interesting skill: I can clap with one hand!
  • My book pick: Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth’s Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa by Mark Mathabane
  • My song pick: “Footsteps in the Dark” by The Isley Brothers

Trai BreenLusen

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: English, Creative Writing and Studio Arts minors
  • Area of academic interest: Animation
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Pulling books for EZ Borrow and packing mail.
  • Something interesting about me: I’m an artist hoping to start my own business.
  • My book pick: The Hobbit: There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkin
  • My song pick: “Hey Look Ma, I Made It” by Panic! At The Disco

Riley Hurst Brubaker

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Journalism and Film
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Shelving and interacting with staff and fellow students.
  • An interesting skill: Arranging flower bouquets.
  • My book pick: A Black Women’s History of the United States by Daina Ramey anf Kali Nicole Gross
  • My song pick: “Highway Unicorn” by The Highwomen

Leyla Fevola

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Mathmatics and Secondary Education
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: I love helping and creating projects with other staff members!
  • Something interesting about me: I am a dual citizen, I am a citizen of the USA and Italy!
  • My book pick: Beautiful Boy by David Sheff
  • My song pick: “All For Us” by Labrinth and Zendaya

Becca Pennington

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Exercise Science
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Stack searches (searching for missing books)
  • A hobby of mine: I run cross country and track
  • My book pick: Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
  • My song pick: “Runaway” by Linkin Park

Jolie Phan

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Human Biology
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Checking books in and out to patrons
  • A hobby of mine: I love playing the piano and violin
  • My book pick: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
  • My song pick: “Heroes” by David Bowie

Stephanie Spano

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Cell and Molecular Biology
  • Area of Academic Interest: Genetics
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Stack searches (searching for missing books) or helping patrons at the desk!
  • A fun fact about me: I’ve been to 25 out of 50 states in the US!
  • My book pick: Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
  • My song pick: “Oh My God” by Adele

Julia Windsheimer

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Interior Architecture, Music minor
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Shelving books
  • A hobby of mine: I like playing the flute
  • My book pick: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
  • My song pick: “Rock and Roll” by The Velvet Underground

Savannah Wood

  • Job title: Access Services Aide
  • Major: Psychology
  • Favorite task at the JKM Library: Doing inventory
  • An interesting skill of mine: I can twirl batons and was the majorette captain at my high school.
  • My book pick: Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur
  • My song pick: “Thelma + Louise” by Bastille

December 22, 2021
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You Need to Read This: The Best Books of 2021 in Our Collection

As the world begins to open back up again and we start to see each other beyond the fuzziness of a Zoom screen, sitting at home reading may be the furthest thing from our minds. However, 2021 gave us some fantastic titles, both entertaining and educational alike. With a breadth of pandemic and political literature at the forefront of the literary movement right now, though, it can be beneficial to sit down with some creative titles to keep us engaged over the winter break. Here are some of 2021’s best books that you can find right here in the JKM Library collection!

call us what we carry amanda gorman Call Us What We Carry, Amanda Gorman

After performing her poem “The Hill We Climb” at the 2020 inauguration, Amanda Gorman quickly became a household name. Her use of impactful aesthetics, politically charged dialogue, and sprawling free verse creates an honest, almost journalistic approach in her writing that even non-poetry fans can enjoy. The collection’s inclusion of “The Hill We Climb” sets up this text to fit in the collections of humanitarians and political activists alike. Only released just this December, Gorman’s words will keep audiences engaged, enamored, and most importantly, motivated to make change in the world that we live in.

Punch Me Up to the Gods, Brian Broome

This memoir from Chatham alum Brian Broome has made its way onto many book lists and accrued a few awards already this year, and for good reason. Broome’s striking portrayal of growing up Black and gay in Ohio’s Rust Belt. Full of striking prose and unflinching portrayals of a complex adolescence, Broome’s words will make your heart ache in the best way possible. Broome opens up the reader to a version of Appalachia that is unlike the whitewashed depictions we’re so used to seeing in the media. This year’s Kirkus Prize winner for nonfiction, Punch Me Up to the Gods has garnered attention from all over the literary world.

An Alternative History of Pittsburgh, Ed Simon

You don’t need to be a history buff to enjoy Ed Simon’s book on eclectic Pittsburgh history. In this nonfiction text on Pittsburgh’s hidden histories, Simon opens up the reader to a Pittsburgh that is not often discussed. An accessible read that presents history in an easy-to-follow narrative, this book breathes life into local tales spanning from the Whiskey Rebellion to the legacy of Andy Warhol, with plenty of vignettes in between. Simon highlights a version of Pittsburgh that even locals may be shocked to learn about, and all through a lens that’s both entertaining and informative.

American Bastard, Jan Beatty

Pittsburgh poet Jan Beatty has released another poetry collection, this one specifically centering around her identity as an adopted child. Beatty recalls the search for her birth parents with heart-wrenching lyricism and the effects of a broken system that decentralizes identity. Beatty holds back no punches when she discusses the corruption of the adoption industry and the nuances of parenthood once the bridge between birth family and adoptive family starts to crumble. Her approach is stark, but still hopeful for a future that could be better for adoptees.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, Deeshaw Philyaw

Even though it was released at the tail end of 2020, Deeshaw Philyaw’s short story collection gained a ton of traction in 2021. A tour-de-force example of literary fiction, Philyaw paints vivid scenes of the lives of Black women and girls, punctuated by themes of sexuality and religious-associated guilt. Drawing from the “church ladies” that she knew growing up in the church, women who approached life in a perfectionist, godly way, Philyaw forces us to question the rhetoric surrounding Black women’s bodies and sexual feelings.

We Could Be Heroes, Mike Chen

Mike Chen’s speculative fiction-superhero novel is one that’ll keep readers on their toes from start to finish. Telling the story of two amnesiacs who have mysteriously gained superpowers, Chen explores the intricacies of the human condition paired with some high-octane action scenes and witty dialogue. When these two superpowered characters encounter each other in a memory loss support group, readers get to watch the unraveling and paranoia happen firsthand. A fast-paced read for the hero in all of us.

 

 

Carina Stopenski is the Access Services Associate at Chatham University’s Jennie King Mellon Library. They started out as a student worker while getting their creative writing degree at Chatham, and received their Master’s of Library Science at Clarion University in summer 2020. They enjoy games of both the board and video persuasion, vegan baking, and reading graphic novels. They also teach cultural studies and “cartoon theory” classes on the platform Outschool.

December 7, 2021
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Native American Heritage Book Display and Land Acknowledgements

The JKM Library is honoring the cultures and history of Native Americans through a book display. Native American and Indigenous Peoples’ Heritage Month may have already passed (please take a look at our related resources page), but we should continue to reflect on the past, present, and future of these communities and their relationship to of the United States of America: how Indigenous people were colonized, how they were almost decimated, and how they are still oppressed. We recognize that we occupy the unceded, ancestral land of many Indigenous peoples, including the Seneca Nation of the Haudenosaunee (hoe-dee-no-SHOW-nee) Confederacy (who had a profound influence on the area), Delaware, and the Shawnee. As recently as the 1960s, nearly one-third of the Seneca’s tribal lands were taken by the U.S. government to build the Kinzua Dam northeast of the Pittsburgh (for more on land acknowledgments, see this handout).

Located in the first floor, the display offers a curated selection of more than 40 books with an interdisciplinary focus, ranging from literature and history to environmental studies. Part of our goal is to make these resources more visible, which often remain hidden in the stacks. In addition, we wanted to center texts by Indigenous voices. In the case of books by non-Native American authors, we have tried to include works that are inclusive in their approach and do not reproduce problematic stereotypes.

For instance, we excluded a critically acclaimed book, S.C. Gwynne’s Empire of the Summer Moon, because of its description of the Comanches as “primitive” and “barbarian.” Such language harks back to the racist discourse of past centuries, but the book was published only ten years ago and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize. We also did not choose to share most of our Native American art books because they perpetuate the colonialist idea that Indigenous cultures are to be collected by white institutions without any attention to Native American perspectives. It is therefore urgent to share correctives to these narratives, especially from the perspective of institutions like ours, which not only occupy unceded land but also play a role in the formation of collective memory. In addition, the library’s DVD collection does not include any films directed by Native Americans except for Reel Injun, a documentary about the depiction of indigeneity in Hollywood movies, which is part of the display. We hope to be adding more items to our collection that reflect these concerns.

We invite everyone to experience the exhibit and check out any books that might interest you. Some books that we would like to highlight because of their importance for Native American history and cultures are:

  • Roxane Dunbar-Ortiz, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States (history)
  • Two-Spirit People: Native American Gender Identity, Sexuality, and Spirituality(gender and sexuality)
  • Natalie Diaz, When My Brother Was an Aztec (poetry)
  • Cherie Dimaline, The Marrow Thieves (fiction)
  • The Book of Elders: the life Stories of Great American Indians (testimony)
  • Terese Marie Mailhot, Heart Berries (memoir)
  • Native Americans and the Environment: Perspectives on the Ecological Indian (environmental studies)
  • David J. Silverman, This Land is their Land: the Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled history of Thanksgiving (history)
  • Sean Sherman, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen (cooking)
Khalila Chaar-PĂ©rez (she/they) is Reference Associate at the JKM Library and also works at the People’s Media Record, a grassroots video archive in Philly. She’s a proud trans Puerto Rican committed to cultivating transformative justice, antiracism, and a world without capitalism. She is also an avid hiker, a film nerd, and a trekkie.

September 20, 2021
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Award-Winning Horror Authors Visit for National Dessert Day

Flyer for National Dessert Day EventThe JKM Library is excited to be working with CAB and the University Archives on an event this coming October 14th for National Dessert Day. The event will include fall and Halloween themed dessert snacks, the screening of short film “Chatham University Ghost Stories,” directed by student Tess Weaver, the telling of a recent ghostly encounter on campus, and readings from award-winning local horror authors. The University Archives will also have items from Chatham’s past that connect back to popular ghost stories on campus.

The event is from 7:00pm-9:00pm on Thursday, October 14th in the Carriage House. Registration is not required.

Below is the lineup for the evening. Keep scrolling to read bios and find links to our guest authors.

  • 7:00pm- Welcome, mingle, view the archive materials
  • 7:20pm- Nelson Pyles
  • 7:40pm- Sara Tantlinger
  • 8:00pm- Video of ghost stories
  • 8:15pm- An Occurrence at Thomson House (told by Jocelyn Codner)
  • 8:20pm- Douglas Gwilym
  • 8:40pm- Michael A. Arnzen

Sara Tantlinger is the author of the Bram Stoker Award-winning The Devil’s Dreamland: Poetry Inspired by H.H. Holmes, and the Stoker-nominated works To Be Devoured, Cradleland of Parasites, and Not All Monsters. Along with being a mentor for the HWA Mentorship Program, she is also a co-organizer for the HWA Pittsburgh Chapter. She embraces all things macabre and can be found lurking in graveyards or on Twitter @SaraTantlinger, at saratantlinger.com and on Instagram @inkychaotics.

Nelson Pyles is the critically acclaimed author of the novels Spiders in the Daffodils and Demons, Dolls, & Milkshakes, a collection of short works entitled Everything Here is a Nightmare, as well as multiple short stories in various anthologies. His work has appeared alongside Harlan Ellison, F Paul Wilson, Tim Waggoner, Michael Arnzen, Jonathan Maberry, and Jack Ketchum. His next collection of short stories All These Steps Lead Down will be available in 2022

Nelson is the creator  of The Wicked Library, a horror fiction podcast, where he also served as host for seasons 1-5, and collaborated as Executive Producer for seasons 6-10. He has also been a contributing writer to the popular audio-drama podcast, The Lift. Nelson is also an audiobook narrator and stunt vocalist for the progressive rock band, Novus.

Douglas Gwilym is a writer and editor who has also been known to compose a weird-fiction rock opera or two. If you aren’t lucky enough to have caught him performing his stories and music at venues around Pittsburgh, you can find him at douglasgwilym.bandcamp.com or follow him on twitter at @douglasgwilym. Check out his Amazon page. Befriend him on facebook.

Michael Arnzen is the four-time Bram Stoker Award-winning author of the novels Grave Markings and Play Dead. Arnzen teaches fulltime in the MFA in Writing Popular Fiction program at Seton Hill University, in Greensburg, PA.  Known particularly for his experiments in minimalist horror, in such books as 100 Jolts and The Gorelets Omnibus, he invites readers to subscribe to his newsletter at gorelets.com, where they can get free short-shorts delivered to their inbox when they least expect them.

 

September 16, 2021
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Collaboration on Constitution Day Display

This fall the JKM Library is teaming up with the Pennsylvania Center for Women and Politics to bring you an in-library display in honor of Constitution Day, also know as Citizenship Day.

Constitution Day is regularly observed on September 17th to commemorate the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the Constitution in Philadelphia. It is a day to recognize the history and importance of the Constitution, and to celebrate being a citizen of the United States of America.

In addition to the display, the PCWP is hosting a screening of the documentary Surge (2020) on Thursday, September 16th at 11:15am in the Eddy Theater. From the documentary’s website:

Surge is a feature documentary about the record number of first-time female candidates who ran, won and upended politics in the historic, barrier-breaking 2018 midterm elections. Surge follows three candidates in Texas, Indiana and Illinois who each running in uphill battles to flip their deep red districts to blue, including Lauren Underwood, the youngest Black woman to ever be elected to Congress.

Some items included on the JKM Library’s display are:

  • You Never Forget Your First by Alexis Coe
  • African American Women in the Struggle for the Vote, 1850-1920 by Rosalyn Terborg-Penn
  • The Unwinding An Inner History of the New America by George Packer
  • Iron Jawed Angels (feature film)
  • Selma (feature film)
  • Coming to America: A History of Immigration and Ethnicity in American Life by Roger Daniels
  • Eyes On the Prize: America’s Civil Rights Movement (PBS docuseries)
  • The Oxford Handbook of the U.S. Constitution
  • Women’s Rights in the USA: Policy Debates and Gender Roles by Dorothy E. McBride and Janine A. Parry
  • Representation and the Electoral College by Robert M. Alexander

All library items can be checked out by Chatham community members, with the exception of the pocket Constitutions. Those were provided by the PCWP and are free to take and keep.

September 10, 2021
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“Eden Hall Farm: A Visual History from the Chatham Archives” on View in the JKM Library

The Chatham University Archives & Special Collections is pleased to present “Eden Hall Farm: A Visual History from the Chatham Archives” in the lobby of the JKM Library.

Media Player and Signage in JKM Library

A presentation of compelling images accompanied by contextualizing ephemera, the video surveys the founding, the purpose, and the experience of Eden Hall Farm guests before the site was donated to Chatham in 2007.  Students, faculty, and staff can expect to see familiar Eden Hall Farm landmarks, like the Lodge, as they were enjoyed by farm guests in the 1930s through the 1960s.  During those years, the farm was a vacation and retreat center for female employees of the H. J. Heinz Company.

Collage of photographs featuring Sebastian Mueller, Elizabeth Heinz Mueller, guests at Eden Hall Farm in front of a bus, eating in the cafeteria, and playfully rolling down a hill.

Following a brief introduction describing the impetus for founding Eden Hall Farm, the video presents photographs of farm guests alongside textual snippets from a brochure about the farm produced in the 1940s.  All materials in the video are part of the Eden Hall Farm Collection, which is housed in the Chatham University Archives and includes records ranging from guest books and paintings to land deeds and ephemera.

Those interested in exploring the collection more fully are invited to visit the online photograph collection, to review the collection finding aid, or to contact the Archivist for information or to schedule a research appointment (virtual or in-person).

September 8, 2021
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Subscribe to the JKM Library’s Newsletter!

https://bit.ly/JKMNews

Subscribe: https://bit.ly/JKMNews

The JKM Library has recently begun a new monthly newsletter that sends the goods directly to you inbox! That is, if you’re subscribed…

What you can expect to find in this new newsletter of news includes (but is not limited to): information about upcoming events, ways you can find textbooks for free, announcements about the library building and services, updates from the University Archives, highlights of library resources, secrets of the universe, and more! Faculty can expect important information about critical resources and services, like course reserves, in-class library instruction, and incorporating library digital resources into Brightspace course modules.

We really aren’t joking about the secrets of the universe thing. We do actually include those. But you’ll have to subscribe to learn what they are.

February 22, 2021
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Judge a Book By Its Cover Bracket 2021

We’re back with our second year of the Judge a Book By Its Cover Bracket! No one should be surprised that there are still many more delightfully goofy library book covers in our collection to judge and enjoy. We all know how outdated and silly some book covers can be to us now, and this bracket is all about embracing and enjoying everything these covers have to offer! We have selected 16 of our most ridiculous covers for you to compare and vote for the best/worst. Each book featured in the bracket is from our collection and is available for check-out by Chatham community members.

While we are clearly encouraging you to put on your judgment caps for this activity, don’t forget that the old saying is true: never judge a book by its cover…unless your librarians are demanding that you do it in the name of fun. But in all seriousness, some of the best books out there have been saddled with covers that just don’t fit what’s inside. So while we all love a beautiful book cover, don’t let the outdated covers discourage you from picking up what might end up being your next favorite book.

Now that the disclaimer is over, let’s get to the judgment. Feel free to download a bracket to fill out for fun prior to the voting. You can access the ballot HERE and on Instagram and Facebook. Make sure to follow us on social media to see which covers advance and how to vote in round two! Keep scrolling for a preview of the round one matchups and to help you fill out your brackets.

2021 Matchups

January 27, 2021
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The Chatham-Hampton University Exchange and the Civil Rights Movement

Student newspaper article about Hamtpon Institute Seminar

Student newspaper article announcing seminar at Hampton Institute (now Hampton University)

The 1960s is recognized as a pivotal era in American history, when activists in the Civil Rights Movement worked to remove barriers to equality in the voting booth, the workplace, in banking, and more. But, how involved were Chatham students in these efforts? Some might recall that Chatham students joined the marches from Selma to Montgomery in 1965 and organized a campus visit by John Lewis in 1964, but when did they begin to participate in the movement? Using the recently digitized Chatham Student Newspapers Collection from the University Archives, we can explore how a student-initiated exchange program with Hampton University, a historically black college in Virginia, created opportunities for students to better understand racism in American culture and to engage more closely in efforts to dismantle Jim Crow segregation laws in the early 1960s.

In March of 1961, the Chatham student newspaper (then called The Arrow) ran a front-page article about a seminar to be held at Hampton University (then known as Hampton Institute) on “African Nations in the World Community,” an event that invited interested students and faculty from other schools to attend[1].  Chatham students Dina Ebel `63, Helen Moed `63, and Janet Greenlee accepted the invitation and, upon their return, remarked that they were impressed by the “generosity shown by the students at Hampton” and “their keen interest in international affairs, even with a problem of their own race.”[2]

Portraits of four Chatham students involved in the initiation of the Chatham-Hampton Institute exchange program

 

The three students were highlighted in an article in The Arrow by Stephanie Cooperman `63 as a counterpoint to a sense of general apathy that she felt was affecting the Chatham student population.  Cooperman wrote that more opportunities like the seminar at Hampton Institute would help to engage students in the world beyond the campus.  She wrote, “Why not allow more of us to learn from actual experience the pain and courage it takes to live as a minority?  Why not institute an exchange program, perhaps a week’s duration, with a Southern Negro college?”[3]  Ebel, Moed, and Greenlee likewise supported the exchange program idea and wrote, “We had the opportunity and we want others to share our experience.  You can’t just talk and write about it; you must live it.”[4]

Clip from The Arrow 02/16/1962

Clip from article by Stephanie Cooperman `63 published on 2/16/1962 “[6]

By the spring of 1962, an exchange program between Hampton Institute and Chatham College was in place.  Those who were unable to travel to Hampton were invited to serve as hostesses for the Hampton Institute guests.  This was the first such exchange program at Chatham and a variety of campus events, including dorm parties, a student-faculty tea, and a “folk sing at the Snack Bar” were planned to welcome the visiting students.  The Hampton guests were encouraged to attend classes, student governance meetings, and on- and off-campus events of their choice.[5]

Phyllis Fox`64, one of the five Chatham students to visit Hampton Institute in 1962, wrote in The Arrow that she hoped the program would “help bridge the wide gap of misunderstanding between beings of the same species.” Using poetry to express her thoughts, Fox wrote:

“Every face has known joy and pain;Group of Chatham and Hampton students gathered at Hampton in 1962
Every face is wet with the same rain;
The face is only the mask of life
That hides the real human strife.
A person is not a face, but a spirit and a mind
So what matter if his skin is of a different kind?”[7]

Winter of 1963 saw the Hampton-Chatham exchange program promoted in the student newspaper with an article describing it as an opportunity for “discussions on segregation with students who had led or participated in sit-downs and other integration movements in the South” and for insight into “one of the foremost problems of today, that of racial relations.”[8]

After visiting Hampton Institute that year, Carol Sheldon `66 wrote about participating in a protest  and learning about segregated lunch counters and employment discrimination.  She wrote, “There is a certain unity about a group of fifty Negroes and three whites who walk into downtown discrimination-ridden Hampton on a Sunday afternoon; perhaps we were partners in fear, since many of us had not picketed anything before and were slightly apprehensive.”[9]

 

Chatham and Hampton students gathered in front of what may be the Emancipation OakArticles in the student newspaper about the program document a range of responses, with students expressing interest in extending the exchange for a whole semester and also insinuating that the Hampton visitors were given a less than welcome reception on campus.[10]

Philip A. Silk, an Assistant Minister from the First Unitarian Church, submitted a letter to the editor to The Arrow in which he describes the potential for the exchange program to create “intelligent follow-up projects as aiding groups such as the NAACP or the Urban League.” He continues, “But it can also lead to a feeling that you have done your part, having proved your liberalism in this brief event.”[11]  At the start of the 1963-1964 year, The Arrow announced plans to host a bi-monthly exchange column with the Hampton Institute newspaper[12] and efforts to help organize an exchange program between Hampton and a nearby men’s school, Washington and Jefferson College.[13]

The exchange that occurred in the spring of 1965 seems to be the last.  Following the exchange that year, Leslie Tarr `68 reported that there was little discussion of civil rights on Hampton Institute campus because the administration “frowned” on student engagement in civil rights demonstrations.[14]  That administrators discouraged student participation in civil rights demonstrations is surprising, especially considering that Hampton Institute President Dr. Moron arranged, in 1957, an on-campus position for civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks after her demonstration sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott and she was fired from her job.[15]  Tarr also said that Hampton Institute students agree that “It’s the parents who are causing the trouble, and there’s hope for our generation.”[16]

Newspaper Clipping Civil Rights ForumThough it is unclear from the student newspapers exactly why the exchange program ended, it seems that Chatham students remained interested in discussing racism and civil rights issues with members of the Hampton Institute community.  In 1966, the Chatham chapter of the National Student Association organized a week-long Civil Rights Forum with an aim to “broaden the exchange of ideas between Chatham students and students of other campuses.” Panelists included students from Hampton Institute, Howard University, Tuskegee Institute and Central State University as well as speakers from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).[17]

Illustration from The Arrow published on 4/9/1965 [18]

By exploring the newly digitized student newspaper collection, a more vivid picture of the early 1960s on Chatham campus emerges.  However, lots of questions—like why the exchange program ended and how the participants continued to engage in efforts to dismantle race-based discrimination—remain unanswered.  This period in Chatham history evokes enduring questions that are critical to the fight for equality, including questions of authenticity and performativeness that circulate within contemporary anti-racist efforts.  Though materials in the Chatham University Archives can’t answer all of these questions, they present an opportunity to examine how activism on campus has—and has not—changed over the years.  The Chatham University Archives welcomes questions about using the collections; more information can be found at library.chatham.edu/archives.

Notes

  1. “Hampton Institute Holds Conference on Africa,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), March 17, 1961, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168715.   
  2. Dina Ebel, Helen Moed, and Janet Greenlee, letter to the editor,  The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), May 12, 1961 on 05/12/1961, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168720.
  3. Stephanie Cooperman, “Student Slams Do-Nothings,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), April 28, 1961, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168718.
  4. Ebel, Moed, and Greenlee, letter to the editor, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168720.
  5. “Chatham Welcomes Eight from Hampton,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), April 13, 1962, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168875.
  6. Stephanie Cooperman, “Chatham Arts On Integration,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), February 16, 1962, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168871.
  7. Phyllis Fox, “People Are People From Va. To Pa.,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), April 27, 1962, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168876.
  8. “Hampton, Chatham Trade Students for Weekend,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), February 22, 1963, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168895.
  9. Carol Sheldon, “Chathamites at Hampton,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), April 12, 1963, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168899.
  10. “NSA Board Requests Reply From You,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania),May 10, 1963, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168901.
  11. Philip A. Silk, letter to the editor, The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), March 9, 1962, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168874.
  12. “Arrow States Policy,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), September 27, 1963, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25168903.
  13. “Seven to Travel to Hampton, Va.,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), March 13, 1964, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25169448.
  14. “Five Students Visit Hampton College On Annual 4-Day Exchange Program,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), April 9, 1965, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25169477.
  15. William Harvey , “Hampton University and Mrs. Rosa Parks: A Little Known History Fact.” Hampton University Website. Hampton University. Accessed January 28, 2021. www.hamptonu.edu/news/hm/2013_02_rosa_parks.cfm.
  16. “Five Students Visit Hampton College,” https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25169477.
  17. “NSA to Sponsor Forum on Rights,” The Arrow (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), February 4, 1966, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25169521.
  18. “Five Students Visit Hampton College,” https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/community.25169477.

 

January 21, 2021
by library
1 Comment

Book Review: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

Image from Goodreads

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown was a wonderful book. At several points in the book I found myself wondering what the next twist would be. The Da Vinci Code is about a symbologist named Robert Langdon. One night, while staying in Paris, he is called to the Louvre to help out on a murder investigation. The victim is in a peculiar pose with instructions to find Langdon scrawled on the floor. Little to his knowledge, Langdon is being investigated as one of the criminals. Now to clear his name, Langdon must solve the mystery himself using his knowledge of symbols.

I enjoyed how the author tied symbology into his novel. I learned things that I was not expecting to in a way that did not feel like I was in a class. I also feel that the action-packed novel kept me engaged with the characters. I often found myself sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for the next piece of the puzzle to be revealed. I highly recommend The Da Vinci Code to any who love mysteries or even to those looking for an adventure.

You can put a hold on The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown today through the JKM Library catalog and pick the book up at the library! Click here to get started.

Nerice Breen Lusen is an English Major here at Chatham University with a minor in Creative Writing. They have been working at the Jenny King Mellon Library as a student worker since their freshmen year, starting in 2018. Following their time at Chatham they plan to gain their master’s degree in Library and Information Science and become a librarian themself.
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