Tarleton Thursdays: Did You Know?

Miss Mattie Walker

“I plan to sleep until 8 am or after, enjoy the paper with a SECOND cup of coffee, and then spend the rest of the day doing WHATEVER PLEASES ME AT THE MOMENT!  After all that’s what retirement is for!”  This is what Miss Mattie Walker, head of the Tarleton Department of Home Economics, stated  when she announced her end of the semester retirement in February 1963!

Miss Walker attended Rockwall public schools, received her BS from Texas Woman’s University, received her MA from Columbia University, and did additional graduate work at the University of Chicago.  She taught at West Texas State College, North Texas State College, and Virginia State Teacher’s College before coming to Tarleton.

During Miss Walker’s thirty plus year tenure at Tarleton, the school grew from a junior agricultural college of 500 students to a senior liberal arts college with 1500 students!  She arrived at Tarleton when the Home Economics Building was the Administration Building.  In fact, her office at the time of her retirement was in the president’s old office!  She stated that the Home Economics Building was the only one of the current buildings that was there when she first arrived on the campus!

While at Tarleton she wrote the book Peanuts: the Use of Peanuts as a Food, c1941, which can be found in the Dick Smith Library.  It was edited by Tarleton Dean G. O. Ferguson, and the introduction was written by Tarleton Dean (President) J.Thomas Davis!  In addition, she was a member of the Texas Home Economics Association, American Association of University Women, the Stephenville Chamber of Commerce, and the local Zonta Club.

It was impossible to summarize a lifetime of teaching and come up with career highlights, but Miss Walker related her teaching philosophy by saying that a teacher learns anew each year – the same course over the years is not the same – only the basic principles are the same – they are presented and applied in a different manner for each individual student – a lifetime of individuals!

President Howell stated that he regretted accepting Miss Walkers’ retirement announcement and that she would be missed by the faculty, staff, and past and present students – but more importantly, she would be missed by the many who were not yet Tarleton students!

The Tarleton Home Economics Meal Services Class honored Miss Walker with a tea May 10, 1963 in the living room of the Home Economics Building.  Members of the class and faculty who knew and had worked with Miss Walker attended!

Miss Walker would have 26 years of retirement!  Hopefully she slept late, read the paper and drank her second cup of coffee, and did whatever pleased her at the moment!!

Grassburr, 1963.

JTAC, February 5, 1963, May 14, 1963.

Top 10 Reasons to Use Testing & Education Reference Center

Testing and Education Reference Center database, located on the library's A-Z Database list, is a tool that can be used by all: high school seniors, incoming freshmen, undergraduates, graduates, and even professors. It can help you prepare for your future in each stage of your life.

1. CLEP Test~  Provides a complete subject review and 2 practice tests for the 5 CLEP general subject tests. The CLEP gives students the chance to earn college-level credits through a series of exams.
2. TOEFL~ Gives students the opportunity to test their English language skills through reading, writing, listening and in some cases speaking.
3. GRE Prep~ You'll get subject reviews, along with test-taking tips and strategies, and also have the chance to practice your skills and diagnose your strengths and weaknesses by taking nine practice tests.
4. Graduate Program Search~ Search for the Graduate Program that's right for you. Programs can be found in England, Russia, or even Nova Scotia.
5. Scholarship Search~ With this search, you can find private awards and grants to help cut college costs as an Undergraduate or Graduate.
6. Military Test Prep~ Prepares students for entrance into the Armed Forces with practice entrance exams such as the ASVAB.
7. Resume Builder~ Helps students build a resume for a future career.
8. Career Assessment~ Find the career that fits you best.
9. Virtual Career Library~ These modules will help you search for jobs, prepare for an interview, and even learn how to negotiate job conditions, to say the least. 
10. Current Articles for Careers, Schools, etc.~ You can find current resources and articles for not only careers, but also universities and graduate programs.

TERC can help you do so much more than what is listed above. Take the time to thoroughly look over the database to find the tools you are looking for. It's your future, be prepared.

If you need assistance call the Information desk at (254) 968-9249 or email us at reference@tarleton.edu.

Meet Our Staff: Kym Schow

Kym Schow
Coordinator for Access Services
254-968-9871
schow@tarleton.edu
Dick Smith Library – Main Floor – Room 109C

Hello everyone!

My name is Kym Schow and I am the new Access Services Librarian. I’ll be overseeing the Circulation department and Interlibrary Loan while also working with off-campus students to make sure they have access to all our lovely resources.

I graduated from Angelo State University in 2008 with a bachelor's degree in fine arts in painting and drawing. After realizing that traditional animation isn’t the way of the world anymore, I decided to do a career evaluation. While my temporary adventures in pre-nursing were unfulfilling, the student worker position I found in the meantime at the Porter Henderson Library was the perfect fit! I was hired on as the Late Night Supervisor in Circulation in May 2010, and that June I started working on my library science degree at the University of North Texas. I graduated December 14, 2012, and shortly thereafter I was hired to join this wonderful team, and now here we are!

I spend most of my free time reading with my Chihuahua, Chibi, tucked away at my side. While my favorite genre is fantasy, I admit that reading fan-fiction is my guilty pleasure. Now that I’ve graduated, I hope to get back into some art projects that have been on the back burner for the past two years. I particularly enjoy working with acrylics and watercolor.

Infographic: 10 Reasons the Internet is no Substitute for a Library

Happy Friday! All too often I hear someone say "everything is on the internet," which can be an easy thing to assume but is simply not true. This infographic by Mark Herring of Winthrop University helps highlight the reasons why libraries and the resources/services we provide continue to be an essential part of our collective pursuit for information and knowledge. The Tarleton library staff are always happy to help you find the answers you need. :)

http://www2.winthrop.edu/dacus/about/Librarypostereprint.pdf

Feel free to comment with additional reasons why the Internet is no substitute for the library.

"It is a truth universally acknowledged..."

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."

This is the opening line of one of the most famous novels in English literature--Pride & Prejudice, published in 1812 by Jane Austen. The 200th anniversary of the publication was January 28th.  If you're an Austen fan (books, film adaptations, or both), we've got you covered!*

This watercolor sketch of Austen was done by
her sister Cassandra.

Pride & Prejudice
The original classic novel of manners.
VPR4034 .P7 2008 General Stacks (upstairs)
We also have the e-book and an audiobook version.

Pride and prejudice and zombies : the classic Regency romance--now with ultraviolent zombie mayhem
Austen's beloved characters battle the undead in this popular (and unusual) adaptation.
PS3607 .R348 P75 2009 General Stacks

Death Comes To Pemberley
Elizabeth and Darcy must solve a murder mystery at Pemberley estate.
PR6060 .A467 D33 2011 General Stacks

We also have the excellent BBC film adaptation starring Colin Firth.  It is located downstairs in the Audiovisual room.

*If you attend classes at a satellite campus, you can request these items through interlibrary loan.

Testing & Education Reference Center

Are you or someone you know preparing for the ACT, SAT, GRE, GMAT, LSAT, etc?

Need help building your resume?

Looking for a career change? How about Air Traffic Control, ASE Automotive, Cosmetology, Fire Fighter, Law Enforcement, Medical/Nursing, Real Estate or even Social Work?

Crazy, right? No, the library can help!

This information and training tools are available in our Testing & Education Reference Center database.

So, no more excuses!!! Let us help you achieve your career and/or educational goals!

New Resources!

The library has three new resources!  They have been added to our list of databases.

• Job & Career Accelerator -- interest assessment, career exploration, resume builder and job search platform.
• LearningExpress Library -- practice tests & interactive skill building tutorials. Prepare for the GED, as well as professional certification, licensing, and aptitude tests in civil service, law enforcement, firefighting, EMS, military, real estate,and healthcare. Prepare for college and graduate school admissions tests including the SAT, ACT, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, and MCAT.
• NBC Learn Higher Ed -- thousands of videos, historic newsreels, primary source documents, and  photographs from NBC News.

Please give these resources a try. Find them userful?  Not your cup of tea?  Post a comment and share.  Feedback on the usefulness of any database is appreciated!

Black History Month

February is Black History Month, so to celebrate the library is spotlighting a Research Guide and Selected Internet links. 

These pages are featured on the news and events section of the library website.   Stop by and take a look...and if you have a suggestion for a link or a topic to feature, post a comment and share!

Tarleton Thursdays: Did You Know?

   

Migration to Hunewell

Valentine’s Day fifty years ago – February 14, 1963 – found 94 Tarleton girls in the brand new Hunewell dorm!  They moved into the new dorm on January 27^th and 28^th, 1963, so they were just getting settled in by Valentine’s Day.

Each suite accommodating 4 girls was divided by a private bath with a divided study area.  The modern rooms had large closets with sliding doors.  The girls could have a private telephone if they desired.  The rooms also had fluorescent lighting and full length mirrors.  The built in desks, bookshelves, and chests added to the efficiency of the suites.  Colors conducive to study and restful living were used – soft beige and gray, accented with turquoise or tangerine chair cushions.  The beds, night tables, and chairs were walnut….and the building had central air conditioning!!

Open house was held on Sunday March 10, 1963 from 2-4:30.  The girls showed parents, friends, residents, faculty, administration, and town people through the halls and several rooms in the dorm.  Refreshments were served by the girls in the parlor which was adorned with several  lovely flower arrangements.   Many attendees shared the same feelings - that the rooms looked very nice and seemed to lend themselves to the different arrangements the girls had used.  

Wonder how similar the Hunewell girls’ room arrangements are today?

 Happy Valentine's Day!!

Grassburr, 1963.

JTAC, January 15, 1963, February 5, 1963, March 12, 1963.



BE OUR VALENTINE!!!

The Dick Smith Library has had an amazing turnout for Library Lovers Month thus far. We traditionally celebrate Library Lovers Day on February 14th and this year we do it again. Tomorrow we will have more buttons, more Post-its, and Hershey's Kisses available to YOU to help US celebrate LIBRARIES! We LOVE the DSL and want to share that love with you! Swing by tomorrow and join in on the celebration!

We we will also be announcing the winner of our #WeLoveTarletonLib twitter contest tomorrow via twitter. There's still time to get your tweets in and tell us why you love the library. You have the chance to win a great prize: library tote bag, library pad folio, tsu coffee thermos, t-shirt, and more.

Help us in celebrating not only OUR library but libraries everywhere!

#libraryloversmonth @TarletonLib #WeLoveTarletonLib

Top 10 Reasons to love Tarleton Libraries

There are lots of reasons to love Tarleton Libraries, but here are my Top 10.

1. We have friendly, knowledgable staff that love to help you! Call us at 254-968-9249 or click  http://www.tarleton.edu/library/askaref.html for assistance.

2. Shhh...we have quiet places to study. Check out the Quiet Zone located on the upper level of the library.

3. We offer mobile apps for searching our library catalog and databases such as JSTOR, SciVerse, Ebsco, and American Chemical Society. For a complete list: http://www.tarleton.edu/library/mobile.html

4. Our Discovery search tool saves you time by allowing you to do one search and get results from several different library databases. http://www.tarleton.edu/library/discovery/

5. The Suavé Coffee Bar offers delicious drinks and food to keep everyone going.

6. Our Interlibrary Loan (ILLiad) staff work hard to find books, articles, dvds, microfilm, etc. to borrow from other libraries for your research needs. Did you know that they can also get fiction and other recreational books for you and it's almost always free!! http://www.tarleton.edu/library/ill.html  

7. We know your time is valuable, so we have a charging station for your phone located on the main floor and a supply vending machine in the Student Lounge for pens, pencils, scantrons, etc.

8. All students, staff, and faculty can check out materials from our library free-of-charge. All you need is a photo id.

9. Our Display Committee provides interesting and informative displays. Stop by to see our display in the lobby and the new book display in the reference area bookcase.

10. We like to hear from you! We're doing a Library Lovers twitter contest through Wednesday, Feb. 13th @ noon. Use @TarletonLib and #WeLoveTarletonLib to participate. The winner will be announced Feb. 14th.

Free i Pod 1908 Style

The Dick Smith Library has in its collections textual county records for Erath, Eastland, Coleman, and Comanche counties. These are large leather bound volumes. While the majority of the volumes are records of county activities there are a few "strange" volumes. One such is an account book for a store in either Dublin or Harbin, Texas. The account part of the volume dates from 1908, then in the middle there are court records from 1915, then it goes back to an account book dated from 1908. Perhaps the county clerk need a book one day and also worked at the store and grabbed one from the store. Tucked in this volume was the ad you see here offering a $25.00 natural tone talking & singing machine absolutely free, with $50.00 cash purchase. Or for $5.00 with a $25.00 cash purchase. 

In 1908 this was the latest in recorded sound technology. The customer is invited to come by the store to hear specially prepared records of bands, instrumental music, songs, and stories. "The best talent in the country is brought right to your fireside to while away the long evenings with comical recitations and songs."It is pointed out that the machine also has educational uses as well. The ad continues further that the graphophone represents the latest achievements of the largest and best equipped talking machine industry in the world. The machine has a "handsome flower horn, noiseless motor, an adjustable speed screw, and oil tempered bearings that will last a lifetime. The machine required no electricity to run it, it was a hand cranked machine. One can only imagine what the people of 1908 would think of mp 3 players and all of the other ways we have to carry our music with us.

Quest for Information – Not Such a New Thing

Our modern day society thrives on information.  We watch the news.  We read articles in the newspaper.  We scour the Internet for information.  We use our phones to receive information  whenever and wherever we want.  People from the 19^th and 20^th centuries were not so different from us in their longing for information.

In the late 1800’s libraries were the central hubs of information for a community.  Scores of people went to libraries.  Andrew Carnegie wrote that the user statistics for a library established by Enoch Platt in Baltimore showed that 37,196 people were registered as “readers” and that more than 37,000 people used that library in just one year (Librarianship in the Gilded Age America:  An Anthology of Writings 1868-1901 by L.C. Schlup, p. 106)!  

Andrew Carnegie, incredible philanthropist, was himself a seeker of knowledge.  According the National Park Service, as a young boy Carnegie met Col. James Anderson of Allegheny who opened his personal library up to young workers who wished to borrow books.  When, in 1853, access to this book collection was denied, Carnegie (who was less than 18 years old) pledged to establish access to books for poor workers if he, himself, ever became rich.

And that is just what Carnegie did!  He accumulated enormous wealth and would be in the category of today’s elite wealthy, such as Bill Gates.  In the 1890’s Carnegie began to give away his fortune, mostly for the establishment of libraries, with no strings attached.  At that time there were only 400 libraries in the entire United States, with only four public libraries in Texas (Carnegie Libraries Across America: A Public Legacy by T. Jones)!  

The Fort Worth Public Library was the result of Mrs. D. B. Keeler’s letter to Carnegie.  Fort Worth received $50,000 (much more than the average figure of less than $10,000) and had an operational library by 1901. By the time Carnegie died in 1919, he had given away more than $350,000,000. Texas had gained 32 Carnegie libraries.  Across the United States, 1,689 libraries had been built by the Carnegie Foundation (from Texas Library Journal (Winter 2010) Carnegie Libraries: The Jumpstart to Public Libraries in Texas by L.M.Geppert Jacobs). 

To join Tarleton’s celebration of libraries tweet: #libraryloversmonth @TarletonLib.

Twitter Contest

Guess what, Library Lovers?!? 

Tarleton Libraries is holding a Twitter Contest starting today until February 13th at noon. 

If you have a twitter account, start warming up your fingers for tweeting. The person who tweets the most wins. 

We're asking you to tell us why you love Tarleton Libraries! 

Be sure to use our Twitter handle, @TarletonLib, and the designated hash tag, #WeLoveTarletonLib

Winner to be announced February 14th on Library Lover's Day! 

We look forward to reading your tweets!

Get a Button, Share Your Interests & Join the Tweets

February is Library Lovers' Month and Dick Smith Library is celebrating.

We Invite You to Celebrate, too!

Check out our February display.
You'll see lots of "lovely" items and books about activities your library staff members love to do: sewing, fishing, horseback riding, knitting, grilling, blogging,  running, writing poetry, playing video games, and more.


Get your Library Lover's button.
-- Enjoy it.
-- Share it with friends.
-- Add it to your button collection.




Tell others what you love to do!
-- Post your messages on the boards in the library's lobby.
-- Get inspiration from others' messages.
-- See if others share your interests.

 

 

 

Love libraries?  Tweet about it!  #libraryloversmonth @TarletonLib

Want to read some memorable quotes about libraries?  Check out Library Quotes.
Want to win a cool prize? Watch for news about our upcoming contest.

Top Ten Newbery Medalists at the Dick Smith Library

Last Monday, the American Library Association announced its annual Youth Media Awards, the top books, video and audiobooks for children and young adults.  Here at the Dick Smith Library, we own all of the Medalists and nearly all of the Honor Books for the top two awards, the Randolph Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished American picture book for children, and the John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children's literature.

I thought it would be interesting to see which Newbery Medalists have been most popular (in terms of the number of times it has been checked out since we started keeping records in July 1996).  Here are our top ten, with the year the book won listed after the author's name:

 1.  Number the Stars, by Lois Lowry - 1990 - PZ7 .L9673 NU *
 2.  Dear Mr. Henshaw, by Beverly Cleary - 1984 - PZ7 .C5792 DE 1983
 3.  Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson - 1978 - PZ7 .P273 BR *
 4.  Sarah, Plain and Tall, by Patricia MacLachlan - 1986 - PZ7 .M2225 SAR *
 5.  Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred Taylor - 1977 - PZ7 .T21723 RO *
 6.  Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O'Dell - 1961 - PZ7 .O237 IS *
 7.  Sounder, by William Armstrong - 1970 - PZ7 .A73394 SO *
 8.  Holes, by Louis Sachar - 1999 - PZ7 .S1185 HO *
 9.  Dicey's Song, by Judith Voigt - 1983 - PZ7 .V874 DI 1983
10.  Missing May, by Cynthia Rylant - 1993 - PZ7 .R982 MJ 1992

All of these can be found on the lower level of the Dick Smith Library, in the Curriculum Collection.  When you click the links, you'll see that some of these (* also marked with asterisks after the call number in the list) are also available here as audiobooks, in the Audiovisual Collection, also downstairs. 

How many of these have you read (or listened to)?  Tell us in the comments!  Our top ten were all published between 1960 and 1998, so most of you may have had an opportunity to read these in school.  My goal is to read all 92 (so far) medalists, but I have a long way to go.  In our top ten list, I've read seven (the ones we have as audiobooks), and I've read (or listened to) 40 in all.  I started working on this goal in August 2007!

Don't forget - February is Library Lovers Month! #libraryloversmonth @TarletonLib.

Hobby researching with Discovery

Is there a hobby you're interested in learning more about? Try doing some searches using the library's Discovery @ Tarleton to gather the information you need!

I'm a knitter/crafter by night and recently have been curious about how commercial knitting works. A few searches for knitting and knitting machines brought up tons of articles, book reviews, images, and even ebooks. I found a really neat article about using 3-D graphic design software to create a pattern for a knitted stuffed animal. I also stumbled upon an article describing the use of a knitting techinque call intarsia and its application to garmets used in the healthcare industry. Some date filtering on my list of results gave me information on knitting machines from the 19th and 20th century. It was pretty neat seeing the diverse areas knitting has been used for.

If the mood of curiousity strikes you and you're interested in learning more about your pasttimes -- be it crafting, sports, cooking, etc.-- give Discovery @ Tarleton a whirl and see what you can find.You might be pleasantly surprised!

Library Lovers Month

Did you know that February is Library Lovers Month?
This annual celebration seeks to highlight all types of libraries: public libraries, academic libraries (that's us!), special libraries, etc.

Help us celebrate--stop by this month and tell us why you love libraries by leaving a post-it on our whiteboard.  While you're here, pick up a free Library Lovers Button. Be sure to come by on Valentine's Day to get some free candy. You can also use the hash tag #libraryloversmonth.

We love your feedback.  Leave a comment on this post, or follow us on Facebook and/or Twitter.

Happy Library Lovers Month!

Stop by the library Feb 5-28 to get a button.