New Digital Theatre Arts Costume Collection

Millie, Act II, Scenes iv-viii
by Darrin J. Pufall
doi: 10.18122/B2VC7T

Kimberly Holling, Library Assistant III for the Data Management and Scholarly Communications unit recently helped launch a new Theatre Arts Costume Collection in ScholarWorks. The collection was organized and implemented by Ms. Holling for her 2016 Master of Library and Information Science Capstone Project with the University of Washington. As a growing number of institutions are creating digital collections of historical clothing, the same cannot be said for theatrical costumes.

This form of non-traditional academic scholarship continues to go unmarked in the world of repositories with the exception of small collections of production stills. While theatre is a collaborative effort, there are technical elements (ex. scenery or costumes) that need to be documented with context in order to support the study and ongoing recognition of their corresponding designers. Constructed garments are often altered and reused for subsequent performances making these pieces ephemeral in nature.

This collection increases awareness not only of the designer’s work, but also to Boise State University’s contributions to the theatre arts. Initially intended as a form of archival collection, it quickly presented itself as a digital publishing opportunity for the library. The collection currently houses 63 digitally published records containing the costume designs of Darrin J. Pufall for the 2013 Boise State production of Thoroughly Modern Millie. These records are a combination of Mr. Pufall’s personal costume renderings and Ms. Holling’s photographs of selected garments from the show.

Finished garment of
displayed rendering
doi: 10.18122/B2S88J

To add further value to these records a statement from the designer himself provides additional context to understand why certain features were chosen and the overall premise the designer was going for. Ms. Holling herself has a background in both apparel design and theatre (performance and costume design) and provided her expertise to help breakdown the primary construction techniques and features of the photographed garments, along with measurements and the fabric content whenever possible.

The additional insight of Keri Fitch, the manager of the Theatre Arts Costume Shop, provided further background for alterations in the final design of certain garments from the original rendering, which is information that is generally left unknown to those outside of the technical production of a show.

The collection demonstrates the on-going efforts of the Data Management and Scholarly Communications unit to support Boise State's arts and humanities scholarship while expanding its original, open access publishing services.

Building upon traditional library cataloging description practices, Ms. Holling utilized a standards-based metadata schema to represent the theatrical costume designs and increase discovery of the work. Additionally, unlike other online costume collections which are no longer accessible, the library's stewardship and support of this work ensures permanent, world-wide access to Boise State scholarship.

Come visit the new Theatre Arts Costume Collection online at: http://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/millie_2013_costumes

Research Community: Coffee & Donuts

The campus research community is invited to the monthly Coffee and Donuts forum from 9-11 a.m. on Thursday, March 3rd in the Albertsons Library's MakerLab space. 

SCHEDULE

9 - 10 a.m. – Open forum to mingle

10 - 11 a.m. – Round table discussion

Learn About Opportunities for Early Career Research Funding

Opportunities Abound for Early Career Research Funding! The March 3rd Coffee and Donuts will feature a round table discussion facilitated by Harold Blackman, associate vice president of Research and Economic Development. The round table goal is to introduce the variety of early career funding opportunities available to new faculty, discuss strategies for preparing for and responding to solicitations, and  highlight some lessons learned. During the hour round table, research development and grant specialist staff, library personnel, and faculty will present and share:

• Share “Funding Strategies & Opportunities for New & Early Career Faculty" toolkit, including resources for funding opportunities that span the disciplines
• Provide a template for developing your individual research plan
• Provide an NSF CAREER grant “Prep Sheet” to jump start attendees for the CAREER workshop on March 18
• Lessons learned from faculty who have recently submitted on a variety of “new faculty” funding opportunities

You can also sign up for a one-on-one with the Research Computing Services Department’s programmer, system administrator, or HPC engineer to learn more about research computing tools and resources.

Humanities & technology camp at Boise State

Interested in the intersection of the humanities and technology? Then attend the fourth THATCamp Boise State from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13 in the Student Union Building. THATCamp stands for The Humanities and Technology Camp.

THATCamps are user-generated unconferences, "an open, inexpensive meeting where humanists and technologists of all skill levels learn and build together in sessions proposed on the spot.”

The theme for this year's THATCamp is “Access, Empowerment, and Expression.” Educators, developers, coders, geeks, artists, students, teachers, historians, librarians, authors, hackers, archivists, philosophers, actors, creatives, or those interested in the humanities and/or technology are encouraged to attend.

In addition to local keynote speakers, our own ScholarWorks librarians Amber Sherman and Michelle Armstrong will lead a workshop on open access and author rights.

This is a full-day event, free and open to the public. Breakfast and lunch will be provided, with free parking available next to the Student Union Building. Space is limited so registration is required.

To learn more about THATCamp Boise State, go to boisestate2016.thatcamp.org.

1st Thursday Coffee and Donuts

The research community is invited to 1st Thursday Coffee and Donuts on February 4, 2016 in the MakerLab space in the Albertsons library on the first floor.

Donna Llewellyn, executive director of the Institute for STEM and Diversity Initiatives, will be at Coffee and Donuts to talk about how the Institute can help to support your research. Whether you’re interested in getting involved in educational research projects or studying the impact of your work on under served and under represented students, come to get connected and learn more about the Institute’s programs.

9 - 10 a.m. – Open forum to mingle

10 - 11 a.m. – Special Presentation by Donna Llewellyn

Also, be sure to invite your colleagues for donuts and coffee to chat during the social hour about opportunities to collaborate on projects like INFEWS, Biomolecular Research Center work, Great Basin or Rocky Mountain CESUs, or other consortia.

You can also sign up for a one-on-one with the Research Computing Services Department’s programmer, system administrator, or cyberinfrastructure engineer to learn more about research computing tools and resources.

Michelle Armstrong,
Associate Professor, Head, Scholarly Communications and Data Management

ScholarWorks display in Special Collections and Archives

The ScholarWorks unit, in conjunction with Special Collections and Archives (SCA), has created a display showcasing many different types of Boise State scholarly outputs.

Both ScholarWorks and SCA are concerned with curating the scholarship of Boise State University, as such many of the collections presented have a physical component that is housed within archives and displayed alongside the more digital quality of ScholarWorks content.

The exhibit includes information about Boise State’s first e-Journal BOGA Basque Studies Consortium Journal, which just released its 4th issue. Several articles in BOGA discuss materials in the SCA collection, such as the Nor-Nun book which is also on display. Cabinets and windows feature books and other series written or produced by Boise State, which SCA collects and many are available to read online from the ScholarWorks website.

The purely digital nature of ScholarWorks presented a distinct challenge to create a physical display, which required collaboration with SCA and Library IT. Jim Duran, Cheryl Oestreicher, and Gwyn Hervochon from SCA helped find materials which would complement each window display, as well as provided tips to arrange and present the objects and information. Bill English from Library IT creatively found ways to incorporate digital components in the exhibit.

The unique aspect of this display is it is interactive with iPads and headphones provided to allow visitors to listen to the Idaho LGBTQ Oral History Project. Additional iPads are available for visitors to browse the ScholarWorks website to learn more about the collections on display. The library IT department also used Raspberry Pis to run a slideshow of art images on a 32” monitor.

The items selected for this display were chosen to showcase the wide variety of research from not only faculty and staff, but also students (undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate levels), and sometimes even the Boise community in relation to Boise State. Since 2009, ScholarWorks has been working to make Boise State’s scholarship openly accessible.

The largest collection is faculty publications and all of the collections combined have been downloaded over 1.5 million times from people all over the world. We hope this display helps provide you the viewer with more context as to what ScholarWorks is, does, and provides.

You can visit the display on the second floor of Albertsons Library anytime the library is open during the Spring 2016 semester, and checkout ScholarWorks online at scholarworks.boisestate.edu. We are also happy to answer any questions you may have in person (Library 217), on the phone (208-426-2581), or through email (scholarworks@boisestate.edu).

Kimberly Holling and Amber Sherman

Boise State Authors: Over 1 ½ million Downloads

Congratulations Boise State Authors! Your scholarly works have been download over 1 ½ million times since ScholarWorks began in 2009. 

In a time when journal prices are skyrocketing and publishers are placing more restrictions on authors, systems like ScholarWorks help connect people from around the world to the incredible work you are producing. Help us reach 2 million downloads by looking for Open Access Journal options, challenging copyright transfer agreements, and continuing to send your work to ScholarWorks.

Congratulations!

Amber Sherman,
ScholarWorks Librarian

New Issue of BOGA, Basque Studies Consortium Journal Published

BOGA, the Basque Studies Consortium Journal, has just published its next issue. The multi-disciplinary, peer-reviewed, academic publication provides a forum for the scholarly study of all aspects of Basque culture. As an English language journal, the publication not only benefits the academic community, it also provides a valuable avenue for non-Basque speakers to learn about this unique and important culture.

In this latest issue, researchers have explored Ernest Hemingway’s experience with the Basque, Basque diaspora within the academic community, and the globalization of the Basque culture. Also featured is a look back at the Oñati study abroad program. Oñati, Gipuzkoa is home to the Basque Country’s first university built in 1548 and the first location for Boise State’s Basque study abroad program in the 1970s.

Gozatu! Enjoy!

Michelle Armstrong,
Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian

Coffee and Donuts with the Research Community

Thursday, November 5th, the Boise State research community is invited for coffee and donuts in the Library’s Makerlab. Sponsored by the Office of Information Technology (OIT), researchers wanting to talk about their research activities, grant proposals, data management needs, or how they can use OIT's research computing services can find help. In addition to the open forum, Will Hughes will provide a presentation on VIP (Vertically Integrated Projects) program and how it can benefit researchers.

To learn more, please visit: http://wiki.boisestate.edu/coffee-and-donuts-with-the-research-community-agenda/

Michelle Armstrong,
Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian

Happy Open Access Week!

Today kicks off a weeklong event in honor of Open Access! Open Access is “the free, immediate, online availability of research articles, coupled with the rights to use these articles fully in the digital environment” (SPARC). One of our favorite resources for explaining Open Access is this short video:

October 19th – October 25th you can join students, faculty, researchers, and citizens from around the world to learn about the benefits of Open Access. Open Access has made some headlines this year. Maybe you heard about publishing giant Elsevier’s new policy which creates barriers to open sharing of scholarly work? Or FASTR – new legislation for Fair Access to Science and Technology Research, or the new Open Library of Humanities.

To us, every week is Open Access week! Albertsons Library supports Open Access by working to make Boise State publications freely available to anyone in the world. Visit scholarworks.boisestate.edu to read over 5,000 faculty publications, 900 thesis and dissertations, and many other types of scholarly work. Watch our readership map to see these documents being downloaded all over the world. With almost 1.5 million downloads, we know people are finding and reading Boise State scholarship! http://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/readership_map.html#content

Follow the conversation at #oaweek and #openaccess on Twitter and check out http://www.openaccessweek.org/. You can also follow and tweet @OpenBoiseState to tell us what you would like to know about Open Access at Boise State.

Amber Sherman,
ScholarWorks Librarian

Register for the Openness Symposium

Amber Sherman, ScholarWorks Librarian at Albertsons Library has organized an Openness Symposium devoted to principles of Open Access, and the tools and resources available to help you incorporate Openness into your teaching and learning. The Symposium will be held September 30, 2015 in the SUB, Jordan Ballroom A.

Speakers will include:

• 9am: Dr. Chris Haskell, Boise State EdTech professor, will demonstrate Open Badges
• 10am: Leif Nelson, Interim Director of Learning Technology Solutions at Boise State will discuss teaching students about free and open content online
• 11am: Annie Gaines, University of Idaho Scholarly Communications Librarian, will present on Open Textbooks
• 1-4pm: Betsy Russell, Boise bureau chief for The Spokesman-Review, will lead a workshop on Open Government: Public Records and Open Meetings.

The symposium is a pre-conference offering at the Idaho Library Association's annual conference, which is being held at Boise State this year. Registration is open to the community; register for the symposium at http://idaholibraries.org/conferences/ila-annual-conference/.

The Boise State University Yearbook

Residents of Morrison Hall, 1961. Image published in Les Bois 1961.

From 1935 to 1978, the Associated Student Body of Boise Junior College, Boise College, and Boise State University published an annual yearbook titled Les Bois. This publication highlighted important events on campus, as well many other facts about each school year. Les Bois could be a valuable resource for names of alumni, popular trends in various eras, or just for browsing.

Each volume of Les Bois typically had a section for academics, student life, and sports. In the Student Life section, Les Bois often included a brief summary of the major student organizations and their activities for the year. For example, this excerpt is from the 1961 Morrison Hall page:

Highlights at the year at Morrison Hall included picnics and dinner dances with residents of Driscoll Hall, sponsoring of a float and queen candidate at Homecoming, a dorm formal, spring tea and a little sister or coed weekend. At Christmas time the girls arranged for gifts for the State School at Nampa, went caroling and, as in the past, decorated their suites.

Note that in 1961 Morrison Hall was an all-female dormitory, and Driscoll Hall was all-male.
You can find the Les Bois in the catalog at http://boisestate.worldcat.org/oclc/2396586. Copies circulate in the main collection, and a full set is available for viewing in the Archives on the second floor of the library, and online via ScholarWorks at http://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/student_yearbooks/.

Jim Duran,
Special Collections

Art Exhibits in ScholarWorks

“Art is a nation’s most precious heritage. For it is in our works of art that we reveal to ourselves and to others the inner vision which guides us as a nation. And where there is no vision, the people perish.” –Lyndon Johnson, on signing into existence the National Endowment on the Arts

Flotilla  by Ian K. Smith – Albertsons Library 50^th Anniversary Juried Art Exhibit

 

Boise State University hosted several art exhibitions this year, including the Albertsons Library 50th Anniversary Juried Art Exhibit, the Master of Fine Arts Visual Arts Theses Exhibits, and Ball of Wax – the Spring 2015 Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibit. While we are sad to see the art leave the 2nd floor hallway of the library and other exhibition halls, you can always see images from the exhibits in ScholarWorks!

Elements by Scott Russell Taylor
from his series
Hannibal 218 B.C.
– BFA Fall 2014

ScholarWorks is a collection of services designed to capture and showcase ALL scholarly output by the Boise State University community. Traditional journal articles and peer-reviewed research make up the majority of the collection; however, we are committed to including more forms of scholarly outputs, especially artwork!

We see how diverse and original the work of the Boise State community is, and ScholarWorks gives everyone an opportunity to see that too. Each image is highlighted, giving the artists a chance to share their works with people all over the world.

Our system is optimized for search engine discoverability which helps people stumble upon a work through Google or find it quickly knowing the title, author, or keywords.

Since posting the Anniversary Exhibit on May 4th, the images have been viewed over 162 times. The three BFA Exhibit collections combined were viewed over 1150 times and the MFA collections, which just launched were viewed 218 times to date.

A map on the ScholarWorks homepage shows where certain works are downloaded giving you an idea of the broad appeal of Boise State scholarship. You can browse through the image galleries and click on an image for more detailed information, often including an artist’s statement to give the reader a better understanding of the artist’s motivation and interpretation.

h@rness f@mi1y sitc0m by Eric S. Mullis – MFA 2015

 

Using the J.Paul Getty Foundation’s Categories for the Description of Works of Art (CDWA) framework (suggestion for organizing and displaying the information), Library Assistant III, Kimberly Holling, reviewed each piece, selected the appropriate metadata and file formats. As a result most records describe the dimensions and art medium, so you can get a better idea of the materials used and size of the original piece.

Faculty members interested in including more of their own, or their students’, scholarship – in any form (art, papers, posters, videos, etc.) should contact scholarworks@boisestate.edu.           

Amber Sherman, Kimberly Holling, and Michelle Armstrong
ScholarWorks

New Issue of the McNair Scholars Research Journal Now Available

The Spring 2015 issue of the McNair Scholars Research Journal is now available via ScholarWorks. The journal features research in physics, art, mass communication and journalism, biology, English, environmental studies, multi-ethnic studies, and history. This year’s authors focused on diverse topics such as sexual violence in India, the Melville-Hawthorne friendship, and the Arrowrock Dam. With over 140,000 full text downloads to date, the McNair Journal is one of the most highly used publications in the entire ScholarWorks collection.

The Boise State McNair Scholars Program serves students from groups underrepresented in graduate education and first generation college students from low-income backgrounds, grooming them for graduate studies through scholarly enrichment, exposure to research, and other academic experiences and opportunities. The program collaborates with Faculty Mentors to prepare McNair Scholars to successfully pursue a PhD and careers in university teaching and research.

Each Spring, the McNair Scholars Program publishes the Boise State McNair Scholars Research Journal, featuring articles reporting on research conducted during the McNair Summer Research Institute. The journal provides a unique opportunity for McNair Scholars to experience the publication process and develop important writing and revision skills.

Michelle Armstrong,
Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian

Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research

ICUR – the Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research will be held at the Student Union Building on July 29-30th. ICUR promotes undergraduate research and creative activity in all fields of study. If you are an undergraduate student and would like to showcase your research, submit an abstract before June 24th.

Registration for the conference is free, so even if you are not ready to discuss your research, you can attend and see what your fellow Idaho undergraduates are researching. The conference will also feature sessions on Author Rights, with Scholarly Communication and Data Management Librarian Michelle Armstrong, National Scholarships, with Emily Jones of the Honors College, and more. Details can be found on the ICUR website: http://academics.boisestate.edu/icur/.

Amber Sherman,
ScholarWorks Librarian

Undergraduate Research Conference

From 1:00 - 4:00pm today in the Jordan Ballroom, Boise State is hosting the 2015 Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Conference. The conference features podium and poster presentations from all six colleges and allows the campus (and community) to  learn about the research undergraduates are engaged in. To see a complete list of abstracts, go to ScholarWorks at: http://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/2015_under_conf/.

Congratulations to all students participating in the poster session! Remember, if you would like the rest of the world (including future employers and grad schools) to see what you've accomplished, you can send a PDF of your poster to ScholarWorks at: scholarworks@boisestate.edu.

Amber Sherman,
ScholarWorks Librarian

Research Community Invited to Coffee and Donuts Forum – April 2nd

The campus research community is invited to the monthly Coffee and Donuts forum from 9-11 a.m. April 2nd.

The schedule is as follows:

• 9 – 11 a.m. Microforms area – 1st Floor
  Open forum to mingle. Support staff will be available to answer questions on data management planning, research computing and proposal development.
  
• 10 – 11 a.m. Room 201C – 2nd Floor
  “Responding to Grant Funder Policies on Research Dissemination.” The White House directive on Increasing Access to the Results of Federally Funded Scientific Research is changing federal department funding policies. Learn how these changes impact your grant proposals and the resources Boise State has to help you comply with individual federal and foundation guidelines. Participants may take their coffee and donuts to the presentation. Michelle Armstrong, Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian and Amber Sherman, ScholarWorks Librarian

Coffee and Donuts is presented by the Research Computing Department, Albertsons Library and the Division of Research and Economic Development. The forum includes information on available resources and support services and is meant to allow faculty and students to visit with one another and administrative staff and establish a sense of community.

Additional Coffee and Donuts forums will be presented from 9-11 a.m. on May 7. Each forum will highlight a specific topic, research area, or expertise. Agenda with details will be posted prior to each event.

Michelle Armstrong,
Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian

Research Community Invited to Coffee and Donuts Forum - March 5th

The campus research community is invited to the monthly Coffee and Donuts forum from 9-11 a.m. March 5th, Feb. 5.

The schedule is as follows:

• 9 – 11 a.m. Microforms area – 1st Floor
  Open forum to mingle. Support staff will be available to answer questions on data management planning, research computing and proposal development.
  
  
• 10 – 11 a.m. Frank Church Room – 2nd Floor
  Ken Cornell, Associate Director of the Biomolecular Research Center (BRC)
  
  Ken Cornell will present an overview of the BRC and its comprehensive website. The BRC provides fee-for-service access to a variety of instrumentation, proposal development and manuscript preparation support, trainings, and networking opportunities.
  
  Dr. Cornell’s presentation will explain how researchers can utilize and replicate these services within their own units.

Coffee and Donuts is presented by the Research Computing Department, Albertsons Library and the Division of Research and Economic Development. The forum includes information on available resources and support services and is meant to allow faculty and students to visit with one another and administrative staff and establish a sense of community.

Additional Coffee and Donuts forums will be presented from 9-11 a.m. on April 2, and May 7. Each forum will highlight a specific topic, research area, or expertise. Agenda with details will be posted prior to each event.

Michelle Armstrong,
Scholarly Communications and Data Management Librarian

Like Eating Cake?

Well we do too. We also like bragging about all the amazing work that our students, staff, and faculty are doing. To combine these two favorite activities, the library is hosting a celebration in recognition of ScholarWorks reaching ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS!

Designed to showcase Boise State’s research and scholarship, ScholarWorks’ collections include faculty publications, graduate theses and dissertations, undergraduate research and scholarship, university publications, and much more. ScholarWorks has also collaborated with campus groups to publish original works such as the Idea of Nature Lecture Series, the Idaho LGBTQ Oral History Project, the BOGA: Basque Studies Consortium Journal, and the BFA Art Exhibition images.

Started in 2009, the service recorded approximately 15,000 downloads its first year. Now, Boise State’s publications receives more than twice that many in a single month and this summer, ScholarWorks recorded its one-millionth download. What has also been impressive is how extensive its reach is. Every month, ScholarWorks records visits from India, United Kingdom, Australia, Korea, Hong Kong, South Africa, and many more.

ScholarWorks also helps remove the barriers the public faces when trying to access scholarly materials. Students, businesses, government agencies, health care providers, and community members all benefit by being able to access materials traditionally locked behind a journal subscription or other expensive paywall.

Thanks to the support of the Boise State community, ScholarWorks has become an incredible success, showcasing work produced by our students, faculty, and staff. Please join us this Thursday, November 6th starting at noon for a piece of cake and to celebrated ScholarWorks’ One Million Downloads!

Meet Amber, one of our new librarians!

Hello! I’m Amber Sherman, and I’m delighted to be the newest librarian at Albertsons Library. I've always been an East Coaster, so living here will be quite an adventure!

Accepting this position has made me truly realize “it’s a small world” because I have two close friends from Idaho - one was a roommate in undergrad and one in grad school. They both love Idaho and have made me even more excited to make Boise my new home.

I received my BA in History and Sociology from the University of Virginia and my Master’s Degree in Library Science from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. I've worked for academic libraries, non-profits, and even a bank, but all of my jobs revolved around capturing and accessing digital information, which fits in well with my primary responsibility of managing ScholarWorks for Boise State.

I wholeheartedly believe in open access publishing and look forward to working with faculty and students to showcase their scholarly output. ScholarWorks is an amazing service for the Boise State University community, so if you have any questions about the project or what we can help you with, please contact me. Or even better, stop by for a chat and a piece of cake during the ScholarWorks’ Million Downloads Celebration Thursday, November 6th starting at noon! 

The Golden Anniversary Celebration Continues for Albertsons Library

Boise State Library, c1964/65

Once, the Boise State library was so small that it was part of the Administration Building. Then, in 1963, construction on a new library building began. The new library building had its first open house in 1964, and we’re continuing to celebrate the library building’s 50th anniversary with a series of events. Here’s what’s cooking:

Friday, October 31st: A costume contest sponsored by the library’s Social Committee! Post a pic in your best 1960’s era best to Twitter with the hashtag #BoiseStLibraryat50 by 5pm on Halloween Day. The winner will receive a Starbucks gift card.

Thursday, November 6th: Cake! Cake! Cake! There have been more than one million downloads of Boise State research from our institutional repository, ScholarWorks. Celebrate this astounding success with cake and more, in the library lobby from noon-2pm.

Thursday, November 13th: Take a walk back in time! Boise State’s university archivist, Julia Stringfellow, will present a brownbag lecture on the history of the library at noon in LIB201C.

Each attendee will also be automatically entered in our giveaway for a nifty portable power pack, useful for recharging your phone or other device on the go.

Elizabeth Ramsey
Assistant Professor, Reference & Instruction Librarian

This blog post is the sixth in a series, produced in coordination with the
celebration of Albertsons Library’s 50th Anniversary. #BoiseStLibraryat50