Congratulations to 2nd Annual Library Undergraduate Research Award recipients

On Friday, March 28, 2008, the recipients of the Second Annual Louis J. Blume Library Undergraduate Research Award were recognized at the Ninth Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. The awards recognize student researchers who demonstrate skill and originality in the application of library and other information sources in a research project.

The First Place Award of $200 was granted to Rita Lopez for her project, "The Influence and Adaptation of the Japanese Noh Theatre in William Butler Yeats’s 'At the Hawk’s Well'." Faculty mentors for the project were Dr. Alice Kersnowski and Dr. Frank Kersnowski.

The Second Place Award of $100 was given to Kristin Taylor Leslie for her project, "Performance Theory in Edith Wharton’s ‘The Age of Innocence’." Faculty mentors were Dr. Richard Pressman and Dr. Alice Kersnowski.

We thank all the students who took the time and effort to submit an application and proposal for the Award. We encourage students who are eligible to apply next year for the Louis J. Blume Library Undergraduate Research Award.

Congratulations to Rita and Kristin!

Census Atlas of the U.S.

This colorful new publication from the Census Bureau puts all kinds of interesting statistics about the U.S. and its citizens in fascinating visual form. The first comprehensive population and housing atlas published by the Bureau since the 1920's, it contains almost 800 maps, most showing data to the county level. In addition, there are narrative highlights and useful charts further illustrating the diverse subjects: age and sex, race and Hispanic origin, living arrangements, language, income and poverty, education, migration, military service, and more.

Want to get a visual idea of how many children in the U.S. consider themselves to be of mixed race? check out page 36. How about a comparison of commuters leaving for work before 6 a.m. in 1990 and in 2000? Page 191. Need a visual idea of which Houston neighborhoods have a higher median income? You can see that on page 218. These are just some examples of the kind of information contained in the atlas.

The atlas is available for in-library use and it can be found on the bottom shelf (since it's too big to fit on the regular shelves) in the documents stacks near its classification number: C 3.205/8-3:29. And if you should need access to its maps from off campus, you can find a PDF version on the Census Bureau's website.

From Suffrage to the Senate Profiles America's Political Women

This election year is an appropriate time to search and visit From Suffrage to the Senate: America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues. In print, the publication is 943 pages contained in 2 volumes. However, it is available anytime, any day to the St. Mary's University community through the Gale Virtual Reference Library. The 2nd edition was published in 2006 and contains more than 120 photos and tables, plus more than 150 new entries.

The encyclopedia covers relevant court cases, legislation, organizations, movements and social issues, as well as biographical sketches on women who have worked in various arenas of American politics, including campaigns and the media.

A chronology of women in American politics from 1638 to the present is provided. Do you know who the first woman to run for president of the United States was? Hint: the year was 1892. Find out, and learn much more by exploring From Suffrage to the Senate: America's Political Women: An Encyclopedia of Leaders, Causes & Issues!

Explore the Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America

Another reference resource recognized as an Outstanding Academic Title in 2007 by Choice, the American Library Association's chief academic book and electronic resource review publication, is the Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America. This publication also received the prestigious American Historical Association's 2006 Waldo G. Leland Prize, which has only been awarded to one publication every five years since 1981.

The Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America was edited by Rosemary Skinner Keller and Rosemary Radford Ruether with associate editor Marie Cantlon and was published by Indiana University Press. In print, the publication is 3 volumes and totals to 1,296 pages. However, it is available anytime, anyday to the St. Mary's University community through the Gale Virtual Reference Library. The encyclopedia is interreligious, interracial, and multicultural and features more than 145 longer essays. The articles focus on institutions, movements, and ideas. More than 150 authors contributed to this work, weaving biographical sketches into their articles to give them a more personal and humanizing quality, and to recognize the women responsible for the gains made over the centuries. The work contains 150 black and white photos. Explore this online reference work during National Women's History Month!

Access the Dictionary of Women Worldwide Anytime, Anywhere

March is National Women's History Month, and this month we are profiling online reference sources about women that the St. Mary's University community can access through the Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Noted by the American Library Association's chief academic book and electronic resource review publication, Choice recognized the Dictionary of Women Worldwide: 25,000 Women Through the Ages as an Outstanding Academic Title in 2007. A synopsis of each woman's life and her accomplishments or historical importance is included with each entry, often followed by bibliographic information. Also included are 85 genealogical charts, and chronological, geographical, and occupational indexes. The dictionary includes many women outside the United States.

Explore current controversial issues through CQ Researcher

CQ Researcher Online is a wonderful resource for providing background and multiple perspectives on current controversial topics, particularly for lower level undergraduate courses. Recent reports have covered the immigration debate, student aid and the cost of higher education, consumer safety, racial diversity in public schools, domestic poverty, wounded veterans, and more.

Each report provides an overview, background, chronology, current situation, statements from opposing positions, and bibliography. This product contains engaging, insightful, unbiased analyses of the most pressing issues in the news. Features include Citenow! which generates citations in multiple formats, and helpful tools are provided such as “Next Step” and bibliographies that guide students to sources for further research. CQ Researcher Online has been recognized for editorial excellence, and is produced by Congressional Quarterly Press.

CQ Researcher Online is available through the Blume Library home page, where it's located under Databases Listed Alphabetically.

Register now to vote in the Texas primaries

If you want to vote in the March 4 Texas presidential primaries, and you're not already registered, you'd better get busy! You must be registered 30 days before an election, and our primary is on March 4. That makes this Monday the deadline for registration. Get a voter registration form from the Texas Secretary of State's website. Then, if you're a Bexar County resident, follow the directions on their elections website. If you want to register in another Texas county, follow these directions on the Texas Secretary of State website.

Have another state as your residence? You can find out how to register there and what the dates are for your primaries at this website.

Once you're registered, you want to be sure you can cast an informed vote. You can get good information on the candidates at Project Vote-Smart. The University of Michigan also has a comprehensive collection of links related to the elections and the candidates. The local League of Women Voters has good, non-partisan information on local candidates and issues.

More information about registering, voting, and being an informed local citizen, can be found on this Local Government and Politics page.

With both the Democratic and Republican presidential fields still relatively wide-open, Texas' primary might actually be important this year! Make your voice count, and vote.