Surround yourself with wisdom and the lovely smells of a bygone era. Seize the chance to work in one of the coolest rooms on campus during McGoogan Library’s Rare Book Room Study Hours October 6-8. The library will open this serene space for study for the very first time.
While we can’t guarantee these study hours will make you smarter by osmosis, it’s a doubly rare chance to read, write and learn among some of the true gems of the McGoogan Library’s collection.
Here’s what to know before you go:
When: Daily,10 a.m. to 2 p.m. October 6-8
Where: Room 8010, Level 8, McGoogan Library, Wittson Hall
Can I bring food or drink? Only water in a sealed container. We appreciate your help keeping these collections safe and well-protected.
Why now? McGoogan Library’s special collections librarians noted student interest in studying within the space. And October is American Archives Month, which “highlights the vital role of historical records and honors the work of archivists,” according to our own Carrie Meyer, associate dean of the Robert S. Wigton Department of Special Collections and Archives.
This fall’s McGoogan Sessions offer three distinct opportunities to grow your research skills and add tools for your academic work belt. McGoogan librarians will guide you through the following hour-long courses, providing practical tips and important context.
EndNote: Basic to Advanced Features
Tuesday, Oct. 6 / Noon to 1 p.m.
This session will cover the citation and reference management tool from A to Z, both for newcomers and users looking to brush up. Discover how to add and organize your citations, as well as integrate EndNote within Microsoft Word to make in-text citations and build bibliographies. Taught by Danielle Westmark.
Zotero helps scholars manage references and resources. Learn how to import and organize records as well as use Zotero’s toolbar within Microsoft Word to make quick, accurate work of your citations and bibliographies. This session is designed for new Zotero users—as well as experienced users who haven’t yet worked with Zotero version 10. Taught by Cindy Schmidt.
Navigating Open Access Publishing: From Funder Mandates to Predatory Journals
Wednesday, Oct. 21 / Noon to 1 p.m.
Get to know the best and most difficult aspects of open-access journal publishing, including differences between public and open access; achieving funding—and navigating potential tensions between funders and publishers; and how to make sense of email solicitations that seem dubious. Taught by Heather Brown.
Note: This occasional series will take a closer look at pieces within McGoogan Library’s special collections, and will include everything from paintings to portraiture, medical illustrations to 3-D objects. This first installment covers the paintings “Mama” and “El Parto, Atitlan,” by brothers Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay and Matias Gonzalez Chavajay, respectively.
“Mama”
About the artist: Mariano Gonzalez Chavajay (1956- ) was born in Guatemala and belongs to the Tz’utuhil Maya people. Among the places his work is housed: the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.
What you might see: A vivid description of the nursing ritual, “Mama” features an older-looking matriarch draped both in beautiful tunics and children. One nurses at her breast, while the other rests at her feet in a different show of dependence.
Also at her feet, a robust —almost to the point of overflowing—basket of apples, which perhaps provides sustenance for this nurturing task. A lone candle in the background lends the scene a reverent tone.
“El Parto, Atitlan”
About the artist: Matias Gonzalez Chavajay (1959-) shares a country and heritage with his older brother. The brothers’ family tree includes their uncle, pioneering Tz’utuhil painter Rafael González y González.
What you might see: The true labor of childbirth is compellingly displayed as a trio of women surround the mother-to-be, each playing their part in midwifing. Candles play a prominent visual role here too, as does water—which is brought and heated to aid the transition into life.
A forlorn man (presumably the coming child’s father) sits off-center, existing somewhere on a sliding scale from patriarchal indifference to true concern.
How these pieces came to McGoogan Library: Through the collection of Leon S. McGoogan, MD, the late obstetrician, gynecologist and instructor for whom the library is named. Dr. McGoogan enjoyed two tenures as chair of the UNMC Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, first from 1950-55 and again in 1961-62.
These particular works “highlight the cultural and ceremonial differences in motherhood while reinforcing the practical global commonality of pregnancy, postpartum, and mothering,” Special Collections Curator Darby Kurtz said. They reinforce the collection’s—and Dr. McGoogan’s—commitment to the medical humanities.
This collection also includes Dr. McGoogan’s faculty papers and rare books. A dedicated advocate for the library which now bears his name, Dr. McGoogan’s collection of books on midwifery, obstetrics and gynecology have set the library apart, contributing to its reputation as one of the nation’s preeminent institutions for rare books on these subjects.
How to see these pieces: These paintings live in the Reading Researcher Room on Level 8; to visit—or to learn more about Dr. McGoogan’s collection—email Special Collections and Archives at history@unmc.edu.
Fire alarm system components in the library and Wittson Hall will undergo scheduled maintenance from September 14 through mid-October. Work will take place Monday through Friday, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. During the maintenance, workers may need access to study areas and other library spaces for short periods of time. We expect minimal disruption to library users, but there may be brief periods of light construction noise.
The library will remain open and available for studying and other activities throughout the project. Thank you for your patience while this work is completed. Please contact AskUs@unmc.edu with any questions.
Clothes might not make the person, but they tell us stories about people’s lives and what roles they play in society. An upcoming Health Sciences History Hour lecture will share the stories of UNMC nursing students through what they once wore.
McGoogan Library Collection Specialist Savanna Falter will deliver the talk, “Stitches of Identity: Nursing’s Story through the Uniform,” online from noon to 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25.
The lecture reaches all the way back to World War I and through to the 1990s, displaying how nursing uniforms teach us about “shifting expectations of training, professionalism, gender roles and patient care,” Falter said in a description of its scope.
“Stitches of Identity” examines everything from “early starched dresses and caps that signaled discipline and hierarchy to later, more practical and individualized attire,” she added.
Falter will seamlessly guide the audience through issues of identity, authority, practical purposes and more over nearly a century’s worth of daily work and wear by UNMC College of Nursing students. Hear more during this online-only lecture during the noon hour on Sept. 25.
