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Bibliophile: a University of Kansas Libraries publication for friends and benefactors

Fall 2009 (PDF, 1.5MB)

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Major Gifts: Introducing KU Libraries’ Vosper Society

In the midst of a brilliant career, Robert Vosper (1913-1994) spent ten years as KU Libraries’ director, going on to become an internationally acclaimed champion of libraries and earning a slot in the top 100 librarians of the 20th century. Now KU Libraries pays him tribute by introducing the Vosper Society, which honors those who demonstrate interest in and support for KU Libraries’ purpose, vision and potential as an essential partner to scholarship at KU and beyond.

The society recognizes five giving levels, with baseline annual membership achieved with a gift of at least $100 or a like gift in kind made during the fiscal year.

When you join the Vosper Society, you strengthen KU’s most vital shared intellectual resource, helping to preserve KU’s renowned library and archival collections and bringing the most current tools and sources of information to researchers, teachers and students at KU.

Your membership supports KU Libraries in these vital areas:

Collections – Carefully preserving archival and rare items at Spencer Research Library and other collections now held at the Library Annex for future generations of scholars; and bringing new information resources, such as datasets, geospatial data, rich digital image collections and more to KU today.

Services – Instructing students in how to seek out the best sources of information, answering reference questions and offering consultation to all who need advanced help navigating the information world, as well as helping KU staff and faculty contribute to emerging digitally based scholarship and publication.

Facilities – Spaces within library buildings that welcome, support and adapt to the needs of students, faculty and other researchers.

Member Benefits

  • Attend private sessions with visiting speakers
  • Enjoy invitational events to visit and learn about special features of the libraries
  • Be recognized as a supporter of KU Libraries
  • Make a lasting positive impact on KU by supporting the collections, services and facilities of KU Libraries

How to Join

You can join now by making a gift through KU Endowment.

Would you prefer to talk to us about specific giving opportunities at KU Libraries? Contact Kevin Kelly at 785-832-7408 or kkelly@kuendowment.org.

Considering a gift of books or other research materials? Contact Lea Currie at 785-864-8997 or lcurrie@ku.edu.

About Robert Vosper

Named one of the top 100 most important people in 20th century librarianship by American Libraries, a publication of the American Library Association (ALA), Robert Vosper was lauded “as a force for libraries and for the rights of librarians as partners in scholarly enterprise…. [H]is commitment to the library as an intellectual sanctuary was an inspiration to many.”

Vosper served as director of KU Libraries from 1951 to 1960, shaping the collections with many of its most important acquisitions and establishing such innovative means to reach out to students as the Snyder Book Collecting Contest. He was especially known for his defense of intellectual freedom, notably mounting an exhibition on banned books during the height of the McCarthy era, doing so with strong support from Chancellor Franklin D. Murphy. That exhibition gained international notice, and more than 20,000 copies of its catalog were printed and distributed. It remains in demand and has been recreated in a digital version.

Vosper’s contributions to the field of librarianship spanned more than four decades and included several national and international leadership roles. Among these achievements, he served as president of the Association of College and Research Libraries (1955-56) and helped lead the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions from 1971 to 1977 as chairman and vice-chairman. He received many awards for his work, including a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1969 and the prestigious Lippincott Award in 1985 from the ALA.

“The Library is an open sanctuary. It is devoted to individual intellectual inquiry and contemplation. Its function is to provide free access to ideas and information. It is a haven of privacy, a source of both cultural and intellectual sustenance for the individual reader. Since it is thus committed to free and open inquiry on a personal basis, the Library must remain open, with access to it always guaranteed.” — Robert Vosper, 1970

Keeping the Foundation Strong

This August, KU Libraries brought together a group of its staunchest benefactors in appreciation of their contributions. They gathered at the Anderson Family Football Complex for a cocktail party and tour of the facilities, accompanied by KU Mascots Big Jay and Baby Jay, followed by a chance to watch from the sidelines while the KU football team practiced under the direction of head coach Mark Mangino.

The event came at the invitation of the coach, himself a key backer of KU Libraries. He was the featured speaker at the Libraries’ spring fundraising dinner last May, where he stressed the importance and centrality of the libraries to the university. “Athletics may be the front porch of an institution like KU,” he said, “but the libraries are the foundation. I strongly believe you can judge the greatness of a university by the success of its libraries.”

“Athletics may be the front porch of an institution like KU, but the libraries are the foundation. I strongly believe you can judge the greatness of a university by the success of its libraries.” – Mark Mangino

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Giving Update

In 2008, many of our former library student employees contributed to the ongoing campaign in support of KU Libraries. Their contributions fund projects like the learning commons that benefit students across campus. We are grateful for your support, and we will continue the campaign in Spring 2010. To learn more or to make a gift, please contact Associate Development Director Kevin Kelly at KKelly@KUEndowment.org or 785-832-7408.

Thinking about end-of-year giving?

Consider a gift to KU Libraries. Your gift to the Libraries has tremendous reach and longevity across campus, providing access to a world of ideas to current and future generations of students, researchers and scholars.

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Galloway lifetime collection gift brings the World’s Fair to KU Libraries

Story and Photos by Dylan Sands

A new gift has brought the world, or more specifically, the World’s Fair, to KU Libraries. Sharon Perry Galloway recently gave the Spencer Research Library a gift of extensive World’s Fair memorabilia collected with her late husband, Thomas D. Galloway.

Dr. Galloway was the founding chair of the graduate program in urban planning in the KU’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning, where he was a professor from 1971 to 1980. Until he passed away in 2007, Dr. Galloway was the dean of the College of Architecture at Georgia Institute of Technology and was nationally and internationally known for his stellar career in urban planning.

Sharon Perry Galloway, who noted that this collection was perhaps the largest of its kind in the United States, said the collection took a long time to amass. “I bought the first book for Tom the year he graduated from the University of Washington—the same year we were married,” Galloway said.

The vast collection includes publicity information, maps, books, catalogs and listing materials on display and photographic brochures from several of the World’s Fairs, with a particular emphasis on the 1893 exhibition in Chicago.

Karen Cook, special collections librarian at the KU’s Kenneth Spencer Research Library, said Dr. Galloway’s interest in the fair was directly related to his passion for architecture and urban planning.

“The World’s Fair in Chicago was influential in starting the idea of urban planning,” Cook said.

Cook said the gift was of tremendous value for researchers.

“Gifts such as these allow us things we’d never be able to acquire on our own,” said Cook. “Collectors often accumulate the material over a lifetime. They’ve put everything into building the collection with their own expertise.”

“I gave this collection to KU because Tom had great memories both of Kansas and KU, as it was his first teaching position,” Galloway said. “I know Tom wanted the collection to be used by students in a hands-on, educational setting and that KU would respect the collection. Tom’s legacy and passion for urban planning will continue to live on through students and the education of urban planners at KU’s Spencer Research Library.”

Cook also noted the collection should interest students of American studies, history and architecture, and anyone who wants to understand an important time in American history.

The materials are currently being catalogued so they can be preserved and made available for viewing.

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Get the inside scoop!

Want to hear about what’s going on at KU Libraries—and join in on the conversation? Meet up with us on our “University of Kansas Libraries” Facebook page, or follow “KULibraries” on Twitter, to learn about new books and resources, find out about upcoming campus events, see pictures and videos, and catch up on what’s happening. We would love to hear from you, so visit www.lib.ku.edu/social today to get started!

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KU Libraries welcomes KU alumna Beth Whittaker as new head of Spencer

University of Kansas alumna Beth M. Whittaker joined KU Libraries to lead the Kenneth Spencer Research Library on November 1.

Whittaker previously served as head of special collections cataloging at Ohio State University, and has been a librarian for original cataloging of special collections, manuscripts and archives at Texas A&M University.

“I am pleased to have Beth join us as the head of Spencer Research Library,” said Lorraine J. Haricombe, dean of libraries. “She is nationally regarded for her tireless work to promote use of rare books, manuscripts and archival collections to improve teaching and learning and advance scholarship. Furthermore, Beth has a strong record of working with others to develop and apply innovative strategies including many that call on the use of emerging technologies. I trust that she will use these talents to great end at her alma mater.”

Whittaker was appointed as editor of RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts and Cultural Heritage, which is the premier journal in the field, in 2008. Additionally, she is active in the rare books and manuscripts section of the Association of College and Research Libraries. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history from KU, as well as a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Texas-Austin.

Sheryl Williams, who served as interim head of Spencer Research Library, has become the first curator for collections at the library. Williams will also continue as curator of Spencer’s Kansas Collection.

“Sherry brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to this new leadership role, which will encompass oversight for all of the holdings of this world-class library,” said Haricombe. “She has served with distinction for three decades as curator of Spencer Library’s Kansas Collection, was a very successful university archivist for much of the 1990s while attending to such issues as the rise of electronic records and was a much-respected bibliographer for United States history for the KU Libraries during much of this decade. I am grateful for all that Sherry has done for KU and for scholarship, and I know that we will see her undertake many welcome initiatives in this new and vitally important role.”

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Chris Martin: From “Lord of the Libraries” to Emmy Winner

A young filmmaker who got his start producing and directing promotional videos for KU Libraries has received one of the highest honors in Hollywood. Chris Martin, who graduated in 2003 with a film degree from KU, won an Emmy this September as part of the team that produced the special effects on the television series “Heroes.”

Before heading to Hollywood, though, Martin used his cinematic talents—and sense of humor—to introduce his fellow KU students to the tools and resources available to them at the library.

KU Librarian Lea Currie recalled how the idea germinated of doing spoof films to promote library services and resources. “I saw a promotional film at a conference in Canada that was a spoof on the Blair Witch Project,” she said. “It was great! I mentioned it to Julia Rholes, who was my supervisor at the time, and she told me about a talented film student she had met while working on a task force. She introduced me to Chris and when I told him about my idea, he ran with it. It was his idea to spoof the Matrix and later, the Lord of the Rings.

“Chris was amazing,” Currie added. “He was a smart, funny guy and a very hard worker. I sat in on some of the filming and learned that setting up scenes is about as exciting as watching grass grow. It is a very slow, meticulous process. Chris loved every aspect of it. He was such a perfectionist. It is very rare to meet someone and just know they are really going places. I never had a doubt that Chris would be a huge success.”

Martin’s 2003 film, “Library Revolutions,” follows a tired, confused student, Leo, who chooses the red book over the blue book, discovers the secrets of the library system, finishes his research paper on time, and takes a victory flight Superman-style over the KU campus.

In “Lord of the Libraries,” Martin’s follow-up in 2004, the heroes fight “bookwraiths” in front of Wescoe Hall (fight scene highlights include CGI animated arrows and fireballs shot by Legolas and Gandalf) and Sam and Frodo meet up with “Librarowen” in the Watson Library stacks while trying to returns “The Book of Power,” which is 30 years overdue.

Martin remembers the projects fondly. “Those movies were a lot of fun, and I give a lot of credit to the awesome people at the KU Libraries for giving us the opportunity to make something cool,” Martin said. “I’ve obviously gotten a lot better since then, but I think my experience with visual effects in college really prepared me for a career in this field.”

Visit the KU Libraries YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/kulibraries) to watch Chris Martin’s “Library Revolutions” and “Lord of the Libraries” online.

See where it all began

Visit www.youtube.com/kulibraries to watch Chris Martin’s “Library Revolutions” and “Lord of the Libraries” online.

Library “Alumni” – Did you meet your mate at the Library?

We’ve noticed that some of our library alumni come in pairs! Share your story with us for an upcoming issue of Bibliophile.

Send us an update—we’d love to hear from you! E-mail Rebecca Smith at rasmith@ku.edu and let us know where you are now, and be sure to visit www.lib.ku.edu/alumnistories to read Web exclusives on your fellow alumni.

More alumni profiles

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Bibliophile is published in print and online semi-annually by the University of Kansas Libraries for alumni, friends and benefactors. Printing is paid for with private contributions. Correspondence should be sent to rasmith@ku.edu or mailed to:

Bibliophile
502 Watson Library
1425 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045

Editor - Rebecca Smith
Design and editorial assistance – Sarah Kanning
Contributing writer – Dylan Sands

Editorial Board:
Lorraine J. Haricombe, KU Libraries Dean
Tami Albin , Jeff Bullington, Bayliss Harsh, Jana Krentz, Holly Mercer, Bill Myers, John Stratton, Sarah Goodwin Thiel and Sherry Williams.