Alumni E-News

The University of Texas at Austin School of Information
http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/

Issue 2 - January 2003

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THIS ISSUE

* Dean's Word

* News Summary

* Alumni Events

* Opportunities for Participation

* Continuing Education Events

* Subscribe or Contact us

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DEAN'S WORD

Greetings and welcome to the 2nd issue of the e-newsletter. On behalf of the
Faculty and Staff of the School I wish all our alumni best wishes for the
new year.

The School changed its name formally on Jan. 1st, 2003 to the School of
Information, a name chosen by faculty to reflect the broadening of the
profession in the 21st century. The new name represents more accurately the
diversity of faculty interests and research and serves as an umbrella term
for the range of professional careers chosen by our graduates. We remain
committed to educating the future generations of librarians and will
continue to offer our ALA-accredited masters degree. We are planning further
hires, a revamping of the doctoral program, and there is even talk of a move
for the school to new space, so sign up to receive the latest news from us.
I am always happy to hear from our alumni, so feel free to e-mail me at:
dean@ischool.utexas.edu.

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NEWS SUMMARY


Orange Santa

Read to your Bunny or Leale a Su Conejito by Rosemary Wells was the iSchool
project for Orange Santa this year.  This wonderful small book for preschool
children promotes family reading.  iSchool students, faculty and staff have
raised enough money to provide 250 copies to the Orange Santa Program.  The
books will be given to UT families with preschool children who participate
in the Orange Santa Program.


New Faculty Member

Randolph Bias will join the iSchool faculty as an Associate Professor in
January 2003.  He has a PhD in human experimental psychology from The
University of Texas at Austin.  Randolph has worked in industry for over 20
years as a usability engineer, helping software developers make
human-computer interfaces, including web sites, ³user friendly.² After
stints with Bell Labs, IBM, and BMC Software (where he created and managed
the Usability Department), Randolph co-founded Austin Usability, an
independent usability lab and consultancy.  He as served as an adjunct
instructor in the School since Fall 2001 and will continue to teach in the
area of usability testing and research.


District 3 TLA Chapter Election

At the Annual Meeting of District 3 of the Texas Library Association in
Round Rock on October 19, Ron Wyllys was elected Vice-Chair through October
2003 and then as Chair until October 2004.


Graduate Research Assistant

The Office of the Vice-President and Dean of Graduate Studies awarded
Professor Emilio Zamora a grant that will fund a graduate research intern.
The purpose of the internship is to attract a new graduate student to the
program and to provide him/her with a one-on-one faculty mentoring
experience.



Texas Excellence in Teaching Awards

Kudos to the two winners of the Texas Excellence in Teaching Awards--Claudia
Chidester, for best professor, and Sarah Bradley-Leighton for best teaching
assistant.  Claudia will receive a check for $1,000 and Sarah will receive a
check for $500. 


New Zealand Visit

In mid-November, Dr. Loriene Roy and Antony Cherian (student) attended the
National Library Association of Aetearoa/New Zealand Conference where they
were guests of LIANZA and of Te Ropu Whakahau, the Maori Library and
Information Workers in New Zealand. After the conference Dr. Roy and Tony
were guests of Hinureina Mangan and her tribal college in Otaki.


Censorship Roundtable

On November 20, 2002 the Student Chapter of ALA/TLA and GLISSA hosted an
informal round table on intellectual freedom in Texas.   The round table
discussion included 1) working with library administration in case of a
censorship attempt, 2) Internet filtering disputes in school, 3) helpful
resources in the event of a censorship challenge, and 4) the state of
censorship affairs in public and school libraries.  The Panel consisted of
Barry Bishop (TLA President), Sheila Henderson (Library Director, Pasadena
Public Library system), Becky Pruett (Library Coordinator, Fort Bend ISD),
and Patricia Smith (TLA Executive Director) who moderated the panel
discussion.   


Restoration of 16th-17th Century Bound Materials

Chela Metzger, iSchool instructor in Book Conservation and History of
Printing, recently taught a workshop in Lima, Peru, where colonial
manuscript and print collections are extremely rich and diverse.  The course
was taught in Spanish, and focused on understanding the various historical
bookbinding structures in use in the 1500s and 1600s.


History Department Connection

Dr. Emilio Zamora was awarded a courtesy appointment to the Department of
History beginning in the Fall 2002.


Thank You, Texas Book Festival Volunteers

The Information School was well-respresented at the Texas Book Festival,
thanks to the many student volunteers: Maria Baroco, David Brackus, Sarah
Bradley-Leighton, Sarah Buringham, Marcy Carrel, Yun Jeong Choi, Mary Jane
Covington, Rebecca Elder, Ange Fannin, Maribel Garza, Elizabeth Hallmark,
Wendell Hoffman, Pam Liang, Linda Lopez, Margaret McKee, Cheryl Michulka,
Susie Orr, Jillian Parsons, Danielle Plumer, Catherine Poche, Jill Price,
Tanya Sepulveda, Sara Stevenson and Laura Stiles.  The following faculty and
staff also volunteered their time: Oliver Chen, Don Davis, Barbara Immroth,
Lee Lacy, Irene Owens, Bill Lukenbill, Chela Metzger, and Amanda Williams.


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ALUMNI EVENTS


Texas Book Festival Alumni Dinner

While the crowd was not large, those who attended the First Annual Texas
Book Festival Alumni Dinner enjoyed their evening at The University of Texas
Club.  Twenty-two alumni and faculty were present to experience a terrific
dinner, great service, and a lively information exchange.  Through their
introductions, everyone present shared current career experiences and their
fondest memories of educational experiences at GSLIS.  Attending alumni
expressed unanimous support for continuing the tradition next year during
the 2003 Texas Book Festival.



Jan. 24-29    ALA Midwinter Conference, Philadelphia, PA

Jan. 25 (Sun)    Texas iSchool Alumni and faculty members will get together
for a no-host luncheon, Garden Inn, Hilton at the Convention Center.  To be
included in the reservations, please contact Don Davis at (512) 471-3806 or
dgdavis@ischool.utexas.edu by Monday, January 20, 2003.


Mar. 1        Explore UT, Austin

Dr. Oliver Chen will present a demonstration on Digital Media Design.


April 1-5     2003 TLA Annual Conference, Houston

April 3(Thurs)     The UT School of Information Alumni Dinner (held in
conjunction with the TLA Conference) will be held at Treebeards (on Market
Square), 315 Travis, Houston, TX at 6:30 pm.  All alumni are welcome.  You
do not have to attend TLA to come to the dinner.   Payment of $35.00 for the
dinner can be made through TLA registration or directly to the iSchool.
Call Kathleen Adrian via phone (471-2492) or via email
(kathleen@ischool.utexas.edu) for details.
    


OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATION


Capstone Experience Projects Needed

Do you have a complex, professional level project that's continually on the
back burner?  Could you use the expertise and enthusiasm of an iSchool
student?  Keep in mind the new Capstone Experience Program.  For more
information visit the following website:
http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/programs/capstone/index.html.


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