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Celebrating the Eaton Collection's 50th anniversary
On Saturday, Oct. 26, supporters of the UCR Library's Eaton Collection of Science Fiction and Fantasy gathered to celebrate the collection's 50th anniversary.
The Eaton Collection of Science Fiction & Fantasy is one of the world's largest, richest, and deepest collections of science fiction, fantasy, horror, utopian literature and related genres. The collection originated with the personal library of Dr. J. Lloyd Eaton, consisting of about 7,500 hardback editions of science fiction, fantasy and horror from the Nineteenth to the mid-Twentieth centuries, which was acquired by the UCR Library in 1969.
“The Library team realized that the 50th anniversary of the Eaton Collection would be an ideal opportunity to reach out to all our Eaton stakeholders and show our appreciation for their support,” Derrick said. “We welcomed distinguished authors whose work resides in this collection, and one noted science fiction scholar came from as far away as the Caribbean to participate.”
University Librarian Steven Mandeville-Gamble greeted guests as they arrived at Rivera Library, along with Assistant University Librarian for Content and Discovery Tiffany Moxham, Director of Distinctive Collections Cherry Williams, Special Collections Processing Archivist Andrew Lippert, Associate Director of Development Jernine McBride, and Senior Director of Development Clyde Derrick.
Mandeville-Gamble gave welcoming remarks, followed by Interim Provost Thomas M. Smith.
The program featured a panel discussion on "Graduate Research and the Eaton Collection at UCR," moderated by Dr. Sherryl Vint, professor of Media and Cultural Studies. Speakers included UC Riverside graduate students Taylor Evans, Brandy Lewis and Josh Pearson.
Pearson noted the fanzines, in particular. “One of the things that really struck me is that the practices and modes of engagement that were fostered in Science Fiction -- the forms of fandom, the forms of community developed in the kinds of fanzines that are enshrined upstairs in the Eaton -- have come to permeate not only American culture in general, but particularly American youth culture,” he explained. “Some of the most important ways that my students are making meaning in the world with Science Fictional images have their origin in some of the things that are collected upstairs. Returning to those and thinking hard about them is a way of thinking hard about some of the most crucial questions that we’re thinking about as educators right now.”
Festivities concluded with Williams and Lippert taking guests on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Eaton Collection in the Special Collections and University Archives department, located on the fourth floor of Rivera Library.
If you are a UCR alumni or community stakeholders who enjoys science fiction, fantasy, horror, and other types of speculative fiction, please consider supporting the Eaton Science Fiction and Fantasy Fund. To learn more, please contact Jernine McBride Williams, Associate Director of Development for the UCR Library.
The Finals Countdown at Access Services Conference 2016
On Friday, November 18, UCR Library team members Elisha Hankins and Sahra Missaghieh Klawitter were the closing speakers at the 2016 Access Services Conference.
Their presentation title was: It’s The Finals Countdown – Finals Week Stress Relief Programming at the UCR Library. The 2016 Access Services Conference theme was “Unlocking the 21st Century Library.”
Both Sahra and Elisha wanted to share the idea of Finals Week Stress Relief with fellow Access Services professionals, in hope that more universities would be inspired to add similar programming to serve their campus communities. “We had attendees flock to the front after our time was up to get more information and to thank us for presenting,” Elisha said.
“People said they were empowered, inspired, and excited to try out some of our events. They said that we provided not just variety of ideas, but that we pointed out tangible resources that could be used and explored on their own campuses,” she continued. “I think people could see the passion we have for our students and the programming we provide.”
Finals Week Stress Relief had its humble beginnings back in fall quarter 2012 when the Access Services Department had an idea to start a study break corner to create a place of respite from the stress that students experience during finals week. “Both Sahra and I were students that transitioned to staff,” Elisha explained. “We are UCR alumni and we both know intimately the struggles of students. We both have played the role of ‘student supervisors.’ We want to help our students carry their sometimes unbearable burdens.”
Over time, the program has increased both in popularity and in scale. It’s now greatly anticipated by the UC Riverside community. “It’s been rewarding to watch the FWSR events grow and blossom!” Elisha said. “Over the years, we’ve heard the students rave about our events. It’s even highlighted through UCR Tours – to promote UCR. These type of results are not just tangible but fulfilling on a human level.”
Some events, such as the Therapy Dogs with The Well and Massage Therapy + Stress Busters with Active Minds, have consistently yielded a massive turnout. Events with free food also draw large crowds, such as “Finals Are Nacho Problem” on December 1. Library staff handed out more than 450 servings of nachos at Rivera and Orbach libraries. Last Spring, the “Monday Sundae Funday” event was also quite popular with students.
The inspiration behind the first Finals Week Stress Relief program was to find a creative approach to nurturing UCR students by creating a relaxing and stress-free environment in the library during finals week each quarter. By winter quarter 2013, other departments on campus expressed interest in collaboration, including the Academic Resource Center, which now partners with the library on the Study Jam event. “We stressed that it is not a one-man show,” Elisha said of their presentation. “You need a team committed to excellence and to a shared vision of wanting to help their student population.”
Each quarter, the Finals Week Stress Relief program features a series of activities including Surprise Snack Giveaway with Scotty the Bear, Cookie Break with the Chancellor and University Librarian, and many more, all offered free of charge to UCR students.
View Sahra’s and Elisha’s Presentation (Prezi).
View their “Finals Countdown” Video.
GIS Day Poster Exhibit Showcases Diverse Data
UCR Library’s GIS Day Poster Exhibition opened on Thursday, November 3, 2016 in the atrium of Orbach Science Library, showcasing the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
The 2016 display includes submissions from a diverse variety of contributors, including external community agencies as well as faculty, staff, and students of UC Riverside.
“I was really pleased with the diversity of departments that contributed posters this year,” stated Janet Reyes, Geospatial Information Librarian and the GIS Day Exhibition curator.
A number of posters focused on UCR biogeographic research. The Center for Conservation Biology produced a vegetation map of Dos Palmas Conservation Area in Coachella Valley, part of a habitat conservation plan. Environmental Sciences’ display used GIS to estimate groundwater recharge and evapotranspiration. A student in Soil and Water Sciences displayed locations suitable for irrigating avocados with recycled water.
The exhibition clearly demonstrated the application of GIS across the social science disciplines. The Psychology department submitted two posters. One shows how GIS can be applied in psychological sciences. Another is from a sibling and twins study that tracks environmental factors associated with cognitive performance from childhood to the cusp of middle adulthood.
A Public Policy poster demonstrates the relative prosperity of ethnic, minority-owned enterprises in the United States, based on location. Another poster with aerial photography of Vietnam shows how the Vietnam War affected the country’s landscape. An Anthropology graduate student created a map to show the language of origin for place names in a specific region of Mexico.
UCR administrative units contributed posters demonstrating the use of GIS for operations management. Agricultural Operations showed how GIS is used to manage UCR’s agricultural research land, and Capital Planning submitted three posters presenting information about the School of Medicine, the Sustainability Program, and the R’Garden. The Riverside Police Department contributed posters mapping crime data and demonstrating how they perform analysis on crime data.
This poster exhibition usually happens every November, in connection with GIS Day. Reyes added, “I think we’re going to see more GIS used on campus as time goes by, so that will make next year’s offerings more varied and informative. In the future, we might add workshops, live presentations, and other interactive, hands-on activities.”
Faculty and staff who contributed to this year’s event included: Hoori Ajami, Environmental Sciences; David Biggs, History; Chandra Reynolds, Psychology; Qingfang Wang, School of Public Policy; Steve Ries, Agricultural Operations; Roxann Merizan, Lynn Sweet, Bob Johnson, James Heintz, and Cameron Barrows from the Center for Conservation Biology; Elizabeth Munoz Diaz, postdoc scholar, Psychology; and Karen Jordan, Capital Planning. UCR Students included: Jenessa Stemke, Soil and Water Sciences; Joshua Lieto, Anthropology; Paige Trubenstein, Psychology; and Omar Staben, Psychology.
Reyes has initiated an ongoing monthly Brown Bag GIS Lunch for those interested in discussing the various ways that GIS can be applied across multiple disciplines at UCR. For more information, contact Janet Reyes (janet.reyes@ucr.edu).
Klein photographs collection now more accessible
Nearly 6,000 digitized images from the Jay Kay Klein photographs collection are now more accessible, thanks to new, more descriptive and contextual information.
In collaboration with the science fiction fandom community, the UCR Library staff updated the image details and descriptions for the 5,933 images, which were first digitized in 2017. (View the collection on Calisphere.)
In 2017, an initial batch of 5,933 images from the Jay Kay Klein photographs and papers on science fiction fandom were digitized as part of a pilot project with the California Digital Library (part of the UC system and the group that hosts Calisphere). The images were first published with minimal descriptive information.
After publication, both internal review and robust feedback from the fandom community identified many opportunities to improve accuracy, detail, and context provided in titles and descriptive information about the photographs.
In subsequent years, UCR Library continued to gather community feedback by adding a new commenting feature to the collection, and the Metadata and Technical Services department worked continuously to make updates and corrections.
Yet the bulk of the images still needed careful review and the size and scope of a complete metadata overhaul presented a substantial barrier to launching a follow-up project. Special Collections Processing Archivist Andrew Lippert took steps to begin a review shortly before the university campus closed in March 2020, but the transition to working from home during the pandemic and the need for remote work within the Special Collections and University Archives department created an opportunity to commit fully to this monumental task.
The review began in February 2020 and ramped up during the spring quarter. Between May 2020 and May 2021, Lippert reviewed each of the nearly six thousand photographs and enriched the metadata based on community comments, information within the photographs, convention program books, Klein’s own “Convention Annual” photo books, and Lippert’s ability to identify the photos.
“Special acknowledgement is also due to the FANAC Fan History Project and Fancyclopedia 3; they were both invaluable resources for this project,” Lippert said. “It is difficult to say that this work will ever truly be ‘finished,’ as there are always more identifications to make and more contextual information to add. However, this new version of the metadata will certainly make these photographs more accessible by orders of magnitude.”
“Working on this project was a labor of love that immersed me in science fiction fandom and convention culture spanning several decades from the 1950s through the 1970s,” Lippert added. “Engaging with a single large archival collection on a daily basis always creates a sense of familiarity with the individual(s) and the subject matter that make up that collection; it was no different with Klein’s photos.” Lippert came to feel that he was getting to know some of the mainstays of the SF scene of that era as he found them in photo after photo at convention after convention. “My work on this project led me down countless rabbit holes, paths of discovery, and gave me so much invaluable context for the varied materials of the Eaton Collection as a whole,” he added.
Lippert would like to thank the community members who have contributed information, context, and identifications to the digitized photo collection since they were originally published in 2017. Additionally, special recognition is due to Lippert’s colleagues at the UCR Library, Noah Geraci, Digital Assets Metadata Librarian, and Sandy Enriquez, Special Collections Public Services, Outreach & Community Engagement Librarian, for their invaluable contributions, support and assistance on this project.
From Student Assistant to Princeton University Processing Archivist
As a UCR student majoring in history, Enid Ocegueda’s path to becoming an archivist started unexpectedly — with a class assignment.
While conducting original research for a World War I history course, she explored the archives for the first time and discovered a collection of propaganda posters. This prompted her to write about propaganda methods aimed at women, which was later published in UCR’s Undergraduate Research Journal. The experience further sparked her interest in archival work and set her on a path that would lead her to work in the archives.
During her time at UCR, Enid worked as a student assistant in the library’s administrative office in 2015-2016. Though her role primarily involved administrative tasks, her supervisor, Executive Assistant to the University Librarian Terri Gutierrez, recognized her dedication and encouraged her growing interest in archives and librarianship. Inspired, Enid pursued various internships as a student. Her first internship at the California Museum of Photography gave her her first hands-on experience in archival work.
“I realized then how much I enjoyed working with historical materials,” Enid recalls. “That internship solidified my interest in archives.” She later pursued an internship with the National Archives in Perris, CA, and then ventured to the east coast through the UCDC program and worked as a Collections Intern for the Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument.
Determined to build her career in the field, Enid completed her master’s degree in Library and Information Science at San Jose State University. From there, she gained experience working at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, followed by a corporate librarian role at Edwards Lifesciences, before returning to Stanford as a Project Archivist for the University Archives.
Now, Enid is preparing to start her new role at Princeton University as the Processing Archivist for the Latin American Manuscripts Collections — a position that aligns with her passion for preserving diverse voices in archival spaces.
“I’m excited about this role because it’s dedicated to Latin American collections,” she explains. “That’s rare in this field, and it’s a chance to focus on ensuring those voices are preserved and made accessible.”
Enid’s passion for this work stems from her realization that Latin American stories are often missing from archives. “I didn’t see many collections that reflected my background,” she says. “That motivated me to become part of the solution — to bring those voices into the archives.”
Reflecting on her journey, Enid encourages students interested in library or archival careers to embrace every opportunity.
“Put yourself out there,” she advises. “Even if you’re not sure where your path is heading, taking on different roles and being open to new experiences can help you find what you’re passionate about.”
As she prepares for this next chapter at Princeton, Enid is excited to focus on connecting researchers with Latin American collections and ensuring these important materials are preserved for future generations.
Science Library Pathway Project Construction Alert
UC Riverside's Architects and Engineers office announced a construction project that will impact areas surrounding Orbach Science Library, scheduled to begin on June 19, 2017.
The project's work hours will be from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm on weekdays, and will consist of removing, replacing, and modifying the existing concrete path across East Campus Drive.
This project will include the addition of a new ramp and concrete path between the Chemical Sciences building and Orbach Science Library, Physics, and School of Medicine building by adding a raised pathway where pedestrians cross East Campus Drive.
East Campus Drive will remain open for most of the project with a limited closure affecting drivers. A detour route will be provided and published in the next few weeks, to minimize delays. Any closures will be specifically defined in future construction project alerts.
In all instances, the Contractor will monitor activities in order to minimize any impacts to campus operations.
The UC Riverside Architects & Engineers team recognizes that construction activities will at times post inconveniences and disruption to the surrounding neighborhood. They appreciate your patience during construction of this project.
Please direct any questions regarding this construction project to Fernando Nunez, Jr., Project Manager, Architects & Engineers at fernando.nunez@ucr.edu.
Laptop lending kiosks
With the library’s reopening for fall quarter, computer lending through the Laptops Anytime kiosks will also resume.
Campus IT will be returning currently checked out laptops to the library kiosks by Wednesday, Sept. 15.
A few notes to remember when borrowing from the Laptops Anytime kiosks:
- Windows laptops can be returned to any kiosk in the library or the HUB.
- Chromebooks can be returned to kiosks in either Rivera or Orbach Library, but not to the kiosks in the HUB.
- MacBooks must be returned to the same kiosk they were checked out from. MacBooks are not interchangeable between the kiosks.
We are excited to share that ITS will be adding at least one additional Laptops Anytime kiosk each to Rivera Library and Orbach Library.
Students can also borrow a computer from the Laptops Anytime kiosks located in the HUB.
New E-Resource: Press Enterprise Digital Collection (1878-Current)
The UCR Library recently acquired full access to the Press-Enterprise historical newspaper in digital format, via NewsBank.
The Press-Enterprise digital collection contains full access to the newspaper from 1878 to today, including important local and regional historic information, and includes photographs, images, and advertisements. UCR students, faculty, staff, and researchers can access the digital collection here.
ICYMI: You no longer need to use the Campus VPN to access our e-resources (like the Press-Enterprise Digital Collection) from off-campus. We've implemented OpenAthens and as a result, you can access the UCR Library’s licensed resources with our Central Authentication Service (CAS), using just your UCR NetID and password—no extra steps needed. Find out more about OpenAthens here.