I’ll Wait Zero Seconds : Faculty Perspectives on Serials Access, Sharing, and Immediacy

This study explores how faculty across disciplines access and share scholarly serial content and what expectations they have for immediacy. The authors conducted twenty-five in-depth, semi-structured interviews with faculty of various ranks representing all Illinois State University (ISU) colleges. The findings, presented in the words of participants and triangulated with data from local sources, suggest that faculty use a variety of context-specific mechanisms to access and share serial literature. Participants discuss how they use library services such as databases, subscriptions, interlibrary loan, and document delivery, coupled with academic social networks, disciplinary repositories, author websites, and other publicly available sources to obtain the full text of articles along with their manifold considerations for sharing and requesting content. The urgency with which faculty need to gain access to scholarly literature is dependent on intersecting elements of discipline, current projects, how the resource will be used, the perceived competitiveness of the field, career stage, and personal practices. The findings reiterate that scholarly literature remains integral to the research and teaching of faculty even as needs and practices for accessing and sharing it grow more individualized and distributed

Interview with Edcel Cintron-Gonzalez, doctoral student

Oral history interview with Illinois State University doctoral student Edcel Cintron-Gonzalez. The interview was conducted by Milner Library intern Paige Malloy on May 22, 2023. Cintron-Gonzalez provides insights into his upbringing in Puerto Rico, emphasizing the cultural richness and challenges of life on the island, particularly dealing with hurricanes George and Maria. He shares fond memories of Puerto Rican cuisine and educational experiences, highlighting the significance of his alma mater, the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez. Transitioning to his academic journey, Cintron-Gonzalez discusses his passion for children\u27s literature, influenced by his undergraduate studies in English literature and education. He credits his professors for igniting this passion and expresses his plans to teach a Caribbean children\u27s literature course. Cintron-Gonzalez reflects on his transition to ISU, shaped by Hurricane Maria\u27s aftermath and the encouragement of a supportive faculty member, Dr. Ricia Chansky. Delving into his Ph.D. research, Cintron-Gonzalez elaborates on his focus on mental health representation in children\u27s literature, emphasizing the importance of inclusive and age-appropriate narratives. The discussion shifts to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on his academic and personal life, emphasizing challenges and silver linings, such as adapting to online teaching and finding solace in nature. As a graduate assistant, Cintron-Gonzalez describes his tasks, including teaching and newsletter editing, emphasizing project-based learning and diverse literary explorations in his courses. He shares insights into his role as president of the Graduate Student Association, including the association\u27s aim to foster a supportive community for graduate students through various social events. Cintron-Gonzalez also discusses his involvement with the Graduate Workers Union. He emphasizes the importance of unions in protecting workers\u27 rights and notes his participation in negotiating the union\u27s first-ever contract. Through these negotiations, significant victories were achieved, including substantial increases in stipends for graduate workers and improved protections for international students. Cintron-Gonzalez passionately advocates for fair treatment and equitable pay for all graduate workers, citing his own stipend amount and the challenges many face in covering basic living expenses. He also touches on his multifaceted role within the union, from serving as a certified steward to actively engaging in propaganda and communication efforts. Transitioning to his position within the English Department, Cintron-Gonzalez discusses his role as a social media specialist and graduate teaching assistant. He recounts his positive relationships with faculty members and his involvement in various departmental initiatives, including managing social media platforms and supporting faculty-led projects. He describes his efforts to promote student and faculty achievements through social media, emphasizing the importance of visibility for academic work. Additionally, he discusses his work in podcasting and his aspirations to expand the department\u27s journal to include more creative submissions from graduate students. Cintron-Gonzalez highlights his recent award as the Outstanding Student Social Media Manager, which recognizes his efforts to enhance the English Department\u27s social media presence. Additionally, he celebrates his accomplishment as a published author and his upcoming participation in the MLA Conference. Despite feeling supported by faculty and finding community in the Latin American Studies program, he acknowledges experiencing microaggressions due to his identity. Reflecting on ISU\u27s changes, he notes infrastructure improvements and hopes for enhanced support for BIPOC students, equitable opportunities, and recognition of indigenous peoples. Cintron-Gonzalez also expresses a desire for continued success in the English Department\u27s social media efforts post his departure.https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/aoh/1069/thumbnail.jp

A Comprehensive Study of Library-Led Textbook Affordability Initiatives in the United States

This study presents findings from a survey and interviews investigating library-led textbook affordability initiatives in the United States. The results document diverse considerations and divergences in workflows, challenges librarians face in establishing and maintaining textbook affordability programs, and the intersection of these initiatives with library and institutional strategies. Findings suggest that these programs have grown in number and scale over the past few years, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, and are sustained—even without permanent, designated funding—due to consistently positive perceptions about their impact on student success, just-in-time delivery, and alignment with library and institutional goals

Midcentury Opera for Children

A collection of Maconchy essays focused on the biographical aspects of this unjustly overlooked Anglo-Irish composer\u27s life and music, framing her within the context of her distinctly unique era

Maconchy and British Festivals

A collection of Maconchy essays focused on the biographical aspects of this unjustly overlooked Anglo-Irish composer\u27s life and music, framing her within the context of her distinctly unique era

Elizabeth Maconchy

A collection of Maconchy essays focused on the biographical aspects of this unjustly overlooked Anglo-Irish composer\u27s life and music, framing her within the context of her distinctly unique era

More Alike than Not: The Open Access Preferences of Humanities Scholars

Several studies have noted that humanists have not been as quick or enthusiastic in their adoption of Open Access (OA) as their colleagues in other disciplines. This article leverages the Ithaka S+R US 2021 Faculty Survey to provide contextualized analysis of the OA and Open Education Resources (OER) preferences of humanities scholars, as well as some practices related to OA and OER, relative to their colleagues in other disciplines. Findings suggest that although humanists do stand apart in many OA preferences, the small effect sizes render these differences less important than previously suspected. The implications of these findings are considered alongside the lower rates of OA publication among humanists

Compartmental Modeling for the Neophyte: An Application of Berkeley Madonna

Compartmental modeling serves as a necessary framework in many fields, especially biomathematics and ecology. This article introduces readers to a user-friendly approach to constructing compartmental models and solving the resulting systems of differential equations to simulate real-world applications. The platform used is Berkeley Madonna, a software package that has an intuitive graphical interface which empowers users—even those with limited mathematical and programming backgrounds—to focus on modeling concepts rather than mathematical or programming intricacies. This makes Berkeley Madonna an ideal platform for students, educators, and researchers

The Unintended Consequences of Integrating Trauma-informed Teaching into Teacher Education

In response to the growing need for trauma-informed teaching, more teacher education programs are incorporating trauma-informed content to prepare preservice teachers for their future classrooms. For this study, we examined student coursework and clinical experiences related to student trauma and trauma-informed teaching with a group of preservice teachers (N = 25). A thematic analysis of written reflections and interviews revealed deficit-based ideologies connected to student trauma with minimal attention directed at student strengths and resilience. Preservice teachers viewed student trauma in relation to behavioral issues, as circumstances that teachers have to deal with, and as a result of family and community deficiencies. A few students recognized trauma in relation to resilience by viewing schools and teachers as a protective factor. Informal stories shared by cooperating teachers appeared to feed these deficit views, as well as some course-related materials and projects. Recommendations for teacher educators are discussed

Graduate Recital: Holly Peters, Clarinet; Momoko Gresham, Piano; April 20, 2024

Kemp Recital HallApril 20, 2024Saturday Afternoon2:30 p.m