The Carter Family And Hazel & Alice: A Comparison Of Musical Influences And Changing Gender Norms

This thesis explores, in detail, the lives and musical careers of The Carter Family (A.P., Sara, and Maybelle) in comparison with those of Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard. These are two trailblazing musical groups of the country and bluegrass music industries. This thesis discusses the effect of these women’s accomplishments on the country music and bluegrass industries when taking into consideration the obstacles society presented them with in the form of gender norms. Using the social constructs of gender norms during the 1920s-1970s as a lens for discussing some of the obstacles these women faced in their careers (e.g., restrictions/hindrance). This work will attempt to address what the gender norms of the time period were, if the fact that they were women presented any significant obstacles for their careers, and why these women received the recognition that they did. This work will highlight the significance of these women’s musical accomplishments (e.g., recording, solo-performances, widespread popularity) in a time when women were generally not in the foreground of the bluegrass and country music industries

Bicycle Tourists: Staying Connected at Public Libraries

Each year thousands of bicycle tourists stop at public libraries throughout the United States. They are looking for a place to relax, access to computers and Wi-Fi, and a knowledgeable person that can provide information about the area. In this article, public libraries situated along transnational bicycle routes or statewide bike rides share their experiences in providing services to bicycle tourists passing through their towns and using their libraries

L’approche D’une Bibliothèque Universitaire Américaine: La Belk Library, Appalachian State University (États-Unis, Caroline-Du-Nord)

La bibliothèque universitaire Belk a développé une politique documen- taire qui inclut une charte des dons visant à cadrer leurs conditions d’entrée et les usages qu’elle peut en faire. Située dans la région des Appalaches du Sud, cette bibliothèque qui accueille aussi le service des archives universi- taires, gère des collections et des fonds à forte dimension identitaire et dont l’objet premier est d’être mis à disposition des étudiants et des chercheurs. C’est dans ce contexte local spécifique, mais aussi dans un contexte national de philanthropie, que nous nous proposons d’étudier la gestion des dons au sein de l’établissement. Nous avons pour ambition de capitaliser, outre l’expérience personnelle des auteurs, celles de sept de leurs collègues : trois archivistes, un bibliothécaire en charge des collections spécialisées, deux bibliothécaires en charge des acquisitions et un agent affecté spécialement au traitement des dons de livres. Dans un premier temps, l’environnement spécifique de la bibliothèque sera décrit. Puis, la question et les modalités des donations seront explicitées afin de partager l’expérience collective de l’Appalachian State University

The Quest for Sustainability in International Library Development: The Experience of the Riecken Foundation

The Riecken Foundation provides support to communities in developing countries to create sustainable partnership library programs focusing on collection development, technology applications, and assem- bling professional staff and volunteers. This article studies the experience of the Foundation through re- search gathered in interviews with Bill Cartwright, President and CEO of the Foundation, along with on- site observations at six participating libraries, and offers analysis of documentation related to these sus- tainability initiatives. The study also examines the transition of the Foundation from a private foundation to a public charity and the effect this has had in its programming

LIS Education in America: The Present, the Past, and the Future.

In the United States, the Library and Information Science (LIS) degree is most often a graduate degree at the master’s level. The degree is most commonly named the Masters of Library Science (MLS) or the Masters of Library and Information Science (MLIS). In this paper, the author will discuss economic, demographic, and education trends in the United States and how these trends are changing libraries. As libraries evolve to meet the needs of our communities, new sets of skills for librarians are emerging. The most important questions to ask about the future of LIS education—are we supplying LIS graduates with the appropriate training that ensures libraries remain relevant into the future? What is the future of the LIS degree? As libraries continue to evolve, will the LIS degree still be required or even desired

The Research Advisory Program (RAP): Fostering Information Literacy Skills through Individualized Research Consultations Information Literacy Skills through Individualized Research Consultations

Librarians at Appalachian State University have developed a program offering individualized research consultations by appointment. The Research Advisory Program (RAP) was developed to provide students with the opportunity to meet individually with a librarian to acquire strategies and tools for identifying resources for a research topic. Through the use of RAP sessions librarians are able to equip students with the skills that not only allow them to find the information they need, but also to understand the importance and use of the information they find

Everything is Not on the Web, Doggone it: Remembering the Library in Your Research Process

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The One-Box Challenge: Providing a Federated Search That Benefits the Research Process

The one-box federated search of databases brings as many challenges as promises to database searching, especially in terms of adapting these systems to user needs and the effects this new mode of searching will have on users' research behaviors. This issue of “The Balance Point” presents several librarians with strong interests in reference and instruction, who tell the story of adapting a federated search system for their libraries and reflect upon how federated searching can change the way students do research and on the implications federated searching has on information literacy skills and the quality of results found

Mentor perceptions in urban middle schools: a qualitative study of one school district

Research supports the use of mentoring programs and induction assistance for retaining quality teachers and easing beginning teachers’ transition into the teaching profession. Over the last three decades researchers have looked at the varying levels of the mentoring process. However, few studies have explored the perceptions of the teacher mentors serving in those roles. This qualitative case study was designed to take an in-depth look at the perceptions of teacher mentors working with first year teachers at the middle school level. The research questions that guided this study were designed to determine how experienced teachers serving as mentors describe their experiences and what are the best, most needed or most helpful mentoring practices. The fifteen study participants taught at the middle school level in a suburban school district in North Carolina. The primary methods of collecting information for this study were one-on-one interviews, surveys, and focus group interviews, which allowed for a comprehensive perspective and a crosscheck of information. After a detailed analysis five distinct themes that emerged from the data were: (a) the qualities of the mentor and mentee relationship; (b) willing helper; (c) personal growth for the mentors; (d) support provider; and (e) advocate. The themes were interrelated which led to the factors that are necessary to create an optimal mentoring situation. The findings from this study revealed that mentors must create a positive relationship that is built on trust and respect with the mentee in order to combat the many challenges that occur during the first year of teaching. The experienced teacher must have a desire to help in order to create the optimal conditions be an effective mentor and provide the personal and professional support that many first year teachers need. The role of the mentor extends beyond the one-on-one relationship with the mentee. The mentor serves as an advocate for mentoring by promoting its importance to school and district leaders which in return will hopefully invoke changes in the recruitment, training, and evaluation of the mentoring program

Characterization, character, and moral judgment of the women in Middlemarch

This is a detailed study of the methods of characterization used to create the female personages of Middlemarch and an attempt to place those characters historically. The first two chapters include a discussion of the position of women in the growing nineteenth-century middle class, their educational opportunities, marital relationships, financial expectations, and cultural demands. The second chapter takes into account contemporary feminist perspectives on George Eliot and Middlemarch. Chapters three through six are an in-depth study of the methods of characterization George Eliot uses to create her fictional women. Chapters three and four discuss the novel’s two major characters, Dorothea Brooke and Rosamond Viney; chapter five deals with the intermediate characters, Mary Garth and Harriet Bulstrode; and chapter six explains the importance of the minor characters who act as foils and parallels to the major characters. Chapter seven summarizes this extended analysis and draws conclusions based on the study. George Eliot looks at characters as the product of will and circumstance, showing both as they operate to produce the fictional lives of her women characters. The study includes an exhaustive analysis of the devices of characterization, including physical description, dramatic presentation, gossip, interior consciousness, epithets, authorial intrusion, and narrative distancing, pointing out the relation of technique to various character types