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NEWSLETTER FALL 2013
Message from the Dean of the Library
and Digital Learning Resources
I walked into the library on the first Monday of the
fall semester and the scene was reminiscent of finals
week. Students were everywhere - they were at the
computer workstations, printing articles, browsing
the book stacks, and reading in chairs. Regular
classes didn't start for three more days, but the
freshmen seminars had begun the night before and
Stetson's largest class of freshmen were already
hard at work. I shouldn't
be surprised that the
library is full most of the
time these days. We
have more students than
ever and they seem to
like the library's inviting
atmosphere. We believe that we provide them with
an impressive array of resources to enhance their
Stetson experience. At Stetson we like to think that
our students are academically engaged, but it is
gratifying to get to see the learning in action every
day.
Susan A/7. Ryan, Dean of the duPont-Ball Library
The Writing Center Comes to the Library
The University's Writing Center has long offered free
tutoring in writing for all of the Stetson community.
Director Maggie Herb hires and trains peer tutors to
help writers with any type of paper, at any stage of
the writing process. This
summer, the Writing
Center moved into the
northeast corner of the
library. It's a great
partnership that directly benefits the students -
students have easy access to help from both the
Writing Center staff and the research librarians
during many of the hours the library is open.
The Betty Drees Johnson Dean of the duPont-Ball
Library and Digital Learning Resources Endowment
Former library director
and current University
Trustee Betty Johnson
(left, with Library Dean
Susan Ryan) has often said
™ ^^^^ that Stetson changed her
life when she was awarded a full-tuition scholarship
as an undergraduate in 1955. Betty ('59, '62) had a
storied 50 year career as a Stetson librarian. Now
she has chosen to give back to the library that she
developed for so many years. Along with naming
the library dean's position, Betty has created an
endowed innovation fund - a fund that will allow the
librarians to be creative in ways that wouldn't be
possible without the gift.
Library Dean Susan Ryan has challenged the
librarians and library staff to use this fund to make
the duPont-Ball Library a showcase library - a library
that is ahead of the curve in learning technologies
and innovative ways to disseminate information.
Perhaps the greatest gift is Betty's assurance that "it
is ok to fail." While we do not plan on many failures,
the freedom to try out new things without
restriction is such a liberating prospect. We can't
wait to start innovating! Thank you, Betty.
Follow the Library on Facebook
Stay up-to-date on library news -
follow us on Facebook at
http://facebook.com/StetsonLibrary. The
library also maintains the John B. Stetson Facebook
page which posts Stetson-related items of current
and historical interest. Follow us at
http://facebook.com/iohnbstetsonl886.
