Library News

Looking for tax forms?

It’s that time of year again, when we all hope that April showers will bring May tax refunds. If you’re looking for Massachusetts state tax forms, we have a supply of paper forms on a table next to the Hub on the first floor of Snell Library. For federal forms, connect to the IRS web site. If you need to file in another state, forms for all 50 states can be found at the web site of the Federation of Tax Administrators. Residents of eastern Massachusetts may be eligible to extend the deadline to file to May 11 . The extension is intended to ease the burden on those among us who are still coping with the effects of flooding. (Read more here.)

IRis Highlight: Sport in Society

In addition to its academic departments, Northeastern University hosts multiple interdisciplinary research centers and institutes. These centers are the source of a great deal of original research. Many of them have chosen to place their publications and presentations in IRis, the Libraries’ digital archive that collects, manages, preserves, and shares the intellectual output and historical record of Northeastern University. One such center is Sport in Society, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. This center conducts research and offers programming and outreach with a mission of using the power and appeal of sport to foster diversity, prevent violence, and improve the health of local and global communities. Sport in Society has submitted an extensive set of reports, presentations, and research articles to IRis. You can read about athletes with disabilities and their legal rights to participate in recreational and sporting opportunities, or about violence linked to teams or universities with Native American mascots, among many other topics. Browse in IRis and you can find out about the fascinating array of subjects being studied by Sport in Society and many of Northeastern’s other research centers.

English Language lovers, try Vocabula Review

The Northeastern University Libraries have just subscribed to The Vocabula Review, which “battles nonstandard, careless English“. Enjoy back issues and online forums, as well as each issues’ special departments like Clues to Concise Writing and Scarcely Used Words with a Definition a Day Quiz.  This is a new subscription, so please feel free to tell us what you think.

Announcing: Two Key Library Hires

Distinguished librarians Amira Aaron and Patrick M. Yott are joining Northeastern University Libraries in April 2010.  These hires are part of the Library’s ambitious vision to advance scholarly communications and expand the University’s digital initiatives, building on its institutional repository and digitization of special collections. Amira Aaron will begin April 1st as the Library’s Associate Dean for Scholarly Resources.  In this role she will oversee and direct the development of the Library’s collections and information resources including digital initiatives and technical services.  She will also be a member of the senior administrative group, which develops and implements the mission, goals, budget, and broad policy directions of the library.  Amira will bring to Northeastern over thirty years of experience in information resources, systems, and technical services.  Most recently she was the Director of Information Resources at Brandeis University and prior to that she was Manager for Digital Content & Access Services at Harvard University.  Amira holds a Master’s degree in library science from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Bachelor’s degree from Boston University. Patrick M. Yott will join Northeastern on April 15 as Digital Library Manager. In this role he will build the institution’s digital library program, providing vision and leadership in the creation and delivery of digital content.  Patrick developed and led Brown University Library’s Center for Digital Initiatives and directed its Digital Technologies division.  Prior to his time at Brown, he was Director of Digital Services Integration at the University of Virginia.  Patrick holds Master’s degrees in both library science and education from Rutgers University and a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire. Both Amira and Patrick have extensive experience presenting, publishing, and advancing the library profession at the national level. Welcome Amira and Patrick!

Amira Aaron

Patrick Yott

Patrick Yott

Read the full release here.

Oral Histories of Lower Roxbury Community Members Available for Research

Oral histories recorded under the auspices of Northeastern’s Lower Roxbury Black History Project are now open for research. The Lower Roxbury Black History Project evolved from a meeting on November 9, 2006 between Northeastern University President Joseph E. Aoun and members of the Black Ministerial Alliance of Massachusetts to discuss possible collaborations between Northeastern and Lower Roxbury clergy. During the meeting, Reverend Michael E. Haynes suggested the University create a history of the African American community in Lower Roxbury, so President Aoun appointed Joseph D. Warren, who was at that time Special Assistant to the Director of Government Relations and Community Affairs, to oversee the Lower Roxbury Black History Project. Warren’s advisory board consisted of Rev. Michael E. Haynes, formerly of Roxbury’s Twelfth Baptist Church, Massachusetts State Representative Byron Rushing, Northeastern University Archivist Joan D. Krizack, and Northeastern University history professors William M. Fowler Jr., Gerald H. Herman, and Robert L. Hall, and Northeastern Vice President for Public Affairs Robert P. Gittens. In November 2007, Warren hired Lolita Parker Jr., a photographer and documentary film researcher, to collect oral histories of Roxbury community members. From 2007-2009 with the assistance of her son, London Parker-McWorter, Parker spoke with over 40 residents of Roxbury. The 758.28 gigabytes of digital files and .90 cubic feet of records date from 2007-2009.  The collection contains video and audio oral histories of African American clergy, educators, businessmen, politicians, community activists, former military men, laborers, and citizens of Lower Roxbury. Interviewees discussed their families, childhoods, and geographic areas in Roxbury, including Roxbury Crossing, Sawyer Street, and Haskins Street, from the early to mid-20th century. Records include audio (.aiff / .mp3 / .wma); video (.avi / .mov / iMovieProject / MiniDVs); partial, edited, and unedited transcripts of interviews; scans; and photographs. A guide to the collection is available here. The Lower Roxbury Black History Project collection is open for research Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m., in the Northeastern University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections Department, 92 Snell Library, Boston, Massachusetts. For a list of all the Department’s special collections, see this link. Adelaide Cromwell, noted Sociology Professor and the first African American instructor at New York’s Hunter College, during oral history interview, 2 April 2009.   For more information, please contact Joan Krizack, University Archivist and Head, Special Collections, at j.krizack@neu.edu or 617-373-8318.