Dragons on the Gridiron: A History of Football at Drexel
Submitted on December 14, 2011 - 9:37AM
Drexel University Libraries invites you to two exciting events marking the opening of a new exhibition on the history of football at Drexel.
Wednesday, January 18th -- Coffee & Conversation Event, 4 - 6 PM
Join alumni, faculty, students, administrators and friends for a conversation about the role of athletics in the University; past, present and future. Special Guests TBA.
4:00 - 5:00 PM, reception, 5:00 - 6:00 PM, conversation
Coffee and Light refreshments will be provided.
Saturday, January 28th -- Homecoming Event, 11:30 - 1:30 PM
Join the campus in celebrating Drexel's homecoming with this new exhibit from Archives and Special Collections. Featuring items selected by alumni of the football team, the exhibit will detail the history of the Drexel football. The event will feature special screenings of historic football films and remarks from football alumni.
Refreshments will be provided.
For more information, please contact Jenny James Lee or 215-571-4095. Both events will be held in W. W. Hagerty Library at the corner of 33rd & Market Streets. A valid photo ID is required to enter the building.
Read More
Blog: Steve Jobs and 'Apple DU': Going National with Apple Computers
Submitted on November 25, 2011 - 12:59PM
Blogger Kevin Impellizeri recaps the Going National with Apple Computers event on his blog, Primary Source Code. Read more at:Primary Source Code.
Read More
Issue 4, Vol 1 - Drexel University Libraries: In Circulation
Submitted on November 7, 2011 - 11:51AM
View the November issue online.
Articles include:
- Partnership between Libraries and Drexel Smart House helps students develop information Literacy Skills.
- Succeeding at Group Work, with help from the Libraries
- Libraries teach skills for Lifelong Learning to over 3,000 undergraduates through English 1010 instructional sessions
- Time Capsule adds items to Drexel Archives collection
- Going National with Apple Computers: Event
- Digital@Drexel Presentation & Showcase: Event
- Make it Yours: Transforming Drexel University Libraries
- Faculty, Staff and Students Discuss Computing at Drexel through the Years
- New Faces in the Libraries
- Spotlight on Services
- Wishlist
Read More
Going National with Apple Computers: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow - 11/10/11
Submitted on October 30, 2011 - 9:56PM
Thursday, November 10th from 6 - 8 PM
Library Learning Terrace, 33rd & Race Streets
Add to my calendar
In 1985, Steve Jobs visited Drexel to congratulate the University on its cutting edge decision to require all incoming students to have a personal computer. This project, the Microcomputer Project, changed learning at Drexel and inspired a culture of innovation. Join Drexel University Libraries for a special screening of the entertaining and informative documentary, Going National, produced by Dean of Pennoni Honors College, Dave Jones, Ph.D., which details the project and the cutting edge decision that Drexel took by choosing Macintosh computers.
Following the film, a panel of special guests will speak about the film and the Microcomputer Project, as well as how technology can impact and influence learning.
Panelists:
Dave Jones, Dean of Pennoni Honors College & Director of Going National
Paula Cohen, Distinguished Professor of English
Sheldon Master, member of Apple's first dedicated sales force, President/Owner at Haddonfield Micro Associates, Inc.
John Gruber, Apple enthusiast, writer, blogger and Drexel alumnus
Moderator:
Youngmoo Kim, Associate Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Assistant Dean of Media Technologies
This event is in conjunction with Access Everywhere: Computing at Drexel, 1984 - Present, an exhibit mounted by the Drexel University Archives. The exhibit is on display at W. W. Hagerty Library from October 18, 2011 - December 10, 2011.
Read More
Time Capsule adds items to Drexel Archives collection
Submitted on October 30, 2011 - 6:12PM
By: Rob Sieczkiewicz and Jenny James Lee
Several new items were added to the Archives' collection at W. W. Hagerty Library after the opening of a time capsule, found in Matheson Hall, during a sledgehammer ceremony on October 5th. The ceremony was lead by Dean of LeBow, George Tsetsekos, with members of his advisory board, Drexel students, staff and faculty, as well as representatives from the Keating Building Company.
During construction at Matheson Hall on September 30, crews found the time capsule behind the building's 1965 cornerstone plaque. The capsule was sealed and in good condition, as were its contents.
Contents found in the time capsule are currently on display at W. W. Hagerty Library, and are listed below:
- Brochure: Answers to your Questions about Drexel and the Drexel Plan of Cooperative Education
- Drexel Institute of Technology Bulletin: Undergraduate Curricula 1965-66
- Drexel Institute of Technology Blue Book (blank examination book)
- The Drexel Triangle, April 23, 1965
- The Ledger: The Quarterly Journal of the Undergraduate College of Business Administration, 1963-64 (three issues)
- Bus Ad Day card (Business Administration Day), circa 1965
- Robert B. Mitchell and Stanley B. Tunick. Prentice Hall 1964 Federal Tax Course, Students Edition
- Two cigarette butts with the following names written in ink: W. Martin, E. Martin, Macauley, S. Smith, Carlo, Barry, Lucke, Halpin, McNamara, Mueller
Additional Coverage of the Sledgehammer Ceremony and Time Capsule opening:
Inside Matheson, Workers Discover Time Capsule from 1965 - DrexelNow
1965 Time Capsule Opened - Drexel University Archives blog
Matheson Time Capsule Opened, Demolition Underway - DrexelNow
Amid Campus Construction, Drexel University Opens a 1965 Time Capsule - KYW Newsradio (1060-AM)
Read More
Faculty, Staff and Students Discuss Computing at Drexel through the Years
Submitted on October 26, 2011 - 3:00PM
[caption id='attachment_516' align='alignleft' width='190' caption='University Archivist Rob Sieczkiewicz, Professor Jeremy Johnson, Professor Tom Hewett and Professor Ray Brebach']
[/caption]
Drexel faculty, students and staff gathered at W. W. Hagerty Library on Tuesday, October 18, for Coffee, Conversation and Computing, an event in collaboration with the exhibit Access Everywhere, Computing at Drexel 1984 - Present.
The exhibition, which runs through December 10th, begins with Drexel's Mircocomputer Project and the distribution of Macintosh computers to Drexel students and faculty in 1984. Attendees of the event were treated to a conversation with professors Tom Hewett and Ray Brebach, who were on campus for this exciting event in Drexel's history. They shared their memories and experiences of a time when the entire campus quickly adjusted to incorporating computers in all disciplines and in many projects.
Professor Jeremy Johnson added the perspective of a computer scientist as attendees discussed the impact of several key information technologies at Drexel over the past several decades. The group seemed to agree that while the introduction of the Macintosh computer to Drexel was the most dramatic change several other computing innovations have also drastically affected the campus community. One of these transformative items was wireless computing. Mr. Hewett remembered the moment when a colleague first demonstrated how the Apple base station could connect several items in a room to the Internet without cables.
Conversation ranged from Drexel's role as an innovator in computing, to the complex relationship between books and hypertext, and to the future of input devices beyond the mouse and keyboard.
Missed this discussion? Join us for Going National with Apple Computers: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow on Thursday, November 18th, as we discuss the role of technology in learning and its impact on the Drexel community and beyond.
Read More
Coffee, Conversation...and Computing?
Submitted on October 11, 2011 - 8:44PM
Tuesday, October 18, 2011 5 - 7 PM W. W. Hagerty Library
Join Drexel University Libraries at this special event, which kicks off the opening of Access Everywhere: Computing at Drexel, 1984 - present exhibit. This event will feature conversation about the changing role of computers at Drexel and topics will include email, internet, wireless access, and other computer advances that have brought Drexel to where it is today.
This event is free and open to the public. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
For more information, or to suggest a topic for conversation, please contact Jenny James Lee via email or at 215-571-4095.
Read More
Coffee, Conversation ... and Computing? - 10/18/11
Submitted on October 3, 2011 - 8:42PM
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
5 - 7 PM
W. W. Hagerty Library
Join Drexel University Libraries at this special event, which kicks off the opening of Access Everywhere: Computing at Drexel, 1984 - present exhibit. This event will feature conversation about the changing role of computers at Drexel and topics will include email, internet, wireless access, and other computer advances that have brought Drexel to where it is today.
This event is free and open to the public. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
For more information, or to suggest a topic for conversation, please contact Jenny James Lee via email or at 215-571-4095.
Read More
Archives Exhibit: Researching Diversity at Drexel
Submitted on August 10, 2011 - 3:28PM
Drexel University Archives presents a new exhibition, 'Researching Diversity at Drexel,' opening August 10, 2011. The exhibition contains documents from the University Archives and essays written by students in Professor Sharon Brubaker's English 103 classes that explore issues of race, gender and cultural diversity at Drexel.
Drexel opened its doors in 1891 as a technical school dedicated to educating men and women students of all races, religions, and backgrounds. However, the history of diversity at Drexel, as at any institution, is complex. Were students of color welcome in Drexel's fraternity and sorority scene? How were international students treated? Which departments had women students and faculty when Drexel was founded, and how did the distribution of women change over time? These are some of the questions that this exhibition addresses.
Exhibit Opens: Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Opening Reception: Wednesday, August 17, 2011, 5 - 7 PM *
Location: W. W. Hagerty Library, 33rd & Market Streets, Philadelphia, PA
* Opening reception, with coffee and conversation about researching and documenting diversity, will take place at Hagerty Library from 5 PM - 7 PM on August 17, 2011. This event is free and open to the public.
Read More
Archives Event: Dragon's Salute to Service
Submitted on July 25, 2011 - 12:43PM
'Dragon's Salute to Service'
July 7 - August 1, 2011
Visit the James E. Marks Intercultural Center Exhibition Gallery this July for a special exhibit: 'Art & Artifacts.'
This exhibit features 'Freedom's On Me,' the work of renowned multimedia illustrator and U.S. Army Corporal Poto Leifi, and 'A Snap Shot of Drexel's Veterans,' an archival history of veterans on campus. The exhibit will be on display throughout the month of July.
Sponsored by: The Office of Veteran Student Services and The Veteran's Task Force at Drexel, ARMY ROTC at Drexel, the Drexel University Archives and the Office of Equality and Diversity.
Read More
Archival Outlook: Online Archives Internship
Submitted on May 31, 2011 - 12:38PM
Megan Atkinson, a Drexel University iSchool student, shares the story of her online archives internship with the Drexel University Archives earlier this year. She shares her experience in the May/June 2011 issue of Archival Outlook.
Read More
The Triangle: Past Letters to Presidents displayed in Library
Submitted on February 25, 2011 - 2:56PM
Correspondence between presidents, faculty and students change through years
By: Samuel Davidson
Posted: 2/25/11
A reception was held in Hagerty Library Feb. 22 for a new exhibit that will display archived letters to Drexel's presidents, in order to showcase the shared concerns and thoughts of over 100 years of presidents, students, parents and alumni.
The letters cover a wide variety of topics - some modern, and many now quaintly archaic. Viewing the display, one finds a wide spectrum of letters, from modern crisp printouts and blurred faxes to the ornate script of handwritten letters and the uniform type of typewriters. The entertainment of the exhibit is most often found in the latter most of these documents.
President James MacAlister (1840-1913) complained in a note to one of his professors: 'The students of your department seem to be falling into the habit of finding relief for their hard work by whistling. I have no doubt that they get lots of pleasure out of it, but it will not do. I presume it is done after you leave; but I think you had better say to them they must refrain from whistling until they are out of the building.' For all the nuisances of texting during classes, professors of this era are surely grateful that their classes are unlikely to be disturbed by uproarious whistling.
There are also letters of scandal. A young lady was reprimanded not just for missing her classes, but even more for that fact that she was seen 'in the habit of engaging in conversation with young men.' The faculty at the time found this unacceptable. Three young women obtained the use of a lodge on the Drexel Estate for a weekend party, and successfully schemed to have gentleman callers with no chaperone present. They were promptly suspended for an egregious breach of discipline.Not every letter relates such sordid matters, though. Many letters reveal the common sentiments collegiate students and their supervisors have felt at Drexel for over a century. These provide an example of some of the immutable features of college. On display is a letter from a prospective student in 1940 who shares any modern student's desire to impress. He related, 'I have a special aptitude in science and am good in higher mathematics ... I am a boy of good habit and fond of outdoor sports such as hunting and fishing. I am on the track team at school. I am a Christian boy and active in Y.M.C.A. I will be eighteen years of age on June twenty-eighth, if God spares my life.' He closes the letter by signing himself as 'a boy who wishes to succeed.'
In another letter, dated 1925, a father icily leveled an accusation of anti-southern bigotry regarding his daughter's probation for poor academic performance. President Kenneth G. Matheson (who served from 1921-1931) gracefully replied that the probation was in and of itself giving the student an additional opportunity, and that he was born and attended college in the south himself.
Holly Mengel, a visiting archivist, found particular humor in one letter regarding the quality of the 1992 graduation. She noted the contents with a laugh: 'Despite being bad, it was significantly better than the previous three!'
According to Robert Sieczkiewicz, Drexel archivist and proprietor of the exhibition, the exhibit does have a scholarly intent: 'The continuity of student concerns ... [The fact] that students are still concerned with the issues back then as the parents were, that the administration was the same: designing a good educational program, getting students to conform to standards of behavior - even though today we don't care about folks whistling in the Main Building.'
Sieczkiewicz believes students should be aware of the ways in which using the archives can enrich their projects and research. Nothing could evidence this more than his display itself - the past is that much more vivid for being told in the voices of those who lived it.
Visit The Triangle online.
Davidson, Samuel. 'Past Letters to Presidents Displayed in Library.' The Triangle. Philadelphia, PA. 2/25/11. Web. 2/25/11.
Read More
The Triangle: Class Explores Campus History
Submitted on February 11, 2011 - 2:53PM
Archives present student work
By: David Stephenson
Although thousands pass him by each day, few actually know of the all-star alumnus for whom who Mario the Dragon is named.
Even fewer students know the story of a long lost chandelier that once hung in the Great Court of Main but disappeared after a massive explosion rocked the campus and damaged buildings along Market Street.
But these stories from Drexel's past, and more, and now being unveiled by a group of inquisitive students from professor Sheryl P. Simons's fall 2010 English 101 course.
The Drexel Archives have been presenting works from Drexel students in Simon's class about the history of their school. Although many of the posts have already been published, all of the essays are available on the Drexel University Libraries website.
'I think what we're trying to do is get students excited about the history of their school,' Robert Sieczkiewicz, University Archivist, said.
Essays that are already available on the site cover the mystery surrounding the chandelier from the Great Hall, the story behind the financier who founded the University and the history of women in Drexel sports.
The posts are slated to run through March, with students delving into new topics on the Wednesday of each week.
For students interested in the history of their school, the University archives have a wide selection of primary sources covering the development of the University. Sieczkiewicz said that the Archives department supported many other projects around the University.
He also said that this was not the first time that student works were selected to be featured on the Archives blog. In fact, if students are interesting in doing research with the Drexel archives and then have their works published on the blog, Sieczkiewicz said he would be willing to work with those students to develop their blog posts.
Sieczkiewicz also said that Simon's spring class will be doing a second series of posts, this time on historical and current research innovations developed at Drexel, that will be publish as the spring term comes to a close.
Visit The Triangle online.
Stephenson, David. 'Class Explores Campus History.' The Triangle. Philadelphia, PA. 11 Feb 2011. Web. 11 Feb 2011.
Read More
Q&A with Sophia Stutte, Drexel University Archives Assistant
Submitted on July 31, 2023 - 12:03PM
Meet Sophia Stutte, the Drexel University Archives' spring/summer 2023 co-op student, in this new interview.
Read More
Time Capsule Provides Glimpse into Drexel Past
Submitted on December 7, 2022 - 4:27PM
During renovations to Kelly Hall in the winter of 2021/2022, staff from Drexel University’s Real Estate and Facilities unearthed an interesting object behind the building’s cornerstone: a time capsule.
Read More
The wonder of miniature books
Submitted on August 7, 2013 - 1:28PM
A story in The Atlantic online by Rebecca J. Rosen today made me appreciate our small but lovely miniature book collection even more.
Read More
Arrrchive Open House Pirate Party Tomorrow!
Submitted on September 24, 2009 - 9:00AM
Ahoy Lads and Lasses of Fortune,
Thar be treasure, looting, pillaging and plunder tomorrow at the Arrrchives Open House Pirate Party.
Read More
Students - Welcome Back Week! Pirate Party this Friday!
Submitted on September 21, 2009 - 9:00AM
Ahoy me Brethren of the Coast,
Arrrchives Open House be this Friday, September 25th, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Read More
Two weeks till the Pirate Party -for Student's Welcome Back Week
Submitted on September 11, 2009 - 9:00AM
Ahoy, me Hearties!
Aye, for Welcome Back Week at Drexel the Arrrchives is hostin' an Open House.
Read More
Enjoy your break, Drexel Students! Come back in three weeks for the Pirate Party and Arrrchives Open House!
Submitted on September 4, 2009 - 9:00AM
Ahoy me matey's!
Only three weeks till we weigh anchor! Argh! On Friday September 25th from 4 to 6 p.m. thar be a Pirate Party at the Arrrchives.
Read More
A researcher's view of the archives
Submitted on June 26, 2009 - 10:30AM
We are always interested in hearing patrons' views of archives, so this blog post was of special interest. Elesha Coffman, a history professor at Waynesburg University, shares her four keys to effective archives work in 'The Art of the Archive.'
Read More