The flyleaf, 2001

24 Pages·2001·1.3 MB·English

by  Fondren Library. Friends

CCRC
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The
Flyleaf
FriendsofFondren Libraiy Vol. 51, No. 2
•^
President Gillis Announces
Approval ofNew Library Design
by Rice Board ofTrustees
!
A
Letter to the Friends
FondrenLibrary
Foundedunderthecharterof
theuniversitydatedMay18, 1891,
thelibrarywasestablishedin1913.
Itspresentbuildingwasdedicated
DearFriendsofFondren Libraiy: November 4, 1949, and rededi-
catedin1969afterasubstantialad-
Ithasbeen an excitingyearfortheFriendsandfor dition,bothmadepossiblebygifts
Fondren Library! In thisissue,youwill have the opportunityto oafndEltlhaeF.FoFnodnrdernenF,ouhnedratchiiolndraennd,
readallaboutthe tremendousplansforthenewlibraryatRice TrustasatributetoWalterWilliam
University.Youwillalsohave thechance toreadaboutMary Fondren.Thelibrarycelebratedits
Bixby, DirectorofDevelopmentforthe Library,whohas the half-millionthvolumein 1965and
challengingjobofraisingfunds tosupportthisveryimportant itsone-millionthvolumeonApril
22, 1979.
project.
Asyouknow, oin-annualHomecomingBrunchwasheld
thispastNovember.We honoredDr. DavidL. Minterforhis TheFriends
commitmentto the Friendsand toFondren Library. Youcan The Friends ofFondren Li-
readallaboutthiswonderful morningin thisissue ofThe brarywasfoundedin1950asanas-
Flyleaf.Manythanks toJohn Bricewhochaired thisspecial stoecrieasttieodninofinlcirberaarsyinsgupapnodrtmearksiinng-
event. betterknowntheresourcesofFon-
OurFebruaryeventwas the RiceAuthorsReception,which dren Library at Rice University.
honoredoverfiftyauthors thisyear. Fom-fantastic panelists The Friends, through members'
were ledbymoderatorBobPatteninan interestingdiscussion contributions and sponsorship of
aprograinofinemorialsandhonor
ofwhatinfluencedeach towrite. Special thanks toAlan Bath gifts,securegiftsandbequests,and
forhishardworkchairingthiswonderfulevent. providefundsforthepurchaseof
Itwasgood to seeyouatthe FriendsofFondrenLibrary rarebooks,manuscripts,andother
Gala.Weweresopleasedto honortheFondrenfamilyandthe materials that are needed to sup-
FondrenFoundationwhohavecontributedsignificantlytoRice portteachingandresearchatthe
university.
University'sFondrenLibrary.Youwillhave the chance toread
allaboutthisspectaculareveningin theupcomingissue ofThe
Flyleaf. TheFlyleaf
TheFriendsofFondren LibraryAnnual Meetingand Din- Founded October, 1950, The
nnoetreissrpiegahkteraraonudndwiltlhedicsocrunsesr."TCrhauncskfoHremnirnygwSiplalcbe:eTouhrekNeey-w FUolnfyiFlveoearnfsdiisrtyep,nubPLl.iiObs.rhaerBydo,xbMyS1t8h-9e22,4F5r,HioeRuinscd-es
LibraryatRice University."Ilookforward to seeingyouthere ton, Texas 77251-1892. TheFlylmf
is arecord ofthe acti\ddes ofthe
Sincerely, Friends,theFondrenLibrary,and
thegenerosityofthelibrary'ssup-
\ porters. TheFlyleaf\s publislied
^feUi^ three timesin each academic cal-
endar year and is also available
LucasT. Elliot online atthe Friends ofFondren
President websiteathttp://nif.rice.edu/~fofl/.
m
TheFlyleaf 2
RICE UNIVERSITY
JUN 6 ?001
Contents LIBRARY
The Flyleaf
NotJustAnyBuilding Page 4
Editors: Homecoming Page 7
ElizabethW.Kidd,
VicePresident,Publications Profile Series Page 9
MaryBixby RiceAuthors Page 10
MaryPatJulian
Bookmark Review Page 14
Photographs:
MaryBixby Distinguished GuestLecture Page 16
JeffFitlow
MaryPatJulian Fall 2001 BookSale Page 17
FriendsofFondren Membership Page 18
Layout:
UniversityPublications
Gifts toFondren Library Page 19
LookingAliead Page 24
Board ofDirectors 2000-2001
Officers
LucasT. Elliot, President Edward B. "Teddy"Adams,Ji David L. Minter, Ph.D.
RobinsBrice, VicePresident, GeorgannaAllen Barnes RobertL. Patten, Ph.D.
Membership Alan HarrisBath John C. Ribble, M.D.
ElizabethW. Kidd, JohnW. Brice CathrynRoddSelman
VicePresident, Publications David S. Elder Lee Chatham Seureau
TexasAnderson DianaP. Hobby Michelle M. Shedd
FrancesHeyne Mrs. ThomasW. Houghton J.D. Sitton, III
Karen HessRogers, Charles D. Maynarcl,Jr. PamelaRileySmith
VicePresidents, SpecialEvents MaryCatherine Miller John E. Wolf,Jn, M.D.
Mrs. PamelaS. Giraud, Secretary KatherineFieblemanMiner BettyBountScaleWood
KyleAllen Frazier, Treasurer
Ex Officio
Eugene H. Levy, Ph.D., Provost
CharlesHenry, Ph.D., VicePresidentand ChiefInformation Officer
John B. Boles, Ph.D., Chairman, University CommitteeontheLibrary
MaryD. Bixby,ExecutiveDirector
MaryPatJulian,AssociateDirector
3M
Spring2001
NotJust Any Building
byD. KentAnderson, Chairman
BuildingsandGroundsCommittee
RiceUniversityBoardofTrustees
Architect'synodelofthenewlibmiyin itssetting07i theRiceCampus
In 1998 the BoardofTrust- apriorityforRice Universityset and theuniversitycommunit)'
eesofRiceUniversityand the universityon ajourneyof aboutouraspirations, ourenvi-
PresidentMalcolm Gillisset assessment, introspection, and ronmentandourvalues. Each
theirsightson thegoal ofre- discoverythatwe hadnotfully stephas "raised the bar"ofex-
solvingthe severe shortage of anticipated.Thisjoiuneyhas cellenceforthisfacilit)'and
spaceforthe collection in the carriedusthrough the lasttwo clearlyinformed usall thatfor
existingFondrenLibraryand yearsandhasincludedan ex- thisnewiteration ofthe library,
the need touseinnovationsin tensive programmingprocess, "good"would notbegood
information technologyto stra- severalcampus-planninginitia- enoughforRice. Soithasbe-
tegicallyplace Rice in the lead- tivesand avarietyofdesign op- come clear thatthe newlibraiy
ershiproleexpected ofaworld- tionsbytwo differentdesign ar- would notbejustanybuilding.
classresearch institution. chitects. Eachstephasinformed The\'ision ofthe newlibrary
Theelevation ofthisgoalas andeducatedtheprojectteam wasclearlydefinedin the earli-
M
TheFlyleaf 4
eststagesofthe programming Thefirstattempt todefine challenged theboard's under-
process. Programmingissome- howthebuildingwould take standingofthe Rice campusen-
timesreferred toas tiie pliase of shapewas thejobofRobert vironmentand raised many
designwhen each space isiden- Ventiui, one ofthe finestarchi- more questions than cotildbe
tifiedand sized. In manycases, tectsofthe 20"' Century. Mn answeredwithin theVenturi ap-
asin the Ubraryproject, pro- Venturifullyrespectedtheaca- proach. The board alsocame to
grammingisa time todevelopa demic mission ofRice. Healso understand, through thispro-
vision forthebtiildinginclud- accepted the constraintsofthe cesswith RobertVenttiri, that
ing imderstandinghowthe project. These constraintsin- the qualityofdesign ofthe li-
buildingis tobe used,what cludedbtidget, location, and brarywasextraordinarilyimpor-
functionsitwillserveand howit the preservation andrenova- tant, not onlybecauseofits
mightgrowand change. The tion ofthe original Fondren Li- prominentlocation on the aca-
mostimportantaspectofthe brarybuilding. Mr.Ventiuien- demicquadrangle butalsobe-
vision, asdefinedbyDi. Charles thusiasticallytookon this catise ofwhatthe buildingwas
Henry, ishowthe Fondren Li- challenge developingan archi- toaccomplish. Ifthislibrary
brarywillfitintoandsupport tectiual argument andinterpre- were trulyto carryRiceinto the
the missionofthe university. Dr. tation thatproposedatransi- nextcentmyasaresource, the
Henry'svision isone that re- tional and flexible "loft" buildingmust also carrythe uni-
flectson the traditional role of structure attached to the origi- versit}'architectinallyinto the
the librarywhile addressingthe nalFondrenbuilding. In the nextcentury; nosmall chal-
possibilitiesandneedsofthe Venturi design, the appearance lenge.
futiue. Intrinsic to thatvision is ofthe originalstrtictmewas to Recognition ofthe large
tomake the librarythefirst have been modified, not scale oftheVenturi design, the
greatresearch libraryofthe through changes to the exterior incredible diffictdtyofdealing
newcentmy.Ateam ledby biU byachange in the with the existingbuildingand
GeoffreyFreeman ofShepley building'scontextbyaddinga the need to lookagain atthe
Bulfinch Richardson andAb- freestandingwall in frontofthe original Cram masterplan for
bott (SBRA), theforemostaca- existinglibraryaddressingthe gtiidance, led the board to ini-
demic librai"ydesignersin the academic quadrangle. Thiswall tiate aPre-Design studyby
world, listenedwelland, in May wouldcreate acontextthat Michael'WWord. Michael
1999, publishedaprogram and wouldmake theexistingbuild- Wilford, an architectofinterna-
masterplanningstudythatde- ingvisuallylessimportant.A tionalregardfrom the LInited
fined thisvision. Central to this glasswallfaced themore infor- Kingdom, hasan intimatetm-
definition isthe capacitytoex- malquadrangle to thewestbe- derstandingofthe Rice Camptis
pand the currentcollection on hindwhich flexible spacewould and the academic quadrangle in
campuswhile creatingaworld- continuouslyaccommodate the particidar. Mr. Wilford taughtat
classsei"vice-orientedelectronic changingneedsofthe library. Rice in the School ofAixhitec-
resource centerandcreatinga The BoardofTrusteesdid tiue in the eightiesand de-
space thatsupports the interdis- notapprove theVenturi design. signedAnderson Hallwith his
ciplinaryexchangeso impor- Finalized in the summerof partner. SirJamesStirling. Mr.
tantto Rice. 2000, the design effectively Wilford hascontinued toprac-
Spring2001 51
tice architecture atan interna- effortcallsforthe replacement buildingoneithersidewithout
tionallyrecognizedlevelsince ofthe existingFondrenLibrary beingpushedoutside thequad
SirJamesStirling'sdeathin with anewfacilityofnearly area. Thewesternportion ofthe
1992. 300,000SFthatwill have two buildingwill includean ellipsp-^-
ThePre-Design studybegan storiesofconstructionunder- offlexible spaceopen to two
in Octoberof2000 andre- grotxnd. Two "slipbars", ap- floorsbelowgrade andfour
quired approximatelythree proximatelythesame scaleas floorsabove.Thisellipse, placed
monthstocomplete.Thepro- directlyon the intersection of
cessdevelopedbyMichael twomajoraxeswillbe the
Wilfordhasbeenaninclusive sourceofthefunctional transi-
one thathasrequireddiscus- Ifthis library were tionofthe program, the spatial
sion andreviewwith the Build- transition ofthearchitecture
ingsandGroundsDesign Sub- truly to carry Rice and theplan transition antici-
committee everyfewweeks. The patedbyCram.Areadingroom
studyrevisitedthe Cram Master into the next floatingabove theoaks, the
Planfirstin an attempttoun- highestpointon campuspunc-
derstand howafacilityplaced in century as a tuatesthisintersection.Thefa-
thislocationmightaddress the cilitywillincorporate tenyears
intentionsofthemasterplan. resource, the build- ofgrowth ofthe collection as
From thatanalysis, Mr.Wilford wellasexpandedseatingand
developedfiveoptionsforthe ingmust also carry studyareas.
diagrammatic developmentof Mostimportantly, the pro-
theproject, alwayskeepingthe the university poseddiagrammatic conceptis
programmaticvision apriority. aphysical manifestationofthe
Through extensiveworkwith architecturally into libraryprogram. The Pre-Design
theboard, thelibraryrepresen- incorporates thevision ofthe
tativesand theprojectteam, the the next century; no "new"libraryofthe 21"century,
optionswere narrowedanda adoptsthe "idea"foraflexible
newbudgetdefined. Principles research andlearninglabora-
small challenge.
forthe developmentofthefinal toryandembracesthe "multi-
schemeincludedrespectingthe disciplinedandcollaborative
existingscale ofthecampusus- educationalapproach"ofRice
ingthe "slipbar"design em- University.
bracedbytheearliestCram thoseformingSewallHalland Itwasdeterminedbythe
buildings; respectingthe archi- thePhysicsBuilding,willbeset BoardofTrusteesin March
tecturalstyleofthe academic atthe endacademic quad- 2001, thatdevelopmentofthis
quadrangle through contextu- rangle. Thecloisteratthatend Pre-Design conceptwilladdress
allysensitivedesign; allowing will be newlyaligned, eliminat- thegoalsoftheboard, the presi-
thearchitectureatthewestern ingthe existingbend.Theover- dentandtheuniversit}'commu-
quadrangle toaddress theneed allbuildingwillbe narroweral- nity, andsoMichaelWilford,
fortransition; and,finally, to lowingtheoriginalcloistersof GeoffreyFreeman, Dr. Charles
maintainingtheprogrammatic oaktreesalong thewestern Henryandtheprojectteamwill
goalsbycreatingamultilevel quad tobe replantedandrein- continue thisamazingjourney
"immersion concourse". forced. Thiswill also allowpe- to develop adesignforthe new
The massing "diagram"de- destrians to "slip"pastthe library; aprojectthatwillbe
veloped through thisPre-Design more thanjustanybuilding.
TheFlyleaf 6
Friends of Fondren Honor David Minter at Annual
FOFL/REA Homecoming Brunch
BYElizabethW. Kidd
scholarship inAmerican Litera-
ture, hiswritingsonWilliam
Faulkner, hisoften awarded
teaching, and hisworkin uni-
versit)'administration as Dean
ofEmoryCollegeandVice
PresidentforArtsandSciences
atEmoryUniversit}'and asIn-
terim ProvostatRice.
More relevant to the
Friends' Award, Kiddcontin-
ued,was Minter'sservice in 1995
and1996asInterim Provostand
Universit)'Librarian. He has
also servedon the LibraryPlan-
ningCommittee, asaboard
DavidMinter, NormaLeeMinter, andKenMinter memberoftheFriendsof
Fondren since 1997, andhas
The FriendsofFondren LibraryandThe generallyplayedan importantrolein develop-
Rice EngineeringAhimni Homecoming ing thevision forFondren Libraryin the twenty-
Brunch on November4, 2000,was, as these firstcentury.AsKidd illustrated in an anecdote
brunchestend tobe, averypopularandconviv- ofaconversation with him, it isa role about
ialevent. Thisyearthe brunchwas
ablychairedbyJohn Brice.The
FriendsofFondren Libraryhon-
oredDavidL. Minter, Ph.D., as the
2000 RecipientoftheFriendsof
Fondren LibraryAward. The
awardispresentedeachyearto
oneofthose amonguswho has
made aspecialcontribution to the
library, andDavid Minter, the
BruceandElizabeth Dunlevie Pro-
fessorofEnglish,wasindeedade-
servinghonoree.
AlbertKidd, a Rice trustee
emeritus, gave the presentation of
the award. He detailed some of
Minter'saccomplishments, includ-
inghisinternationallyrecognized LucasElliot,DavidMinter, andAlbeitKidd
Spring2001
which Minterhasfekpas- forthelibraryandhis
sionately. confidencein thefu-
Dr. Minter'sresponse ture ofthe libraryun-
wasbriefbuteloquentas dertheleadershipof
he spoke oftheessential ChuckHenry.
qualityofthe libraryin Asthe manyat-
thelife ofthe university. tendingexited the
Healsospokewith Kyle MorrowRoom,
warmth ofhisyearasIn- where the awardsare
terim Librarian and the alwayspresented,
greatrespecthedevel- much ofthe conversa-
opedin that timefor tionwasaboutthe
those on thestaffof newlibraryatRice.
Fondren Library. Finally, Thatexcitementand
heexpressedhisenthusi- enthusiasmwasper-
asmoverthe newplans haps thegreatesttrib-
ute to DavidMinter.
Chnrh'sMayiiarrI, CharlieandMelissaMaynard
REAPresidentJanStavinohawith2000award
recipientsFredG.Russell, whoreceivedthe
OutstandingEngineeringAlumnusAward, and
LawrenceA. Ciscon,Ph.D., whoreceivedthe
OutstandingYoungEngineeringAlumnusAward
TheFlvleaf 8
PROFILE SERIES
There's Something About Mary
BYElizabethW. Kidd
[MaryBixby, theDirector While othersmight
ofDevelopment-Library, have had theirfillof
nowinpartresponsiblefor librariesafterlivingin
raisingthefundstobuild one, theexperience
thenew, extraordinaryli- onlykindled in Marya
brarybuilding, cameto loveoflibraries, and
Ricein 1996asexecutive thebooksthatfill
directoroftheFriendsof them. Itishard tofind
FondrenLibrary, afterthe abookorauthorMaiy
retirementoftheableand has notread, orat
dedicatedBetty Charles. leastread about. Itwas
Noiutheworkofthe thatgreatrespectfor
Friendsisprirnarily libraries thatsocom-
shepherded(andefficiently municated to the
andenergeticallyso) by ' searchcommittee,but
MaryPatJulian, asAsso- otherexpertisewas
ciateDirector. Thefollow- clearfrom therecom-
ingisabriefprofileof MaryBixby mendationsthatcame
MaryB.] wasrearedin alibrai"ybya from Pennzoil,where Mary
librarian. wasatthattimeworkingas
DuringMaryBixby'sfirst Marygrewupin thesmall librarian. Infact, she hadre-
interviewasacandidate townofMcMinnville,Tennessee. ceived the President'sAward
forthe position ofexecutive Thegendemanwhodonatedthe atPennzoilonlytheyearbe-
—
directorofFriendsof fvmdstobuildthelibrai-ybuild- fore an accolade thatwe
FondrenLibrary,Iwascer- ingin McMinmdllehadspecified learnedofonlyaftercalling
tain manyofuson thesearch thatthelibrarianmustlivein the herreferences, notfrom
committeewerecongratulat- apartmentthatwasinthesame Maryherself.
ingourselveson ourgood buildingasthelibrary.Thus, Thereare, ofcourse,
fortune infindingsomeone when Mary'smotheraccepted manyotherstoriesin Mary's
sowellqualifiedtofill the po- thejob,herfamilymovedinto life.An episode ofone of
sition.Afterthesecondinter- thelibrary,andMaryandher those storiesoccurredonly
viewthecongratulationswere brotherspentmanyoftheir weeksagowhen Maryandher
—
sharedallaround. Marywas, mostformativeyears—ageseven son David traveledforthree
infact, uniquelyqualifiedfor tofourteenforMaiy living daysfromSan Francisco to
theposition. Shehadearned there.Though theyenjoyedfull Seatde on theUSSDa\ddR.
amaster'sdegreein library accesstothelibraryatallhours, Ray, aNav)'destroyer.The
science, ashadothercandi- Marytellsthathermothermade USS Rayisnamedin honorof
dates; shehadworkedin themuseflashlightsatnightto Mary'sbrother, known as
development, ashadother avoidtheresentmentofother Bobby,whoreceived posthu-
candidates; butonlyMary avidreadersin thecommunity. conlinuedonpage15
9M
Spring2001
2000 Rice Authors Reception
BYAlanHarrisBath
OnFebruary 11,2001,
theFriendsofFondren
usheredin theMillennium
byhonoringabumper
cropofover50Rice au-
thors. DeanJames, Linda
McNeil,VirginiaMoyer,
—
andStephen Zeff the
fourpanelistsrepresenting
—
thisyear'sauthors re-
flectedthewidediversityof
theRice community. Their
workscoveredarange of
interestsfrommurdermys-
teries, through ciuTent DeanJames, GinnyMoyer, BohPatten,LindaMcNeil, andStephenZejf
problemsin education and
medicine, tobiography. FriendsofFondren Book, aswellasamysterynovelistin hisown
President, LucasElliot,welcomed the attend- right. Hisfirstbook. CruelastheGraveissoon
eesandintroducedProfessorRobertL. tobefollowedbyanother. ClosertotheBones,
Patten,whoservedasmoderatorforthepro- dueoutinearlysummer.Jamesrecounted
gram. thathischildhoodinterestin mysteries, such
Firstspeaker. DeanJames, receivedhis astheHardyBoysseries, coupledwith his
Ph.D. inMedievalHistoryfromRice in 1986 studiesofthepuzzlesofhistory,ledhiminto
then turnedhis talentsto theworldofmys- the mystei'ywritingfield. He characterized
tery,becomingmanagerofHouston'snation hisstyle asthe old-fashionedAgathaChristie
allyrecognizedbookstore, Miuderbythe schoolandcommentedthathe enjoyedthis
typeofwritingbecause "yotu
imaginationcan takeyouwhere
yourfeetcannot."
RiceEducation Professorand
Co-DirectoroftheCenterfor
EducationLindaMcNeil, spoke
ofherworkasaschoolcurricu-
lum theoristandanalystofschool
structiue andreform. Herdiscus-
sion ofhermostrecentbook.
ContradictionsofSchoolReform:
EducationalCostsofStandardized
Testing,whichattractednational
attentionbothin themediaand
amongpoliticians, led toaspir-
BettyWoodandBridgetJensen itedqtiestionandanswersession
M
TheFlyleaf 10