Editorial, Author at Queens College Library

Queens College Library – Librarian Vacancies Announcement (9/12/23)

Seeking Candidates as Full-Time Substitute Librarians, and as Part-Time Adjunct Librarians

Queens College Library (QCL) supports student success and faculty development through its resources, services, and spaces in accordance with the college’s educational mission. QCL seeks creative, collaborative, and user-centered librarians to support teaching and learning in the schools of Arts & Humanities, Social Sciences, and Math & Natural Sciences. Our librarians will work with Library and College partners to improve services and outreach to students and faculty across academic departments. QCL encourages innovation in librarianship and expects librarians to possess strong interpersonal and creative skills, and the desire to develop new areas of expertise.

As members of the Library Faculty, these public service positions will combine core librarianship and teaching responsibilities, such as research assistance and library instruction, with subject specialist and technology-based services to students and faculty.

The Library and College embrace the diversity of the borough of Queens and welcomes such diversity in its students and personnel. QCL promotes a hybrid work schedule for full-timers (80% on-site, 20% remote), and all positions may include evenings and weekends.

These positions are open until filled – review of applications begins September 18th.

For details and to apply for a position, see our Employment page or these direct links:

Substitute Visual & Performing Arts-Art Librarian (Instructor or Assistant Professor)
Substitute Visual & Performing Arts-Music Librarian (Instructor or Assistant Professor)
Substitute STEM & Data Management Librarian (Instructor or Assistant Professor)
Non-Teaching Adjunct Librarians (Adjunct Lecturers):
- Adjunct Humanities Librarian
- Adjunct Social Sciences Librarian
- Adjunct Sciences Librarian
- Adjunct Makerspace Librarian
- Adjunct Web Librarian

Questions about the positions or the hiring process can be addressed to james.mellone@qc.cuny.edu.

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Treasures from Special Collections and Archives: Alexander Kouguell Collection

By Pamela Padilla

The Alexander Kouguell Collection follows the life and career of Professor Emeritus Alexander Kouguell (1920-2022), whose nearly 70-year tenure and career are documented in a newly processed collection at the Queens College Special Collections and Archives.

Headshot of Alexander Kouguell with his cello (Box 9)

Alexander Kouguell was born in Crimea on March 27^th, 1920 to parents Arkadie and Marie Kouguell (nee Malinskya). Both his parents had been child piano prodigies, and met at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory whilst studying music. His father’s career as a composer, as well as worsening political conditions, had prompted a brief move to Constantinople (now Istanbul), Turkey, and later Beirut, Lebanon where the family remained for nearly 25 years.

Alexander Kouguell received a diploma from the Ecole Normale De Musique de Paris in cello in 1938, his bachelors and master’s degrees from the American University in Beirut in 1941 and 1943 respectively, and enrolled at Columbia University for a PhD in Comparative Literature in 1944. In this time, he continued his career in music, which led his first position as a professor of cello at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore.

Uncertainty regarding his continued funding would bring him back to New York, where he met musician Leo Kraft. Kraft recommended he apply for a position at the newly minted Music Department at Queens College. He became a professor at the Queens College Department of Music, later renamed the Aaron Copland School of Music, when the area surrounding Queens was still farmland—a far cry from the metropolitan borough it is today. His family followed him soon after in 1956, with the collection even including his parents’ naturalization papers.

Kouguell’s career afforded him the opportunities to play nationwide and internationally with groups such as the New York Chamber Soloists, the Musica Aeterna Orchestra, and the Silvermine Quartet. Hotel brochures, concert programs, and even audio recordings of concerts are available upon request in his collection. True to the deep respect he commanded in the community, the collection holds many music manuscripts of pieces that were dedicated to Alexander.

*Leo Kraft piece dedicated to him (top); Kouguell in an orchestra playing (Box 6) (bottom)*

Although his career and Queens College papers are a testament to his cultural impact, what makes Kouguell’s collection exceptionally special are his personal papers which outline not only his life but also the connections that made him a valued member of the Queens College community. Exchanges with his impressive mentors in France can be found in the same subseries as their obituaries, denoting the passage of time and the impact his mentors had on him.

His eclectic collection includes photographs of his honeymoon, an audio recording of him gently guiding his oldest son’s piano lesson, a brief biography of his parents, and photographs that show the steady progression of his family from the 1940’s through the present. All of the notes that color a person’s life is existent in his collection. The heart of the Kouguell collection lies in the remembrance that the measure of a person’s life is traced through their legacy, but their impact can be felt in the treasures they leave behind.

The Alexander Kouguell Papers are now open for research. To make an appointment to view the collection, please contact the archives at qc.archives@qc.cuny.edu.

Pamela Padilla served as the Shirley Klein Rare Books and Manuscripts Graduate Fellow over the 2022/2023 academic year. Her Fellowship was funded through the generosity of Shirley Klein.

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QC Diversity Week Event: Let’s Talk About “IT”

Title: Let’s Talk About “IT”- Race, Gender, Sexuality, Religion, Mental Health
Date: April 17, 2023
Time: 12:15pm – 1:30pm
Location: Rosenthal Library Level 3 Tanenbaum Space

Register Now

It’s okay to not understand something. Sometimes we just need to sit down and talk about “it”. This workshop is designed to bring people together to discuss everyday issues and have uncomfortable conversations.

Set with the concept of speed dating, participants will be paired to have a timed one-on-one discussion on a variety of topics that include race, gender, sexuality, religion, mental health, and other topics, to ask each other questions so that they can learn about issues that they are unfamiliar with. This is an opportunity to talk, listen and learn about the differences that make us unique in our own ways.

Come join us as we get comfortable with being uncomfortable and let’s talk about “it”!

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National Poetry Month in the Archives: The Chapbook Collection Event

by: Kimiko Hahn, Distinguished Professor & Assistant Director, MFA Program in Creative Writing and Literary Translation

Event: National Poetry Month in the Archives: The Chapbook Collection And the Launch of Award-Winning Chapbook Lest We All Get Clipped by Joseph Gross
Date & Time: April 24, 2023, 7pm
Location: Rosenthal Library’s Tannenbaum Room 300i

QC MFA alum Joseph Gross will read from his debut poetry chapbook Lest We All Get Clipped. In this collection, he explores our innate divinity through both ecclesiastical and (extra)ordinary experiences. The poems wrestle with faith, expression, and urban life “because / in the city / there’s not much / distance between / ravage & ravish.” After the reading, fellow alum and publisher Peter Vanderberg will speak about how and why he started this press.

The Birdhouse Chapbook Prize is awarded to an alum from the MFA program and published by Ghostbird Press. Founder Peter Vanderberg, a poet and educator, was inspired by CUNY’s Chapbook festivals ten years ago and has been publishing for nearly as long. He recognized the importance of the chapbook as a format that often publishes a writer’s first collection, often presents theme-based work as well as texts that may be offbeat and/or experimental. Ghostbird publishes all genres and includes art alongside the texts. Their lineup includes early work by writers such as Rajiv Mohabir as well as an unusual hybrid collection by former New York State poet laureate Alicia Ostriker. Last year, Vanderberg generously donated all of the Ghostbird chapbooks to the QC Chapbook Archive and many will be on display.

The Queens College MFA Program in Creative Writing and Literary Translation is a unique program that was founded nearly twenty years ago by professors in the English Dept. Students work closely with award-winning full-time faculty writers and benefit from taking classes that include cross-genre work. In such a way, the students get to know classmates outside their genre of focus and become adept in commenting on texts outside their genre of focus–whether poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, or translation. And, speaking of literary translation, the QC MFA is one of two programs in the country that has a dedicated MFA track. Whether a student is from the United State or from another country, they feel at home in Queens, the most linguistically diverse place on the planet. Multivocal and multigenre and multifaceted are characteristic of this graduate creative writing program. The Birdhouse Chapbook reading is always a marvelous window into the community of alum, students, and professors.

This reading coincides with poet and QC professor Kimiko Hahn’s craft class “A Chapbook for Every Genre.” She will introduce the event.

Please join us in celebrating the launch of Ghostbird’s latest chapbook, Joseph Gross’ Lest We All Get Clipped.

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Women’s History Month in the Archives: Lucille Kyvallos Collection and Exhibit

The library is pleased to announce that the papers of Queens College basketball legend Lucille Kyvallos are processed and available for research. Transferred to Special Collections and Archives last summer, the collection includes administrative, coaching, and teaching records; awards, photographs, and publications; and other materials that shine a light on the history of women’s college basketball from the late 1960s through the early 1980s.

*Madison Square Garden, Queens College vs Immaculata College Poster, 1973. Photo credit Richard Lee*

Select items from the collection are on display in a library exhibit, Leaving it All on the Court: Queens College’s Lucille Kyvallos and her Iconic Legacy. Stop by Rosenthal to see photographs, trophies, awards, and primary documents from this extensive and multilayered collection. The exhibit opened March 1st in celebration of Women’s History Month but will remain on display through December of this year. The exhibit is located in the display cases in the Charles J. Tanenbaum room and adjacent lounge area on the 3rd floor.

Lucille Kyvallos is a trailblazer of women’s basketball in collegiate sports. She was the head coach of the women’s basketball team at Queens College from 1968 through 1981, holding an overall record of 239-77. Kyvallos helped bring her team and the sport to the national stage: she coached the first women’s college basketball game played at Madison Square Garden in 1975 and led the 1977 US National Women’s Basketball Team at the World University Games to a silver medal, among other accomplishments. During her tenure, she worked tirelessly to promote women’s college basketball and bring it to a wider audience.

Sarah Barlow-Ochshorn, a graduate Fellow from the Graduate School of Library and Information Studies (GSLIS), processed the collection and curated the exhibit, thanks to generous funding from Lucille Kyvallos and the Department of Recreation and Athletics.

*United States National Women’s Basketball, World University Games Team 1977*

*Lucille Kyvallos playing for St. Demetrios, circa 1950s*

“Getting to learn about Lucille and her impact on women’s collegiate basketball has been a joy. The materials in her collection reveal the perseverance, resilience, and teamwork that led to the success of the QC women’s basketball team in an era when women’s sports lacked adequate support and resources,” said Sarah.

Interested in learning more about Lucille Kyvallos and her collection?

Access the finding aid for the Lucille Kyvallos Athletics Records and Papers now! To book a research appointment, please email qc.archives@qc.cuny.edu.

View an oral history with Lucille Kyvallos, or download the transcript, on the Queens Memory portal.

Road to Equality Exhibition

Exhibit Dates: January 26, 2023 – June 30, 2023
Exhibit Location: Barham Rotunda

Black History

Black History Month gives the Queens College Library the opportunity to celebrate and honor the efforts of QC students and faculty who sought social justice for all by their participation in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, especially the Mississippi Freedom Summer in 1964. Starting in 2009, Queens College Library’s Special Collections and Archives (SCA) began collecting materials from alumni, faculty, and community members involved in these movements that now constitute part of the Civil Rights Collection of the photographs, printed materials, and miscellanea seen in the present exhibition documenting experiences of the participants that speak to the courage and optimism as well as to the rich history of QC activism during the civil rights movement.

In 1989, the QC library clock tower was dedicated to the memory of James Earl Chaney, Andrew Goodman (a QC student), and Michael Schwerner, civil rights activists who were murdered during the Congress of Equality’s (CORE) Freedom Summer project of 1964 by members of the Ku Klux Klan. Their deaths have inspired countless others to continue the struggle for equality and justice for all Americans.

Women History

The inclusion of materials supporting Women History movement in the exhibition bridges the coordinated efforts of the suffragists across centuries and countries for abolitionism and women’s rights by demanding change to the voting laws. The suffragists understood the persuasive power of language and utilized postcards to spread their textual information; propagated visibility through marches and campaigns; and contributed to political empowerment through the visual arts (posters, collages, buttons, et al) to connect to the great and just causes of human history in order to disseminate their message. Their sense of energy and urgency established a new and formidable expression in the world that ultimately changed cultural perceptions and reshaped the discourse of American democracy for the better.

Upcoming Event: Celebrate Douglass Day 2023!

You’re invited! Douglass Day 2023, February 14, featuring a Transcribe-A-Thon of the papers of Mary Ann Shadd Cary.

Douglass Day is a collective act of radical love for Black history, and an event that helped inspire the creation of Black History Month.

Details for Queens College:

Date: 2/14
Location: Queens College Library Room 225
Time: 12:30pm – 2pm
Light refreshments will be provided!

Douglass Day is an annual program that marks the birth of Frederick Douglass. Each year, we gather thousands of people to help create new and freely available resources for learning about Black history. We frequently focus on important Black women’s archives, such as Anna Julia Cooper (2020) and Mary Church Terrell (2021).

This year, Douglass Day features a transcribe-a-thon of the papers of Mary Ann Shadd Cary (1823-1893), who “was one of the earliest Black women to edit a newspaper, serve as a Civil War recruiter, attend law school, and so much more” according to the Douglass Day website. The organizers of the event “are pleased to be partnering with the Archives of Ontario, Libraries and Archives Canada, and many others. Together we are presenting newly digitized and fascinating collections from Shadd Cary’s long and fascinating life.”

The event is organized by Transformative Learning in the Humanities and will run at three CUNY campuses. A transcribe-a-thon is an event in which people gather in person or online to work simultaneously on a crowdsourcing project. We share cool finds and more on social media, connecting across all of our locations.

RSVP now!

Please register (RSVP) at the link above if you plan to attend in-person at Queens College Library!

We also encourage anyone who is unable to attend in person to join the live stream on YouTube, and contribute transcriptions for the project on February 14. Visit douglassday.org for more details!

Sneak Peek: Processing the Alexander Kouguell Papers

By Pamela Padilla

Wondering what an archivist does? In this post, Pamela Padilla, the library’s Shirley Klein Rare Book and Manuscripts Graduate Fellow, provides a sneak peek of her work processing the Alexander Kouguell Papers. Kouguell, a world-class cellist, taught at Queens College for over 68 years and sadly passed away on October 2, 2022. He donated his papers to the Queens College Library just a couple of months ago, in August 2022.

Most librarians will agree that archival science is an important branch of library work, but despite the deference there is often the question of what exactly an archivist does. There are many aspects to an archivists’ profession such as reference work, collections care, and management of new/existing material, but today I will be focusing on processing—an invaluable part of collections care.

Photo 1. Kouguell’s Elementary Photo deframing and tools.

This was the case with the Alexander Kouguell collection, which required extensive processing. Not every collection has these processing demands, but the Alexander Kouguell Collection is diverse not only in its content but its mediums. Music manuscripts required rehousing, documents required de-framing, and photographs required sleeving. Several scrapbooks had to be vacuumed to mitigate any risk of mold, and their contents were well worth saving.

Photo 2. Alexander Kouguell, Florence Kouguell, and a man assumed to be Florence’s brother eating ice cream cones in Paris, France.

Dr. Kouguell’s career as a professor at Queens College began in the 1940’s and lasted over 60 years, with an additional 10 as an adjunct lecturer. His collection offers its viewer a snapshot of his life, from his honeymoon photos to his participation in Queens Colleges faculty orchestra throughout his tenure, but his extensive career as a cellist also offers a cultural snapshot of NYC throughout half a century. The preservation of his life and history serve as a reminder of the impact that can be made by a singular person.

It’s usually the case that people unfamiliar with the profession may ask “Why rehouse anything? Aren’t the folders/envelopes/plastic slips that these materials come in enough?” and our answer to that is that they usually aren’t. Photographic negatives, photographs themselves, or oversized papers aren’t typically argued against when discussing rehousing, but even paper requires special care. Paper isn’t what it used to be and hasn’t been since the mid 19th century—its lower quality leads to an inevitable yellowing and breakdown due to acid hydrolysis, or the breaking down of the cellulose that keeps the paper together. This process threatens paper and its contents.

Photo 3. Deframing and picture processing of Alexander Kouguell’s pictures.

The processing of collection often begins before the first object is rehoused. That is, it begins with the acquisition. An archivist ensures that their institution has an appropriate level of copyright and intellectual control through of a deed of gift. By ensuring the proper acquisition of a collection from a donor through a mutually agreed upon deed of gift (assuming the donor is one outside of the institution), an archivist has begun the processing of this collection.

Photo 5. Head of Special Collections and Archives Annie Tummino with Alexander Kouguell in his studio, summer 2022.

The processing of an archival collection takes time, patience, and (surprisingly enough) a bit of elbow grease. It’s how we rehouse our materials to maximize their longevity and how institutions ensure they have the intellectual control needed to make collections accessible.

Pamela Padilla is a second-year candidate in the Dual Degree program in Library Science and History (MLS/MA), pursuing a Certificate in Archives and Preservation of Cultural Materials. Padilla is one of three graduate students participating in the Archives Fellowship Program at Queens College Library over the 2022-2023 academic year. Fellows carry out real-world projects in Special Collections and Archives, receiving stipends, mentorship, and professional development opportunities.

Library Student Survey a Success: Three Prizewinners Announced

by Max Thorn, Instruction Librarian and Carlo Minchillo, Research & Information Services Librarian

The Queens College Library (QCL) cares about serving students better. That’s why we recently undertook a survey asking students about their experiences using the library. We kicked off the survey with two events in the library asking students to fill out the survey—and handed out hundreds of snacks as we talked with students! Then we emailed the survey to the campus community and kept it open for two weeks. In the end, we received 1,475 responses! It’s safe to say this represents our largest sample of student feedback in living memory. Three lucky respondents were randomly selected to each win a grand prize of $50 cash card and a bag of QC merch. Congratulations to Eden Barzvi, Hagar Masboob, and Caleb Carman!

Ask Us

As the semester draws to a close, are you having trouble with a research paper? On our “Ask Us” page you’ll find options to reach a librarian via 24/7 chat, text, email, and face-to-face appointments. Whether it’s Psychology 101 or anything in between, we have research guides to help you with your subject!

Finals are coming right up, and with it our popular 24-hour library service from December 13 at 8 a.m. until December 21 at 8 p.m.

Our sincere thanks to everyone who filled out our survey. Your feedback will help us better serve you this academic year and beyond.

Upcoming Event: Research in Praxis Discussion Series with Emily Drabinksi

The Queens College Library is co-sponsoring with the Queens College Graduate School of Library and Information Studies a Research in Praxis Discussion Series with Emily Drabinksi, Critical Pedagogy Librarian at the CUNY Graduate Center and President-Elect of the American Library Association, who will give a talk entitled, Essential to the Public: Libraries at the End of the World. The event will take place on Tuesday, December 6, 2022 at 5pm.

Register for Event