Read Source, which is celebrating 25 years as UC Libraries newsletter!

source graphic

Read Source, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the newsletter! To mark the occasion, Source underwent a design refresh to both the graphics and website to herald the publication into the next quarter century.

In this issue of Source, Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian, welcomes everyone back to the start of the academic year, while a photo slide show features early outreach activities welcoming Bearcats to campus. And don’t miss a list of Fall Events taking place throughout UC Libraries. The Source @ 25! article talks about some of the changes at UC Libraries documented by Source, and an interview with the Preservation Lab’s Jessica Ebert marks her upcoming 20th anniversary at UC Libraries. A new exhibit on display in the Archives and Rare Books Library explores Cincinnati’s growth and transit transformation from its founding in 1788 to the present day, and the CEAS Library launches a wellness collection. And for those who can’t travel to campus, UC Libraries digital collections are now available via Preservica for viewing online.

Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list. Happy reading.

October 20th Lunch & Learn to focus on Medical Illustration: The American Civil War and Now

Join the Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the the Health Professions Tuesday, Oct. 20, NOON-1:30PM, in the Stanley J. Lucas, MD, Board Room, Health Sciences Library, for a lunch & learn to explore Medical Illustration: The American Civil War and Now. Speakers: Kris Ramprasad, MD, MA (history) and retired UC associate professor, Sydney Seeto and Sophie Laye, both second-year medical students at UC’s College of Medicine, will discuss the Daniel S. Young archives.

Dr. Ramprasad will discuss the varying injuries of the Civil War through his eyes and how these illustrations should be viewed, understood and appreciated now – updating our understanding of the care provided at that time. As co-presidents of the Medical Art and Illustration, Sydney and Sophie will discuss the modern process for creating a medical illustration, showcasing their own work and explaining plans for the Medical Art club for the upcoming year.

The lunch & learn is free and open to all to attend, but RSVP is requested.

Following the lunch & learn, attendees can view the exhibit on display in the library featuring the medial illustrations by Daniel S. Young.

October 20th Lunch & Learn to focus on Medical Illustration: The American Civil War and Now

Daniel S. Young: American Civil War Medical Illustrations, available online via JSTOR, contains the artistic and medical contributions of an American Civil War era medical illustrator in a military context. The Daniel S. Young Archives were donated by the University of Cincinnati’s College of Medicine to the Medical Heritage Center, now the Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions. Young was a surgeon, artist and inventor. During the American Civil War, Young was the surgeon of the 21st Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry (O.V.I.).

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 “America 250: Cincinnati in Transit(ion)” exhibition now open at the ARB

Postcard in color of "Island Queen" steamboat in the moonlight and being reflected off the river with the city skyline in the background.
“Island Queen at Moonlight” postcard, undated. From the Nelson and Florence Hoffman Cincinnati Postcard Collection US-12-03, Archives and Rare Books Library.

“America 250: Cincinnati in Transit(ion)” is an exploration of Cincinnati’s growth and transit transformation from its founding in 1788 to the present day. Over the last two hundred and thirty-eight years, Cincinnati has journeyed from steamboats to railroads, to interstate highways, and to international airports. The exhibition can be viewed inside and outside the Archive and Rare Book’s Library Reading Room in Blegen Library.

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The Great Library Guess Off: Join us for an evening of fun and games

Bring your friends for The Great Library Guess Off, a Guesspionage™ -style challenge, inspired by a popular Jackbox online game. Join us Thursday, Oct. 15 from 6-7:30pm in the Walter C. Langsam Library Digital Scholarship Area (4th floor) for an evening of fun and games.

The Great Library Guess Off: Join us for an evening of fun and games

Students will be divided into small teams to take turns guessing statistics. Their assigned rival teams will have the opportunity to “steal” points before the answer is revealed. The three teams with the highest number of points will win small prizes to encourage active participation. Questions will highlight UC Libraries-specific statistics (as appropriate), such as percentage of students who utilize library resources, as well as available statistics on student wellness that contribute to belonging and academic success (i.e., reported sleep, stress levels, and study habits).

The Great Library Guess Off is free and open to all to attend. Refreshments will be served.

UC Libraries welcomes Jeremy Brenner-Levoy as qualitative data services librarian

We are excited to share that Jeremy Brenner-Levoy (they/them) has joined UC Libraries in the Research & Data Services department as the Qualitative Data Services Librarian. In this role, they will be responsible for providing instruction and consultation to researchers on data literacy, tools and resources, as well as identifying and implementing best practices and services that meet research needs in areas that generate qualitative data. 

Jeremy holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Cincinnati, where their research explored gender, sexuality, work in video games and digital culture. After completing their PhD, they joined the faculty at Davidson College, where teaching and mentoring students helped them discover just how much they enjoy helping others become confident and curious researchers. Whether conducting interviews and ethnographic research, analyzing digital content or designing surveys, Jeremy enjoys thinking through methodological puzzles and finding creative ways to answer difficult questions. Now, Jeremy is excited to join UC Libraries, where they look forward to supporting researchers across disciplines and helping make qualitative and mixed-methods research more approachable, creative and exciting.

Welcome, Jeremy!

Jeremy Brenner-Levoy

Join us in the library Oct. 7 for an afternoon of poetry

The University of Cincinnati Libraries and the Elliston Poetry Room announce the next roster of poets for Poetry Stacked, a semi-regular poetry reading series held in the 6th floor east stacks of the Walter C. Langsam Library.

At the next event, scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 7 at 4:30pm, three poets will read their original work:

poets kevin oberlin, matt farley and leila chatti
  • Kevin Oberlin is the author of two chapbooks: Steamboat Alley (2022) and Spotlit Girl (2008). His poems have appeared in neat journals like Pilgrimage, Thimble and Dunes Review, as well as in the anthologies Tributaria: Poetry, Prose, and Art Inspired by Tributaries of the Ohio Watershed and Wayfinding: Poetry Celebrating America’s Parks and Public Lands. He is Professor of English at UC Blue Ash College and lives in Moscow, Ohio.
  • Matt Farley is a poet, educator and warehouse worker living in Southwest Ohio. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Miami University and teaches composition there. His recent work explores labor, class, place and the strange systems and intimacies of working life. He is active in Greater Cincinnati’s literary and community arts scene through readings, workshops, storytelling, and community-based projects. His current poetry project documents life on the warehouse floor.
  • Leila Chatti is a Tunisian-American poet and author of Wildness Before Something Sublime (Copper Canyon Press, 2025)and Deluge (Copper Canyon Press, 2020), winner of the 2021 Levis Reading Prize, the 2021 Luschei Prize for African Poetry and longlisted for the 2021 PEN Open Book Award, as well as four chapbooks. Her honors include multiple Pushcart Prizes, grants from the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund and the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown and Cleveland State University, where she was the inaugural Anisfield-Wolf Fellow in Publishing and Writing. Her poems appear in The New York Times Magazine, The Nation, The Atlantic, POETRY and elsewhere.
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New University of Cincinnati collections at ARB 

The Archives and Rare Books Library is excited to announce new University of Cincinnati collections that have finding aids published online, or accruals made to existing collections. These include: 

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UC Libraries Fall Events – poetry, exhibits, dogs and games!

fall events

Poetry readings, exhibit openings, lunch & learns, dogs and game night! There’s something for everyone. UC Libraries Fall Events provide an opportunity for people to engage with and learn about library collections and resources. Grab a friend or colleague and come to an event or two or three. All events are free and open to all to attend.

  • Sept. 29, 5:30-7PM, DAAP 5000 Level & Ella Lipnik on 3000 Level: Reception for Fotofocus exhibit in the DAAP Library. Dare to Stare: 19th-Century Circus and Sideshow Portraits. Exhibit curated by Theresa Leininger Miller
  • Oct. 7, 4:30pm, Walter C. Langsam Library 6th floor east stacks: Poetry Stacked
poetry stacked logo
  • Oct. 15, 6-7:30PM, Walter C. Langsam Library Digital Scholarship Area: Great Library Guess Off. The Guesspionage™ -style challenge will highlight UC Libraries-specific statistics, such as percentage of students who utilize library resources, as well as available statistics on student wellness that contribute to belonging and academic success (i.e., reported sleep, stress levels, and study habits).
  • Oct. 19, 2PM-3PM: Open Access Week Panel. Details coming soon.
  • Oct. 20, NOON-1:30PM, Stanley J. Lucas, MD, Board Room, Health Sciences Library: Winkler Center Lunch & Learn. Medical Illustration: The American Civil War and Now, and the opening of the Daniel S. Young Exhibit. Speakers: Kris Ramprasad, MD, MA (history), retired associate professor at UC; Sydney Seeto, second-year medical student at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and Sophie Laye, second-year medical student at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.
daniel young medical illustration
  • Oct. 22, 2PM-3PM: Open Access Week Workshop. Details coming soon.
  • Oct. 23, NOON-2pm, Science Library‘s Intersect Space: Celebrating Dr. Kenneth Caster: Legacy, Archive & Library Collection. Reception follow. Co-hosted by A&S Geology Department.
  • Oct. 28, 3PM, Science Library‘s Intersect Space: Oesper Research Talk – “Rudy W. Thomas: The Hands Behind the Oesper Collections.” This talk will present the life and career of Rudy W. Thomas, longtime demonstrator and restoration specialist for the University of Cincinnati’s Department of Chemistry.
  • Nov. 18, 4:30PM, John Miller Burnam Classics Library: Poetry Stacked
  • Nov. 19: 4:30PM, Max Kade German Cultural Center (CCH 5105): Archives and Rare Books Library & German Studies Present: The Printer and the Courtier: The Circulation of “Pennsylvania German” Books in Enlightenment Germany, a talk by Jennifer A. Merriman, Ph.D. Candidate, College of William & Mary.
  • Dec. 1, 3PM, Water C. Langsam Library: Fuzz Therapy for Finals (Dog Therapy). Unwind before finals with UC’s own Sammy the therapy dog and other registered therapy animals from Pet Partners.
service dog

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Check out the newest exhibits in UC Libraries

Exhibits highlight the services, collections, places and people of UC Libraries. The newest exhibits on display in the Walter C. Langsam Library showcase chemistry caricatures and open access.

chemistry caricatures

Caricatures in Chemistry: By William B. Jensen

On display on the 5th floor lobby of the library, this exhibit features original, hand-drawn caricatures by Dr. William B. Jensen (1948-2024), Ralph E. Oesper Professor of the History of Chemistry at the University of Cincinnati and curator of the Oesper Collections from 1986 until his passing.

The exhibit was curated by Mark Chalmers, science and engineering librarian and Oesper curator, and was designed by Ashleigh Stout, UC Libraries communication design co-op student.

Available online via JSTOR, the online collection contains the 33 original, hand-drawn caricatures of notable chemists and physicists Jensen penned between 1970 and 1974. They are held by the Oesper Collections in the History of Chemistry. The collection was scanned and digitized by the UC Libraries Digital Initiatives Team. The humor and whimsy captured in the caricatures invite viewers to look a little closer and discover the stories behind the faces.

At the exhibit there are handouts featuring three of the chemists.

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