New Database: Emerald

November 25, 2013Databases, Our CollectionsElizabeth Hollenbeck

We have added several Emerald e-journals to the Library’s digital research databases. This new subscription includes journals in Business Management and Strategy; H.R., Learning and Organizational Studies; and Public Policy and Environmental Management. Together these collections, which are available through the Emerald search platform, include 87 scholarly journals that focus on leadership and management in a wide variety of contexts.

The Emerald subscription supports the Bachelors programs in Technology Management, Medical Health Services Management, and Organizational Leadership as well as administrative office careers and business-related programs.

Emerald can be accessed from the Library’s Online Library page at http://library.southtexascollege.edu/resources/online-databases?libpage=E

Contributed by Jesús Campos, Director of Technical Services.

Book Launch for STC Faculty

November 11, 2013Author / Scholar Visit, Library Events, Mid-Valley Campus, Pecan Campus, Previous Events, Starr County CampusElizabeth Hollenbeck

Two of STC English Faculty have books that have recently been released for purchase. Please join us in their book launch with three events at our three major campuses. Joseph Haske, English instructor and chair, has just had his novel North Dixie Highway released, and it’s available for purchase at this time. Juan Ochoa, English instructor, has just released his book Marijuano, a novel, and it is also available for purchase at this time.

Mr. Haske and Mr. Ochoa will be presenting at the following locations and times together:

Nov. 19 at 1:00 pm – Pecan campus library
Nov. 19 at 6:00 pm – MidValley auditorium
Nov. 21 at 1:00 pm – Starr library

For more information about this event call 956-872-6485 or email egarcia10@southtexascollege.edu.

Ada Lovelace Day, today!

October 15, 2013Book Displays, Our CollectionsElizabeth Hollenbeck

Ada Lovelace Day is an international day celebrating the achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and maths. Find out more about Ada Lovelace Day here: http://findingada.com/. Also, it’s a great day to check out what books we have for women working in STEMs here at the STC Library!

Top secret Rosies : the female computers of World War II Call number: QA 27.5 .T67 2010

American women in technology : an encyclopedia Call number: T 36 .Z54 2000

A to Z of women in science and math Call number: Q141 .Y675 1999

Women and information technology : research on underrepresentation Call number: QA 76.9 .W65 W66 2006

The clean coder : a code of conduct for professional programmers Call number: QA 76.9 .M65 M367 2011

New Addition: WestlawNext Campus Research

August 15, 2013Databases, Our CollectionsElizabeth Hollenbeck

We have added WestlawNext Campus Research to the Library’s collection of research databases. Campus Research is a comprehensive resource for legal research, business information, and news. Campus Research provides access to federal and state case law; statutes; regulations; administrative codes; European Union information; law reviews and journals; American Law Reports, and the American Jurisprudence 2d legal encyclopedia. Campus Research also provides access to more than 4,900 news and business information publications including newspapers, magazines, newswires, Hoover’s Company information, and foreign language publications.

Campus Research is especially suitable for paralegal studies, political science, and business-related programs.

WestlawNext Campus Research can be accessed from the Library’s Online Library page at http://library.southtexascollege.edu/resources/online-databases?libpage=W

Contributed by Jesús Campos, Director of Technical Services.

Restless Spirit

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, Previous Exhibits, Technology Campusgotvos

South Texas College’s Technology Campus Library presents “Restless Spirit,” an exhibit featuring artworks by Adrian Luna. The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013 and will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6. An artist lecture will be held at 5 p.m. on Oct. 3 at the Technology Campus Library, located at 3700 W. Military Hwy. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

Luna is a local artist whose paintings are inspired by color, animals, people, social and global turmoil. He believes that everything is connected via energy and his work reflects this through its erratic splashes and placement of color. He also holds an interest in spiritual and self-awareness journeys.

“Luna’s work holds a spiritual, mystical quality,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “Some of his pieces also refer to an underground music culture, as is seen in his surrealistic painting of Frank Zappa. This is an intriguing group of work that is sure to peak the viewer’s interest.”

STC’s Library Art Gallery exhibits regional, national and international artwork, explores new visions and theories of creativity, and introduces innovative artistic expressions to the South Texas region.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Unconscious Landscape

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, NAH Campus, Previous Exhibitsgotvos

South Texas College’s Nursing and Allied Health Campus Library presents “Unconscious Landscape,” an exhibit featuring artworks by Delvis Cortez. The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013 and will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6. An artist talk will be held on Oct. 3 at 6:30pm at the college’s NAH Campus, located at 1101 E. Vermont Ave. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

Cortez’s current body of work was created through a transferring process called Decalcomania. This is a process in which diluted oil paint is spread across a large glass surface, and the canvas is pressed to the surface and then carefully peeled away. The technique produces smudges and blots of color which suggest turbulent skies, landscapes and/or abstract humanoid forms.

“Cortez’s recent work expresses the feeling of freedom and spontaneity that paint is so capable of achieving,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “The fluid composition and muted tones of the work create a relaxing and introspective experience for the viewer.”

Cortez received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Texas-Pan American. He currently instructs painting parties at the Weslaco Museum.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Animating the Inanimate: Finding Stories within Objects

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, Previous Exhibits, Starr County Campusgotvos

South Texas College’s Starr County Campus Library Art Gallery is proud to present “Animating the Inanimate: Finding Stories within Objects,” featuring paintings by Jerry Lyles. The exhibit will be on display from Sept. 6 to Dec 6, 2013 at STC’s Starr County Campus Library (Bldg. F), located at 142 FM 3167 in Rio Grande City. An artist lecture will be held on Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.

In Lyles’ current body of work, he focuses on the objects that people collect and surround themselves with, and what they say about the person who collects them. Through his skilled still-life paintings, which incorporate color, form, value, shape and space, Lyles suggests a story within these objects that places the viewer in an active role in relationship to his work.

“Lyles’ current exhibition invites the viewer to make up their own stories,” said Dawn Haughey, STC Library Art Gallery associate. “He presents enticing, colorful imagery and then leaves the rest of the work up to the observer. This produces an internal interactive experience.”

Lyles received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the American University in Washington D.C. and works as an assistant professor at the University of Texas Pan-American.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Inventa La Vida (Invent Life): Works by Juan De Dios Mora

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, Mid-Valley Campus, Previous ExhibitsHispanic Heritage Monthgotvos

South Texas College’s Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery presents “Inventa La Vida (Invent Life): Works by Juan De Dios Mora.” The exhibit opens Thursday, Sept 19, 2013, with an artist lecture held at 6 p.m. The exhibit will be on view through Friday, Dec. 6 at the Mid-Valley Campus Library Art Gallery, located at 400 N. Border in Weslaco. Admission is free and open to the public.

Mora’s detailed, black and white print work depicts characters interacting with devices that are poorly made, yet highly adorned. These customized inventions are made up of hybrid cultures of the Mexican-American border and are decorated with traditional imagery, food, objects, materials, banners and sayings. Through these devices, the artist expresses the characters inventiveness, resourcefulness and their strong will to survive. Mora’s surrealistic visions are filled with symbolic meaning and a hopeful optimism that our character will live on forever.

Mora was born in Jalisco, Mexico and immigrated to the United States in 1998. He received a Masters of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in printmaking from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and is currently an art instructor at the UTSA Art & Art History department.

“It’s inspiring to see characters of little means depicted so proudly by Mora,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “When he portrays a man with a broom, the broom is then embellished with flags, wings, mirrors and a saddle. His work reflects the idea of making the most of what you have and never feeling ashamed of what you don’t. This series, although focusing on Mexican-American culture, is empowering to people of any race.”

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.

Border Studies

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, Pecan Campus, Previous Exhibitsgotvos

South Texas College’s Pecan Campus Library and Humanities Texas will present “Border Studies,” an exhibition of images by eight gifted photographers and maps showing historical relocations of the border, highlighting the vitality of places, people, and patterns of culture along the Texas-Mexico border. The exhibit will be on display from Sept. 9 to Oct. 21, 2013 at the Pecan Campus Library Rainbow Room, located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd. in McAllen. Admission is free and open to the public.

The Texas-Mexico border is more than a line between two countries. It is a realm unto itself with a culture of its own, shaped by the millions who choose to live and work there. The border is a cradle of hope—and anxiety—for the well-being of both Mexico and the United States.

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, libraryart@southtexascollege.edu.

Nothing to Declare but the Clothes on our Backs

August 7, 2013Library Art Gallery, Pecan Campus, Previous Exhibitsgotvos

South Texas College’s Pecan Campus Library presents “Nothing to Declare but the Clothes on our Backs,” an exhibit featuring collaborative artwork by Phyllis Evans, David Freeman and Leila Hernandez. The exhibit opens Sep. 6 with an opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Talks with the artist will be held the same day at 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. at the Pecan Campus Library Rainbow Room, located at 3201 W. Pecan Blvd. in McAllen. The exhibit will be on view through Dec, 2013. Admission is free and open to the public.

South Texas College art instructors Evans, Freeman and Hernandez collaborate on an art installation that focuses on the U.S. – Mexico border and the dangers and challenges that have arisen due to the building of the border wall. The installation also speaks of the blending of cultures on both sides of the border as well as the economy of selling mass-produced border kitsch items.

Through photography and Xerox transfers on fabric, Evans documents political divisions created by the border wall as it commands traffic in agriculture, industry, natural resources and international relations. Her work critiques U.S. policy and poses as a reminder that historically and universally, walls have repeatedly failed in their purpose and have only served to create divisions without solving problems.

Freeman also uses photography and transfers to create printed conceptual trophies based on situations that plague the border including drug runners, illegal immigrants and coyotes. “The trophy is a symbol of dedication and hard work in achieving a goal in life and in Mexico today the cartel are the victors, not the police or the citizens,” said Freeman.

Hernandez utilizes fabric from local ropa usada stores (second-hand clothing stores) to create dolls of Mexican and Central American influence or muñecas de trapo. Her work represents the undocumented work force crossing the border to work as maids, gardeners and pickers.

“This work manages to touch on the biggest issues that plague our area, while still maintaining an overall playful and tactile quality,” said STC Art Gallery Associate Dawn Haughey. “The printed scenes of barbed wire, labor workers and large machinery on colorful flowered bed sheets, produces a visually satisfying juxtaposition of imagery.”

For more information, contact Dawn Haughey at 956-872-3488, or via email at dhaughey@southtexascollege.edu.