Margaret Wall / en Back to School: 老司机直播 library system ranked in top three with Harvard and Yale /news/back-school-u-t-library-system-ranked-top-three-harvard-and-yale <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Back to School: 老司机直播 library system ranked in top three with Harvard and Yale</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2014-09-12T06:43:33-04:00" title="Friday, September 12, 2014 - 06:43" class="datetime">Fri, 09/12/2014 - 06:43</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Members of the community tour the Thomas Fisher Rare Books Library at 老司机直播 during Doors Open (photo by Dominic Ali)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/liz-do" hreflang="en">Liz Do</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/margaret-wall-files-liz-do" hreflang="en">Margaret Wall with files from Liz Do</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/margaret-wall" hreflang="en">Margaret Wall</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Margaret Wall with files from Liz Do</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/back-school" hreflang="en">Back to School</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/libraries" hreflang="en">Libraries</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/education" hreflang="en">Education</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/awards" hreflang="en">Awards</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/top-stories" hreflang="en">Top Stories</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">University of Toronto ranked as one of the top three library systems in North America</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p> Students entering the University of Toronto this fall have access to the top-ranked library system in Canada, according to the Association of Research Libraries (ARL).</p> <p> The ARL recently ranked the 老司机直播 library system one of the top three in North America, after Harvard and Yale. The only Canadian university in the top 10, 老司机直播 has placed among the ARL鈥檚 top five research libraries since 2002-2003.</p> <p> 鈥淲e are very proud to again be ranked in the prestigious company of Harvard and Yale,鈥 said Chief Librarian <strong>Larry P. Alford</strong>. 鈥淭his ranking reflects the investment made by the University in the libraries to provide access to outstanding electronic and print collections and to enable expert staff and librarians to support the learning and research needs of our faculty and students with leading-edge information services and technology.鈥</p> <p> The 老司机直播 library system comprises 44 individual libraries that hold more than 12 million volumes in 341 languages, millions of electronic resources in various forms and almost 30,000 linear metres of archival material. More than 150,000 new print volumes are acquired each year and its data centre houses more than 200 servers with a storage capacity of 1.5 petabytes.&nbsp;</p> <p> To help first-year students navigate the largest research collection in Canada and the third-largest academic library in North America, 老司机直播 developed a personal librarian program.&nbsp;</p> <p> The program, which matches students with a librarian who provides customized support throughout the year, began as a pilot effort in the 2012/2013 academic year when&nbsp;1,000 students were invited to participate. It grew to serve 2,300 students in 2013/2014 and will now be offered to all 7,800 first-year Faculty of Arts &amp; Science students.</p> <p> One of the top priorities this year, Alford said, is to complete fundraising and begin building a state-of-the-art addition to Robarts Library.&nbsp;</p> <p> 鈥淭he Robarts Common will be a vibrant information hub,鈥 said Alford. 鈥淚t will be equipped with the new kinds of tools and services required to prepare the next generation of scholars to excel in the global knowledge economy.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p> <strong>Cheryl Regehr</strong>, vice-president and provost at the University of Toronto, said the 老司机直播 community takes pride in the strength of its library system,</p> <p> "We thank and congratulate all our librarians and library staff across the three campuses for sustaining such an important resource to our teaching and research."</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2014-09-11-libraries.jpg</div> </div> Fri, 12 Sep 2014 10:43:33 +0000 sgupta 6483 at Major collection of Allen Ginsberg photos donated to University of Toronto /news/major-collection-allen-ginsberg-photos-donated-university-toronto <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Major collection of Allen Ginsberg photos donated to University of Toronto</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2014-01-21T06:01:36-05:00" title="Tuesday, January 21, 2014 - 06:01" class="datetime">Tue, 01/21/2014 - 06:01</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Allen Ginsberg taking self portrait in 1985 </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/margaret-wall" hreflang="en">Margaret Wall</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Margaret Wall</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/top-stories" hreflang="en">Top Stories</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/utac" hreflang="en">UTAC</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/libraries" hreflang="en">Libraries</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/boundless" hreflang="en">Boundless</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/art" hreflang="en">Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Worldwide access to "ultimate 鈥榠nsider鈥 group of photographs on the Beats鈥 available on campus, online </div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The University of Toronto is home to the world鈥檚 largest collection of photographs by the late beat poet Allen Ginsberg thanks to a donation by the Larry &amp; Cookie Rossy Family Foundation.</p> <p>The 7,686 photographs housed in the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library and 236 silver gelatin prints at the University of Toronto Art Centre include portraits of figures as prominent as John Cage, Bob Dylan, William de Kooning, Paul McCartney and Iggy Pop.&nbsp;</p> <p>Comprising a nearly complete archive of Ginsberg鈥檚 surviving photographs, the collection, spanning the years 1944 to 1997, includes original snapshots and prints of various sizes. The silver gelatin prints are unique in that they are hand-captioned by Ginsberg. All of these images will be available to scholars and some will be on display.</p> <p>鈥淭his is an exciting and remarkable gift,鈥 says 老司机直播 President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong>. 鈥淚t builds on&nbsp;老司机直播鈥檚 strength as one of the world鈥檚 greatest research resources, and our global stature in the humanities. We are very grateful to the Larry &amp; Cookie Rossy Family Foundation for entrusting us with this truly fascinating collection.鈥</p> <p>Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997) was an American poet and nonconformist whose influence extended far beyond the United States. Along with his friends Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs and Gregory Corso, Ginsberg was at the centre of a network of writers and artists dubbed the Beat Generation. In the 1950s and 1960s their work and their personal example would forever alter the cultural scene. The Beats also influenced postmodern and avant-garde Canadian poetry.&nbsp;</p> <p>Although known primarily as a writer, Ginsberg was an avid photographer. The collection includes images of writers Amiri Baraka (formerly known as LeRoi Jones), Paul Bowles, Doris Lessing, Josef Skvorecky (who was a professor of English at 老司机直播) and Evgeny Yevtushenko. Other Ginsberg subjects were photographer Robert Frank, psychologist R.D. Laing, author and activist Dr. Benjamin Spock and psychologist and drug guru Timothy Leary. Ginsberg鈥檚 friend and fellow writer Burroughs appears in more than 300 photographs. Another frequent subject is Ginsberg鈥檚 lifelong partner, Peter Orlovsky.</p> <p>The Ginsberg prints provide visual insight into New York urban landscape from the 1950s to the 1990s. They also document Ginsberg鈥檚 international travels to Canada, France, India, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, the USSR and many other nations.</p> <p>鈥淭his constitutes the ultimate 鈥榠nsider鈥 group of photographs on the Beats,鈥 says <strong>Anne Dondertman</strong>, associate librarian for Special Collections, University of Toronto Libraries. 鈥淚t contains important research material for the study of the life, family, work, travels and friendships of Allen Ginsberg from the 1940s to the 1990s,鈥</p> <p><iframe allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/lRKUxXaSSf0" width="560"></iframe></p> <p>鈥淭his fabulous collection provides both scholars and students unique entr茅e to Ginsberg鈥檚 passionate eye and helps to confirm his status as a major 20th-century American poet with the camera,鈥 says&nbsp;<strong>Louis Kaplan</strong>, professor of History and Theory of Photography and New Media, Graduate Department of Art. 鈥淥ne cannot overestimate its photo-historical, pedagogical and cultural value.鈥</p> <p>Many of the prints have been digitized and are available via the Fisher Library鈥檚 Flickr site at <a href="http://go.utlib.ca/ginsberg">http://go.utlib.ca/ginsberg</a> and the <a href="http://collections.utac.utoronto.ca:8080/view/people/asitem/G/13?t:state:flow=4c27a9aa-3241-4d40-96a8-cc6643fd0364">UTAC Collections Online portal </a>which can be accessed from the University of Toronto Art Centre鈥檚 homepage at <a href="http://www.utac.utoronto.ca/">www.utac.utoronto.ca</a>. This fall UTAC in collaboration with the Fisher Library will present an exhibition of the Ginsberg photographs.</p> <p>The University of Toronto Libraries system is the largest academic library in Canada and is ranked third among peer institutions in North America, behind Harvard and Yale. The system consists of 44 libraries located on three university campuses. Its <a href="http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca/resources">Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library</a> houses the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections including books, manuscripts and other materials, and is the largest rare book library in the country. For more information about the Fisher Library鈥檚 collections, visit <a href="http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca/resources">http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca/resources</a>.</p> <p>The <a href="http://www.utac.utoronto.ca/">University of Toronto Art Centre</a> is the third-largest fine art gallery in Toronto, and home to three collections comprising more than 6,000 objects. Collection highlights include works by European Old Masters and the early 20th-century avant-garde as well as the Group of Seven, and Modern and Contemporary Canadian artists.</p> <p>The Montreal-based Larry &amp; Cookie Rossy Family Foundation was established by Larry Rossy, founder and CEO of Dollarama Inc.</p> <p><a href="http://boundless.utoronto.ca/">Boundless: The Campaign for the University of Toronto</a> is the most ambitious fundraising initiative ever undertaken by a Canadian university. Meeting global challenges and preparing global citizens are the twin pillars of the campaign, which will support the exploration of new frontiers and the limitless possibilities of human experience. This gift will provide students and faculty alike with a new opportunity to explore human expression and social progress. <a href="http://boundless.utoronto.ca/">Boundless</a> has surpassed the milestone of $1.35 billion, more than two-thirds of the goal of $2 billion.</p> <p><em>Margaret Wall is a writer with the University of Toronto Libraries System.</em></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2014-01-21-allen-ginsberg-selfie.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 21 Jan 2014 11:01:36 +0000 sgupta 5822 at General James Wolfe鈥檚 historic letters acquired by 老司机直播 Libraries /news/general-james-wolfe-historic-letters-acquired-u-t-libraries <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">General James Wolfe鈥檚 historic letters acquired by 老司机直播 Libraries</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2013-11-21T06:50:42-05:00" title="Thursday, November 21, 2013 - 06:50" class="datetime">Thu, 11/21/2013 - 06:50</time> </span> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/jelena-damjanovic" hreflang="en">Jelena Damjanovic</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/margaret-wall" hreflang="en">Margaret Wall</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Margaret Wall &amp; Jelena Damjanovic</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/global-lens" hreflang="en">Global Lens</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/global" hreflang="en">Global</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/libraries" hreflang="en">Libraries</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/campus-life" hreflang="en">Campus Life</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/top-stories" hreflang="en">Top Stories</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em>"My Antagonist has wisely shut himself up, in inaccessible entrenchments, so that I can't get at him, without spilling a torrent of blood &amp; that perhaps to little purpose. The Marquis de Montcalm is at the head of a great number of bad soldiers &amp; I am at the head of a small number of good ones, that wish for nothing so much as to fight him 鈥 but the Wary old fellow avoids an Action; doubtfull of the behavior of the Army."</em></p> <p><em>- General James Wolfe (Letter 233) on the banks of the River St. Lawrence, 31 August 1759</em></p> <p>The University of Toronto has acquired an archive of national importance to Canada鈥檚 heritage: the personal correspondence of General James Wolfe (1727-1759).</p> <p>The acquisition, through Christie鈥檚, was made possible by the generous philanthropic support of Helmhorst Investments Limited and the assistance of a Movable Cultural Property grant from the Department of Canadian Heritage.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淥ur Government is proud to have contributed to the repatriation of this archive, as it will be an invaluable addition to our national heritage,鈥 said the Honourable Shelly Glover, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages. 鈥淭his archive of correspondence is of exceptional cultural and historical importance for all Canadians, and I am pleased that it will be made available to Canadians through the University of Toronto鈥檚 Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library.鈥</p> <p>The story of Wolfe鈥檚 death during the 1759 Battle of Quebec is familiar to many Canadians. His reading of Thomas Gray鈥檚 <em>An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard </em>the night before the battle, and his declaration that he 鈥渨ould rather have written that piece than take Quebec tomorrow鈥 have become the stuff of legend.</p> <p>Wolfe鈥檚 letters home to his family are the main documentary source for his life. They have been in private hands since the death of his mother in 1764 and will now be available for study, giving a true picture of the private man as well as the soldier.</p> <p>鈥淕eneral James Wolfe was an interesting person, not just as a soldier,鈥 said <strong>Anne Dondertman</strong>, associate librarian for special collections and&nbsp;director of the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. 鈥淗is letters are candid and personal. They convey a sense of immediacy, of what it was really like to be there on the spot. He had a good sense of humour. He was critical both of his fellow soldiers and of humanity in general. He was also just a very gifted writer, so his letters are good prose."</p> <p>The 229 autographed letters include the first, written to his mother at the age of thirteen as he was preparing to depart for war, and the last, written within sight of Quebec just two weeks before his death. They add very significantly both to the detail and the overall picture of the published records of Wolfe鈥檚 career.</p> <p>鈥淭he acquisition of the Wolfe archive is an outstanding example of collaboration between the University of Toronto Libraries, a private donor, and the federal government鈥檚 program to support the repatriation of items of outstanding significance and national importance,鈥 said President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong>. 鈥淭his archive will be a valuable resource for students and scholars for years to come.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p><iframe allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/v8_5MT9CQB4" width="560"></iframe></p> <p>The archive is now housed at the University of Toronto鈥檚 Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, which is open to the public. The collection had been the subject of a campaign to keep the letters in the U.K. along with other items considered of great historical significance, such as Jane Austen鈥檚 ring. At 老司机直播, plans for its digitization are underway so that this important historical material can be made widely available.</p> <p>鈥淯niting an archive of such importance to the course of Canadian history with the Thomas Fisher Library, a major research institution, guarantees ongoing research and accessibility, which we are proud to support,鈥 said Christie鈥檚 representative Margaret Ford.</p> <p>The University of Toronto Libraries system is the largest academic library in Canada and is ranked third among peer institutions in North America, behind just Harvard and Yale. The system consists of 44 libraries located on three university campuses. Its Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library houses the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, including books, manuscripts and other materials, and is the largest rare book library in the country. One of its greatest strengths is Canadiana and the Library actively acquires important material related to Canada鈥檚 history and culture.</p> <p>The donation to acquire the Wolfe archive was made through Boundless: The Campaign for the University of Toronto, which aims to raise a historic $2 billion for 老司机直播鈥檚 highest priorities. To date, the campaign has raised more than $1.35 billion toward its goal, thanks to the generosity of alumni and friends.</p> <p>For more information about the Fisher Library鈥檚 collections, visit <a href="http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca">http://fisher.library.utoronto.ca</a>.</p> <p>For more information on Boundless: The Campaign for the University of Toronto, visit <a href="http://www.boundless.utoronto.ca">www.boundless.utoronto.ca</a>.<br> &nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/general-wolfe-13-11-21.jpg</div> </div> Thu, 21 Nov 2013 11:50:42 +0000 sgupta 5737 at 老司机直播 library system ranked among top three in North America /news/u-t-library-system-again-ranked-top-three-north-america <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">老司机直播 library system ranked among top three in North America</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2013-07-31T04:20:25-04:00" title="Wednesday, July 31, 2013 - 04:20" class="datetime">Wed, 07/31/2013 - 04:20</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">The Thomas Fisher Rare Books Library is part of the University of Toronto's library system (photo by 老司机直播 News)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/margaret-wall" hreflang="en">Margaret Wall</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Margaret Wall</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/top-stories" hreflang="en">Top Stories</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/awards" hreflang="en">Awards</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The University of Toronto has once again been ranked as one of the top three library systems in North America 鈥 after Harvard and Yale 鈥 according to the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) rankings.</p> <p>老司机直播 was the only Canadian university in the top 10.</p> <p>鈥淲e are very proud to again be ranked in the prestigious company of Harvard and Yale,鈥 said Chief Librarian<strong> Larry P. Alford</strong>. 鈥淚 believe this is a recognition of the work of our extraordinary staff who, with their deep knowledge and expertise, have expanded our electronic resources to more than 1.5 million items, acquired extraordinary historical materials with global research value and developed cutting-edge services to support students and faculty from wherever they are.</p> <p>鈥淭he Libraries鈥 capacity to support new forms of research will also be dramatically enhanced this coming year through the expansion of our state-of-the-art data centre, which will soon be able to accommodate massive digitization programs and make available large amounts of text data to support national and international collaborative research projects.鈥</p> <p>The 老司机直播 library system has placed among the ARL鈥檚 top five research libraries since 2002-2003 and is comprised of 44 individual libraries that hold more than 12 million volumes in 341 languages and over 28,000 linear metres of archival material. It is the largest publicly funded research collection in Canada and the third-largest academic library in North America.</p> <p>鈥淭he University of Toronto has not only Canada's, but one of the world's, finest libraries. It is clear that countless individuals understand how important this is for the nation's teaching and research, as the University of Toronto's Boundless Campaign continues to attract significant support for the library. We thank those friends and benefactors, as well as the excellent leadership in our library system, for maintaining this precious resource,鈥 said 老司机直播 Vice-President and Provost <strong>Cheryl Misak</strong>.</p> <p>The ARL annually ranks its members based on total expenditures, materials expenditures, salary expenditures and number of staff.</p> <p><em>Margaret Wall is a writer with the University of Toronto Libraries.</em></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/library-rankings2-13-07-31.jpg</div> </div> Wed, 31 Jul 2013 08:20:25 +0000 sgupta 5522 at