August 17, 2000

Contact: William J. Crowe, Spencer Research Library, (785) 864-4907 or wcrowe@ku.edu.

KU's Spencer Library helps students make history

LAWRENCE - Spencer Research Library sits in the heart of the University of Kansas, between the main administration building and the bell tower, but often seems a hidden resource, according to William J. Crowe, Spencer Research librarian.

To encourage new students to learn more about KU's libraries and museums, Crowe has invited 370 freshmen Mount Oread Scholars to come to an 8 a.m. continental breakfast Monday, Aug. 21, in the Spencer library. The breakfast will follow a walk up the hill, a tradition started four years ago for the scholars, who will walk down the hill at graduation.

In Spencer Research Library, the Mount Oread Scholars will have an opportunity to see some of the library's collections and the library's commanding view of the Kaw River valley. Each scholar will be asked to sign a special note card reflecting on his or her first week at KU, Crowe said.

"Their notes will be sealed to be put in University Archives and opened about the time of their 25th reunion at KU," he said.

"Libraries like the Spencer hold original records of human experience," Crowe said. "The virtual time capsule of the Mount Oread Scholars' impressions on their first week at KU will become a part of that record, as will digital photographs that library staff will take of this group of students to mount on the Web later that day."

So what other records of human experiences are available in Spencer Research Library?

  • One of the best sports photograph collections in the United States
  • A nationally renowned collection of science fiction
  • About 300,000 printed books, from the 15th to the 21st century
  • More than a half million manuscripts
  • More than 2 million photographs
  • Thousands of video and audio tapes

    "We want to encourage students to explore all the libraries and museums on campus," Crowe said. "KU has rich resources that give students tremendous advantages. Our libraries and museums provide resources that help us attract good faculty, who in turn helps us attract the best students."

    The five-year-old Mount Oread Scholars program is designed to recruit and retain high-ability students who don't automatically qualify for KU's honors program. The Mount Oread program retains between 96 and 100 percent of its freshmen.

    To view the Mount Oread Scholars group photos and other resources preserved in Spencer Research Library, look on the Web at www.ku.edu/~spencer.

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