Rutgers University Libraries’ five distinctive collections were recently featured on the Rutgers University Instagram page as a collaborative post titled “5 Ways to Explore 5 Distinctive Collections at Rutgers University Libraries.”.”
A September 9 Rutgers Today story featured World Trade Center archival records preserved at the Libraries in our Special Collections and University Archives by Angus Gillespie, retired professor of American studies at Rutgers–New Brunswick. The article details how historical documents photocopied by Gillespie for his 1999 book Twin Towers: The Life of New York City’s World Trade Center now serve as a crucial historical record following the destruction of the Port Authority’s original archives on 9/11. Quoted in the story, Consuella Askew, vice president for university libraries and university librarian, emphasized the importance of the Libraries’ archival work. “Preserving materials like these is at the heart of our responsibility as a research library and central to the mission of our special collections and archives areas,” she said.
Melissa De Fino, cataloging and metadata librarian, Collections and Digital Strategies, and Mary Beth Weber, coordinator for training and mentorship, were interviewed on September 21 for the New Books in Library Science podcast to discuss their book Library Technical Services: Future Forward (Bloomsbury, November 2025). The podcast, hosted by Michael LaMagna, professor of library services at Delaware County Community College, is part of the New Books Network.
Weber also published a column in volume 52, issue 2 of Serials Review titled “Why Mentoring Matters.” The column highlights the critical importance of mentoring for individuals pursuing library technical services careers and outlines practical considerations for designing and sustaining effective mentoring programs, including recruitment, assessment, and program evolution.
Bart Everts, reference and instruction librarian at Robeson Library, worked with historian Charlene Mires to find images in the Special Collections at Robeson Library to be featured in new signage marking the geographic and architectural history of Rutgers–Camden and included in the book Historic Rutgers University–Camden. The selected images reflect both the destruction of the Cooper Grant neighborhood and the rapid growth of the campus, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s.
Special Collections at Robeson Library is participating in this year’s Archives Month Philly. Their exhibition Camden Centennials, which celebrates the 100th anniversary of Rutgers–Camden and the Ben Franklin Bridge, is featured in the program. Archives Month Philly is an annual October event featuring programming and collections from throughout the Greater Philadelphia region.
Ermira Mitre, library technician for access services at Smith Library, has had several poems and a short story, written in both English and Albanian, published in three literary collections. The collections, listed below, create space for poets, writers, and translators to express their creative voices across diverse forms, languages, and experiences, fostering dialogue with one another and with the wider world.
The Brownstone Poets Anthology 2026 (Brooklyn, New York)
The Asemana Magazine, Vol. I: Across Worlds, Against Silence (Canada)
Antologjia e Poezisë Durrsake (The Anthology of Durrës Poets) (published in Mitre’s hometown of Durrës, Albania)
Jim Niessen, world history librarian at Alexander Library, was interviewed for the TAPinto New Brunswick article “Rutgers Historian to Explore the Hungarian Refugee Crisis of 1956 at New Brunswick Free Public Library.” The article focuses on Niessen’s September 19 talk at the library, which explored New Jersey’s vital role during the crisis.
John Powell, reference and instruction librarian at Robeson Library, was featured in a Q&A with ACLU of New Jersey honoring Banned Books Week. During the interview, Powell highlighted the role libraries play in protecting public access to information. “When bans are proposed or implemented, librarians should follow viewpoint-neutral collection policies so that their decisions about the books are based on agreed upon criteria and not just political pressure,” he said.
Li Sun, continuing resources and Asian languages catalog librarian, Collections and Digital Strategies, authored the paper “Evaluating AI-Generated Subject Terms for Cataloging Assistance,” which will be published in the next issue of College & Research Libraries.
Elizabeth Surles, archivist at the Institute of Jazz Studies, curated the exhibition, Artifactual Echoes: “Jazz” in Their Own Words, which opened at Express Newark, located in the iconic former Hahne’s department store, on October 7. Reprising the exhibition Records at Play, this adaptation of the original brings back a selection of treasures from the Institute of Jazz Studies. Using words from musicians represented in the institute’s collections, the exhibition considers jazz, its history, and its future. Part of Express Newark’s Legacy series, the show is on view through July 9, 2027.