And the 2011 winners are…

From left: Noelle Toland, Dean Brancolini, Nerissa Irizarry, Alice Beretta

Congratulations to all of the winners of the 2011 Undergraduate Library Research Award!

The grand prize of $1,000 was awarded to Noelle Toland, a senior majoring in History, for her research paper “Civil War Diary Keeping: Every Man Was His Own Historian.” Noelle was nominated by Dr. Carla Bittel.

The two honorable mentions of $450 each go to Nerissa Irizarry, a senior majoring in Sociology, and Alice Beretta, a senior majoring in Art History. Dr. Anna Muraco nominated Nerissa’s research paper, “All in The Family: Looking at the Intersection of Family, Community and Disclosure in the Lives of Gay and Lesbian Elders,” and Alice’s research paper, “Saving Church, City, and Soul: Sanctuary Mosaics at S. Prassede, S. Cecilia in Trastevere and S. Maria in Domnica in Rome” was nominated by Dr. Kirstin Noreen.

Each entry included the research project or paper, an essay explaining how the student researched information and used the library, a bibliography, and a letter of nomination from the faculty member who had assigned the paper or project.

The Awards Committee – Clay Stalls, Manuscripts Curator (Chair); Charles Hillen, Head of Acquisitions and Serials; Alexander Justice, Reference and Instruction Librarian; Nicolas Rosenthal, professor of History; and Jie Xu, professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science – chose these entries because they demonstrate advanced information literacy practices, use of multiple collections and services in the library, and clear evidence of significant learning.

Dean Kristine Brancolini presented the awards at a special ceremony and reception on Tuesday, April 26, 2011 in the Von der Ahe Family Suite of the William H. Hannon Library.