Volume XIII: Number 1
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The Student Newspaper of the University of North Carolina at Ciuurlotte
Qiarlotte, North Carolina
October 18, 1977
Sample of opinions says *no'
Do Students Tcike Advantage Of Library?
By Steve Bass
Colleges often present the appearance
of illusion. Who among us, when younger,
didn’t imagine college as a mystical place
where life existed only on j football
weekends? The periods between Monday
and Thursday were spent on snowy
campuses making angles in the snow with
a lover. Then we grew older and our
visions changed. College became a place
of learning in libraries where on silently
pursued the sources of wisdom lodged in
those miles of aisles.
Then we became the students and
out imagination became the pragmatism
of reality. We found that student life
wasn’t normally spent in libraries
preparing the latest in the long line of
research papers. At least not at UNCC.
The philosophy of education at
UNCC, if opinions of students concerning
library usage are any indication, is that
learning takes place in the classroom
lecture and the study of assigned
te.xtbooks. Jerry Gilson, a junior history
major, said, “I never have to research, just
read for all my classes. I just never have
the need to use the library. My professors
don’t demand it. We have a good library,
from what I gather, but I personally don’t
have to use it.”
Linda Williams, a major in criminal
justice, concurs with Gilson. “I don’t
have to use it much at all. Frankly, I
don’t even know how to use it. The
people there try to help you, but when I
don’t have to use it I don’t, and, I still get
lost.”
Some students agreed with
psychology major Amanda Hunnicutt,
“About tire only need I have with the
library is using the abstract sections for
my major. I just don’t believe they have
anything you can use up there.”
Steve Schulman, a junior history
major, said the time .he spends in the
Ubrary depends on the number of
research papers he has due in any
semester. “I don’t like to write on
something I’m not researched properly
on, so I often spend a lot of time in the
library. However, I don’t check many
books out, mainly I just study. Normally,
I don’t use the Journals too often with
my major, mostly books. I do enjoy
reading the New York Times whenever I
can. The actual time I spend in the
library...it varies so much I couldn’t even
guess.”
Virginia Whitesides is a returning
student who must take care of a home
besides her studies. “I am the worst
student ever. My kids keep on asking me,
‘Mom, when are you going to study?’
But, unless I am forced to use the library
or study, I won’t. My daughter, who is in
nursing here, spends a good deal of time
there. But not me.”
English majors are faithful users of
the library. Senior Susan Sluss said, “I
always use it. I go regularly to check out
books. I don’t go just to study like some,
but I do use the materials regularly. I also
use the reserve reading room pretty often.
I would like to say that I think the
reference people in our library are
excellent. I have never gone to one for
help that they didn’t spend as much time
with me as I needed. I think you have to
give them a whole lot of credit.”
Richard Jameson, a political science
major, said his use of the library is
basicaEy limited to one class. “I use it all
the time in “Urban Sociology.” The
library has a lot of things in it you
wouldn’t know about if you weren’t
forced to use it. For instance, in “Urban
Sociology,” I have been using the census
tracts they have, and have found a lot of
interesting information. Mostly however,
I just use the reserve reading room for my
other courses. Still, I believe you get
more out of research than you do lectures
and textbook studying. I always come
away with a feeling of really having
learned something because I got it on my
own.”
Perhaps the most telling comment on
the subject was one overheard while
doing this article. “In four years at this
institution, this is only the second book
I’ve ever had to check out, and my grades
have always been very good.”
Which is the real picture
of the UNCC library?
(photos by Dean Dugger)
Dr. Robert Rieke Writes History Of UNCC
(photo courtesy of Information Office)
Robert Rieke
By Brad Rich
Dr. Robert Rieke of UNCC’s History
Department has written a book entitled A
Retrospective Vision. The book, which
traces the history of the University -of
North Carolina at Charlotte from 1965 to
1975, is the first history of its type to be
written about the University.
Rieke came up with the idea of
writing a book about UNCC years ago. He
said, “The idea was in my mind in the
late sixties and early seventies, but I
didn’t actually decide to write the book
untai973.”
Rieke went to the Chancellor in 1973
and proposed the writing of the book. At
the time, he was Chairman of the History
Department, so when Chancellor D.W.
Colvard gave him the okay for the
project, he took a leave of absence from
the -position to give himself more time for
writing and research. He began the
research in the fall of 1974, reviewing old
newspapers, interviewing prominent
people in UNCC’s past, and going over his
own notes from when he was secretary of
the UNCC faculty.
About two thirds of the actual
writing of the book was completed by the
summer of 1974, so Rieke took a rest and
let the book sit awhile. He said, “1 took
the rest to get a little perspective...if the
book was to be a 10 year history 1 had to
wait until after 1975 to complete it
anyway.”
The rest of the writing was
completed by the summer of 1976, and
was added to the earlier part of the
manuscript. Rieke said he didn’t change
any significant parts of the earlier
manuscript, but because of the book’s
unique structure (it is not in
chronological order) he did rearrange
some ■ segments a little bit. He said,' “I
discard very little of what I put down
when I write. 1 let the ideas play a bit,
then put them down. 1 work slowly, but
my first writing is pretty much
complete.”
Rieke himself describes the book as
“really a poem in prose - but it’s a
history...” He said, “The book is unusual
in that it’s not a chronological
history...it’s another type format, so what
I put in was determined by the
framework 1 chose .to use as my form.
That meant...! paid more attentioi to
certain things than to others...but 1 tried
to achieve a balance.”
Rieke did all the research and writing
of the book himself, and is handling the
sales and promotion as well, but he is
quick to give credit to others for help.
The entire project was funded by the
UNCC Foundation, but Rieke doesn’t
know exactly how the money was raised,
and doesn’t want to know. “The
Chancellor said ‘go ahead and write it. I’ll
find the money,’ ” Rieke said. “The
Foundation deserves a lot of credit, ana
will be paid back througn sales of the
book. If we sell out the printing, there
will be enough money to pay them plus a
little for the artist (Richard Gantt, a
senior in the BCA program in 1974) and
myself.”
Will the book sell that well? Frankly,
Weke said he doesn’t expect it to , but
he’d love to see it happen. He said if it
does, more copies could , be printed.
William Loftin of Heritage Printers in
Charlotte was the printer, and Rieke said
he, too, deserves a lot of credit.
Will Rieke stick around for another
10 years and write another book? “I
don’t know...,” he said. “At the time of
my retirement I might want to...I think a
25 year view at about the year 2000
would be interesting. That would put me,
let’s see...in my seventies. 1 don’t know if
I’ll have the energy then, but I’d be glad
to help if someone else wanted to.”
(A review ot the book will appear in
this newspaper sometime in the near
future.)