Message from the Dean

August is my last month as interim dean of WSU Libraries; effective Sept. 1, I will start my appointment as permanent dean. I am very thankful for the support of Provost Chris Riley-Tillman, President Elizabeth Cantwell, and WSU colleagues and friends. Having worked at WSU for so long, I am so grateful for such a supportive network.

In this issue of Browse, we include the WSU Insider story of my appointment together with Courtney Meehan, who will also transition from interim to permanent dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. A picture of the two of us shows me holding a book that was part of an unexpected gift to the libraries. Lorraine (Kure) Hanaway, Washington State College Class of 1949 and editor of the Evergreen, made a bequest to donate her first editions of the Jane Austen novels Emma, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, and Persuasion to Manuscripts, Archives, and Special Collections (MASC). The books are largely in their original state, with contemporary bindings, bookplates from former owners, and inscriptions. Emma and Mansfield Park are each published in three volumes, also called “triple deckers.” Next time you are on the Pullman campus, consider stopping by MASC and seeing these beautiful volumes.

This academic year will bring new updates and renovations to Terrell Library. We received some wonderful news in July that the libraries will receive $600,000 in minor capital funds to upgrade spaces in Terrell. These resources will help us move forward with a long-term plan to create a Cougar Commons in Terrell (see my message in the last issue of Browse) and upgrade group study rooms.

Pup de-stressor at the WSU Disabled Student Center, now located in Terrell Library’s basement level.

Over the summer, we partnered with WSU Student Affairs to welcome the Disabled Student Center (DSC) into Terrell Library’s basement level. On the Friday before classes started, DSC Coordinator Maddie Joyce planned a de-stress event with a visit of service dogs to the center. After directing a few students to the DSC’s new location, I walked down to visit the event. It was packed with more than 140 students in attendance, all clustered around the dogs. It was the most students I have ever seen gathered in the basement of Terrell, and their energy and excitement for the new semester were infectious.

Looking ahead to September, we have Browse stories on the Sept. 19 watch party of the 2025 Ig Nobel Prize winners at Owen Science and Engineering Library; Apple Cup history with University Archivist Mark O’English ahead of the Sept. 20 match with University of Washington; and a Sept. 24 unveiling event in the Terrell Library Atrium for our stunning new mural of Vanessa Bell and Virginia Woolf. The unveiling features remarks by WSU Woolf scholar Diane Gillespie and mural artist Jiemei “Mei” Lin, displays of Woolf Library and Hogarth Press Collection books that inspired the mural in the MASC reading room, and the MASC letter press station for visitors to print a Woolf quote.

Finally, Manuscripts Librarian Will Gregg describes an exciting new gift of rare books on mountaineering published between 1892 and 2012, donated by WSU alum John Roskelley, his lifelong friend and climbing partner Chris Kopczynski, and their mentor, Joe Collins. In addition, Basalt Books, the trade imprint of WSU Press, has just released Believing in Indians: A Mixed-Blood Odyssey, a memoir by Tony Tekaroniake Evans, an enrolled member of the Kahnawake Mohawks of Quebec and an award-winning reporter and columnist for the Idaho Mountain Express. Evans’ memoir provides a critique of U.S. history shaped by the dual consciousness that comes with being Indian and non-Indian.

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With warm regards,

Trevor