| UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
JAMES E. ROGERS COLLEGE OF LAW |
JUNE 21, 2023 | | |
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Greetings,
Happy Juneteenth!
With Marc in China for the graduation of our Ocean University BA in Law students, I have the honor of guest writing the newsletter during this very special week when we celebrate our country’s transition from slavery to freedom for all.
Thus, it is my pleasure, as Director of the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library, to give readers a taste of the impactful work performed by the amazing law library team in our modern, 21st century law library: national awards recognition, a new initiative on AI, a land-grant history project, book displays honoring our diverse communities, and more.
Law libraries have changed and evolved alongside legal education and law practice over the years. While the librarians still teach traditional legal research classes, they also teach law practice technology, AI and big data, and foreign and international research. While they continue to help the journals with cite-checking and students with their substantial papers, they also work closely with our College of Law faculty, Arizona’s Native nations, Latin American law librarians, and international organizations to support research, disseminate scholarship, preserve information and enhance the profession of law librarianship.
The law library team is deeply involved in educating the next generation of legal information professionals with the Law Library Fellows Program and by developing alternative pathways to the profession, in collaboration with other College of Law units and the School of Information.
And, despite what you might think, the law library still buys books! See below for our curated book displays with lists of relevant titles on a variety of topics, or stop in to see us next time you’re on campus.
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Until the footnotes,
Teresa Miguel-Stearns
Associate Dean, Legal Information Innovation
Director, Law Library & Professor of Law
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Library Team Wins Multiple Awards | |
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University of Arizona Law has earned multiple honors in the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) annual awards.
In fact, our library faculty and staff were the most awarded of any law school of the recently announced winners. We also have been awarded by a number of the AALL’s special interest sections.
Award winners include:
John L. Andrews Legal Literature Award/Editor Division, recognizing a significant textual contribution to legal literature: James and Beverly Rogers Professor Emeritus of Law Michael Chiorazzi for his work on The Role of Citation in the Law: A Yale Law School Symposium. Michael’s work also received the Book Award from the AALL Academic Law Libraries-Special Interest Section (ALL-SIS).
AALL LexisNexis Call for Papers Award/Short Form Division, to promote scholarship, provide a creative outlet for law librarians and recognize scholarly efforts of members and students: Research and Instructional Services Librarian Jennifer Bedier (’00, MLIS ’21), for her work on Trauma-Informed Practices in Law Libraries
Emerging Leader Award, recognizing significant contributions to the Association and/or to the profession and demonstrated potential for leadership and continuing service: Head of Research, Data & Instruction Cas Laskowski
Innovations in Technology Award, recognizing use of technology in the creation, development, modification or visionary use of an application or resource for law librarians or legal professionals: Cas Laskowski, Post Graduate Fellow Gabriela Elizondo-Craig (BS ’18, JD ’21) and Innovation for Justice (i4J) for their work on the Medical Debt Policy Scorecard
ALL-SIS Outstanding Article Award (Short Form), to Teresa Miguel-Stearns (MA ’06), along with alumnus and current Arizona Supreme Court Judicial Clerk Daniel Bowman (’22), for their work on Arizona's Diploma Privilege, Part 1
In addition, three law library staff have been awarded grants to attend the AALL Annual Meeting in July:
ALL-SIS Regular Member Stimulus Grant, awarded annually to support a law librarian’s attendance at the AALL Annual Meeting to Jennifer Bedier, Research and Instructional Services Librarian
Government Documents Special Interest Section Veronica Maclay Grant, awarded annually to support one library science student’s travel to the AALL Annual Meeting to Samantha Ginsburg (MLIS Second Year), Law Library Fellow
Government Law Librarians Special Interest Section AALL Annual Meeting Grant, awarded annually to support two early-career librarians’ attendance at the AALL Annual Meeting to Sophia Kingsley (MLIS Second Year), Law Library Fellow
Each of these winners and grant recipients represents the creativity and intellectual rigor on display at the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library every day. Congratulations!
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University Joins Generative AI Research Project | |
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Led by Cas Laskowski of the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library and Deputy Director of the University of Arizona Data Science Institute Maliaca Oxnnam, the University of Arizona will be participating in a two-year research project studying the use of AI in higher education.
The university joins a group of sixteen institutions around the country for the Making AI Generative for Higher Education project convened by Ithaka S+R. Ithaka S+R is a part of ITHAKA, a non-profit helping the academic community use digital technologies. The group will study current and prospective uses of AI and develop institution-specific strategies for generative AI.
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University of Arizona Land-Grant History
The law library also conducts major research projects.
In one such project, a team is documenting how the University of Arizona has been enriched as a result of its land-grant designation, to the detriment of Arizona’s Native nations.
The ultimate goal of the University of Arizona Land-Grant Project is two-fold: (1) to research, share and begin to understand how the University of Arizona has been enriched from the 19th century dispossession of Native nations’ land in Arizona; and, (2) to provide students, faculty, researchers and Arizona residents with an authoritative source of information and documentation about our history which will serve as a launching pad for further investigation, ground-breaking research and original scholarship.
The project team includes:
Robert A. Williams, Jr. (Lumbee), Regents Professor, E. Thomas Sullivan Professor of Law; Faculty Chair, Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program
Teresa Miguel-Stearns, Associate Dean, Professor of Law, and Director, Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library
Cas Laskowski, Associate Librarian, Head of Research, Data & Instruction, and Technology & Empirical Law Librarian
Kristen Keck, Library Services Associate
Samantha Ginsburg, Law Library Fellow & Graduate Assistant
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Explore the Law Library’s Curated Displays
Throughout the academic year, the law library curates book displays to honor our diverse communities, highlight events at the College of Law and share important new titles in our collection. You’ll note the broad range of displays, from International Prisoners’ Justice Day in August to Jewish American Heritage Month in May.
Our thoughtful curators are pleased to share our book lists below. We hope you’ll use them as a resource for further study on any topic in which you're interested.
Click on the image to go to the post on the law library blog featuring each display. And subscribe to the law library blog while you are there!
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Highlighting Student Authors | |
Cheryl Redhorse Bennett (Navajo Nation) from Kirtland, New Mexico, is also a rising 2L. Cheryl recently published the book Our Fight Has Just Begun: Hate Crimes and Justice in Native America. In this book, Cheryl examines and highlights racial violence committed against the Native community in the Four Corners region of the U.S. She draws on the historic racial dynamics of Farmington, New Mexico, and thoughtfully layers additional context from interviews with the local Navajo community. | |
See You at CLE by the Sea? | |
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Join Arizona Law and fellow alumni at the Hotel Del Coronado this July. We will be hosting a reception during the State Bar of Arizona’s annual CLE by the Sea. We are excited to be holding this event with the ASU Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law.
What: CLE by the Sea Alumni Reception
When: Monday, July 10, 5:30–7:30 p.m.
Where: Sun Deck Bar & Grill at the Hotel Del Coronado, Coronado, CA
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Do You Have News?
Your success is the college’s success and we want to celebrate with you! If you have landed a new job, received an award or recognition, stepped into a leadership role or have good news in general, let us know.
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The items in this newsletter are only a sampling of the accomplishments, resources and services available through the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library and from its dedicated and brilliant team. In addition to academic support, we also support students’ well-being through new and ongoing initiatives like providing sun-lamp therapy and meditation space and resources.
Find out more about all that’s going on at the law library through our annual report and blog, or just stop by and see us!
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