VCU news

By Sue Robinson
VCU Libraries

VCU Libraries will celebrate the 3 millionth addition to its library collections with a trio of events and selections over the next two months. Three items have been identified for the celebration: an oral history collection featuring second-wave feminists in central Virginia (2,999,999th volume); a seminal new book about treatment of traumatic brain injury, co-authored by David X. Cifu, M.D., chair of VCU’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (3 millionth volume); and an art pop-up book by VCU alumna Colette Fu (3,000,001st volume).

The celebration of the 3 millionth volume coincides with VCU Libraries’ emergence as one of the leading research libraries in the country. Representing the maturity and depth of its collections, these acquisitions coincide with VCU Libraries’ inaugural year as a member of the Association of Research Libraries (joining the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech as the only ARL institutions in Virginia). The celebration also falls on the 50th anniversary of the creation of Virginia Commonwealth University, the 120th anniversary of the founding of Tompkins-McCaw Library for the Health Sciences, and the recognition of VCU Libraries with the prestigious 2018 Association of College and Research Libraries Excellence in Academic Libraries Award.

“These three items represent the diversity and breadth of our collections and demonstrate the libraries’ commitment to advancing research, scholarship and creative expression throughout the university,” said University Librarian John E. Ulmschneider. “They highlight the key role that Tompkins-McCaw Library plays in patient care and research at VCU, demonstrate how books in academic libraries are evolving, and showcase how VCU Libraries engages in scholarship and collaborations to make rare and unique materials available globally.”

Details about the selections:

2,999,999th volume: “The Virginia Feminist Oral History Project, 2013-14” A talk “Creating a Progressive Commonwealth: Women Activists, Feminism, and the Politics of Social Change in Virginia, 1970s-2000s” by Megan Taylor Shockley Event: March, 19, 3-5 p.m., Cabell Library Lecture Hall

The Virginia Feminist Oral History Project, available through Special Collections and Archives, documents the stories of women involved in second-wave feminism and related women’s activism in Virginia. The interviews were conducted by Megan Taylor Shockley, Ph.D., professor of history at Clemson University, as research for her new book, “Combating Southern Patriarchy: Virginia Feminists and the Politics of Social Change,” which will be released this year by Louisiana State University Press. Shockley’s donation of 24 audio recordings and corresponding transcripts makes it possible for VCU Libraries to preserve and provide access to the voices of second-wave feminists throughout Virginia.

In addition to her forthcoming book, Shockley is the author of “Changing History: Virginia Women Through Four Centuries” (with Cynthia Kierner and Jennifer Loux), Library of Virginia Press, 2013; “The Captain’s Widow of Sandwich: Self-Invention and the Life of Hannah Rebecca Burgess, 1834-1917,” New York University Press, 2010; and “‘We, Too, Are Americans’: African American Women in Detroit and Richmond, 1940-54,” University of Illinois Press, 2004.

3,000,000th volume: “Rehabilitation After Traumatic Brain Injury” By Blessen C. Eapen and David X. Cifu Event: April 3, 3-4 p.m., Tompkins-McCaw Library for the Health Sciences

This seminal work is based on Cifu’s years of research and leading-edge practice in the treatment of traumatic brain injury. It includes current translational research conducted at VCU, and is a guide to best practices for rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury. The authors provide a thorough review of rehabilitation for an array of patient populations to assist them in regaining independence and life skills. The work will be an important addition to Tompkins-McCaw Library’s Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) collection, one of VCU Libraries’ Collections of Distinction — a designation within the libraries for an important area of focus in collecting.

Cifu is the associate dean for innovation and system integration in the VCU School of Medicine and the chair and Herman J. Flax, M.D., Endowed Professor of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in the VCU School of Medicine. He is also chief of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Services for the VCU Health System and founding director of the VCU Center for Rehabilitation Sciences and Engineering. He is the senior traumatic brain injury specialist for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He has been funded on 43 research grants for more than $137 million, including currently serving as principal investigator of the VA/Department of Defense $62.2 million Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium (CENC), which is studying the long-term effects of combat concussions in service members and veterans across 15 VAs, 12 military bases, and 30 universities in 20 states.

In his more than 25 years as an academic physiatrist, he has delivered more than 550 regional, national and international lectures, published more than 220 scientific articles and 65 abstracts, and co-authored or edited 34 books and book chapters. He is a past president of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (2007-8), editor-in-chief of the fifth edition of “Braddom’s Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation” textbook (2015), and co-editor in chief of “Braddom’s Handbook of Rehabilitation Medicine” (2017).

Under Cifu’s leadership, VCU’s system of care for traumatic brain injury has become a national model. Widely considered a national leader in the treatment of traumatic brain injury and a champion for injured veterans, Cifu graduated from the Boston University School of Medicine combined B.A./M.D. six-year medical program in 1986 and completed his internship and residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation services at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. He served on the faculty at Baylor before joining VCU Medical Center in 1991.

3,000,001st volume: “Wa Hair Swinging Dance” By Colette Fu Event: workshop on April 20, 1:30-3:30 p.m., Cabell Library Mapp Room; lecture April 20, 4-5 p.m. Cabell Library Lecture Hall

An impressively scaled pop-up art book, “Wa Hair Swinging Dance” by VCU alumna Colette Fu captures the fervent movement of women from the Wa people of China engaged in a traditional harvest dance. From the series “We are Tiger Dragon People,” this edition falls within a group of complex sculptural pop-up books that Fu constructed from her own photographs. Fu, whose mother is descended from the Yi people, began the series while traveling on a Fulbright award to document the social and cultural life of ethnic minority groups in the Yunnan Province. “Wa Hair Swinging Dance” is a valuable addition to VCU Libraries’ Book Art Collection, a nationally significant collection in high demand by artists and scholars.

Fu is an internationally celebrated book artist and paper engineer, as well as a passionate arts educator. She received a B.A. in French from the University of Virginia, a B.S. in photography from VCU and an M.F.A. from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Fu’s pop-up editions are held by the Library of Congress, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Yale University, Virginia Commonwealth University and other major collecting institutions. Solo exhibitions of her work have been held at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the University of Virginia, The Athenaeum of Philadelphia and Georgetown University. She is the recipient of a Fulbright Research Award and grants from the Independence Foundation, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the Puffin Foundation and the Society for Photographic Education.