Research Sprints, hosted by the University of Virginia Library, offer faculty the opportunity to work with a team of expert librarians who will help with getting a new project started or overcoming obstacles in an existing project. The program offers support for projects at any phase of the scholarly lifecycle and the process is mutually beneficial to recipients and Library staff. Faculty receive help in moving projects forward, and Library staff hone and expand their skills in ways that help current and future partners.
The following are comments from just a few of the faculty who participated in the 2020 sprints:
“I had been wanting to do this for so long and this sort of blew it out of the water . . . the Research Sprint has opened up every single door that could be opened.”
“I was really impressed by the depth of knowledge everyone brought to the subject … their enthusiasm, collegiality and professionalism was truly outstanding”
“Writing a book is of course a marathon, not a sprint; but getting started is often the hardest part. I feel I’ve been shot out of a cannon!”
We’re delighted to have the opportunity to work with this year’s Research Sprint partners:
Shilpa Davé, Media Studies, Arts and Sciences: This Sprint will investigate how media representations of English speakers and the relationship to the English language comment on racial and social cultural histories of the United States.
Library team:
- Erin Pappas, Research Librarian for the Humanities
- Christine Slaughter, Social Sciences Research Librarian
- Sherri Brown, Librarian for English
- Keith Weimer, Librarian for History, Politics, and Religious Studies
- Phil McEldowney, Librarian for Middle East and South Asia Studies
- Haley Gillilan, Undergraduate Student Success Librarian
Katy Ambrose, Music, Arts and Sciences: This Sprint will provide research support for a book about horn players of African descent in the United States, with a large focus on enslaved huntsmen on the estates of the “Founding Fathers” in Virginia and the mid-Atlantic.
Library team:
- Amy Hunsaker, Music and Performing Arts Librarian
- Krystal Appiah, Special Collections Instruction Librarian
- David Whitesell, Curator, Albert & Shirley Small Special Collections Library
- Regina Rush, Reference Librarian
Erin Putalik, Architecture, School of Architecture: The Sprint team will research the ways in which formaldehyde-based adhesives and resins became so integral to contemporary building materials. The project will delve into patent history, case law, and key digital repositories of technical literature for building materials, with a focus on the 1940s-70s.
Library team:
- Rebecca Coleman, Research Librarian for Architecture
- Trillian Hosticka, Reference Librarian, and Regional Depository Librarian
- Kristin Glover, Research Librarian, University of Virginia School of Law
- Maggie Nunley, Teaching and Learning Librarian
Joel Thurston and Stephanie Shipp, Biocomplexity Institute: The Sprint team will conduct a literature review on team science as it relates to working in a virtual environment, and will develop a data collection plan targeting gaps in the literature with a focus on connecting team science practices to practical outcomes (e.g., overcoming communication obstacles, and strengthening interpersonal connections between team members).
Library team:
- Christine Slaughter, Social Sciences Research Librarian
- Jenn Huck, Data Librarian
- Erich Purpur, Science and Engineering Research Librarian
- Andrea Denton, Lecturer, Claude Moore Health Sciences Library
- Jenny Coffman, Science and Engineering Research Librarian
- Erin Pappas, Research Librarian for the Humanities
Nicole Bonino, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, Arts & Sciences: The Sprint will provide research support for a multi-disciplinary book on the artistic and literary manifestations of migratory dynamics in the urban spaces of the “Southern Cone” (the southernmost area of South America). The project will analyze visual and plastic art, novels, and films highlighting issues of race, space, and social justice.
Library team:
- Miguel Valladares-Llata, Librarian for Romance Languages and Latin American Studies
- Lucie Stylianopoulos, Director of Academic Programs and Outreach
- Leigh Rockey, Video Collections Librarian
- Winston Barham, Music Collections Librarian
Toni Irving, Darden School: This Sprint will provide research support for a developing project about the relationship between 19th century arcades, consumer culture, and citizenship. The Sprint will lay a groundwork of archival research, related published scholarship, and public data sets to launch this project.
Library Team:
- Keith Weimer, Librarian for History, Politics, and Religious Studies
- Trillian Hosticka, Reference Librarian, and Regional Depository Librarian
- Rebecca Coleman, Research Librarian for Architecture
- Katrina Spencer, Librarian for African American and African Studies
- Jenn Huck, Data Librarian
- Christine Slaughter, Social Sciences Research Librarian
Priya Date, Biology, Engagement, Arts and Sciences: This Sprint will provide support to review current pedagogy literature in order to create a framework to integrate the arts in a science classroom, helping to redesign/restructure a sensory biology course such that it supports creativity and makes science learning accessible.
Library Team:
- Maggie Nunley, Teaching and Learning Librarian
- Bethany Mickel, Teaching and Instructional Design Librarian
- Cecelia Parks, Undergraduate Student Success Librarian
- Amy Hunsaker, Music and Performing Arts Librarian
- Nancy Kechner, ADSTP Specialist
- Jenny Coffman, Science and Engineering Research Librarian
Rachel Most, Anthropology, Dean’s Office, Arts and Sciences: This Sprint will provide research support for a chapter in a proposed book on higher education. The chapter focuses on who should go to college, why one should attend college, what one should expect in college, and why a liberal arts degree is preparation for a lifetime of various jobs and careers.
Library Team:
- Cecelia Parks, Undergraduate Student Success Librarian
- Halley Gillilan, Undergraduate Student Success Librarian
- Ashley Hosbach, Education and Social Science Research Librarian
Learn more about the Research Sprints program!