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Divine Inspiration: Reading the Sacred in Biblical Texts and Imagery—Reception and Panel Discussion


Join us on Thursday, Oct. 19 in Falvey Library’s Speakers’ Corner from 4:30-6:30 p.m. for an exhibit reception featuring historic & noteworthy bibles from Villanova’s Distinctive Collections. The reception will begin with a moderated panel discussion with faculty and collections professionals on the topic of biblical imagery, followed by a live print demonstration with Mike Sgier using linoleum relief blocks that recreate biblical illustrations to highlight historical methods of reproduction from the exhibit. Attendees are invited to participate in the panel Q&A as well as interact with the exhibit content by taking home prints from the demonstration. Themed refreshments and snacks will be provided.

Moderator: 
Meg Piorko, PhD
Distinctive Collections Librarian, Villanova University

Panelists: 
Jennie Castillo, MA
Curator of the University Art Collection & Gallery Director, Villanova University 

Heather Willever-Farr, PhD
Special Collections Librarian, LaSalle University 

Peter Spitaler, ThD
Associate Professor of Biblical Studies, Villanova University 

Print Demonstration by Mike Sgier, MFA
Distinctive Collections Coordinator, Villanova University

This ACS-approved event, sponsored by Falvey Library, is free and open to the public.



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Caturday: Oh Deer!

Image of four deer crossing a trail on Villanova's campus.

Photo courtesy of Jutta Seibert, Director of Research Services & Scholarly Engagement.


Oh deer! Lunch encounter on the VU campus trail near the Charles Widger School of Law.



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Scholarship@Villanova Event Featuring Olukunle P. Owolabi, PhD

Olukunle P. Owolabi, PhD, headshot.


Please join us on Tuesday, September 26 from 5-6:30 p.m. in Villanova University’s Falvey Library for a Scholarship@Villanova event featuring Olukunle P. Owolabi, PhD, Associate Professor of Political Science and Global Interdisciplinary Studies and Director of Africana Studies. The event will celebrate Dr. Owolabi’s recently published book, Ruling Emancipated Slaves and Indigenous Subjects: The Divergent Legacies of Forced Settlement and Colonial Occupation in the Global South and will be held in the Library’s Speakers’ Corner space on the first floor. In person attendance is encouraged; however, attendees can also view the event via livestream here.

In his book, Dr. Owolabi examines why forced settlement colonies, where European colonists established agricultural plantations with imported and enslaved African labor, tend to outperform continental African states on key indicators of educational attainment, human well-being, and postcolonial democratization.  His argument highlights the impact of legal-administrative reforms that expanded the legal rights and political agency of emancipated Afro-descendants in forced settlement colonies, in contrast to the ‘native legal codes’ that restricted the legal rights and political agency of indigenous black populations that were colonized after the abolition of slavery in the New World.

This ACS-approved event, co-sponsored by Falvey Library, Department of Political Science, Department of Global Interdisciplinary Studies, and the Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest, is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served. Following the talk there will be a book sale and signing.

See our interview with Dr. Owolabi, below, to learn more about his book and which topics he will delve deeper into during the event.


Describe your book, Ruling Emancipated Slaves and Indigenous Subjects: The Divergent Legacies of Forced Settlement and Colonial Occupation in the Global South.

Ruling Emancipated Slaves and Indigenous Subjects examines the varied developmental legacies of European colonization for enslaved Africans and their descendants in the New World, and for indigenous black populations in continental Africa. Specifically, the book seeks to explain a historical paradox: i.e. why forced settlement colonies, where European colonists established large-scale agricultural plantations with enslaved and imported African labor, tend to outperform areas of the world where Europeans exploited the land, labor, and resources of indigenous non-white populations on key indicators of human well-being and postcolonial democratization. This book explains this paradox by contrasting the harsh, arbitrary, and often despotic legal codes that Europeans used to control indigenous colonial subjects with the liberal reforms that expanded the legal rights and political agency of emancipated Afro-descendants following the abolition of slavery in the New World. Spanning three centuries of colonial history and postcolonial development, this is the first book to systematically examine the distinctive patterns of state-building that resulted from forced settlement and colonial occupation in the Black Atlantic world.

What inspired you to write Ruling Emancipated Slaves and Indigenous Subjects?

I was inspired to write this book because I needed to make sense of childhood memories and experiences in different parts of the world that have been impacted by British colonization. My parents immigrated to Canada from Nigeria and Trinidad during the 1960s, and my early childhood education, socialization, and political awareness were profoundly impacted by each of these environments.  When I was four years old, my family moved from Canada to Nigeria, when my Nigerian father, a Canadian-trained medical doctor, returned to his home country to establish a hospital with one of his childhood friends. My first political memories included the forced deportation of foreign migrant workers from Nigeria in 1983 and 1985, and the two military coups that took place on New Years Eve 1983 and August 27, 1985. I have very different (and far less traumatic) political memories from my mother’s home country, Trinidad & Tobago, where we spent several summers during my childhood and adolescence. It was very clear to me, even as a young child, that Trinidad was more politically stable than Nigeria. Moreover, Trinidad’s living standards were much higher than Nigeria’s, its population was better educated, and its infrastructure was more effective: everything from water provision, to electricity, to the school and road networks seemed more effective in Trinidad relative to Nigeria. My childhood observations, and the very different lived experiences of my extended family in Nigeria and Trinidad & Tobago did not fit very well with the leading theories of development are typically emphasized by economists and social scientists. Consequently, I needed to write a book that explained why forced settlement colonies like Trinidad & Tobago, Barbados, and Jamaica, have been able to escape the more extreme developmental and political challenges that have plagued postcolonial African states like Angola, Nigeria, or Uganda.

What is the most surprising thing you learned in the writing/research process?

Some of what I learned from writing this book was very surprising, but what was most impactful were the things that helped me to make sense of my childhood experiences, and the ways in which British colonialism had impacted the lives, education, upbringing and social values of my parents and grandparents. The most impactful thing that I learned from researching/writing this book is that European colonization generated very different patterns of state-building for forced settlement colonies vs. colonies of occupation. I was also surprised to learn the extent to which the trans-Atlantic slave trade contributed to the rise of capitalism in the Atlantic world, and the extent to which the abolition of slavery is connected to the expansion of democracy and citizenship rights in Western European countries like Britain and France. In researching this book, I came to understand that history is typically taught in ways that separate the political achievements of Western European countries from the brutality of their colonial past.  Lastly, I was surprised to learn about the extensive role of Christian missionaries and church leaders, both black and white, in advancing anti-slavery activism, empowering freed slaves, and establishing denominational schools that educated “Liberated Africans” and emancipated Afro-descendants in the New World. This helped me to make sense of the surprisingly positive regard in which Christian churches, schools and institutions are held (by Christians and non-Christians alike), in many postcolonial African and Caribbean societies.

Why do you think it’s important for people to read this book?

It’s important for people to read this book because most countries in the world have been impacted by European colonialism in some way or another. At the same time, Western/European history is frequently taught in ways that disassociate the rise of Western powers like Britian, France, and the United States from their imperialistic exploitation of Global South populations. Consequently, one of the goals of this book is to re-establish the historical connections between colonial exploitation and the geo-political ascendancy of Western European countries like Britain and France.

The second main goal of this book is to emphasize the very uneven developmental legacies of colonialism in different parts of the world, and within individual countries. For example, British colonization in the United States had very different consequences for white colonial settlers, “Native Americans” and enslaved Africans and their descendants. The same is true in other parts of the world, where colonial states and institutions benefited white colonial settlers and their descendants at the expense of non-white populations. Colonial state policies also tended to benefit non-indigenous laborers (including emancipated Afro-descendants and the descendants of Chinese and Indian indentured laborers) relative to indigenous non-white populations. The first consequence of colonialism is well-known, but the second one is less strongly emphasized in existing literature. Consequently, this book helps to shed light on the varied developmental legacies of colonial state-building across the Black Atlantic world.

Do you recommend any other books/articles for further exploration on topics highlighted in your book?

Fortunately, we are living in a historical moment in which many scholars, from diverse intellectual and ethnic backgrounds, are reconsidering the long-term developmental legacies of colonialism in the Global South. Consequently, there are many excellent books that address the long-term developmental consequences of colonialism, slavery, and abolition in the Black Atlantic world. These books include Kris Manjapra (2019), Colonialism in Global Perspective; Kris Manjapra (2022), Black Ghost of Empire; and Padraic X. Scanlan (2022), Slave Empire: How Slavery Built Modern Britain.  Other books examine the developmental legacies of British and US imperialism, and the surprisingly varied developmental legacies of British and Spanish colonialism in different parts of the world. These include Matthew Lange (2009), Lineages of Despotism and Development: British Colonialism and State Power; and James Mahoney (2010), Colonialism and Postcolonial Development: Spanish America in Comparative Perspective; and Atul Kohli (2019), Imperialism and the Developing World: How Britain and the United States Shaped the Global Periphery.  What I like about these books is that they successfully explain the variety of developmental trajectories experienced by different postcolonial states, rather than ‘moralizing’ about colonialism, or painting the diverse colonial experiences of different countries with a single, broad brush.

Is there anything else you want readers/audiences to know about your work?

This was a challenging book for me to research and write for both personal and professional reasons.  The subject matter of this book affected me deeply, and it was often emotionally difficult for me to process the variety of ways that Global South populations have been exploited by European colonization and neo-colonial exploitation.  Nevertheless, I hope my book is enlightening to readers with a family connections to the Black Atlantic world, and I hope it opens up new conversations and debates about long-term consequences of colonialism, slavery, and abolition.


 

 

Kallie Stahl is a Communication and Marketing Specialist at Falvey Library.

 

 


 


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Welcome to Falvey: Sam Luquet Joins Resource Management & Description

Sam Luquet, Resource Management & Description Coordinator.


Sam Luquet joined Resource Management & Description (RM&D) as Resource Management & Description Coordinator. RM&D “builds and cultivates collections through acquisitions, licensing, description, discovery, and access to resources for Villanova scholars and community.” Detailing their new role, Luquet shares some of their responsibilities, “I help purchase new materials for the library, maintain existing subscriptions, process textbooks for CASA, and help manage our periodicals among other things.”

Luquet joins the Falvey Library staff after completing their master’s degree in library and information science from Drexel University. “I was eager to find a position in my career field. I have worked at universities in the past and loved them, so this position was perfect for what I wanted” they said. Originally from Wilmington, DE, they got their bachelor’s degree in english from Cabrini University.

They love doing anything creative! In their free time, Luquet enjoys painting, drawing, crocheting, knitting, and calligraphy. “I also always love hanging out with my three cats, Kira, Elsa, and Blue. Working in a library I am, of course, a big reader! My to-be-read pile has lots of horror, thriller, and fantasy titles. I am also a big fan of horror movies, and anything Halloween related,” they shared. For the upcoming “spooky season” Luquet recommends the following books for Falvey Library patrons: The Last Word by Taylor Adams, How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix; and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.

“I am thrilled to be part of the Villanova community and have felt so welcome here!” Luquet’s office is located on the second floor of Falvey Library. Email sam.luquet@villanova.edu; 610-519-6945.


 


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Dr. Vázquez-Hernández on the “History of Puerto Ricans in Philadelphia” 


In honor of Hispanic/Latine Heritage Month, Hispanic/Latine Ministry in the Office for Mission and Ministry will be hosting a special event on Tuesday, October 3, on the “History of Puerto Ricans in Philadelphia.”

In his book, Before the Wave: Puerto Ricans in Philadelphia, 1910-1945, Dr. Vázquez-Hernández recounts the genesis of the Puerto Rican community in Philadelphia during the interwar years (1917–1945). It connects the origins of this community to the mass migration of the post-WW II years when Puerto Ricans consolidated their presence in Philadelphia (1945–1985). This study compares the experiences of Puerto Ricans with that of the Italians, the Polish, and African Americans in Philadelphia during the early twentieth century. The scholarship on Puerto Ricans outside of New York has been, by and large, limited to the postwar period and a closer examination of the interwar years provides us a more complete picture of how the postwar migrants were established and developed over a much longer period than previously believed. Until now, there has been no comprehensive examination of this early diaspora in Philadelphia and this book rectifies this scholarly deficiency.

Program Schedule:

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.: Los Bomberos De La Calle, Plena Comparsa Group will lead a percussion and dance procession from the Riley Ellipse to the John and Joan Mullen Center for the Performing Arts

6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.: Lecture by Dr. Vázquez-Hernández, author of Before the Wave: Puerto Ricans in Philadelphia, 1910-1945, followed by a panel discussion with Johnny Irizarry and Carmen Febo-San Miguel, former Executive Directors of Taller Puertorriqueño and moderated by the current Executive Director, Nasheli Ortiz González in the Topper Theatre

7:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.: Reception and Art Exhibit by Johnny Irizarry in the Lobby of the Mullen Center

Link for ticket information: https://forms.office.com/r/kjHg9pByVt

This event is co-sponsored by the Office of the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, St. Thomas of Villanova Center for the Common Good, Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest, Department of Spanish, Latin American Studies Program, Falvey Library, Department of English, Center for Peace and Justice Education, and Alumni Relations.


 


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Master the Art and Business of Web Comics with Professional Cartoonist Brad Guigar

Event poster for Brad Guigar's talk.


Attention all graphic novel and comic book fans! You are cordially invited to join us for our inaugural event celebrating comics, graphic novels, and sequential art on Wednesday, Sept. 27, from 6-7 p.m. at Villanova University’s Falvey Library. The event will feature professional cartoonist Brad Guigar and will be held in Speakers’ Corner on the Library’s first floor.

In 2000, webcomics grew out of dissatisfaction with gatekeepers (publishers and syndicates) and led to a new generation of creator-entrepreneurs who taught themselves about art AND business — and are currently finding a financially stable career in a climate in which “published” artists are struggling. What used to be known as “vanity press” is now offering a superior outcome for many creative professionals. Furthermore, it opened the door for marginalized voices that had previously been ignored by corporate gatekeepers.

Brad Guigar is considered by many to be an independent comics pioneer, having published his daily comic strips and other comics on the Web for over 20 years. His most well-known comic, “Evil Inc.,” is about supervillains who realized that most of their evil schemes could be enacted legally if they formed a corporation.

He has published over two dozen collections of his comics, and he is the author of three books on the subject of cartooning. The Everything Cartooning Book is an all-ages cartooning tutorial. Both How To Make Webcomics and The Webcomics Handbook break down the business of self-publishing comics using social media and crowdfunding strategies.

Guigar has been nominated for the Eisner Award in comics, as well as the ’Ringo Award and the NCS Silver Rueben. He co-hosts a weekly podcast, ComicLab, which has been described as “Car Talk for cartoons,” which will be entering its seventh year in January. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and two sons.

This event, co-sponsored by Falvey Library, the Idea Lab, Department of English, Creative Writing Program, Department of Communication, and the Writing Center, is free and open to all! Light refreshments will be served. Join us!


 


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Welcome to Falvey: Erin Palmer Joins Resource Management & Description

Erin Palmer, Resource Management and Description Coordinator.


Erin Palmer joined Resource Management & Description (RM&D) as Resource Management and Description Coordinator. RM&D “builds and cultivates collections through acquisitions, licensing, description, discovery, and access to resources for Villanova scholars and community.” Describing her role, Palmer enjoys the variety of her work. “No two days are the same,” she reflects. “I’m part of a great team of three coordinators working in RM&D. My tasks range from ordering materials, processing invoices, cataloging new items, training student workers, and working with our incredible team on collaborative projects to better serve the patrons of Falvey.”

Palmer joins the Falvey Library staff after completing her master’s degree in library science from Clarion University. “With Villanova’s stellar reputation, applying here was a no-brainer! I saw the description for this position and thought it was an excellent opportunity to continue my learning in the field with hands-on experiences – something I have done and continue to do every day.” Originally from Central NJ, she has always considered PA a second home. She earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Kutztown University. “From many camping trips growing up to my time in undergrad at Kutztown University I’ve always felt at home in the Keystone state. I ended up in the library field by way of a secondary education bachelor’s degree. While a bit different, my love for reading and research is a common presence between the two fields.”

An avid reader, Palmer read 89 books last year. “I also enjoy cooking and food in general! I spend many days off trying new restaurants with my boyfriend, two sisters, and friends.” Her reading recommendations for Falvey patrons: “For general fiction I recommend anything by Jennifer Weiner (I just recently finished Mrs. Everything) because I love the way she creates such complex characters. For fantasy I suggest the duology For the Wolf and For the Throne by Hannah Whitten, a fresh take on Little Red Riding Hood. For rom-com, I adore everything by Emily Henry and Christina Lauren. And I’d say for a thriller: All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda.”

Palmer’s office is located on the second floor of Falvey Library. Email erin.palmer@villanova.edu; 610-519-7966. She encourages the Villanova community to reach out to the RM&D team. “We’re always happy to answer questions or to point anyone in the right direction!”


 


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Dig Deeper: Three Irish Poets on Sustainability


Please join us for readings from three acclaimed Irish poets, Jane Clarke, Katie Donovan, and Catherine Phil MacCarthy on Monday, Sept. 25, from 5-6:30 p.m. in Falvey Library’s Speakers’ Corner. This event, titled “Wonders and Realities: Three Irish Poets on Sustainability,” will explore how poetry helps us fine-tune our senses and pay attention to the wonders and realities of our threatened world.

Dig deeper and explore the links below for more information on the featured poets.

Jane Clarke grew up in County Roscommon, Ireland. She is the author of three poetry collections: The River, When the Tree Falls, and A Change in the Air. The latter is shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best Collection 2023. When the Tree Falls was shortlisted for the Pigott Prize 2020, the Irish Times Poetry Now Award 2020, and the Farmgate Café National Poetry Award in 2020.

Katie Donovan was born near Camolin in County Wexford, Ireland and earned degrees from Trinity College Dublin as well as the University of California at Berkeley. Her five books of poetry have all been published by Bloodaxe Books. Her most recent, Off-Duty appeared in September 2016. It was shortlisted for the Irish Times/Poetry Now Prize in 2017. She is the 2017 recipient of the O’Shaughnessy Award for Irish Poetry.

Catherine Phil MacCarthy was born in County Limerick, Ireland. The author of five poetry collections, she studied at University College Cork, Trinity College Dublin, and Central School of Speech and Drama, London. She is the 2014 winner of the O’Shaughnessy Award for Irish Poetry. The Arts Council, An Comhairle Ealaíon, have awarded her a Bursary in Literature towards each of her 2013 and 2020 poetry collections.

This ACS-approved event, co-sponsored by the Center for Irish Studies, Falvey Library, and Global Interdisciplinary Studies, is free and open to the public.


Julia Wagner ‘26 CLAS is a Communication major from New Hampshire (Go Patriots!). She works as a Communication & Marketing Student Assistant at Falvey Library. Links provided by Kallie Stahl, Communication & Marketing Specialist at Falvey Library. 

 

 

 


 


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Welcome to Falvey: Nancy Foasberg Joins Research Services & Scholarly Engagement

Nancy Foasberg, Scholarly Communication Librarian.


Nancy Foasberg recently joined Research Services and Scholarly Engagement (RSSE) as the Scholarly Communication Librarian. RSSE works to “support research, teaching, and learning at Villanova University; enabling the discovery of, access to, and stewardship of a vast array of scholarly resources.”

“I’ve been doing scholarly communication work as part of my job for quite some time, but it was one of many responsibilities for me, so I was very pleased to have the opportunity to focus on it exclusively,” Foasberg shared of her new role. “Villanova seems like an exciting place to be! I also love this area – the natural beauty of the forests and the hills – and have many friends and family members nearby.”

Growing up in Gold Country (“Nevada County, home of the Empire Mines and the famous Malakoff Diggins!”), Foasberg earned her bachelor’s degree in english and spanish, and master’s degree in english from California State University, Chico. “I wrote my master’s thesis on Coleridge’s enigmatic, unfinished poem Christabel.” She earned her master’s degree in library science from Drexel University. “Once I graduated [from Drexel], I got a job at Queens College, CUNY, as the subject librarian for English and a few other subjects, which I enjoyed very much, but I gradually moved toward scholarly communication as I became convinced of the urgency of supporting open access.”

Foasberg is looking forward to supporting scholarly communication at Villanova University. “I plan to do a lot of outreach and education around scholarly communication issues including open access, authors’ rights, establishing a scholarly profile, choosing a publisher, and more.”

She will also be working to further develop the library’s scholarly communication initiatives including the Scholarship Open Access Reserve (SOAR) Fund. “SOAR can help you pay fees associated with open access publishing. I dream of one day establishing an institutional repository to support self-archiving. I am also very interested in pursuing some of the many other strategies by which libraries can support open access.”

In her free time, Foasberg enjoys playing board games. “I’ve been playing Eurogames since around 2004, but more recently have also come to appreciate more story-driven campaign-style games, since they play well with two players in quarantine conditions. I’ve enjoyed all three Pandemic Legacy games (yes, I decided to play Pandemic during a pandemic!), Gloomhaven, and most of all, Sleeping Gods, with its beautiful artwork, complicated world, and the ability to play on an atlas.  Having taken up competitive games again, though, I have really been enjoying Woodcraft, by Vladimir Suchy, who may well be my favorite of all game designers.”

Her reading recommendations for Falvey staff: “Right now, I’m in the middle of two series. The first is Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch series; so far, I’ve only read the first book, Ancillary Justice, which is incredible. It’s a story about a sentient spaceship, but it’s also a brilliant examination of identity and imperialism, set in an absolutely fascinating world (or set of worlds). It’s astonishing in all the ways that the best science fiction is, and I’m eager to read the other books in this series. I’m also re-reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earthsea series, a classic which I revisit quite often.”

She is looking forward to getting to know the community and encourages faculty, students, and staff to reach out. “I’m happy to be here, and I’m available to answer questions about copyright, publishing, and related subjects.” Foasberg’s office (218C) is on the second floor of Falvey Library.

Email nancy.foasberg@villanova.edu; 610-519-5075.


 


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Welcome to Falvey: Anne Morgan, Metadata Librarian, joins Resource Management & Description

Anne Morgan, Metadata Librarian.


Anne Morgan, Metadata Librarian, joined Resource Management & Description (RM&D). RM&D “builds and cultivates collections through acquisitions, licensing, description, discovery, and access to resources for Villanova scholars and community.”

“I will mostly be creating and editing metadata for library materials,” Morgan shares of her new role. “For example, I will be creating metadata for print books and eBooks—generally speaking, making sure that useful information about the books (title, author, etc.) is available for library users, and that the books can be physically located or accessed online.” Having done research with materials from the Digital Library’s Catholica collection, Morgan recalled her prior experience with Falvey Library when applying for the role.

Originally from St. Louis, MO, Morgan received a bachelor’s degree in history from Truman State University in Kirksville, MO, and a master’s degree in information studies from the University of Texas at Austin. In her free time she enjoys going to concerts. “I like listening to metal and industrial music.” She is also learning German. Her reading recommendations for Falvey patrons: I and Thou by Martin Buber. “I learned that Martin Luther King, Jr. referenced this book in his Letter from Birmingham Jail.”

Morgan’s office is located on the second floor of Falvey Library.

Email a.morgan@villanova.edu; 610-519-7821.


 


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Last Modified: September 15, 2023

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