How the Viterbo Community and Beyond Uses the Archives

Friday, November 11, 2016

By Jason Skoog

The University Archives is available for staff, students, alumni, and community members who are researching Viterbo’s history.  We are located in room 132 in the library.  The Digital Collections are also available here.  If you have questions, would like a tour, or would like to discuss ways the archives can help your department, please contact Jason Skoog, Archives and Systems Librarian, at jaskoog@viterbo.edu or 608-796-3262.

The following are examples of the wide array of topics people have researched in the archives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Faculty and Staff:

  • Photos of and text about FSPA, retiring staff members, departments, and alumni
  • Photos and text for displays, including the Bonaventure Timeline, the All American Athlete display, and IIT Homecoming timeline
  • “Throw Back Thursday” photos for Alumni Association Facebook page
  • Photos and text for the alumni magazine Strides
  • History of logos, seals, and school colors
  • Art to display in offices
  • Past course catalogs
  • Bylaws
  • Advice on preserving paper
  • Dates that programs began
  • Recording of “Viterbo, Our Alma Mater”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The archives provide students the opportunity to research with primary sources.  Example student questions include:

  • An English student researching “Harmony and Peace,” the sculpture located outside the library entrance.
  • Management students researching Viterbo as a system.  They explored how Viterbo was founded, our community partnerships, and how we have sustained ourselves over time. 
  • Searching for scholarship in the Viterbo Research Collection, which includes Seven Rivers, Scholars Day, masters, and fine arts recording projects
  • Reading past Lumens dating back to 1954.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We receive questions from recent graduates, as well as alumni who graduated long ago:

  • Photos and text for class reunions
  • Finding their scholarship in the Viterbo Research Collection
  • Photos of themselves from the yearbook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Community members also visit the archives to learn about Viterbo’s history:

  • Oktoberfest Medallion clues
  • Replicas of Viterbo historical items for I-90 bridge time capsule
  • Video of themselves participating in the High Quiz Bowl, a trivia competition between high schools sponsored by Viterbo and WKBT.
  • Locations and history of sculptures and paintings displayed on campus
  • Photos and text for a display about the history of Mayo Clinic Health System - Franciscan Healthcare