The Latin American and Caribbean Center will offer Library Travel Grants to the University of Florida’s Latin American Collection for faculty members and graduate students. The purpose of the Library Travel Grants is to enable researchers from FIU to use the extensive resources of the Latin American Collection in the University of Florida Libraries, thereby enhancing its value as a national resource.
Awardees are expected to submit a brief (2-3 pp) report on how their work at the University of Florida Libraries enhanced their project and on possible ways to improve the Latin American Collection. Their work in the Latin American Collection should be completed by August 1, 2004.
The UF Latin American Collection contains one of the finest collections of Latin American materials in the United States, consisting of over 325,000 volumes, some 55,000 reels of microfilm (many unique and rare), excellent newspapers and government documents, and a growing amount of access to computer-based electronic information resources. Areas of collection focus include all disciplines, with literature, the humanities and social sciences being best represented. Newspaper and government document holdings are renowned. All portions of Latin America are well represented, with the Caribbean, circum-Caribbean and Brazil having the deepest holdings, while the Andean and Southern Cone regions have increasing strength. Other campus units of the UF Libraries contain important resources as well. The UF Map Library has some 500,000 maps and atlases, some 50,000 of which deal with Latin American topics. The Science Library has important book and journal holdings dealing with agriculture, tropical conservation, and developmental issues. Also, the Special Collections Dept. has manuscript holdings such as the Rochanbeau, Jeremie, Braga Bros. Sugar Co. and Dussell papers.
The UF Libraries are available on the Internet at the following URL: http://www.uflib.ufl.edu. Email for further information regarding the Latin American Collection may be sent to Richard Phillips, Head of the Latin American Collection.
Application Procedure:
To apply for a Library Travel Grant, send a letter of intent, brief library research proposal, travel budget and curriculum vitae to:
Julissa Castellanos
Assistant Director
Latin American and Caribbean Center
University Park, DM 353
Miami, FL 33199
Eligibility:
Only complete applications will be considered. Library Travel Grants are open to all faculty and students in doctoral programs. Geographically, research must be about Latin America and/or the Caribbean and cannot include Florida nor the United States, [i.e. immigration to Florida is not a topic that can be funded by this grant]. Consideration will be given to applicants who demonstrate that the UF LA collections are instrumental to their research. This relevance should be addressed thoroughly in the library research proposal.
To discuss how the UF LA Collection can support your research, please contact Catherine Marsicek, Latin American & Caribbean Information Center Librarian at FIU Libraries, marsicek@fiu.edu, 305-348-2228.
Application Deadline is March 15, 2004.
