Joan Soulliere, editor
Barbara Rockenbach, the first Ethics Fellow in the Department of Library and Information Science, spoke with me about her experience as an Ethics Fellow, her future hopes, and some of her particular interests in Ethics.
Barbara started as Ethics Fellow in Summer Term, 1997 and completes her tenure at the end of Fall Term, 1997 when she will graduate. Over this past Summer, she developed the Ethics Web site, created the Ethics Fellowship brochure, and assisted with Fr. A lmagno’s Ethics courses by maintaining a bulletin board, participating in book selection , and keeping an eye out for article s dealing with Ethics.
Barbara was motivated to apply for the Ethics Fellowship while already in the M.L.I.S. program. She saw the position advertisement and thought, "No way. It seemed beyond my capabilities." There was a censorship case going on in a Pittsburgh suburb that had caught her attention. The case involved a book on Renaissance Art in a middle school library collection. The book was challenged on the basis of its language being too "complex" for middle school children. Those defending the book claimed the re al challenge to be nudity. Barbara’s interest in this case evolved into the essay she submitted as application for the Ethics Fellow position. Barbara states, "One of the most important element of the Ethics course relating to censorship is learning a method to explain to censors in logical terms why a book needs to stay on the shelf."
Barbara’s primary interest is censorship and art as a reflection of "what we think about art in this country." She tells of how one museum director in New York City cleverly handled disgruntled patrons taking issue with a Maplethorpe exhibit funded by th e N.E.A. "He stood on the main steps of the museum and gave everyone who complained a penny and told them that was how much the exhibit cost out of their individual pockets." Barbara mentioned, "The only thing we hear about (re: censorship) is the big controversial issues. Negativity has a loud voice."
What does she plan do to with her experience? Barbara is looking for a position in the Arts and Humanities in an academic library. Before coming to S.I.S., she earned a degree in English Language with a minor in Visual Communication from the University of Illinois at Champagne-Urbana. Barbara then interned at the Chicago Public Library in Special Collections and Preservation and worked with the Exhibit Specialist on installments/deinstallments and research to create a bibliography of women and the Civil War.