June 2026
At Carnegie Mellon University Libraries, we celebrate the many contributions of the faculty and staff who make the Libraries the destination for scholarly information, creative inquiry, and intellectual collaboration across disciplines, propelling the significance, reach, and impact of the university.
“Rare Books & Ancestral Machines,” the handbook to the Posner Center for Special Collections, was selected as one of the 2026 STA 100. Judged by a panel of distinguished industry professionals, The STA honors the 100 best examples of typographic excellence produced around the globe.
Published to mark the reopening of the Center in fall 2025 after an extensive renovation, the richly illustrated handbook features nearly one hundred objects from the collection alongside eight interpretive essays. Designed to reflect the layout and logic of the Posner Center itself, the book blends item descriptions, illustrations, and thematic reflections in a compact, visually engaging format. It celebrates both the history and the future of special collections at Carnegie Mellon.
Curator of Special Collections Sam Lemley was featured in an article for the Trib titled “Rare 1972 printing of U.S. Bill of Rights on display at CMU.” Lemley sat down with reporter Kellen Stepler to discuss the collection and the Posner Center as a community resource.
STEM Librarian Kristen Scotti was invited to submit a peer commentary on an article published in Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology. The article, titled “Guidance on artificial intelligence use for rapid evidence mapping of early childhood intervention outcome measures,” discusses how AI can be incorporated into human-led research workflows while maintaining transparency and integrity. Scotti’s commentary takes a closer look at the methods and results.
Arts and Humanities Librarians Jill Chisnell and Lynn Kawaratani participated in the panel session "Reframing Resistance: Reimagining Libraries through Reuse" at the ARLIS/NA 54th Annual Conference in Montreal, Quebec on May 4. Chisnell's presentation focused on REviving Discards and Kawaratani's presentation explored REviving Spaces.
Web and Digital Content Specialist Shannon Baldridge recently participated in the Design Fusion Certificate Program. The program is offered to CMU faculty and staff by the Office of Human Resources in partnership with the Joseph Ballay Center for Design Fusion in the School of Design.
Image Source, CMU Digital Collections: "Behind a WRCT microphone, a crowd of college students enjoy themselves at the Fall Festival Dance held in Skibo Hall." (27 October 1962)