Dean of Libraries Selected to Present at the 28th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture

Valeda Dent, Ph.D., Dean of St. John’s University Libraries, has been selected to present at the prestigious 28^th Annual Mortenson Distinguished Lecture at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Spanning more than a decade, Dr. Dent’s longitudinal research on rural libraries in Uganda exhibits values that embody the Mortenson Center’s mission to promote international education, understanding, and peace.  

Dr. Dent’s research uses a multidisciplinary approach to empirically demonstrate the value of Uganda’s overlooked rural village libraries. As the impact of small non-governmental libraries in rural Uganda is understudied and often undervalued, Dr. Dent’s research can enhance the development and growth of these libraries, giving them fundraising and grant funding opportunities. Dr. Dent will discuss early childhood literacy development, learning readiness, and caregiver outcomes during her presentation.

What: Evaluating the Impact of Rural Village Libraries in Uganda: A Mixed-Methods Narrative
With Contributions by Geoff Goodman, Ph.D.

When: Monday, November 26, 2018
12 p.m.

Where: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Main Library
Conference Room 106
1408 W. Gregory Street
Urbana, IL

Dr. Dent’s work has been published in peer-reviewed journals and in the 2014 book, “Rural Community Libraries in Africa: Challenges and Impacts.” This scholarly work also engages students who often travel to Uganda and has generated three successful doctoral dissertations.

Each year, the Mortenson Center sponsors a distinguished lecture by a renowned international speaker on a topic that promotes international understanding, intellectual freedom, and libraries. The conference is free and open to the public. RSVPs are not required but recommended for planning purposes via this link. The lecture will also be livestreamed at Live at Illinois.