Lauris Olson
Librarian & Coordinator, Social Sciences Collections
As the Penn Libraries' social sciences bibliographer - now coordinator for social sciences collections - since 1998, Lauris is responsible for selecting books, journals, electronic resources, and other media supporting Penn research and instruction in sociology, economics, linguistics, criminology, communication, and related fields. Lauris is Penn's Official Representative to the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research and the contact person for the Penn Libraries' Pennsylvania State Data Center affiliate membership. Lauris coordinates collection development and management activities of subject librarians for anthropology & archaeology, business, education, gender, women's studies & sexuality, political science & international relations, psychology, and social policy & practice/social work. Lauris is also the Penn Libraries' African studies bibliographer. Lauris started at the Penn Libraries in 1991 as a Van Pelt Library reference librarian, but Lauris's presence at Penn began in 1975 as an undergraduate, earning BA and MA degrees in Anthropology here, alongside a Drexel library degree.
The Penn Libraries have acquired the digitized archival collection, Northern Ireland : A divided community, 1921-1972.
The collection presents the Cabinet Conclusion files of the Northern Ireland Government, the devolved executive for British administration in Northern Ireland following the partition of Ireland in 1920. The Cabinet Conclusion files - shelfmarked CAB/4 at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) - contain a full record of every Cabinet debate and transaction for the entire duration of the Stormont administration from its first meeting in Summer 1921 to the imposition of Direct Rule in Spring 1972.
The collection was originally microfilmed by Gale Cengage in 2002, upon the release of the last CAB/4 files under PRONI's 30-year rule. Totalling almost 72,000 pages, the collection is downloadable as separate PDF-format files for each fortnightly Cabinet meeting, including minutes, memoranda, agenda, and associated correspondence. The original microfilm finding aid forms a handy guide to the contents of the digitized collection. Gale Cengage's Archives Unbound platform permits searching within archival metadata and digitized fulltext.
The Penn Libraries have acquired the digitized archival collection, Northern Ireland : A divided community, 1921-1972. The collection presents the Cabinet Conclusion files of the Northern Ireland Government, the devolved executive for British administration in Northern Ireland following the partition of Ireland in 1920.