The 2024 University of Notre Dame Library Research Award competition, sponsored by the Hesburgh Libraries, resulted in 12 awards given to students across diverse disciplines. These annual awards are earned by undergraduate students who demonstrate excellence in research skills by using a breadth of library resources and services for their course assignments, research projects and creative endeavors.
“This year’s Library Research Award recipients demonstrate, through research excellence, the many ways that the Hesburgh Libraries contribute to undergraduate scholarly output,” said K. Matthew Dames, Edward H. Arnold Dean of Hesburgh Libraries and University of Notre Dame Press. “Our faculty and staff are dedicated each day to advancing academic excellence, knowledge creation and human flourishing.”
Undergraduate students were invited to submit a brief essay describing the many ways in which they used library resources for a project or assignment completed during summer 2023, fall 2023, or spring 2024.
Digital Scholarship Award Category
The Navari Family Center for Digital Scholarship (NFCDS) Award is a specialty category of the Library Research Awards. This award recognizes excellence in leveraging digital scholarship resources, tools and methodologies in research and projects. Students can win the NFCDS Award in addition to another category or as a stand-alone recognition.
Alexandra Indacochea '24 earned an NFCDS award for her capstone senior thesis, "A Building Arts College for Arequipa, Peru," advised by Professor Michael Lykoudis, former Francis and Kathleen Rooney dean of the School of Architecture.
To learn more about her grandfather's hometown, Arequipa, Peru, and study Spanish Architecture, Indacochea used several resources in the Architecture Library. The senior consulted with Architecture Librarian Jennifer Parker, who helped her obtain research materials through Interlibrary Loan and apply for a Fagan grant, which allowed Indacochea to travel to Peru during spring break. After returning, she compiled her research using Refworks and worked with Makerspace & Graphics Specialist Matt Noffsinger to create a 3D print for her final presentation. (Learn more about 3D printing services available at the NFCDS.)
“The final piece of the puzzle the library assisted with was creating a printed model for my final presentation," she said. "This project has been the most complex and rewarding of my time here, and I am glad I reached out to professors and faculty for help and utilized the resources available to me.”
Originally published by Library.nd.edu.