Guide to the San José State University Humanities Department Publications
MSS.2009.11.06
Silke HIggins
SJSU Special Collections & Archives
© 2009
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library
San José State University
One Washington Square
San José, CA 95192-0028
special.collections@sjsu.edu
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
SJSU Special Collections & Archives
Title: San José State University Humanities Department Publications
creator:
San José State University
Identifier/Call Number: MSS.2009.11.06
Physical Description:
2 Box
(0.834 linear feet)
Date (inclusive): 1965-2008
Abstract: The San José State University Humanities Department Publications, 1965-2008, consist of promotional announcements, newsletters,
posters, brochures, signs, flyers, press, and a DVD advertising various events as well as registration and career services.
The collection also includes several pieces of internal university communication. Of special interest is several folders related
to a competition sponsored by the English Department, The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest, which seeks to find "the opening
sentence to the worst of all possible novels."
Access
The collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Copyright is assigned to the San José State University Library Special Collections & Archives. All requests for permission
to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Director of Special Collections. Permission for publication
is given on behalf of the Special Collections & Archives. Copyright restrictions may apply to digital reproductions of the
original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.
Preferred Citation
San José State University Humanities Department Publications, MSS-2009-11-06, San José State University Library Special Collections
& Archives.
Processing Information
Collection processed by Silke Higgins. Finding aid EAD encoded by Silke Higgins. Reviewed by Danelle Moon and Erin Louthen.
Series II added by Dana V. Lema in 2018. Accruals to Series I and II, and Series III added by Kate Steffens.
Project Information
This finding aid was created as part of the Survey and Cataloging Project, a two-year San José State University Library grant
project funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. The project began in 2008.The Project Director
is Danelle Moon. The Project Archivist is Erin Louthen.
Organizational History
In 1857 the San Francisco Board of Education established Minns' Evening Normal School for current and prospective teachers
in the city. Named after its principal, George W. Minns, the institution was formally established as the first California
State Normal School by the State Legislature in 1862. A decade later, the Legislature voted to move the Normal School to San
José, and the school relocated to its new home on Washington Square prior to the fall term of 1872. After a fire destroyed
the Normal School building in 1880, the Legislature authorized $200,000 to construct a new building on the same site. Completed
in 1881, the building was commonly referred to as the Second State Normal School. After several names and curriculum changes,
Minns' Normal School is now San José State University, offering more than 134 bachelor's and master's degrees with 110 concentrations,
and is recognized as one of the top public universities granting such degrees in the West.
The San José State University Humanities Department was created to provide students with an integrated perspective on Western
civilization. This perspective has since been expanded to a wider global view in response to developments in technology, world
culture and communications. Humanities courses integrate history, literature, philosophy, religion, politics, music and art.
The department offers a curriculum that covers the "human experience in aesthetic, creative, literary, and religious realms
as well as cultural traditions in major world areas." Students thus develop analytical and expressive skills, the ability
to read, write, and think clearly, along with an appreciation of the arts and letters and their role in shaping modern society.
Upon graduation, Humanities students pursue a wide variety of occupations, including law, journalism, librarianship, teaching,
public service, social work and public relations.
Scope and Content of Collection
The San José State University Humanities Department Publications, 1965-2008, consist of promotional announcements, posters,
brochures, newsletters, signs, press, and flyers advertising various events as well as registration and career services. The
collection also includes several pieces of internal university communication.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into three series: Series I. Events and Publicity Announcements; Series II. Newsletters; and Series
III. The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Education -- Higher -- California -- San José.
Printed emphemera -- California -- San José.
Humanities -- Study and teaching (Higher) -- United States.
San José State University -- History.
San Jose State College
California State University, San José -- History.
San José State University
San José State University -- Humanities Dept. -- History.
Series I: Events and Publicity Announcements Series I:
1965-2008
Series Scope and Content Summary
This series consists of a small collection of flyers, brochures, posters and a screening DVD announcing various Humanities
Department events. Notable among them is an invitational brochure detailing an evening on campus with author Toni Morrison
in 1987. This series also includes information about registration dates and career events, as well as several pieces of internal
departmental communication.
Arrangement
This series is arranged chronologically by date.
Box 1, Folder 1
Events and Publicity Announcements
1965-2008
Box 1, Folder 2
SJSU School of the Humanities and the Arts Event Calendars
October 1981-September 1983
Box 1, Folder 3
SJSU School of the Humanities and the Arts Event Calendars
October 1983-September 1986
Series II: Newsletters
1980-1998
Box 1, Folder 4
Newsletters to Humanities Faculty and Staff in the Form of Memos from the Dean's Office
1980-1993
Box 1, Folder 5
English Department Newsletter
March 1973-November 1978
Box 1, Folder 6
Multicultural Forum
Spring 1993-Spring 2003
Series III: Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest
1983-1987
Scope and Contents
Since 1982, the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest is held yearly by SJSU's English Department. The contest is a "whimsical literary
competition that challenges entrants to compose the opening sentence to the worst of all possible novels."
Box 2, Folder 1
Copies of News Articles
1983
Box 2, Folder 2
Booklet from Second Annual Contest
1983
Box 2, Folder 3
News Articles, Press Releases, Correspondence, Winners
1983-1985
