Dr. Dan Puckett, Professor of History, has been honored with Troy University’s Book Token Award for the support he has demonstrated for the University’s libraries.
The award recognizes faculty who provide service to and support of Troy University Libraries, according to Dr. Chris Shaffer, dean of libraries. The award had been presented periodically in the past but was reinstated as an annual award in 2018.
Dr. Shaffer presented the award during a ceremony on the Troy Campus on Wednesday.
“Dan has always been a huge supporter of the library,” Dr. Shaffer said. “He has always given us advice on things to order. He brought me into the Alabama Holocaust Commission, and we were able to develop a room dedicated solely to Holocaust studies. Dan has been a huge influencer of the library during his tenure and we truly appreciate his ongoing support of our resources and programming.”
Dr. Puckett is committed to ensuring his students take advantage of the library’s resources and programming.
“One of my favorite things is when faculty truly engage their students with the library, and Dan does an excellent job of doing that,” Dr. Shaffer said. “We have had several professors over time that have made a point of bringing their classes to the library and that is what we like to see.”
Dr. Puckett said he was honored to receive the award, but that Shaffer and his staff are the ones that deserve the credit for the service and resources they provide to students.
“I’ve always thought that the center of the University is and should be the library,” Dr. Puckett said. “It is the center of the academic enterprise. Having a dean who really has transformed the library and has been supportive of not just books, but databases and resources, and a staff that has gotten me everything I have ever asked for, that’s an essential part of the academic process. I was only doing a small part in trying to support the library and support getting more resources. I am grateful for the award, but they are the ones that really do the work.”
Dr. Puckett said he was also appreciative of the dedication demonstrated by the library staff in providing excellent programming.
“The programming is a part of it too,” he said. “It’s not just having the resources, but also doing something with those resources and tapping into the expertise of the faculty and others in the area to bring them in for the students. I can’t say enough about what they do here.”
The Troy University Libraries help the University fulfill its mission by providing access to information resources in multiple formats and through expert reference assistance. The Troy University Libraries are committed to building collections that support classroom instruction and help prepare TROY students to meet future opportunities and challenges. Physical libraries are located on the University’s Dothan, Montgomery and Troy campuses and also offer access to more than 200 databases and additional digital collections online.
