Library and Archives
The Virginia Davis Laskey Library houses a collection of more than 10,000 titles which focus primarily on women’s leadership in missions and social justice work around the world. While much of the collection was acquired to support the students of Scarritt College, today it serves as a resource not only for scholars but for anyone wanting to know more about the Scarritt Bennett Center’s rich and varied history. Perusing the shelves, patrons will discover student theses, a vast reference collection of various United Methodist agencies, a wide range of cultural studies, an extensive collection of writings about the American Civil Rights Movement, and much more.
Laskey Library is not a lending library, but invites researchers to use the collections on-site.
For more information, please contact jsohl@scarrittbennett.org.
Resources
- Specialized collection of books on women, United Methodists, and missions
- Reference collection containing a variety of statistical and factual titles on a broad range of knowledge
- Women’s Division, Board of Global Ministries, United Methodist Church resources including minutes, mission, and study publications
- Journals from various United Methodist agencies
- Personal papers of missionaries and Scarritt College faculty
- Scarritt College photos
- Alumni/ae dissertations
- Rare documents concerning the institution’s history (kept in archives)
- Archives of the church and community ministry (kept in archives)
Usage & Hours
Weekday appointments are preferred; the library is closed on Saturdays and Sundays. Researchers who need extensive resources should call or contact Joyce Sohl at jsohl@scarrittbennett.org ahead of their visits, so that resources can be pulled. If the researcher is not able to come to campus, photos or electronic copies can be sent to them.
Read more about the Laskey Research Library
“The Value of Slowing Down” by Elena Rosario
“A Library at Scarritt Bennett? Really?!” by Steve Gately