LBST 2101: U.S. Hispanic and Latinx Cultures

Welcome to the research guide for LBST 2101: U.S. Hispanic and Latinx Culture. This guide contains selected resources and research tips that can help you with your course assignments. Please feel free to contact me at nornat@uncc.edu to ask any questions you might have regarding the library and research.

What databases or resources would be most helpful when doing research for this course?

For your research project, you will be finding information on different individuals and cultures within the United States. You will likely need to find a variety of sources and source types. These sources may speak specifically about your chosen individual or share information about a people's history, experience, or contributions within the United States.

The library catalog is the library's central search system and is a great starting point to find information on all aspects of your topic. You can access the library search system by going to library.charlotte.edu.

You may also want to use more disciplinary-specific databases to find information on your topic.

To find scholarly articles on your person or culture try these databases, journals, and articles:

To find primary source materials on your person or culture try:

Check out these relevant books on Hispanic and Latinx Culture in the United States:

Helpful websites for your final project:

How do I find reliable and relevant information through the library's catalog and databases?

• Brainstorm search terms: Think about the main ideas you are exploring and write them down to use as search terms. For each search term, see if you can think of one or two synonyms or like-terms.
  • For example, if you are studying Latinx food culture, one set of search terms might be: food, foodways, recipes, or food habits.

• Combining terms with Boolean Operators: These are the terms (and, or, not) that allow us to combine our search terms to get more relevant results. Learn more about how to use Boolean Operators here and in the video below.

• Using Search Filters: After hitting search, take a look at how you can further narrow down your results by using the filters on the right side of your screen. For example, you can filter your results to only see scholarly articles. 

When is the library open and how do I locate spaces/materials in the building?

The library is open 24/5 during the semester. This means that we open at 11 AM on Sunday and do not close until 10 PM Friday night. You can see our full range of building hours, including hours for various service desks, on the library's website.

To access the building between 10:00 PM - 7:30 AM, you must bring your university ID and use our card tap box to access the building. This is located to the right of our main entrance.

We provide maps for every floor that is accessible to students on our website. Please use these maps to locate service desks, printers, restrooms, and study rooms.

Which study spaces do I need to reserve in order to use? Where can I learn more about the types of study spaces available to me?

Whether you want a quiet room to yourself or need to accommodate a group, Atkins offers a variety of study rooms and spaces to fit your needs. 

You can find a summary of collaborative, quiet, and silent study areas on each floor of the library on this page of our website.

To reserve a study room, sign in to our reservation system. You can view currently available rooms or select a specific time and date that you'd like to reserve a room. Then, you'll select the type of room that is right for you. You do not need to sign in for a reservation when you arrive at the library. You can go directly to your study room when your reservation time begins.

How can I use the library when off campus? Can I access resources like books and scholarly articles digitally?

The library has an extensive collection of e-books and e-journals, making it easy to find and access reliable information on your topic from home. The library search system is your starting point to locate these materials. If you know that you will not be able to make it to the library this semester, you can immediately refine your search to only digitally available materials by selecting the "Online" filter in our main search system.

When accessing digital materials from the library from home, you will need to use your Ninernet ID and password to authenticate that you are a UNC Charlotte associated user. If you have any issues accessing digital materials at the library, please chat with us or email askatkins@uncc.edu.

If you find a book that is only available in print, you can place a hold on this item through the library search system and pick it up from Atkins when it is available. If the Information and Research desk isn't busy, you can be in and out of Atkins with your materials in minutes. There are also self check out stations located near our holds shelf on the main floor.

There is so much offered from Atkins Library. Where do I even begin in my research?

This is a great question! First, I'd start exploring the library's website, especially our Research & Write section, to become familiar with the resources we offer. Try using our main search system to locate your favorite book or film. Our search systems aren't like Google, so they may feel a little strange at first. Taking time to practice with them now will help you feel more confident when you need to start your research paper later.

Check out our short video on navigating our website to get started:

Where do I go for help, both off campus and in-person at the library?

There are multiple ways you can get help from Atkins Library!

Get help while at the library:

Visit our Information & Research Desk located on the first floor, near our main entrance. Stop here to ask us any questions you have! We have research librarians stationed on the righthand side of this desk to assist with any research-related questions you have.

Location of Information & Research Desk on Atkins Library's first floor.

For questions on library technology, you can visit our Tech Desk at the top of the stairs on our second floor.

Get help while off campus:

For immediate questions, use the instant messaging system on our website or in the box to the left to chat with us. This chat is not staffed 24/7, so in cases where we aren't available, you can email us your questions at askatkins@uncc.edu. You might also find your question answers in our list of Library FAQs. Visit our Ask Atkins page to access live chat and see these common questions.

You can also email me, your course librarian, with questions you have regarding the library. My email is nornat@uncc.edu. 

If you'd like more in depth help with your research, we can meet over Zoom to talk through your questions and research strategies for you to try. Feel free to shoot me an email to set up this type of meeting!

What is the process to check out a book? How long do I get it for? Can it be delivered to my home?

You can check out materials at our first floor Information & Research desk with your 49er ID card. There is no limit in how many materials you can check out and undergraduates get to check out books for a three week loan, along with two options to renew. Materials such as DVDs, course reserves, and technology have different loan lengths. You can access more information about borrowing library materials here.

If your book is located in the library's remote storage facility or you are unsure of how to locate the item, you can request the item be pulled and placed on hold for you. Learn how to request books through this video.

We do not mail materials directly to students. You will need to come to the library to pick up any physical items. 

What is located up on the 10th floor of Atkins Library?

The library has an amazing collection of rare books, manuscripts, and archives located on our 9th and 10th floor. This part of the library is called Special Collections & University Archives. These items cannot be checked out of the library, but all are welcome to visit the Dalton Reading Room on the 10th floor to view these items. Browse our Rare Books Guide to see which items you might like to view. Contact spec-coll@uncc.edu to set up a time to visit the reading room and view the materials.

There is also a quiet study lounge located behind the Dalton Reading Room that students can use.

Where is the best place to park to visit the library if I don't want to pay for parking?

Unless specified by an event or Parking Services, there is no free parking on campus. Permits are required to park anytime the University is open. If you do not have a campus parking permit, you will have to pay to use visitor's parking. The closest visitor's parking deck to the Atkins Library is Cone Deck. 

Where can I access films for this course, or find other films at the library?

Select films on your syllabus are being held at the Information & Research Desk on the main floor and can be checked out for a 24 hour loan. Just let the library employee working know which film you are looking for and that it is on course reserve. Don't forget to bring your 49er Card to check it out.

The library has a collection of Popular DVDs available for checkout on the main floor of the library and a larger collection of DVDs on the 8th floor. We also have access to a small collection of streaming films. To find a film to watch, search the library catalog at library.charlotte.edu. You can browse our entire Popular DVD collection online.