New database: Biography Reference Center

Do you remember where you were when Elvis died? (Yes, I believe I am dating myself.) I was returning to the family farm from an evening out roller skating with friends. When the news came over the radio, everyone in the car was silent. We didn’t know what to say…

​Fast forward to 2014, in which the names may be different, but certainly there are notable personalities that have had an impact on us. As we work on our curriculum, biographies are one way we can easily incorporate non-fiction, informational text.

As we analyzed our biography print collection, we quickly realized that we couldn’t purchase enough copies to meet a specific curricular need. As a result, we were excited to purchase the Biography Reference Center (BRC) database, which offers more than 461,000 full-text biographies.

In addition to keyword searching, users can locate biographies of interest by browsing key categories, including occupation, nationality, publication, and more than 30 genre categories, including actors, artists, athletes, authors, current world leaders, explorers, scientists, and many more.

To learn how to search BRC and to locate the remote access instructions, please check out our Biography Resource Center libguide.

In addition to the BRC, we also subscribe to other databases that offer biographies. These resources can be accessed from the ACHS ILC and Lakes ILC home pages.

• eBook Academic Collection
• eBook High School Collection
• Literature Resource Center
• Science in Context
• Student Resources in Context

​As you work to incorporate these resources into your assignments, don’t forget that Kellie and I are always willing to help!