USF Polytechnic Library

Looking for an Halloween-themed book? The USF Poly Library has set up a display of all our books about Halloween, ghosts, witches, creepy-crawlies and such for you to choose from. Pick up a book and a piece of candy on your way out.

The SLA Florida and Caribbean Chapter Fall Workshop and Awards Luncheon will take place at USF Polytechnic on Friday, November 13 2009, from 9 AM to 4 PM.

The workshop theme is “Libraries of the Future”. The program speakers are Paulette Hasier (DARPA Library, Library Task Manager), Jonathan Reichental (US IT Innovations Director, Pricewaterhouse Coopers) and Catherine Lavallée-Welch (Associate Librarian, USF Polytechnic). Lavallée-Welch will talking about Twitter as used by libraries.

Registration is now open. More information can be found on the Chapter’s website.

President Obama has proclaimed this month “Information Literacy Awareness Month”.

Information literacy can be defined, as in the proclamation, “the ability to seek, find, and decipher information [that] can be applied to countless life decisions, whether financial, medical, educational, or technical.”

Libraries and librarians are actively involved in information literacy and the USF Poly Library is no exception. We are available to help students either individually or in a class setting.

Join us on the LTB patio to listen to passages from banned and challenged books, as part of the USFP Library celebration of Banned Books Week.

Readings will be from 11:15AM to 1PM and 4:15PM to 6PM (yes, we sneaked in a couple more readers). Among the banned/challenged authors this year: Mark Twain, Toni Morrison, Judy Blume, Stephenie Meyer, D.H. Lawrence, Harper Lee and Polk County’s own Craig McKee.

This week is the 28th edition of National Banned Books Week. The USF Polytechnic Library is celebrating in many ways:

• a display of challenged or banned books from our collections
• quotes on freedom of expression, censorship and the freedom to read
• our Read Out event, Tuesday September 29th, from 11:15AM to 1PM and 4:15PM to 6PM. Members of the campus community will be reading from banned or challenged books in 15-minutes increments on the patio outside the Library (LTB 1115)
• drawing of two prizes during the Read Out event

Here are some interesting sites about Banned Books Week or the issues behind it:

• the official site of Banned Books Week with a telling map and a Manifesto, by banned bestseller author Ellen Hopkins
• the Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association
• the ACRL Intellectual Freedom Committee’s blog
• the Libraries and the First Amendment online exhibit from the McCormick Freedom Museum
• the Center for Campus Free Speech

Come and celebrate your freedom to read with us!

This morning, in The Ledger newspaper, an article was published on the Library’s Read Out event on September 29th. During the event, we will be reading passages from banned or challenged books out loud.

We invite everyone on campus to participate in listening or reading (still good spots available). Please contact the librarian, Catherine Lavallée-Welch, if you’re interested in reading (863-667-7737; clw@poly.usf.edu).

September 15 to October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month. National Hispanic Heritage Month is a celebration of the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, the USF Polytechnic Library is highlighting the books, journals, and electronic databases in our collection that support research into Hispanic heritage.

For additional information, also see http://hispanicheritagemonth.gov/ and http://www.floridahispanicheritage.com.

The USF Polytechnic Library invites you to celebrate the freedom to read by participating in a READ OUT! event during Banned Books Week (September 26 to October 3).

• What: Read from a challenged or banned book for a 15 minutes period. There is no microphone, no sitting audience – you read from a passage of your choice from a book of your choice in a normal voice to passers-by. Anyone can read: students, staff or faculty members.
• When: Tuesday, September 29, from 11:30 AM to 1 PM and from 4:30 PM to 6 PM
• Where: On the LTB terrace, outside the USFP Library/Open Use Lab
• Why: Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom to choose or the freedom to express one’s opinion even if that opinion might be considered unorthodox or unpopular and stresses the importance of ensuring the availability of those viewpoints to all who wish to read them. After all, intellectual freedom can exist only where these two essential conditions are met.
• How: Sign up with the librarian, Catherine Lavallée-Welch (clw@poly.usf.edu), with your preferred time and title (if possible, readers should bring their own books since the Library has a limited selection. Please see the 2008-2009 list of challenged or banned books and the list of the 100 most challenged or banned books from 2000 to 2007 for title ideas.) We’ll do our best to accommodate your preferred time.

Don’t want to read out loud? Come listen to the readers and come to the Library during the week to check out the displays and pick up a handout. We’ll also have a door prize drawing the day of the Read Out.

Find more information about Banned Books Week and the freedom to read on the American Library Association website.

From the Tampa Library, following the water dammage of May 14:

This morning we re-opened half of the Media Resources area on the first floor of the USF Tampa Library. Half of the computers are accessible, we are making video/DVD players accessible, the scores are accessible, the Media Annex videos are accessible, and the desk will be open.

Remaining closed due to flooding damage are the main video collection, DVD collection, CD collection, multi-media rooms (LIB125D&E), and half of the computers. Staff will retrieve items from these collections for patrons as requested.

We may be able to open these areas soon, if several things fall into place. Carpet has been removed, and the concrete needs to dry and be cleaned, and the drying equipment needs to be removed. Once that happens, we will open the rest of Media Resources. There will be a brief closure again later in the summer when the carpet is replaced.

From the Tampa Library:

Torrential downpour floods media resources and bound periodicals

Heavy rains Wednesday night led to significant water intrusion on the USF Tampa Library’s first and second floors. Your patience is appreciated as we dry out our collections and building. Bound periodicals and other materials on the second floor are available for use but may have been relocated. Please check with desk staff for access to materials in affected areas.

This could affect Polytechnic users requesting some articles through interlibrary loan, or Polytechnic faculty needing a-v materials for class use. Your comprehension is appreciated.