Memorial Day

Although many Americans view Memorial Day as the official start to summer activities, a day for more sales at the mall, or simply a nice day off of work, the holiday is much more than that.

Originally, the day was called “Decoration Day” because it was the day for Americans to quite literally decorate the graves soldiers who had died in the Civil War.

History.com has some wonderful information about the history of Memorial Day and how it is observed as well as links to images, battle maps, and veteran resources. According to the site, several towns both in the north and the south take credit for being the “birthplace of Memorial Day, including Columbus, Miss.; Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; Boalsburg, Pa.; and Carbondale, Ill.”  It wasn’t until 1966 that President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., as the official birthplace. “They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.”(http://www.history.com/content/memorial/the-history-of-memorial-day)

Another nice Website about the holiday is by the US White House Commission on Remembrance. (http://www.remember.gov/) Their missions include:

• Promoting the spirit of unity and remembrance through observance of The National Moment of Remembrance at 3 PM local time on Memorial Day
• Ensuring the nation remembers the sacrifices of America’s fallen from the Revolutionary War to the present;
• Recognizing those who have served and those who continue to serve our great nation and reminding all Americans of our common heritage.

According to the Library of Congress Website, a 1971 federal law, “changed the observance of the holiday to the last Monday in May and extended the honor to all soldiers who died in American wars. A few states continue to celebrate Memorial Day on May 30.” The Website is full of interesting resources about Memorial Day: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/may30.htm

For more information about the holiday, please check out the resources available at Rohrbach Library in our physical collections (see the online catalog) as well as our virtual resources (databases). Have a wonderful holiday.

Latest Changes @ Rohrbach Library

Changes continue to occur this summer in the library. We are currently moving our Reference Collection to some empty shelves on the second floor in the Bound Periodicals area to make way for new, shorter shelving in the Reference/Information Commons. Once the new shelves are installed, the Reference Collection will return to the first floor.

A new feature to look forward to by the end of the summer is the addition of a New Books area in the Information Commons.

For those who are still on campus, come in and watch the progress. For those who are away for the summer, we look forward to showing you all the changes when you return!

Credit-card bill could hit students hardest

According to this article from The Christian Science Monitor, college students will be hit hard by the recent credit-card bill that passed in the US Senate today.

Which college expenses students buy on credit

“On the one hand, the new law promises them the same protections it promises to the nation as a whole: more transparency, less-arbitrary rate hikes, fewer surprises in the small print. It also adds special protections for young consumers.

But may this may come at a price: less access to credit, especially among young people – precisely at a time when they are becoming more dependent upon it. Half of college students have four or more cards and are carrying an average balance of $3,173 – a record, according to the most recent survey on credit-card usage by student-loan giant Sallie Mae.”

Read the complete article:

http://features.csmonitor.com/politics/2009/05/19/credit-card-bill-could-hit-students-hardest/

Summer Sessions!

Welcome Summer 1 Session students and faculty! We are open and ready to assist you with your coursework!

Library hours for the session are:
Monday – Thursday 7:45 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Friday 7:45 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sunday CLOSED
NOTE: We are also closed on Memorial Day (May 25th).

The Reference Desk will be staffed by a professional librarian during the following times:
Monday – Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Today: Leo Lionni’s Birthday

Today we celebrate Leo Lionni’s birthday.

According to Random House’s Website, “Leo Lionni wrote and illustrated more than 40 highly acclaimed children’s books. He received the 1984 American Institute of Graphic Arts Gold Medal and was a four-time Caldecott Honor Winner–for Inch by Inch, Frederick, Swimmy, and Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse. Leo Lionni died in October of 1999 at his home in Tuscany, Italy, at the age of 89.”  For the rest of the information on this acclaimed author/illustrator, see:
http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/lionni/author.html