October 28th is SnapShot-PA Day

On Wednesday, Oct. 28, the Rohrbach Library will be participating in SnapShot-PA, a statewide initiative aimed at capturing the impact that Pennsylvania libraries have on their communities on a typical day. Patrons can stop by the library from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Oct. 28 to record a brief video telling us why they are in the library and how they use the library’s services and resources. Some of the videos will be posted to YouTube, and the results (statistics, photos, videos, and comments) from all participating libraries will be posted online on the SnapShot-PA Web site: http://snapshotpa.org. For more information, please contact professor Karen Wanamaker, Education Librarian, at ext. 3-4709.

National Gallery of Writing NOW OPEN

Happy National Day on Writing!

For those of you who submitted writings to the National Gallery of Writing, the Gallery is now open! Check it out. If you still want to add your writing, you can still add it.

“At 12:01 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, October 20, the National Gallery of Writing will be opened up for everyone to view a wide variety of pieces.  A Web cast will air live from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, October 20.” (From NCTE’s site)

To enter the Gallery, go to: http://galleryofwriting.org/

For more information on the National Day on Writing go to: http://www.ncte.org/dayonwriting/learn

Don’t Miss Your Chance to Win Cash!

LibQUAL surveys are still taking place. You can follow this link to complete the survey any time between now and 10/21⁺: http://survey.libqual.org/index.cfm?ID=385016. 

Don’t like completing electronic surveys? Stop by the library today or Thursday from 11-1 and fill out a paper copy. You can also fill out a paper copy in the SUB on Thursday, October 15 from 11-1.

Complete the survey and enter to win these great prizes:

*$100 cash
*Macy’s gift card
*KU Bookstore gift bundle
*Mark’s Sub coupons
*Library mugs, water bottles, and other accessories

For more information contact Bob Flatley, interlibrary loan, electronic resources and periodicals librarian, at flatley@kutztown.edu or at
610-683-4168.

⁺Must be 18 or older to complete survey.
⁺Only KU students are eligible for prizes.

Fall Involvement Fair

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table at KU’s Fall Involement Fair last Thursday!

Opinion Groups: Several of you signed up to be a part of our opinion groups this year. We will be contacting you with more information in the future. Other students who are interested in signing up to offer opinions on library resources and services at various focus groups should contact Dr. Linda Matthews, Assistant Dean of Library Services, at 610-683-4805.

Raffle Winner: Congratulations to Hollei Keifer, the winner of our gift basket. It was great to see so many entries in our raffle box! Watch our blog and Facebook pages for more opportunities to win in the future!

There are so many ways to get involved with your library. We hope to see many of you physically or virtually during this year. You can use RSS feed to keep up with our blog postings and can also join our Facebook pages! We love to hear from you, so keep in touch!

Summer Solstice – the start of summer!

There’s no excuse for not having “time” to celebrate Father’s Day this Sunday. It just so happens that Sunday is also the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere – also known as the summer solstice.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary (which is available to our patrons online!), a solstice is “when the sun, having reached the tropical points, is farthest from the equator and appears to stand still.” This happens twice each year, one being the summer solstice around June 21st and the other being the winter solstice around December 22nd.

There is a nice explanation of the solstice, with graphic, available at:
http://solar.physics.montana.edu/ypop/Classroom/Lessons/Sundials/summer.html

In England, many people will be flocking again this year to Stonehenge to celebrate the solstice. Celebrations of the summer solstice go back many centuries to pagan times in Europe. For more information about the Stonehenge celebration, you can see:
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.20654

Happy Summer and Happy Father’s Day!

Note: The library will be open from 8-5 from June 22-26th (between summer sessions) and will resume summer session hours on June 30th. For more information on our summer hours, please go to: http://www.kutztown.edu/library/about/hours.asp

Flag Day

Reminder: This weekend you have the opportunity to celebrate Flag Day (on June 14th)! For more information on this day in history, please check out the Library of Congress Website on the topic:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/jun14.html

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.

Poem in Your Pocket Day

Today is Poem in Your Pocket Day!  Last week, we reminded you about this special day, so we hope that you have taken the time to find your favorite poem and share it with others.  For more information about Poem in Your Pocket Day, go here!

Next week…

…is Poem In Your Pocket Day.  In conjunction with National Poetry Month, celebrate your favorite poet or poem by carrying it in your pocket (or for the longer ones, your backpack!)

Last year, people across the country carried poems and read them in parks, libraries, schools, and at work.

For more information, head here!

Celebrate Shakespeare and National Poetry Month

William Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564, and though we do not know the official date of his birth, many scholars argue that he was born on this day in 1564.  Celebrate his life and work, as well as National Poetry Month, by reading some of his most famous poems, including Venus and Adonis and his sonnets.

Check out more of his work by searching through our online catalog.

Have some fun with the Shakespeare Insult Kit.