DISCUS needs your input.

DISCUS - Digital Information for South Carolina USers
Provides free access to an electronic library that’s available 24/7.

DISCUS, South Carolina’s Virtual Library is the “information place” for all South Carolinians. You have most likely benefited from this service while accessing Coker's databases for research.

Currently, DISCUS is in the process of negotiating their database license renewals for the 2010 calendar year. In doing so, they have been evaluating the separate database components included within SIRS Knowledge Source. After discussions with Proquest representatives, they've determined that there may be a bundling of resources that would be a "better fit" for DISCUS.

DISCUS has asked for input from staff and students in order to make a decision that best accommodates the patrons.

ProQuest has set up a trial page to assist in gathering opinions into the
selection process of two possible packages.

• Option A: The two most heavily used databases within the current package, plus CultureGrams. CultureGrams has traditionally been one of ProQuest's most popular products.

• Option B: The existing subscription resources.

DISCUS and the LITC invites you to explore the products and VOTE on which package - Option A or Option B - you think would best meet the needs of our users.

Here is a link to a SHORT, three question survey - http://www.proquestk12.com/go/discus

The deadline for reviewing these two packages and completing the survey is Monday, December 14th, 2009.

BETTER WORLD BOOKS BOX... say that three times fast.

Curious about that big box near the front doors of the LITC?

Coker's resident Literary Honor Society, Sigma Tau Delta, is gathering books for BetterWorldBooks, an online bookstore which collects and sells books to fund literacy initiatives worldwide.

Though the library will still be accepting book donations while the box is up, we encourage patrons to give to a charity helping to promote global literacy.

For more information about Better World Books and how they are enriching the lives of readers all over the world, please visit - www.betterworldbooks.com/

Special Saturday Hours

The Library will be opened Saturday November 14 from 8:00am to 5:00pm. Come early and avoid the rush.

Introducing Visiting Patron

Have you ever wanted to walk into one of South Carolina's academic libraries and check out a book, even though you were not a student or employee of that school? With the PASCAL Delivers Visiting Patron service*, your bibliophilic dreams can come true!

It's this simple: Walk into the SC academic library of your choice. Find the item(s) of personal interest. Take item(s) to the circulation desk or kiosk. Smiling pleasantly, present your current Coker identification card. Take the item(s) home with you! And when you are finished with these item(s), you can return them to the Coker Library -- we will make sure the items get back to their proper home.

You can check out three (3) books at a time using this method, and these items count towards the 25 book PASCAL-Delivers limit per patron.

For more information and some restrictions, check out this PASCAL-Delivers Visiting Patron link.

*Side effects may include euphoria, eye-strain induced headaches, better time management with increased free time, and shortness of breath.

EXHIBITS

There are local and college history exhibits at the library:


Who was Amy Spain?

In March 1865, Amy Spain was sentenced to death by a Confederate Military Tribunal and hung in front of the Darlington County courthouse. Amy Spain was lynched as a slave. The display case on the first floor by the Circulation Desk features a published account of her death in a issue of Harper's Magazine dating back to September 30th, 1865. The exhibit also displays written testimonials and responses to the event, published in local periodicals like the Hartsville Messenger and The New Era. Though the circumstances surrounding her death are speculative, Spain's execution remains a violent chapter worthy of further exploration.

Coker College, the Early Days.

The display case on the second floor of the library features pictures of early dorm rooms, campus, and students, from the college's days as a girl's school. The exhibit also features residence life documents like the student handbook. Think being in college is hard, checkout some of the rules the first Coker students had to abide by - no walking on Main Street, no leaving campus on the weekends, and uniform requirements for trips outside of Campus - Yikes.

But What About Us?

Student photos from schools featured in the Corridor of Shame are now on exhibit in the LITC. These are powerful images taken by those most affected by South Carolina's standard of a minimally adequate education for the children of this state. For more information check out the web site. But What About Us?

Fall Break is upon us! The staff of the LITC wishes everyone a safe and restful weekend.

Those of you still in Hartsville, we will be open until 5PM today.

We will also be open Thursday and Friday from 8:30-5PM. Normal operating hours return Saturday and Sunday.

National Book Festival: A travelogue

• My name is Donald Quist and I'm a Circulation Coordinator for the LITC. Last Saturday I had the pleasure of attending the National Book Festival in Washington D.C. Hosted by the Library of Congress, this annual festival attracts over 100,000 people each year. Librarians are invited from across the country to represent each state, and over fifty nationally published authors, illustrators, and poets are asked to give lectures, readings, interviews, and book signings. Below is a firsthand account of my journey...

9/25/09 : 9:38pm - 11:49pm

I speed through traffic, dodging semi-trucks on back roads from Charlotte. I have a train to catch. The Library of Congress is hosting its annual National Book Festival tomorrow and I've got plans to shake hands with one of my favorite authors, Junot Diaz. I entertain fantasies of me telling him how much his writing has improved my own, with dreams of him looking me in the eyes and saying, "You're welcome."

I'm seeing these dreams into fruition. I'm seeing this plan through, it's my objective, my telios, and come hell or high water I'm getting to Washington D.C....

...And here's the high water part.

It's raining. I pump the brakes to keep from hydroplaning, as Newton's Law reminds me that I've got over half a ton of restaurant equipment on the bed of the truck I'm borrowing.

I navigate the roads, get home, catch a shower, grab my ticket and jet to the train station.

I get to the Amtrak late. Just in time to discover my train is running late as well. Fortune smiles on me and I wink back coyly.

9/26/09 : 3:44am

It is impossible to sleep. The woman next to me is on her laptop and every time she catches me sneaking a glimpse of her screen she turns it away. I'm pretty sure she's a spy or a terrorist or a jerk. After awhile I loose my patience. I stand up and excuse myself, diving for the two empty seats catty-corner to ours. Sprawled out over the funk of decades-old upholstery, the train rocks me to bed. My eyes rest but my body's wide awake, ready to tackle tomorrow.

9/26/09 : 8:05am
I'm scared of pigeons. They're so aggressive. I'm sitting on the steps of the Capital building drinking a caramel machiatto so expensive I had to charge it to a credit card, and this pigeon keeps starring at me like I owe it something. A squirrel the size of a cat comes and shoos it away. On the horizon I see the National Book Festival. Hundreds have already started to gather. I'm in a moderate rush, knowing the author I've come to see is, when compared to novelist like John Grisham and James Patterson, only marginally successful. Diaz is a blip on the festival's radar and I'm sure to be one of the first to meet with him. So I slurp my coffee slow, and observe. There is a certain sense of synergy, a diplomatic air of affluence and pomp that lends itself to an event like a celebration of books. Making my way to the center of the festival on the giant lawn sandwiched by the largest museum(s) in the world, my chest swells with pride. I'm apart of this energy, it's a part of me. It's good to be home.

9/26/09 : 9:26am
I am first. Not second or third, first. I will be the first person at the National Book Festival to speak with Junot Diaz and get a signed copy of The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Unfortunately, Diaz is not scheduled to appear until 12:30pm. Hours pass, I roll through the time cycling back between reading a book by Orson Scott Card, Ender in Exile, and scanning over the names of all the writers at the festival. Overly enthusiastic fans try to bait me with idle chit-chat but I have trouble making small talk. I can't help but sneer at them as if they were the "Other Woman." My posture screams, "He's mine!" As I expected the other lines dwarf ours. Judy Blume, David Baldacci, Grisham and Patterson are big favorites but I'm surprised to see how many people have lined up to get a shot taken with Paula Deen. The writers move among the crowd freely, not having to worry about being mauled like rockstars. They all seem, for the most part, pretty down to Earth. Michael McConnell and Nicholas Sparks are shooting the breeze about 10 feet from me and I resist the urge to strike-through their conversation and gush about how awesome they are to be able to write and get paid for doing it. To me they are rockstars.

9/26/09 : 12:30pm
I see Diaz. He emerges from the crowd like a sheep stepping out of fog. He's dressed down in a hoodie, jeans and sneakers. He could have been standing next to me in line for the port-a-potty and I never would have noticed him. One of the Event Staffers tells me I can approach him.

We shake hands.

"Hello, I'm Junot."

I hand him my copy of his book and my notebook. He snatches both playfully. He puts his book aside for a moment and flips through mine.

"I wanted to thank you for helping me find my creative voice," I say. He smiles and signs the title page of his novel. I get nervous. "I'm sorry. I didn't know what to have you write in the inscription."
"What's you name?"
"Donald Quist."
Thrusting the books back to me: "Here you go, Donald. 'For your Art.' Goodluck, my brother."

9/26/09 : 3:36pm
I smile broadly as John Irving tells the crowd, "Writing is like wrestling, you've got to keep practicing the same stupid move over and over again until you get it right." I feel accomplished. I met Diaz and got a book signed by Steven Kellogg for the Director of my library, Alexa Bartel. I've spent the early part of the afternoon enjoying the exhibits and demonstrations. I'll spend the rest of it listening to guest speakers in the Festival tents. The Library of Congress has put together a wonderful spread with presentations that nurture a love for reading but encourage information literacy. I've met tons of people, including a media specialist from Florence County Library. Today is a good day.

In a few hours I'll board my train home. I'll try to sleep but my mind will keep drifting back to the book in my lap and how it felt to be validated by someone I admire. I'll try to ignore the fact that my skin feels electric, buzzing with the thought of how close I am, how fortunate it is to work a job that allows me to immerse myself in the work of my favorite authors. Every time I check out a book, every day I type another word, I get another step closer to where I want to be.

BANNED BOOK WEEK

Read Irresponsibly:
Banned Book Week
September 26th - October 3rd, 2009


Banned Book Week (BBW) is an annual campaign sponsored by the American Library Association celebrating the First Amendment, intellectual freedom, and a reader's right to choose. This week long event is observed in libraries, bookstores and academic institutions all over the nation. Banned Book Week serves as a reminder of the dangers of censorship and spotlights many literary classics that weren't, originally, all that well received.

The LITC invites you to join us as we celebrate challenged works.
Visit our New Books display near the Circulation Desk. On the shelves you can browse some titles that were deemed by many as "unfit to print."

Search through our catalog for books by BANNED authors:
Issac Asimov *Judy Blume*Truman Capote
Anne Frank*Rudyard Kipling*Harper Lee
Lois Lowry*Toni Morrison*JK Rowling
Shel Silverstein*Mark Twain*William Shakespeare*
and more...

Random LITC Picture of the Day

Our Bike Rack is starting to mirror the parking lot!

IT AT NIGHT

The LITC is now offering IT Computer Help @ NIGHT!

Information Technology workstudies, Joshua Turner and Timmy Barrett, will be on hand to answer questions every Monday and Thursday from 6:00pm - 9:00pm.

Look for them at the computer carrel across from the Circulation Desk.

New Career and Graduate School Resources!

We are proud to announce the launch of two new career and graduate school resources, provided by DISCUS, South Carolina’s Virtual Library.

Here is a brief description of each, from the DISCUS website:

Ferguson’s Career Guidance Center

• Complete career research database of jobs, skills, and resources
• Information on more than 3,300 jobs and 94 industries, organized by the 16 career clusters created by the U.S. Department of Education
• Articles and videos providing advice on job applications, the interview process, professional
• behavior, career skills, and more
• Sample resumes and cover letters
• Searchable entries on scholarships, internships, fellowships, and more

LearningExpress Library

• Comprehensive collection of test-preparation tools, skill-building materials, and other career and life skills resources
• Practice tests for job and career goals, graduate school (such as the LSAT, GRE, GMAT, MCAT), and Praxis II exams
• Focus on workplace skills such as resume building, interviewing, job search and assessment, business writing, and core computer skills
• Tools for improving proficiency levels in reading, writing, and math for elementary school learners through adults
• Interactive skill-building tutorials and 130+ e-book titles
• Features include timed tests, instant scoring and feedback, and individual user accounts for saving works-in-progress and completed tasks

From test preparation to interview skills and everything in between, these two new resources will get you ready for life after Coker (and might help you succeed on the way there)!

If you have any questions about these or any other resources, please feel free to ask!

Random LITC Picture of the Day

The Writing Studio Re-opens

The Writer’s Studio will open Monday, August 24, 2009.

Hours for Fall 2009:

Mon: 2:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Tue: 2:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Wed: 2:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Th: 2:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Fri: By appointment only

Closed on Saturday and Sunday

Java City: Not Just Yet...

Due to some technical difficulties Java City won't be opening today.

We will keep you posted. Check back to the LITC BlOG for further details.

One cup of coffee, then I'll go...

Java City Café will re-open for the Fall semester starting tomorrow at 8 am. The full schedule is available here.

Serving a variety of coffees, teas, drinks and pastries, Java City Café is a great place to catch up with friends...and have a little caffeine at the same time.

The Café accepts cash, Coker declining balance, and checks.

WE WANT YOU: WORKSTUDY!

THERE’S MORE MONEY FOR COKER’S WORK-STUDY PROGRAM…

…which means we’ve got more positions to fill. We want the best and the brightest: self-motivated, hard workers with a love for books and helping others. Think that’s you? If you’re a full time Coker College student follow these steps and you can be an LITC WORK-STUDY!

• First, report to Coker’s Financial Aid Office to get a CLEARANCE FORM at which time the Financial Aid representative will determine if you have satisfied all the criteria to receive a Work-Study award and sign the form.

• Then proceed to the Business Office, where a Business Office representative must sign the CLERANCE FORM.March to the Payroll Office - Students must complete the appropriate payroll paperwork (I-9, W-4 and a Payroll Deduction Authorization Form) prior to their first day of work. When these requirements have been satisfied, the payroll representative will sign the clearance form.

• Finally, report to the Work-Study Coordinator (Mary Buchner in the Athletics Building) with the CLEARANCE FORM!

When you meet with the Work-Study Coordinator you can discuss job availability and a job description will be issued to you. It will then be your responsibility to contact the LITC’s Work-Study supervisor, Donald Quist, pick-up an application and schedule an interview.

If all goes well on your interview, and your references check-out, the Work-Study supervisor will return the signed job description to the Work-Study Coordinator. Once you’re approved for the position the Coordinator will begin sending time sheet to the supervisor.

Meet the Netbooks

Have you ever wanted to find some obscure nook of the LITC to check your e-mail? Do you want a little more privacy than in the computer commons? Well, we have a solution for you!

Enter the Netbook:
The Asus Eee PC 900A features an Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, a 4GB solid state hard drive, the resource-friendly Ubuntu Linux operating system, and integrated Wifi.

With dimensions of 9" wide, 6 3/4" long and a weight of around 2 pounds, the netbooks are the perfect size to take to the most remote corners of the library.

Our netbooks use Firefox web browser (displaying your favorite college library website):



The netbooks also have the latest version of Open Office installed. Open Office is an open source productivity suite that is nearly 100% compatible with Microsoft Office.

They will be available for checkout library-use only for two hours, with one two-hour renewal.

Meet the Staff

Nancy T. Matthews
Height: 5ft 6inches
Favorite Book: The Monster at the End of this Book by Jon Stone and Illustrated by Michael Smollin

“Growing up I always knew I wanted to be a teacher or work in a library, that’s just me.”

When entering the LITC you may find yourself asking, “What’s the name of that sweet looking woman with the glasses and the short-bob haircut?” That’s Nancy T. Matthews, Acquisitions/ Cataloging Coordinator! To put it simply, she buys the books. Nancy is an integral part of the LITC team, stretching money, ordering library materials, and getting them ready for the shelves. Earlier this year Nancy took on responsibility for the Coker College Archives. The job is tough and the hardest part is ongoing. Nancy has to determine how to organize Archives, sorting through Coker artifacts, deciding what to keep while trying to consider what would best serve the college and its history. Organizing the past isn’t all dust induced headaches and arctic room temperatures. “It’s been fun because I was a student here," says Nancy. "I’m running across things that happened while I was attending Coker, pictures, names and newsletters, memos.” Nancy graduated from Coker in ‘76 returning to work at the college in ‘84. Going through the Archives allows Nancy a more intimate look at the institution, how Coker had changed during her 8 year absence, and how fast technology has evolved in the 2 and a half decades she has served the college. “If you have to work, which I do, it is very nice to work in an atmosphere like the Library provides – flexibility, there has been chance for promotion through the years, and great people.” Last week Nancy celebrated 25 years in the academic library business with cake in the LITC break-room, treating her co-workers to stories of her Alma Mater and how things have changed.

Nancy’s Library Survival Tips:

• “Have a fan in the winter and a sweater in the summer. I’ve been here 25 years and they still haven’t gotten the air right.”

Chalok Literacy Project Update

I received this from Professor Dick Puffer this morning:

"Maggie Meyer double majored in Political Science - International Relations and Communication at Coker. Jim Lemke, her political science advisor, discussed the Chalok Literacy Project with his wife, Harriet, who then discussed it with Emily Phillips at Burry Bookstore and there is now a connection between Burry and Chalok with a box being filled with books for Maggie's English language students. This was a great idea for an even stronger connection between Coker, Hartsville and Maggie Meyer's Fulbright program in Malaysia. If you want more info on the literacy program it is contained in an earlier email, or you can find it on hartsvilletoday.com or the cokerexperience blog."

You can also find more information from a previous LITC blog entry.

The Burry Bookstore is a locally owned and operated bookstore here in Hartsville. What a perfect fit -- buying books from a locally owned store to send to English literature deprived students in Malaysia?

Is it August yet?

In less than a month it will be August 19th. For the staff of the LITC this means making sure we finish up all our summer projects, and adding a few new ones...

Libraries are always changing. We rethink procedures, incorporate new technologies, move stuff around, to make information gathering easier. In a previous blog entry we told library patrons to expect BIG changes to Periodicals. That turned out to be a bit of an understatement.

We’re reshaping a portion of the first floor of the LITC, making it more conducive to study as well as allowing us an opportunity to spotlight some under-appreciated areas of our collection.
College and Career Planning has received a complete face lift, while Periodicals has been carefully weeded and shifted.

• These display shelves can be raised to reveal even more comprehensive resources for education and career decision making. There are books for determining your personality type, exploring Majors, locating graduate schools, and procuring a career.

Newspapers have found a new home facing the lounge area and our Recreational Reading collection will be jumping to the Computer Center.

• It may not be “Literature” but it sure is fun. Recreational Reading is exactly what it sounds like, a collection that offers patrons more leisurely titles. Look for big names like Stephen King, James Patterson, Nora Roberts and Nicholas Sparks to frequent this section.

• Also, look for the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal on our Kindle, currently on display at the Circulation Desk.

Our summer has proven to be productive - major shifts in the Juvenile and Art Collections, countless trips to Kalmia Gardens and a lot of hard work in Archives. With the addition of these newer modifications we are looking forward to better serving students when they return in August.

Briefly: LITC will close at 2PM on Fridays through July

The Coker LITC will close at 2PM on Friday afternoons for the month of July.

Remember you can renew most library materials by using the My Account feature on the Coker Library online catalog.

Chalok Literacy Project

Maggie Meyer, a recent Coker Alum, is completing a Fulbright grant as an English Teaching Assistant in Chalok Terengganu, Malaysia. She would like to collect used English language books for her students -- new English books in Malaysia are prohibitively expensive.

Here's how you can help:

" [The book(s)] can be any size you want. It can be about anything you think students would like to read. Ideally, books would be fiction and appropriate for intermediate English speakers. The age range of the students is anywhere between 10-19 years old, so topics can range from fictional animals and adventures to how to gain admission to American colleges."

Also:

"Head online to www.amazon.com. From there, locate and click on the Wish List button in the top right hand corner. A wish list search bar will appear. Type in Chalok Literacy Project. You can choose from a hearty selection of books, purchase them through their secure server and select to deliver them automatically to the CLP gift registry address."

Maggie also writes:

"Caution should be exercised when sending books that include opinions on religious and political matters. These subjects are extremely sensitive in Malaysia as the large majority of the population is conservatively Muslim."

For more information, including mailing instructions please e-mail Maggie at ChalokLiteracyProject@gmail.com

For more information on Maggie's year in Malaysia, read her blog here.

Good luck Maggie!

Did you know that there are books in the Garden?

One of Coker and Hartsville's best kept secrets is Kalmia Gardens. Located on West Carolina Avenue about five minutes from campus, Kalmia Gardens is a 35 acre botanical garden that is the gateway to the larger 796-acre Segars-McKinnon Heritage Preserve.

Admission to Kalmia is my favorite price -- free -- and is open from dawn until dusk. It is a perfect place to relax and enjoy nature.



But did you know that Kalmia houses Coker Library's botanical, horticultural and nature collection? This recently re-organized collection contains several hundred books covering everything from field guides and regional planting to ornithology (birdwatching!) and much more!

The Kalmia Collection can be searched specifically using the LITC's online catalog, selecting "Advanced," and then selecting "Kalmia Collection" from the drop down limiters list.

Stop by today!

From the Library Archives...Or You Thought You Had it Tough!

Nancy Matthews has been busy this summer reorganizing the Coker College archives. She has found some really interesting items, including an article about Ralph Nader's sister, who attended Coker back in the late 1940s.

Her latest find is a list of offenses from the 1920s that could have resulted in suspension or expulsion from the college. Take a look:

• Taking two or three steps in the parlor with a young man

• Wearing colored shoes downtown

• Making humming noises during meditation

• Washing face after light bell

• Wearing blue skirt and white middy* to dinner

• Impertinence to a council member and general ill attitude toward student government rules

• Threw tin cans and glass bottles over the railing on 3^rd floor to the 2^nd floor

• Bathing during study period

• Visit the drugstore two times in one week

• Talking to a young man on campus without permission

• Brushing teeth in hall after light bell

• Talking to a young man in drugstore

• Riding with boys morning and night without permission

• Singing and attracting attention on Richardson Porch at night

• Called before the executive board for smoking cigarettes in the college

• Restricted to the campus for 6 weeks for meeting and talking to young men at friend’s home on Sunday night

• Cutting breakfast, dinner, church…

Keep in mind that Coker was a women's college until the 1960s, although men were allowed to take classes on campus in the 1940s.


*The painting above is titled Young Girl in a Middy Blouse by Martha Simkins (1910). Thanks to CarolinaArts.com for the picture. I wasn't sure what a middy was either. I wonder if a blue middy would have been acceptable at dinner?

PaperCut - Expect BIG changes to Periodicals

Every summer we weed through our Periodical section, pulling and cutting titles that no longer support Coker’s curriculum. This year, with the nation in recession and academic libraries across the country facing major budget cuts, trimming the periodicals seems more important than ever. Currently, it looks as though we’ll be saying goodbye to a dozen titles, some moving exclusively to the Kindle while others will be available through our online databases. Link resolvers like Journal Finder should play an even greater role in the way we research, allowing LITC patrons access to over 27,000 different journals, magazine and newspapers.

The titles we chose to cut were picked for a variety of reasons - some rarely circulate and don’t get browsed, while others were far too expensive for us to justify keeping in print. In a few instances we had three or more titles all dealing with a similar topic. In all cases we seek the opinion of Coker faculty familiar with the subject of the periodical being considered for the cut.

It is also important to note, the current issues of the periodicals recieving the axe will not be discarded. They will find a new home on the shelves of our Back Periodicals Collection, located on the first floor of the library. Newspapers, magazines and journals can be searched in our catalog just like books, so there’s no need to waste time browsing if you have a specific title in mind.