by Dani Norton
Staff writer
Beginning on April 9, the Henry G. Bennett Memorial Library celebrated National Library Week for the first time by inviting the community to participate in events held each evening.
Reference Librarian Katy Ann Glover was in charge of organizing the activities. She began work at the library in January and is the first regular evening librarian SE has seen in almost two years.
Glover, a 2006 graduate of SE, is using this distinction to encourage the community to come visit the facility.
“Most of the community has no idea that they can use the university library since it’s on a college campus,” she said.
Glover said even her mother, who has lived in Durant for many years, was not aware that just anyone could walk through the library’s front doors.
A Read-a-Thon marked the beginning of SE’s Library Week. On Monday and Tuesday students, faculty and staff were invited to “get caught reading” in the television viewing center.
Vice President of Student Affairs Sharon Robinson, Dean of Enrollment Management Liz McCraw and Director of Student Health Services April Lehrling were among those that stopped by to read for a while.
On Monday evening, Glover read children’s books to a rapt audience, including her own daughter.
Adjunct Instructor and poet Ron Wallace gave a poetry reading on Tuesday night. Glover offered tours of the library after.
Glover is eager to promote library tours. Though it is not something many people know to ask for, she said she is more than willing to give one to anyone interested.
Participants viewed a short presentation of the services the library provides followed by a tour of all five floors of the library.
The library also hosted movie nights on Wednesday and Thursday with a screening of both parts of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”
Glover said she hopes to continue this tradition, along with children’s story time and more lectures, when construction on the first floor of the library is finished in one month. The children’s literature and young adult sections will be completely redone.
Additionally, Glover and a few other librarians traveled to the Capitol that week to give testimonies about the consequences of library budget cuts.
Library Week ended with a reception for faculty on Friday evening.
Glover estimated that 75 people participated in the week’s events. She said that since it was the library’s first year to take part in National Library Week, she was pleased with the turn out and being able to “bring people in that wouldn’t otherwise come through the library.”
Glover said she wants to continue to offer activities to students, faculty and the community, even through the summer and especially during the later hours.
“It gets pretty quiet around here in the evenings. This summer I’d like to start having coffee nights, where students can come and hang out, study and drink coffee,” she said.
The library is also utilizing social networking. You can now find the library on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest to stay updated on activities and events.