Facebook is widely used by the public, companies, organizations, colleges and universities and American academic libraries throughout the United States. The public started using Facebook in 2004 as a form of communication to communicate with friends, former high school classmates and college students, etc.
Based on research done by Anson Alexander, Facebook’s Effect on the College Experience, here are a few scenarios he cited as to why students’ use Facebook:
- Over 95% of all students have a Facebook account.
- Forty percent of university faculty uses Facebook to communicate with their students.
- Facebook is the pulse that determines the likelihood whether students will stay in school after their freshman year, or drop-out of college.
- Using Facebook affects grades—20% of students received poor grades because they are using Facebook, while multitasking with academics.
Libraries are using Facebook too, as a means to bring students into the library. Colleges and universities are using Facebook as a marketing tool, while libraries are using it to publicize services offered by libraries. Librarians must first remember that Facebook is a social media tool, rather than an educational tool. Research has shown that most colleges are using Facebook as a means to promote and market their institutions. As librarians, we must be realistic, that we are using this tool to attract an audience of 18 to 20 year old students; what common ground can librarians achieve to benefit this audience?
My challenge to the students at Delaware State University, what can the librarians at the William C. Jason Library offer to Facebook users on this campus?
Do you see Facebook as an academic tool?
Click this link for our Facebook page.
Submitted by:
Ronald Davis
Reference & Public Services Librarian
We now receive “Barron’s” the Dow Jones Business and Financial Weekly located in the Serials Department on the second floor of the library. Barron’s covers publics companies traded on the stock exchange as well as featured columns Up & Down Wall Street, The Economic Beat, Funds and Dividends, Market Week, and much more. I like to read the selected companies and CEO’s featured each week.
Submitted by:
Mary Rose Durk
Reference & Public Services Librarian
“An informed citizenry is the only true repository of the public will.” Thomas Jefferson
The display shows both tangible and digital federal government publications.
Submitted by Gretchen K. Starling
Asst. Coordinator of Technical Services
Welcome to the Education Library. We have a goal of providing the very best resources and other necessary information pertaining to education.
Education Materials
We have whatever you need to support your research—reference resources, classroom materials, eBooks, journals, ERIC microfiche, general education books, videos, government documents, black juvenile books, CD-ROMs, DVDs, and kits, etc. The materials can be checked out and the videos can be viewed in the library or can be checked out as well. To search the Education Library via the Internet, please click on the following link: Education Library Catalog
Come check us out. We are proud and committed to continue providing the very best variety of library materials for your learning experience at DSU.
Look for the next blog on selected currently acquired education titles.
Submitted by:
Rosamond Panda
School of Education Liaison
February is Black History month, and the federal agencies are celebrating in a big way. The Library of Congress, National Archives & Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to generations of African Americans who struggled to achieve full citizenship in American society.
This year’s theme “African Americans and the Civil War” honors the efforts of people of African descent to destroy slavery and inaugurate universal freedom in the United States. Check out this link: http://www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/. There are links to the other special exhibits on this page.
The National Gallery of Art has an online presentation of how the sculptor Saint-Gaudens chose his subject, Captain Shaw and the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, and how various aspects of the sculpture depict characteristics of the African American soldiers. This is the link to the study: http://www.nga.gov/feature/shaw/home.shtm.
Picture sculpture depict characteristics of the African American soldiers.
Submitted by Gretchen K. Starling
Asst. Coordinator of Technical Services
As you walk into the library located behind the circular staircase next to the Reference and Public Services desk you will see a display of new arrivals. These are books the library has recently received and you can check them out. These books are displayed for your convenience before they are shelved in the General Collection.
Mary displaying selected New Books
For example, as the librarian for the College of Business, I am responsible for adding books to that college. Sixteen new books have arrived in my area and I always make a point of reading or scanning most of them. The books I have finished reading and that are displayed with me in the picture are:
- Brand Failures: The Truth About the 100 Biggest Branding Mistakes of All Time
- The Social Media Marketing Book
- The Facebook Marketing Book.
These books are interesting and an easy read. I encourage you to stop by and browse the entire collection of new books from Social Work, Education, the Sciences and much more.
Submitted by:
Mary Rose Durk
Reference & Public Services Librarian
Fall open house was a great opportunity for the library to meet potential students and their parents.
Fall 2011 Open House Display
Library staff provided information to the visitors about the services and resources that are available.
We would like to thank Ms. Paula Stokes and Mrs. Sarah Greene for putting together a great Fall 2011 Open House display and presentation.
Mrs. Greene and Ms. Stokes.
This December 7, 2011 marks the 70th year since Pearl Harbor was bombed. Pearl Harbor located in Oahu, Hawaii was the home of the United States Pacific fleet. Most of us were not even born when this attack took place and only read about it in history books. The men and women who were stationed at Pearl Harbor were only between 18-30 years of age. Most of the survivors have long since died and only the youngest who were only 18 at the time are still living to tell of the attack. These survivors are in their late 80′s and early 90′s and most will probably not be alive for the 75th.
Ms. Durk in front of Pearl Harbor Display in the Library
We have designed a display case with books and DVDs about this historic event. Please stop in to read about it or check out a book or DVD.
I visited Pearl Harbor in October of 2010 and had the honor to visit the Arizona Memorial. The oil is still leaking from the Arizona and soldiers who survived the bombing of the Arizona are able to be buried with their shipmates. They are cremated and a diver takes their remains and places them in the ship.
The attack on Pearl Harbor is that generation’s 9-11. We must never forget.
Here are some video links to additional resources:
Submitted by:
Mary Rose Durk
Reference and Business Librarian
"An informed citizenry is the only true repository of the public will." Thomas Jefferson
In the era of digitization and instantaneous feedback, one would think that Americans, especially college students, would be knowledgeable about the framework of their government. However, this may not necessarily be true.
Who cares? What difference does it make? To make intelligent decisions, factual information is needed. In the upcoming year there will be a national election. But beyond that, government information can help in many fields, such as, occupational choices, business decisions, and academic endeavors.
Some helpful websites:
Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition (http://www.bls.gov/oco/). The Handbook gives you job search tips, links to information about the job market in each state, and more.
American Community Survey News Media Tool Kit (http://www.census.gov/). America is changing, and so is the census. The new American Community Survey (ACS) provides data every year — giving communities the current information they need to manage change.
Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States ( http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/collection.action?collectionCode=PPP ). Currently, FDsys contains the public papers for Presidents George H. W. Bush, Clinton, and George W. Bush.
Submitted by Gretchen K. Starling
Asst. Coordinator of Technical Services
