PRIMARY SOURCE
FSU Campus Community Edition - December 2021
HENRY WHITTEMORE LIBRARY
RAMS!
Welcome to the holiday edition of Whittemore Library Community Newsletter! I hope you, your family, friends and colleagues are healthy and doing well. Like many of you, the Library staff was very busy, and our editor, Kate Burt, wonderfully captured our activities for your enjoyment.
The Library hosted a “Fake News” event, threw a Halloween Party, launched the wellness room “RAMS Renew Space”, secured stipends for faculty for OER projects, invited U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo for a “Big Read” event, gave away over 400 copies of her book An American Sunrise, and invited students to two upcoming events – Cocoa by the Fire and the Community Upcycling Project. Wow!
Also in the newsletter, there are profiles of our dedicated staff and our amazing interns. We want you to get to know us! Enjoy reading about the Library, we would love to hear your feedback.
Take care, Millie
*** Latest News ***
OER Grant
Framingham State, with five other higher education institutions, received a federal grant from the Department of Education’s Open Textbook Pilot project - Remixing Open Textbooks through an Equity Lens (ROTEL): Culturally Relevant Open Textbooks for High Enrollment General Education Courses and Career and Professional Courses at Six Public Massachusetts Colleges. For this first round, the project team reviewed grant applications from faculty from the participating institutions. Twenty-one proposals were selected, five from Framingham State. Faculty will receive stipends of $3,000 to adapt (change) existing OER textbook or $5,000 to create inclusive open textbooks. Faculty will also receive support, training, and resources to complete their projects.
Professor Santosha Adhibhatta
Professsor Patricia Lynne
Professor Amanda Simons
Professor Lawrence McKenna
Professor Nicole Rossi
Professor Deborah McMakin
The BIG Read
The Library is incredibly excited to host National Endowment for the Arts The Big Read at Framingham State! The community read honors and highlights the Native American experience. We hope you've enjoyed the events so far.
The next amazing event is a talk with Joy Harjo, author and United States poet laureate on December 8 at 4:30. Free copies of her book, An American Sunrise, are available at the front desk of the Library.
Please check out our LibGuide that contains information about the events and the registration information for the Joy Harjo event.
RAMS Renew!
With gratitude for the generous donation by alum Joan Murtaugh, the Whittemore Library is thrilled to announce a new multipurpose room to support mental health wellness and reflection. The RAMS Renew Space is a quiet, private room for students, faculty and staff to devote time towards:
- mental health wellness to ease anxiety or stress;
- reflection, meditation, or prayer; and
- calmness from sensory overload.
The Library consulted Pam Lehmberg from the Wellness Center to create an ideal relaxation space based on what has worked well at the Wellness Center. The Library Graduate Intern, Yoshio, created a guide with information about the room and resources on wellness and meditation. RAMS Renew Space has a massage chair, a chair for meditation, a yoga mat, fidget toys, coloring books, a light therapy lamp, Bluetooth speakers, cozy blankets, and more. Take a look at these videos, Part 1 video and Part 2 video, for a tour of the room with our intern, Meeghan.
Reserve time online at https://framingham.libcal.com/reserve/WhittemoreLibrary/RamsRenew or you can swipe the QR code on the flyer. You deserve it! Once you reserve a time, go to the library front desk, show your reservation email, and get the key (and prayer rug if need it). Remember: One person in the room per session, no food, tidy up after your visit and return the key to the front desk.
And speaking of wellness, we've also have added a unique new seating option on the lower mezzanine: a comfortable desk exercise bike! This bike has a height-adjustable seat and a desk-top that adjusts up/down and forward/backward so you can find the perfect position for studying or reading while you get in a bit of exercise. Stop by and try it out!
I would like to thank Kate Burt, library admin, for her incredible work in transforming an idea to reality, Facilities for painting, setting up the chair and hanging the art on the walls, Yoshio Shartin for the amazing guide, Karin Medin and Lori Wolfe for setting up the key for checkout, Hedda Monaghan for setting up the reservation system, Meeghan Bresnahan for the tour videos, and Debbie Hogan for decorating the room. It certainly takes a village.
If you have any questions, feedback or recommendations, please do not hesitate to reach out to me at vgonzalez@framingham.edu.
Millie
Curriculum Department
Curriculum Librarian
Hi! I'm Samantha Westall, the Curriculum librarian. If you have any questions, please reach out to me. I'll be happy to assist you!
Email: swestall@framingham.edu
Phone: (508) 626-4657
Library Assistant
Hello! I'm Kimberley Carney, the Library Assistant in the Curriculum Department. If you have any questions or need additional information, please let me know.
Email: kcarney@framingham.edu
Phone: (508) 626-4659
Fact v. Fiction
On October 20th, student Emily Rosenberg (Gatepost Arts & Features Editor) was joined by Justin Silverman, executive director of the NEFAC (New England First Amendment Coalition), in the Alumni Room to discuss the growing concern about online news and (mis)information in the internet age. The event was organized by Librarian Sandra Rothenberg in partnership with the New England First Amendment Coalition.
To read more about this interesting and thought provoking event, please see the Gatepost issue.
HALLOWEEN FIESTA
On October 28th, the Library held its annual Halloween Fiesta - Hope you were able to take part in the festivities! Party goers (some in amazing costumes!) enjoyed yummy refreshments, spooky music, fun activities and revolting games. They could make personalized buttons and play the popular and stomach-turning "squish and feel" game! We were also honored to have Associate Professor Sam Witt and Visiting Lecturer Talia Adry read some gruesome, spine-tingling poetry.
Celebrate Native American Heritage Month With The Library!
In November, the Library celebrated National Native American Heritage Month. We offered events regarding the Big Read book, "An American Sunrise", by Joy Harjo and paid tribute to Native Americans by providing a book display of their works and works about them.
The Library is committed to honoring Native American and Indigenous Peoples’ heritage by hosting educational events and providing educational resources such as our online guide.
*** Upcoming Events ***
A Talk With Joy Harjo
Internationally renowned performer, writer of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and 23rd Poet Laureate of the United States, Joy Harjo, will speak virtually about her book "An American Sunrise". Register for this Big Read community event at this link.
Please go to our Big Read LibGuide to learn more about this nation-wide initiative.
Wednesday, Dec 8, 2021, 04:30 PM
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Annual Cocoa By The Fire
Thursday, Dec 9, 2021, 02:30 PM
In the Library Foyer
Community Upcycling Project by student Gabriela Mendez-Acevedo
Gabriela Mendez-Acevedo, a senior Fashion Merchandising student (Diversity Studies minor), will present details of her community "upcycling" project. Gabriela worked with her professor in the Fashion Department for her independent study class to develop her project. She collected clothing donations from the FSU community and upcycled them, which is repurposing them to make them into another garment of higher quality.
Stop by prior to the presentation to view Gabriela's creations which are on display in the Library.
Tuesday, Dec 14, 2021, 02:30 PM
UM14
As Seen In The Curriculum Library:
Meet The Interns
Patrick Brady
Patrick is a first-semester senior English major, an assistant editor at The Gatepost, and an intern in the Library. He's been a valuable addition to the Library staff and has written a number of insightful blog posts on the Library's blog while also assisting in various departments in the Library.
Read more about Patrick in our blog.
Meeghan Bresnahan
Meeghan Bresnahan is a junior Honors History Major with a Diversity Studies Minor. She hopes to one day be a librarian. Besides interning at the library, she also is the Secretary of the Hilltop Players and acts in their shows, a Liberal Studies SI, a member of the Arts and Idea Committee, and a Mancuso Scholar.
Ryan Feinblatt
Sara Newberg
Sara is a recent FSU Alumna (5/20) - she received her BS in Geography. She's currently a MLIS student concentrating in Archives Management at Simmons University and came to our Archives Department as an intern in March, 2021. She has assisted in various introductory projects, attaining experience in research for reference, exhibit, and historical; archival preservation; environmental controls; transcriptions of historic journals; indexing of newspapers and exhibit installations; and inventory of collections.
Sara: "My time as an intern at FSU’s Archives and Special Collections has given me valuable experience that I will be able to use in my future career as an archivist. It has also given me the unique opportunity to come back and work at my alma mater. It has given me the opportunity to learn more about the history of FSU through some of the research projects I have done. This in turn, has given me a better appreciation for FSU. My internship has also given me the opportunity to preserve some of the history of my alma mater for the future."
Yoshio Shartin
Yoshio Shartin is a graduate student at the University of Rhode Island and an intern in the Library. The Library has greatly benefited from Yoshio's assistance with the Library's online chat, responses to in-person student questions and requests, and creating and updating the Library's online LibGuides.
Learn more about Yoshio in our blog.
♫...Until We Meet Again ...♫
Sadly, during the Fall Semester, we had to say goodbye to three extraordinary coworkers: Maria Lentini, Claudia Osorio, and Sara Newberg.
Maria was an amazing asset to the Curriculum Library during her five years working here. She had an infectious energy and a dedicated work ethic. We will miss her but understand that it was time for her to move on to bigger and better things.
Claudia worked in the Library for more than 2 years in our e-Resources and Digital Services Department. She was a versatile member of the Library team who tackled video editing, audio recording, scanning, and visual presentations easily. Her enthusiasm and adaptability were inspiring.
Sara came to work in the Library's Archives Department during the last Spring Semester. She was gracious enough to continue working as an Archives intern from May-November of 2021. We are thankful for her assistance over the last 8 months, and look forward to hearing about her future successes in her studies and future career.
These three women will be missed by their Library colleagues. We are indebted to them for their hard work, dedication, and outstanding service to the library.
The Library just won't be the same - we truly enjoyed working with them and thank them for the positive impact they have had on the Library and the staff, both personally and professionally. We wish them well and much success in all of their future endeavors!
Claudia Osorio
Sara Newberg
Maria Lentini
Library Hours - Fall '21 & Winter '21/'22
Fall: Until 12/22/2021
Monday - Thursday: 8:00am - 11:00pm
Friday: 8:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm - 5:00pm
Sunday: 4:00pm - 11:00pm
Research & Learning -
Librarians are available to answer questions and book in-person or remote research appointments during the following days/times:
Monday - Thursday: 10:00am - 9:00pm
Friday: 10:00am - 2:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm - 5:00pm
Winter: 12/23/2021-01/16/2022
Monday - Friday: 8:00am - 5:00pm
Saturday - Sunday: Closed
Research & Learning -
By appointment only
* For complete listing, please see our hours page - days/hours may vary for holidays and intersessions.
Library Policies
Information about the Library's policies regarding access, borrowing, reference, interlibrary loan, circulation of materials, reserves, confidentiality of records, fines, public computers, diversity, and censorship can be found in this guide.
Answers to frequently asked questions are available in this guide.
Covid-19 Precautions
We look forward to seeing you at the Library!
Follow us on social media to learn more about Library events, any changes to our hours of operations, and to keep up with the latest news from the Whittemore Library ! We are @whittemorelib
Blog!
Henry Whittemore Library
Instagram: @whittemorelib
This newsletter is created and published by the Library's Social Media Committee and the Interim Dean of the Library. If you have any questions, suggestions or concerns about this newsletter, please reach out to us. Thank you.
Chair of the Social Media Committee: Kate Burt.
Email: kburt2@framingham.edu
Website: https://www.framingham.edu/academics/henry-whittemore-library/
Location: Henry Whittemore Library, State Street, Framingham, MA, USA
Phone: 508-626-4651
Facebook: facebook.com/whittemorelib
Twitter: @whittemorelib