For one week a year, the American Library Association promotes a week-long celebration of the nation’s libraries. From public libraries to the libraries at private universities, the American Library Association recognizes all libraries during this celebration.
Each year the ALA has a different theme for Library Week. The theme for 2017 was “Libraries Transform” and the theme for Library Week 2018 is “Libraries Lead.” The ALA chooses the theme for Library Week and the rest is up to each individual library.
The AOK Library is holding one very specific event for Library Week: a poetry contest. The poetry contest not only fits into Library Week, but also corresponds with April, which is poetry month.
The poetry contest is the main focus of the library during Library Week. It is a chance for the whole campus to get involved. About this, Librarian Aimee Plaisance said, “people have a chance to show their creativity.”
The poetry contest will be going on throughout the week and there will be three winners. Each winner will be gifted a pre-paid printer card. These cards will allow the winners to print for free. As a bonus, all entrants to the poetry contests will be entered into a separate contest that opens for everyone else on April 23. This contest will be a celebration specifically of the AOK library. The winner of this contest will get a personal study room for the entirety of finals week. More details will be released from the library as April 23 draws near.
Another thing that the AOK Library did for Library Week was to have a table in the atrium of the AOK Library. The table was specifically designed to show UMBC students all that the library has to offer them. There are a lot of resources at the library, such as cameras for rent, audio recording devices for rent, microfilm machines, and a variety of other resources that are open to all students at UMBC.
Plaisance said “I think it is a fun week to get students in touch with the things in the building that people don’t use all the time.” It is these specific “things in the building that people don’t use all the time” that the table in the atrium spotlighted for anyone who stopped by.
Library Week is a week dedicated to libraries around the nation and the AOK Library fully participates. With events specific to UMBC students and campus life, the AOK Library, and those employed there, take full advantage of the week to bring the library to the students.
