Good year for the Book Sale!

This year’s annual “Monster Book Sale” yielded over $2400.  A project of the Friends of the Sojourner Truth Library, with support from Library faculty and staff, the book sale each year supports the FOL’s mission to provide “an extra margin of excellence” for the SUNY New Paltz community.  Many thanks to the volunteers who made this possible.

STL and SUNY Launch New Library Services Platform

SUNY libraries migrated to a new platform over the summer of 2019.  The technology, known as Alma/Primo manages physical collections, electronic resources, and resource sharing (interlibrary loan). This new platform will allow SUNY libraries to better share resources and coordinate services, and will enable a more comprehensive catalog of the resources offered by SUNY New Paltz.

More information available on the Library website.

Check Out “The Teller”!

Where can you find your horoscope, learn how to make amazing vegetarian empanadas, read about how others have transcended body image with fashion, find out how to make herbal tinctures, and generally immerse yourself in the journalism, art, and creative writings of your New Paltz peers?

We recently added The Teller, a student-run lifestyle and literary magazine, to our print collection. It’s available for browsing and is located in the Current Periodicals area near the newspapers. It is also accessible online at http://thetellermag.wordpress.com.

Check It Out!(Cover image of The Teller)

Art Piece by Terry Adkins Installed in STL

Today (Monday, March 26) and tomorrow Terry Adkins’ sculpture “Mvet

portion of Mvet Truth by Terry Adkins [credit C. Nyquist]
Portion of Mvet Truth by Terry Adkins. [credit C. Nyquist]
Truth” will be installed on the Main Floor of the Library.  There will be periods of noise and disruption caused by drilling and the mounting of four large pieces.

More about “Mvet Truth”

A gift to the Sojourner Truth Library by the late Terry Adkins, the piece is a tribute to the spirit of Sojourner Truth. The late Mr. Adkins, an internationally known artist and former faculty member, said of this piece “MVET is

onomatopoetic, it refers to the sound made by some West African instruments. It is also symbolic of [Sojourner Truth’s] love of music and her angelic nature.”

Mr. Adkins NY Times obituary documents his extraordinary artistic range, and helps place in context the significance of this important gift to the Library.

Formerly mounted in the main entrance lobby, the sculpture was removed in November 2014 in preparation for the $14 million Library renovation.  A formal celebration of the re-installation is planned for Fall 2018.

Library in Inclement Weather

Friends and Colleagues,

Occasionally, despite our best efforts to ensure adequate staffing, weather conditions may make it necessary to close the Library early or open late.

Whenever the Library has an unexpected schedule change, we will always update

Please check one or more of these sources before planning a trip to the Library, especially when the weather is bad.  We will make every attempt to remain open for our regularly scheduled hours despite the predicted winter storm.

Thanks for your understanding.

Welcome to the Sojourner Truth Library – until 3am!

To the Class of 2017, Welcome!  And to our returning students, and faculty, Welcome Back!  Here’s a quick update on what’s new in the Sojourner Truth Library at SUNY New Paltz.  

Need help?  Visit our LibAnswers/Frequently Asked Questions page!

Late Night Study open until 3am

If, like me, you’re a late night person, and want a place to work after your roommate goes to sleep, the Library once again offers extended hours. Starting this week, the Library Late Night Study @ the Terrace is open from 11pm until 3am, Sunday through Wednesday.  Wireless, laptops and a printer will be available, and most important: a quiet place to work.  Remember, during Midterms and Finals the Late Night Study Room will be open all night until 8am.

The Terrace is located to the west of the Library, across from the main Library parking lot.

 James H. Ottaway to Speak

James H. Ottaway, Jr., distinguished journalist, publisher, and newspaper executive will deliver the seventh annual Dennis O’Keefe Memorial Lecture, sponsored by the Friends of the Sojourner Truth Library, at 5 p.m. on Thursday, September 19, in Coykendall Science Building Auditorium..

Mr. Ottaway’s long career in journalism began as a reporter and associate editor of the News-Times of Danbury, Connecticut and culminated in his retirement from the Board of Directors of Dow Jones & Company. He has long been affiliated with numerous philanthropic organizations, serving on the boards of Doctors without Boarders, Human Rights Watch, the American School of Classical Studies (Athens), and the Walkill Valley Land Trust, among other organizations.  Please join us for a stimulating talk and reception afterwards.

 [London] Times Online & other major additions

Over the last few months, the Library has added significant new digital collections. These include the Times Digital Archive, which provides the London Times newspaper in full text from 1785 (yes, before the French Revolution) to 2007.  Also added: Art Index Retrospective, which indexes articles from more than 420 periodicals published throughout the world from 1928 to 1984; and Readers’ Guide Retrospective, which indexes popular, general-interest periodicals published in the United States from 1890 to 1982.  Finally, the Gannett Newspapers Database provides access to over 85 Gannett newspapers, six from New York State: Poughkeepsie JournalPress and Sun Bulletin (Binghamton), Ithaca JournalDemocrat & Chronicle(Rochester), Journal News (White Plains), and the Star Gazette (Elmira).

More iPads

The Library now has 25 iPads available at the Checkout Desk for 7 day loan and five available for 3 hour in-library use, more than double what we offered at the start of last year.  Be sure and review the lending policy before borrowing.

Starbucks coming back

We in the Library were thrilled along with all of you at the opening of the “We Proudly Serve Starbucks” mini-cafe in the Sojourner Truth Library.  Likewise, we mourn the temporary closing, due to some required extra plumbing work.  But the good news is that it should be back online in 1½ – 2 weeks — just in time for midterms!

Art, Art History and Music Back in Open Stacks

Finally, our heavily used Art, Art History and Music books have been liberated from moveable shelving into fully accessible open stacks.  Library student workers worked tirelessly over the summer to shift the entire ground floor collection to recover the space needed.  Heartfelt thanks to our junior colleagues for this extraordinary effort!

We look forward to making you feel welcome in the Library. No question is too simple, or too unimportant to ask.  Try us out when you’re facing your next research paper or assignment.

Thanks!

 Mark