Carpeting is done!

...and the Big Move begins. Carpeting and asbestos abatement are finally completed, and Library staff began moving furniture, offices, computers and books back in place.

(above: Norfolk pines back in place!)

(above: the books ready to go back on the shelves)

(above: books in crates and on carts, getting ready to go back on the shelves)

(above: the librarians moving back into their office)

Progress -- the home stretch!

The abatement is finally completed, the carpeting is almost completed and the new tile in the entrance is in place.

(above: moving the stacks, one shelf at a time!)

(aove: the circulating collection stacks -- with no books!)

(above: the collection in crates. This is (was!) the faculty librarians' office)

(above: chairs, chairs, chairs!)

Librarians can alphabetize...

...but can they count?

Friday's challenge was numbering the shelves so the books (which are in all those numbered crates (see below) can be reshelvd in order.

All together: ONE shelf, TWO shelves, THREE shelves...

This post was brought to you by the number 2001. Or 2012. Or 2043. Which is maybe how many shelves there are in the circulating collection.

Work in the Library continues

Carpeting and asbestos abatement (and the removal and storage of furniture, books, and shelves to make the work possible) continues.

(above: Extent of the work going on inside the Library becomes obvious for the first time outside the Library as the front doors are sealed, cordoned off, and posted with warning signs).

(above: the "back door" of the Library, leading to the circulation desk and staff offices. Caution!)

Work is expected to be completed, and the Library reopened to students, faculty and staff, in early June.

Moving the collection

The book stacks, relocated near the windows. The yellow crates (all 2,000 of them) are storing the books:

The people who made it all possible

Our brave movers:

And Kathy Clement: the project manager:

Progress downstairs

Work continues on the main level:

(above: the main floor, tented)

(above: the Reference area, no carpet!)

(above: the stairs are wood!)

(above: the original carpet -- orange!)

(above: the books in crates)

The balcony is done!

The upper level of the Library is re-carpeted, furniture moved back in, and the plants are back home!

Library carpet: progress!

The upper level of the Library is done! All the furniture, shelving, print periodicals, and plants were removed, the old carpet was ripped up, and new carpet laid (below).




After the carpet was laid, all t furniture was put back in place, the periodicals re-shelved, and in a delicate operation, the plants were returned!

Work continues on the main level.

A look at the new carpet:

Guess the name of the pattern:

A) Belly Flop

B) Belly Dancer

C) Dance Party

D) Party Crasher

Some Library services continue to be available in Room 234.

Stop by and see us.

Library Recarpeting: progress report

The Library project is moving ahead. Check here for updates.

To facilitate some of the dangerous and messy work, parts of the Library have to be sealed off with plastic sheeting:

(above: wrapping the stairs to the upper level)

(above: the stairs completely wrapped in plastic. Watch those books! They are next to go!)

(above: where did the books go? All the books had to be moved off the shelves and onto these carts)

(above: many of the books were packed into these yellow crates. You can see the empty shelves. All the shelving will have to be dismantled).

(above: as part of the process, all of the furniture in the Library had to be removed or moved out of the way. Here are study tables stacked on end, with more of those book crates. There are over 60,000 volumes in the Library collection that must be moved and stored, and 21,000 square feet to be carpeted).

Carpeting in room 327 (the Libray classroom) has been completed! Computers are being installed today.

Carpeting has begun on the upper level of the Library and should be completed tomorrow.

Remember: for the duration of the Library re-carpeting project, computers are available in the Open Computer Center in Room 155.

Study space is available throughout the Bisdorf Building -- look especially for the tables and chairs set up in the new wing, or Phase III.

Library staff can be contacted in room 234. You can also return materials in room 234, and find Reserve materials (text books).

Why can't I use the Library?

The Alexandria Campus Library is currently undergoing significant work for a re-carpeting project.


(above) Over the weekend (!), our dedicated crew of movers loaded all the books into these yellow boxes.

(above) The Library Reference area and main seating area, with all the furniture and shelving (and books!) removed.

(above) Where did all the furniture go? It's all piled up in the Circulation area!

NOTE: Some Library services are available for the duration of this project in room 234.

Library Services in Room 234

Welcome to the Library's temporary new "home". While the Library is being completely recarpeted (which requires removal of all the furniture and the all the book stacks!), Library staff will relocate to Bisdorf Room 234, right across the hall, to provide services to students.


Beginning May 17, some Library services will be available in room 234 from 8.30am - 7.30pm Monday - Thursday and 8.30am - 5pm Fridays. The Library does not have weekend hours during the summer.

Services available in room 234 include: course reserves, research assistance, daily newspapers, resolving student holds & fines, and intercampus loan delivery.

Please note: during the recarpeting, for safety reasons, the Library is required to close to faculty and staff as well as students. The print collection of books and periodicals will not be available during this time.

NOVA students may borrow materials from any NOVA campus library with a NOVAcard.

Electronic resources, including e-books, are available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week from the Library homepage. Research assistance is available online from the Ask a Librarian page.

Computers are available on campus in the Open Computer Center.

The carpeting throughout the Library has been in need of replacement for many years. We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to welcoming summer students back to the Library in the first week of June!

New Carpet

Student surveys said the Library looked "dated" and "shabby." We agree! So the Library is getting new carpet!

In order for the old carpet to be removed and the new carpet laid, the Library will CLOSE on Tuesday 11 May. For safety reasons, the Library will remain closed until the project is completed.

Beginning May 17, limited Library services (reserves, research assistance, hold removal, and intercampus loan pick up) will be available in Bisdorf Room 234 -- right across the hall from the Library's main entrance.

Check this space for updates. Or visit the Library Homepage. Or stop by Room 232 -- there will be signs posted on the front doors with new information as we have it.

Thanks for your patience.

We're looking forward to beautiful new carpet.

Students study early and late!

For the last week of classes and the week of final exams the Library opened 30 minutes early and stayed open an hour later.



Over 640 students used the Library earlier or later than normal term-time hours.

Study Early! Study Late!

Durnig the last week of classes and final exams the Alexanria Campus Library will observe extended hours. The Library will open 30 minutes early at 8am Monday - Friay and close 60 minutes late at 11pm Monday - Thursday.

Don't miss our popular Late Night study break!

Girls! And Resources! And Girls!

As part of our celebrations for National Library Week, we asked Library users what they liked most about the Alexandria Campus Library. Here's what they said:

Friendly staff * Well-kept study rooms with markers * I like your pencils * Faculty is very kind * Puzzles * Lots of excellent resources (books, articles, videos) * Pretty chill * Great teachers * Good for social life *Great study space * The [library] faculty is very kind and helpful * I just love it! * Great access to resources - online databases of journals &tc * You can meet lots of girls!

National Library Week at the Alexandria Campus

April 11 - 17 is National Library Week.



The Alexandria Campus Library launched National ibrary Week on April 6 with a presentation at the Honors Hour by Librarian and Faculty Emerita Mimi Gronlund on her recently-published biography of her father, “Supreme Court Justice Tom C. Clark: A Life of Service.” Clark served as U.S. Attorney General in the years immediately after World War II, and President Harry Truman appointed him to the Supreme Court where he served as an Associate Justice from 1949 to 1967. A large group gathered to hear Gronlund speak about her father’s career and her experience of writing the book, and any stayed to purchase a copy and have it signed by the author.

Gronlund was a librarian at the Alexandria Campus from 1976 to 1998. She was an active articipant on the Campus and in college life. She was also the recipient of the “Open Moment” fellowship, established in honor of Dean Cecil Shuler on his retirement. The fellowship provided the opportunity to begin her research at the Truman Library in Independence, Missouri.

The Library also asked Library users what they liked most about the Library. Answers ranged from "lots of excellent resources" to "great teachers" to "good place to meet girls."

Alexandria Campus Library: a little something for everyone!

Literary Cake -- Winner!

The Alexandria Library's very own Jane Maddan won the prize for "Most Beautiful Cake" in the Annandale Library's literary cakes contest. Jane's inspiration was Alice in Wonderland. Congratulations, Jane!

(when they cut the cake, were there cries of "Off with her head"?)

Book for a Buck: Book Sale Success

The Alexandria Campus Library's March Madness Book Sale took place on Wednesday 24 March. Library book sales have become much-anticipated campus events, with steady interest throughout the day. The "Y" was buzzing with students, faculty and staff scooping up the bargains (everything cost only $1.00). This semester's book sale raised over $260 for the Library.

Proceeds from the book sale support Library services for students, such as late-night snacks during final exams and National Library Week celebrations as well as Library collections.

Thank you for your support.

March Madness Book Sale

Everything's just $1.00!!

Everything Must Go!

It's Madness.

Join us for the Library's March Madness Book Sale Wednesday 24 March from 11am - 4pm.

Welcome Back

The Library resumed normal term-time hours on Monday March 15th after Spring Break.

It's that time of the year: term-paper time. If you need assistance doing research, using the Library's online or print resources, finding a computer or cracking citations, stop on by. We're here to help.

In other Library news, the puzzle is back! Welcome back and enjoy!

Spring Break

March 8 - 14 is NOVA's Spring Break. The Library will be open during Spring Break, keeping a modified schedule.

Monday March 8 - Wednesday March 10: 8.30am - 7.30 pm

Thursday 11 March: CLOSED

Friday 12 March: 8.30am - 5pm

Saturday 13 March: CLOSED

Research assistance & computer access will be available when the Library is open.

Enjoy the break!

Ragtime in the Library

In celebration of Black History Month, Alexandria Music Professor Harry Jacobson performed the music of Scott Joplin to a large and appreciative audience. Things looked a little different in the Library on Tues 23 February -- a piano appeared in the main reading room along with plenty of chairs. The concert was standing room only.

Read more about Scott Joplin with one of these titles:

Dancing to a Black Man's Tune. ML410 J75 C87 1994

Scott Joplin. ML410 J75 H34

Ragtime @ Your Library

The next Music in the Bisdorf event is scheduled for February 23 in the library and will work “in
concert” with the Campus’ African-American History Month celebrations. The featured faculty member will be Professor Harvey Jacobson who will perform selected piano pieces of the “King of Ragtime,” Scott Joplin. An early post-Constructionera African-American musician, Joplin is best known for composing “The Entertainer,” a staple among first-time piano students.

Back by popular demand!

You asked, and we heard you.

The very popular puzzle has returned to the Library. Find the puzzle opposite the Circulation Desk near the front doors.

So take a study break, take a rest, help finish the puzzle. And check back often, new puzzles are coming soon!

Spring 2010

Welcome back to Spring Term 2010. Classes resumed on 11 January and the Library is once again a busy place. Normal term-time hours also resumed (Mon - Thurs 8.30am - 10pm, Fri 8.30am - 5pm and Saturdays 9am - 4pm).

Need help doing research, finding that perfect article, or books on a topic? Stop by the Reference Desk and a librarian will be happy to help you.

Looking for the text book for your class? Ask at the Circulation/ Reserves desk -- the Library holds many current text books that can be used for 2 hours.

With instruction increasingly moving to online platforms like BlackBoard, FaceBook and websites, you may be looking for a computer. The Library has 40 computers available for student use (please be aware academic use takes priority). You can also access the wireless network (visit the IT Help Desk to find out how) or plug in at the wired carrelslocated on the upper level or on the main level behind the stacks.

Remember the Open Computer Center is available with more computers, color printing, a scanner and technical assistance.

You can also find places for individual and group study, quiet study, current magazines, international and national newspapers, and popular reading selections.

Have a great Spring Term!

Happy Christmas!

The Library staff wish the whole NOVA community a happy and healthy holiday.

Enjoy the break!

Extended Hours Serve 500

Between Dec 7 and Dec 18th the Library once again offered extended hours to accomodate students studying for finals exams or preparing final papers and projects. The Library opened half an hour early at 8am and closed an hour later at 11pm.

Nearly 500 students took advantage of the extended hours, visiting the Library before 8.30 or after 10pm. The Library was even busier during the daytime, when near-capacity crowds of over 200 students a time found places for solo study, group study, computer use, as well as borrowing books and textbooks.

Study-break snacks were also served to the late-night studiers. Over 100 cups of coffee, tea or cocoa were consumed over two weeks, along with countless cookies.

Library staff hope that the extended hours and study-break snacks helped to make final exams a little less stressful. Wishing everyone success at the end of term!

Time for Exams. More Library Study Time!

It's that time of the semester when final prjects, term paper and exams are upon us. In order to help NOVA students prepare for all this, the Library will once again offer extended hours.

Dec 7 - Dec 10 and Dec 14 - Dec 17 the Library will open at 8am and close at 11pm. On Fri Dec 11 and Dec 18 the Library will open at 8am and close at 5pm. that's 13 extra hours of study time!

In keeping with the Final Exam tradition snacks will be served in the evenings.

Top Google Searches for DC

Google has released it's year-end list of top searches by city.

DC's top ten make for interesting reading:

Washington, D.C.

1. fcps blackboard
2. national harbor
3. e street cinema
4. nova community college
5. wtop news
6. wmata
7. nationals baseball
8. dc restaurant week
9. washington sports club
10. leesburg outlets

(as NOVA students know, fcps blackboard refers to the online learning module BlackBoard).

Hint for #4: it's http://www.nvcc.edu/!

Flanders Fields

Nov 11th is Veterans Day (Remembrance Day in the rest of the English Speaking World) commemorating the Armistice which ended the hostilities of World War I on November 11th, 1918 ("on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month the guns in France fell silent").





The events and horrible human toll of WWI were commemorated in a poem by John McCrae:

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

Take a moment to remember the fallen. Express appreciation for the work and sacrifices of veterans. Events will be held at Arlington National Cemetery on Nov 11. The Alexandria Campus will sponsor several events on Nov 12th.

Or read up on WWI with one of these books:

The First World War: A Very Short Introduction. D521 H645 2008

Eleventh Month, Eleventh Day, Eleventh Hour: Armistice Day, 1918, World War I and its Violent Conclusion. D523 P44 2004

(and if you're wondering what the deal with the "red flower" is, check out the Poppy Appeal).

Matt Todd elected VLA President!

Matt Todd (Collection Development Librarian at the Alexandria Campus Library) was elected Vice-President/ President Elect of the Virginia Library Association.

Results of the state-wide elections were announced at the General Session of the 2009 Virginia Library Association Conference in Williamsburg.

Matt is the first community college librarian to serve as President and is the youngest person ever elected. Matt's presidential term will begin in 2010.

Matt has been active in VLA for 10 years, having served on the Region V committee since 2001 and serving on the Executive Board as Treasurer in 2008-9.