SLIS August 29th New School Year Picnic

All Students, Faculty, Staff, Alumni and Friends Are Invited To

A Welcome the New School Year

BBQ and Pot Luck

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Noon to 4 p.m.

Marist Hall Lawn

A Time to Socialize with Your Teachers, Fellow Students and Those Who Have Gone Before!

Join the fun by bringing a side dish or dessert to share

—but all are invited!

RSVP to brzozowski@cua.edu

(To tell us you are coming and if you can bring something.)

Sponsored by

The School of Library and Information Science

& the SLIS Alumni Association Board

Welcome to CUA!

Hello new SLIS students and welcome to the School of Library and Information Science at The Catholic University of America. We are happy to have you!

As a reminder, please mark your calendar for the following important date:

New SLIS Graduate Student Orientation
Friday, August 28, 3:00-6:30 pm
Information Commons, Room 132 Marist Hall

Agenda · Welcome to SLIS · Obtain parking passes and student identification cards · Visit Mullen Library · SLIS Faculty Panel and Q&A · Dinner (please RSVP) · Student organization representatives for SLIS students

Directions

Please visit http://welcome.cua.edu for directions to campus and a campus map.

Please RSVP for the New Student Orientation by responding to this email. We look forward to meeting you!

Thank you.

Impress Your Professor: Word!

I was reading through my RSS feeds a few weeks back (Google Reader, you are so addictive) and came across a Wordle of President Obama's Inauguration speech. The word cloud shows that the words he spoke the most were "new" and "nation."

If you've never seen or heard of Wordle, it is a program that creates word clouds based on the prominence of a each word's use. It's one of those new fangled ways of reading. While I will argue that it certainly will not replace reading, it does give and interesting spin on how we can absorb the overly meaning or theme of something. These word clouds are interesting because they break an idea, webpage, or speech down into a single, textual image.

For example, the Wordle below is comprised of the text I cut and pasted from the About SLIS webpage. We are dominated by information.



I suggest inputting your own information and seeing what comes out. Warning, this may be addictive.

Impress Your Professor: Closer to Home

Did you know there's a lounge just for SLIS students in Marist Hall? I didn't. It's on the second floor right outside room 208 where almost all of my classes have met. This week's "Impress your Professor" is inspired by an e-mail sent by our adviser, Prof. Lussky. I'm just going to point out a few things about SLIS and the CUA campus that you may not know.

Computer Labs
There are several computer labs located around campus. Outside of the main computer lab in Leahy Hall and the terminals available at Mullen library, there are labs in Marist and the basement of O'Boyle Hall. Check out the CPIT "Find a Lab" website for more locations and hours. And don't forget that most areas of campus (including Marist Hall, the Pryz, and the Library) have wireless access.

On the Web
The School of Library and Information Science has a webpage that has a ton of helpful information. You can find class schedules, information about the comprehensive exams, a faculty and staff directory, a lab guide and technology tutorials page, and more information about other SLIS student organizations. There is a lot more information on the website; click around and find out more.

A page about the SLIS accreditation process has recently been made. Check it out for details about how the school is progressing.

And let's not forget Dean Kelley's blog. She's posted some great entries about the program and current accreditation process.

There were e-mails?
Did you know that SLIS has three listservs? Fellow students, professors, and alums of the program have posted some great tidbits and job opportunities. The listserv is also a great place to set up comps study groups and general get togethers. To sign-up, visit this page for instructions. It's quick and easy way to keep up to date with the program.

Coffee!
If you're like me, you find it tough to make it through the day without at least one cup of coffee. There are a couple places on campuses to grab a cup o' joe to go. There is a Starbucks located on the third floor of the Pryz. A coffee kiosk is also located in the lobby of Leahy.

More ASIS&T Please
Outside of this blog, there is a CUA student organization webpage for ASIST. We're currently in the process of updating, so please check back (both here and the blogs) for changes.


I hope these campus tidbits make your time at CUA easier and more enjoyable. There is so much more to know about SLIS and CUA. We'll try to post more of these entires to keep you informed. Also, if you've got a hint or tidbit, please leave it in the comments.

Enjoy the rest of the snow day everyone!

Event: CUA Open House

The CUA School of Library and Information Science is holding an Open House for prospective students.

If you've been reading this blog and think a career in library science is for you (or for a friend, or a coworker, or a relative), please check out please visit THIS website for more information.

When: Saturday, March 1 at 9:30 a.m.
Where: the Information Commons, 132 Marist Hall