Author Archives: Penny McGinnis

Clermont Haiku Contest

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In honor of National Poetry Month, the East Fork Journal and the Clermont College Library are sponsoring the 8th Annual Haiku Contest beginning March 25. 

You must be a Clermont College student to participate. Write up to 3 haiku and submit them for a chance to win a $50 gift card.  Professors Phoebe Reeves and Cassie Fetters will serve as our judges.

You may begin submitting entries on March 25. Drop your typed entries off at the Clermont College Library.

The entry deadline is April 10th. 

Go forth and haiku!

Penny McGinnis
Technical Services Manager

Pi Day at Clermont

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Have you ever pondered pi? Does 3.14 and beyond interest you? Whether you find this mathematical constant fascinating or not, you will want to be a part of our Pi Day celebration.

Beginning March 1, sign up to win a Pi t-shirt. The winner’s names will be drawn on March 14. Five shirts will be given away. Stop by the Clermont College Library and fill out an entry with your name, email, and preferred size.

On March 14, our math professors will be passing out pi(e) and coffee in the hallway, in front of the library. If you are up to a challenge, stop by Dr. Malla’s table and write out pi to as many digits as you can remember.

Penny McGinnis
Technical Services Manager

 

Book Review: How to be a Good Creature

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In How to be a Good Creature: A Memoir in Thirteen Animals, Sy Montgomery shares her life of loving and studying animals. Sy is a National Book Award Finalist and naturalist. Each chapter focuses on a different creature who transformed her life. Throughout the essays, she reflects on the effects the animals had on her and how she practiced life a bit differently, thanks to their influence. One of the most amusing stories involved a pig named Christopher Hogwood, a beloved pet.

How to be a Good Creature is available as an e-book and a hardback.

Penny McGinnis
Technical Services Manager
Clermont College Library

The Case for Exploring Open Textbooks

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Did you know that between 1998 and 2016, the cost of college textbooks increased 181%? That’s almost 4 times as much as all other consumer products during that same time period. The average Clermont College student should have budgeted $1500.00 for course materials in 2017-18. As a result, students may resort to delayed purchasing of a textbook, purchasing an older version, sharing a textbook, or never purchasing it at all.

So, what can we do to help with the burden of high textbook costs and ensure students have access to course information beginning the first day of a course?

Consider adopting an open textbook!

Open textbooks are free for students to use in electronic formats. Some are also available to order in print for a low cost. In addition, these textbooks can be adapted and repurposed by faculty to better align with specific course outcomes.

You might be asking yourself, how does a free textbook measure up to more expensive, traditional textbooks? It turns out, pretty well! A recent study showed that the use of open textbooks and open educational resources led to improved grades and decreased DFW rates for all students, with the most dramatic improvements occurring for at-risk populations.

Curious to learn more?

Check out the Open Educational Resources at Clermont library guide or consider speaking with a fellow faculty member. A number of Clermont College faculty have already adopted open textbooks. Dr. Noah MacKenzie, Associate Professor of Psychology, adopted an open textbook for the fall semester of 2018 and shared that, “student feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.” Assistant Professor Educator Carolyn Goodman surveyed her students and the results were all positive. Students appreciated that the language in the book was appropriate for their level and that they didn’t have to purchase a book. The academic results are impressive as well with 88% of her students showing mastery in early October.

Ready to explore open textbooks in your area?

Your liaison librarian would be happy to help you identify or adapt a textbook that will work for your class. If you aren’t ready to adopt an open textbook, but are interested in exploring other open educational resources, we can help with that as well.

Any questions? Let us know how we can help!

Heather Mitchell-Botts
Instruction Librarian

photo from: https://opensource.com/education/13/2/boundless-free-alternative-textbooks

Manuel Iris, Cincinnati Poet Laureate, to visit Clermont College Library

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Please join us November 7, 2018 at 2:30 pm for a reading and book signing by Manuel Iris, author of Translating Silence/Traducir el silencio. Appointed Cincinnati Poet Laureate in 2018, Manuel is charged with “promoting poetry appreciation, encouraging the reading and writing of poetry throughout the city, and composing and reading poems for special events and occasions.” (City of Cincinnati) Come listen as he brings his poetic inspiration to UC Clermont.

He will also host a Q & A and writing workshop the same day, at 10:10 am in Student Services, room 240.

Penny McGinnis
Technical Services Manager

Guggenheim Grant-Winning Essayist John Jeremiah Sullivan to Speak at UC Clermont

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In collaboration with the UC Clermont English, Languages & Fine Arts Department, the Clermont College Library is proud to announce An Evening With John Jeremiah Sullivan on Wednesday, November 14.  John Jeremiah Sullivan is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and the southern editor of The Paris Review. He writes for GQ, Harper’s Magazine, and Oxford American, and is the author of Blood Horses and Pulphead.

Tickets for Sullivan’s talk are $5. Tickets to a VIP reception with the author (to include the talk, refreshments, and a signed copy of Pulphead) are also available on a limited basis. Proceeds from the event will benefit Clermont College scholarships.

Reserve your seat today and support the future of UC Clermont students: https://foundation.uc.edu/sullivan

Katie Foran-Mulcahy
Library Director

Learn More About Women in Science

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In celebration of this year’s UC Common Read, the Clermont College Library and the Academic Support Committee presented a panel discussion entitled Women in Science: Conversations to Spark Success. Moderated by Dr. Margaret Hanson, Associate Dean for Natural Sciences at UC’s College of Arts and Sciences, the panel engaged science and math faculty in conversation about their professional pathways.

Our Clermont College faculty panelists included Dr. Krista Clark, Professor of Biology; Carolyn Goodman, Assistant Professor Educator of Mathematics; and Dr. Jill Shirokawa, Annual Adjunct Assistant Professor of Chemistry.

For more information about the UC Common Read, Radioactive: Marie and Pierre Curie, A Tale of Love and Fallout by Lauren Redniss, please view this UC Libraries guide: https://guides.libraries.uc.edu/commonread/2019/radioactive

Want to learn more about women in science, check out these books:

Visionary women : how Rachel Carson, Jane Jacobs, Jane Goodall, and Alice Waters changed our world by Andrea Barnet

Wonder women : 25 innovators, inventors, and trailblazers who changed history by written by Sam Maggs ; illustrated by Sophia Foster-Dimino

Maria Sibylla Merian & daughters : women of art and science by Ella Reitsma ; assisted by Sandrine Ulenberg ; [translation, Lynne Richards]

She’s such a geek! : women write about science, technology & other nerdy stuff by edited by Annalee Newitz & Charlie Anders

The science on women and science by Christina Hoff Sommers, editor

Headstrong : 52 women who changed science–and the world by Rachel Swaby

Scientific pioneers : women succeeding in science by Joyce Tang

Sisters in science : conversations with black women scientists about race, gender, and their passion for science by [interviews by] Diann Jordan

So you want to be a scientist? by Philip A. Schwartzkroin

Hidden figures : the American dream and the untold story of the Black women mathematicians who helped win the space race by Margot Lee Shetterly

Beyond Curie : four women in physics and their remarkable discoveries, 1903 to 1963 by Scott Calvin

The Curies : a biography of the most controversial family in science by Denis Brian

Marie Curie and her daughters : the private lives of science’s first family by Shelley Emling

Obsessive genius : the inner world of Marie Curie by Barbara Goldsmith

The gentle subversive : Rachel Carson, Silent spring, and the rise of the environmental movement by Mark Hamilton Lytle

On a farther shore : the life and legacy of Rachel Carson by William Souder

Lab girl by Hope Jahren

Chrysalis : Maria Sibylla Merian and the secrets of metamorphosis by Kim Todd

Seeds of hope : wisdom and wonder from the world of plants by Jane Goodall with Gail Hudson ; [foreword by Michael Pollan]

The Mercury 13 : the untold story of thirteen American women and the dream of space flight by Martha Ackmann

The woman who smashed codes : a true story of love, spies, and the unlikely heroine who outwitted America’s enemies by Jason Fagone

Natalie Winland
Public Services Manager

Trouble Deciphering Fact from Fiction? We Can Help!

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As the midterm elections approach, we are all being bombarded with political ads, sensational news, and social media posts designed to persuade you to vote for a particular candidate. But how do you know what to believe when the information you see is contradictory or inflammatory?

Use the suggestions below to get to the truth.

  1. Consider the claim being made. Does it make sense? Can you verify the claim through another source?
  2. Use a fact-checker like PolitiFact, FactCheck.org, or Snopes. They check the credibility of claims and provide you with links to sources to back up their rating.
  3. Pay attention to any sources cited or links embedded in articles. Follow links and citations to attempt to get to an original source of information.
  4. Don’t be afraid to do a Google search about the topic, the candidate, the publication, or the sponsor of the information. You never know what you’ll find out.
  5. Look at the original date of the information. Is it old information that has been recycled? If so, is it still relevant to current events?
  6. Check the sponsor, author, or authority of the information. Do they have an agenda or display a particular bias?
  7. If you are looking at a news source, check the Media Bias Chart. It can also be helpful to read about the creation of the chart, methodology, and additional charts by news network on the ad fontes media

Think you’re an expert at spotting fake news? Test yourself using Factitious: The Spot the Fake News Game.

You may also find the following links helpful when researching how to vote in the upcoming election.

Election Resources at UCBA

USA.gov: Voting and Elections

Political Advertising on Google

How to Spot Fake News

As always, Clermont College Library staff are happy to assist if you have any questions!

Heather Mitchell-Botts
Instruction Librarian

Match the Selfie to the Shelfie

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The Clemont College Library staff plus two of the tutors from the Academic Success Center were challenged to choose one favorite book. Not an easy task! But we did it. Now you have a chance to match the person (selfie) with their favorite book (shelfie.) Check out the bulletin board in the hall by the library. Fill out the entry and drop it in the contest box on the library’s information desk. One lucky winner will receive a $25 Subway gift card.

Penny McGinnis
Technical Services Manager