Panel to discuss “This is Not a Slush Pile: Surfacing the Submissions Queue”

On Thursday March 26th, in the Elliston Poetry Room, 646 Walter C. Langsam Library, the team behind UC’s Poetry Stacked reading series welcomes three writer/editors in various spaces of the literary publishing business to discuss the state of submissions and journals/presses in 2026.  

poetry stacked This is not a Slush Pile

  

The panelists include:  

  • Lisa Ampleman of Cincinnati Review 
  • Matt Hart of Solid State 
  • Sara Moore Wagner of Driftwood Press and Anthology 

The panel will be moderated by Ben Kline of UC Libraries, with students, faculty and staff granted time to ask questions after the panel discussion. 

The panelists will address such questions as: 

  • What are you seeing in your submissions and what would you like to see more or less of?
  • How much research is necessary when choosing where to submit? 
  • How does the volume of submission queues drive response and publishing schedules?
  • And other related topics. 

The workshop is free and open to all. Refreshments will be served.

UC Libraries seeks books good enough to eat for the International Edible Books Festival April 1st

Know of a good book to eat?! Create an Edible Book for UC Libraries International Edible Books Festival!

UC Libraries seeks books good enough to eat for the International Edible Books Festival April 1st
Dragons Love Tacos. Edible book by Lexi Davis, 2025 Best Overall

It’s time once again for the fan-favorite International Edible Books Festival scheduled for Wednesday, April 1, 2025, 11 a.m. on the 4th floor of the Walter C. Langsam Library. UC Libraries is seeking people interested in creating an edible book for the enjoyment of all in attendance. There are few restrictions – namely that your creation be edible and have something to do with a book – so you may let your creativity run wild.

As in previous years, entries will be judged according to such categories as “Most Delicious,” “Most Creative,” “Most Checked Out” and “Most Literary.” Those awarded “Best Student Entry” and “Best Overall” will win UC swag.

Looking for inspiration? View images from last year’s Edible Books on the Libraries Facebook page.

Interested in creating an Edible Book? Complete the entry form by Wednesday, March 25.

Join your research peers at the 2026 Undergraduate Research Summer Learning Community 

box of donuts

Do you have summer plans yet?  We would love for you to join us in the library for research fun and skills.  The 2026 Undergraduate Research Summer Learning Community is a great way to learn about research, acquire research skills and meet other undergraduates either interested in or currently doing research.  This year the community will run from June 3 to July 22 and meet every Wednesday morning from 9:30 am to 11 am.  The first session will include a celebratory meal and networking to kick off the 8 weeks of skills, friends and fun.  Each session will be facilitated by a mentor engaged in undergraduate research support and will be offered as both in-person and virtually via zoom.  In-person sessions will also have donuts and coffee. The final session will be in-person and feature an Opportunities Fair and more networking time. Attendees of at least 5 sessions will get a digital certificate of attendance which will look great on your LinkedIN profile. You can register and learn more information about the program and weekly topics by visiting the URSLC webpage.  Email askdata@uc.edu for more information and if you have any questions.   

Classroom of students.  They sit in groups at tables that each have a computer monitor at the wall near them

The URSLC is sponsored by UC Libraries and is offered in collaboration with the TRIO McNair Scholars, University Honors Discover program, and the CEAS Office of Professional Development & Community Impact.  The program is free and open to any undergraduate (UC and beyond) interested in research. 

UC Libraries celebrates Open Education Week March 2-6 with launch of the Zero Textbook Cost Grant Program

open  education week graphic

In response to the growing cost of course materials, the University of Cincinnati Libraries is launching the Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) Grant Program. Available to UC faculty to apply, the aim of the program is to incentivize and support the adoption of either open educational resources (OERs) or library resources into general education and high-enrollment courses at UC. The program will provide material support in the form of grants for adopting, adapting, creating or maintaining zero-cost course materials and will build resources and infrastructure for success within UC Libraries and the UC community at large. 

The ZTC Grant Program supports the integration of OERs and existing library resources into course curricula with the goal of replacing paid textbooks and course materials with the zero-cost model and maximizing student savings. To ensure this, the program is committed to providing financial, structural and instructional support to address common barriers to engagement.

Grants will be awarded in four categories: Adoption, Adaptation, Creation and Maintenance. They will have a staggered launch with Adoption, Adaptation and Maintenance grants launching in March 2026 (with awards administered in FY 2026–2027) and Creation grants tentatively scheduled for launch in October 2026.

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Welcome to the library: Celebrate recently updated spaces that elevate access, collaboration and services

Join UC Libraries this spring at events to celebrate newly updated spaces that foster an adaptive, accessible and productive user experience.

Science Library – February 16

science library

The fall semester saw the opening of a combined Science Library in Braunstein Hall. This thoughtfully transformed space creates a united hub of services, spaces, technology and specialized collections dedicated to supporting the teaching and research needs of the Natural Sciences departments within the College of Arts & Sciences. Although its collections focus on the sciences, the Science Library invites ALL to come and enjoy and make use of the revitalized space in the heart of UC’s campus.

Celebrate Our Grand Opening!
We invite you to join us on Monday, February 16 from 2:00-4:00pm for the Science Library’s Grand Opening Reception! Enjoy refreshments, learn about our new spaces and services, be inspired by our special collections displays, explore science through demonstrations and more!

DaVInci @ Langsam – April 2

Welcome to the library: Celebrate recently updated spaces that elevate access, collaboration and services

The Data Visualization and Interaction at Cincinnati (DaVInCi) team led by Jillian Aurisano, assistant professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, has created a collaborative space in the library. DaVInCi@Langsam is designed to support collaboration in research and teaching at UC. It offers a large display screen and specialized software that allow everyone in the room to share content and interact. Ongoing research is exploring new ways to heighten interaction with displayed content on the expansive display.

Drop into the DaVInCi@Langsam Open House
Check out the possibilities of the collaborative space at an open house on Thursday, April 2 from 9:30-11:30am, Langsam Library’s 4th floor. Enjoy refreshments while viewing demos of the technology and learn how to reserve and use the space.

CECH Library Reading Room – April 21

Welcome to the library: Celebrate recently updated spaces that elevate access, collaboration and services

The beginning of spring semester brought with it the opening of the renovated College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services (CECH) Library Reading Room. Located on the 4th floor of the Teachers-Dyer Complex, and totaling more than 3,000 square feet, the reading room is accessible via the staircase in the CECH Library or directly for those with a Bearcat ID.

Bathed in natural light, the renovated reading room features flexible, soft seating arrangements in the room’s south and north ends and four large study tables with integrated lighting (coming soon) and power access. An inclusive, reservable study room (400B) features adaptive lighting and study and focus tools.

Celebrate the CECH Library Reading Room Opening
Tuesday, April 21, 2:30-4:30pm, CECH Library Reading Room, 400 Teachers-Dyer Complex. Tour the space, hear remarks from UC Libraries and CECH and enjoy the refreshed space.

Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries

source graphic

Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.

In this issue of Source, Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian, writes about a new global library collaboration with the library at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. We announce the opening of two renovated library spaces: the Science Library and the CECH Library Reading Room as we bid a fond farewell to Crosley Tower. We highlight library services in the CECH Library to improve accessibility and our expanding Evidence Synthesis group. Library collections are on display in the Chem Bio building renovation featuring the Oesper Collection and online in a new exhibit by the Archives and Rare Books Library about the Bronson v. the Cincinnati Board of Education. Spring is events season in UC Libraries, and we feature those currently on the calendar.

Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list.

Join us Feb. 18 for an afternoon of poetry at the next Poetry Stacked event

The University of Cincinnati Libraries and the Elliston Poetry Room announce the next roster of poets for Poetry Stacked, a semi-regular poetry reading series held in the 6th floor east stacks of the Walter C. Langsam Library.

At the next event, scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 4:30pm, three poets will read their original work:

  • Richard Hague is author or editor of 23 volumes, including, with Sherry Cook Stanforth and Michael Thompson, Tributaria: Poetry, Prose, & Art Inspired by Tributaries of the Ohio River Watershed, the poetry collection Continued Cases, and the essay collection Earnest Occupations: Teaching, Writing, Gardening, & Other Local Work. He was named Co-Poet of the Year in 1984 by the Ohio Poetry Association, received the Appalachian Poetry Book of the Year in 2003, and the Weatherford Award in Poetry in 2013. He has been a Pushcart Prize nominee in both poetry and nonfiction and has received several Individual Artist Fellowships in poetry and creative nonfiction from the Ohio Arts Council, and a Katherine Bakeless Scholarship in Creative Nonfiction to Bread Loaf. He is 2025-2027 Poet Laureate of Cincinnati & The Mercantile Library and was 2021-2022 President of the Literary Club of Cincinnati. He has taught writing in Cincinnati and elsewhere for 56 years.
  • Chelsea Whitton is the author of Bear Trap and Wonder Wheel, forthcoming in March of 2026. She holds a PhD from the University of Cincinnati and an MFA in Poetry from The New School. Her poetry and prose have appeared in many of print and online publications, including Beloit Poetry Journal, Copper Nickel, Cream City Review, Poetry Ireland, The Atlanta Review, and Forklift-Ohio. Her work has been a finalist for the Gearhart Prize and the Frost Place and Adrienne Richard awards for poetry. She is the recipient of the 2018 Sandy Crimmins National Poetry Prize. Since 2021 she has been a staff member for the Sewanee Writers’ Conference. Raised in North Carolina, she spent her twenties in New York, and now lives in Cincinnati with her husband, Matthew, their twin sons, and their cat, Dolly. She teaches creative writing and literature at the Art Academy of Cincinnati. 
  • Emma Johnson-Rivard is a doctoral student in creative writing at the University of Cincinnati. Her work has appeared in Strange Horizons, Tales to Terrify, Red Flag Poetry, and others. She can be found @blackcattales on Bluesky and at emmajohnson-rivard.com
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UC Libraries Closed Monday, Jan. 19 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

The University of Cincinnati Libraries will be closed Monday, Jan. 19 in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The Libraries will resume normal hours on Tuesday, Jan. 20.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., pictured with Louise Shropshire and two others.
Martin Luther King, Jr., pictured with prominent Cincinnatian and gospel singer, Louise Shropshire. Courtesy of The Archives and Rare Books Library.