Special Library Visit – Library of Congress, Washington D.C.

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The Space and Access

Great Hall. View from the first floor. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C.

I had the privilege of visiting the Library of Congress, which can only be described as one of the most enriching experiences as a student of library sciences. Walking into the building built in the 1800s, you see the majestic architecture with columns reaching 75 feet in the air, marble flooring & massive staircases with mosaic walls and stained-glass windows. It is designed to be a research collection for Congress, but it is also open to the public. At the moment, you have to make an online request for a timed entry to visit. When visiting, the most awe-inspiring room was the reading room, where you can order materials and study.  

Great Hall. View from the First floor. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C.

(Nagashima, S., 2022)

Collections

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If you request reading room access, you have access to the world’s greatest collection of humanity’s knowledge. The Library of Congress holds over 173 million items and received more than 15,000 items a day and adds about 10,000 of those to the collection. Also, The Library of Congress is also the largest law library in the world. The collection is vast and diverse with materials in 470 languages.

To get access to the reading room, it is suggested to apply online before your visit. Once there you go to the ground floor level and meet with the very friendly & helpful staff member who verifies your online information, takes your picture, and gives you your card which is valid for two years. Then you can walk across the hall to the entrance to the reading room where you can request materials. Materials if onsite can take an hour to receive or you can request them online and the materials are held for 3 days. If the materials are in another location it may take up to 3 days to receive and the items are held for 14 days.

Main Reading Room, View from research desk first floor. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C. (Nagashima, S., 2022)

Special Events & Services

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Not only does The Library of Congress have materials to request but they have special events for the public to experience from movies in the great hall to workshops and webinars.   One recent special event was a display of the library’s rare books recollecting Juneteenth the emancipation of African Americans which was available for viewing in the main reading room. Another great service they are organizing is called the Veterans History Project.   The goal is to collect and make accessible the firsthand remembrances of World War 1 to the present times.  Special Libraries have the responsibility to preserve history in all kinds of ways in order to pass it to future generations (Rubin & Rubin, 2020, p. 94-95). To preserve this history is monumental and anyone 15 years or older can get a field kit to learn how to document history. 

Signage of Veteran History Project, Ground floor corridor. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C. (Nagashima, S., 2022)

Digital Access & Accessibility

The library of Congress’s website is well organized and assessable to all. On most pages, you can alter the language with a simple dropdown button. They are committed to providing access to all and have an ADA coordinator on staff to help arrange interpreting services, touch history tours, and assistance with their BARD mobile app. The BARD mobile app gives access to talking books, braille, and audio recordings. They truly want to be a role model for libraries and offer numerous services and options of ways to access the collection.

This truly was an extraordinary, monumental visit for me and I plan to go back to request some materials and hold history in my hands.

Main Reading Room, Domed Ceiling. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C. (Nagashima, S., 2022)

References

Nagashima, S. (2022) Great Hall, Main Reading Room, Signage of Veteran History Project, Main Reading Room. [Photographs of Library of Congress]

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.

Public Library Visit – Manassas City Library , Manassas, Virginia

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I was pleased to visit one of the newest libraries in Prince Willian County, Manassas City Library. This library’s located at 10104 Dumfries Road in a Wellington Station shopping center next to a grocery store. The store front looks like a retail store rather than a library, but the convenience of its location is one of its outstanding features. The library is convenient to the community and appropriately accessible with proper signage to welcome all patrons.

When I visited, there was a children’s program in progress in the front of the library. This library is not one of those libraries that promotes quietness. Because of the vast openness of the room, it was wonderfully vibrant, with children laughing. This library’s energy makes it a very suitable place for families to feel welcomed.

The next thing I noticed was the free-standing circulation desk in the middle of the library. It was not a large area but had exceedingly high plexiglass. With all the activity, it was hard to hear the library staff. I assume anyone hard of hearing or needing a quiet environment would find this library uncomfortable. The services that they offer are what you would find in any other library. Although, their website states that they have a collaboration with Area Agency on Aging. Through the program Meals on Wheels, home-bound patrons and older adults may receive delivery of nutritious meals and library materials. What a perfect delivery of a nice dinner with entertainment! The library also offers Memory Kits that contain different themed DVDs, flashcards, and activity cards. The purpose of the kits is to encourage storytelling and reminiscence to help individuals with memory issues. Rubin & Rubin mention that the public library has to continue to prove its value to the community so that the community continues to support the public library (2020, p. 112). Over time, I am sure these efforts will benefit this library and community.

They have a small study room in the back of the library with a TV monitor. The room would be a perfect size for a book club meeting or small HOA but not large enough for most community-planned events. As I walked to one side of the room, I was surprised to find an extensive hold section with numerous books waiting for pickup. It then dawned on me that this location next to the grocery store is perfect for this service.

This library is incredibly excellent for families to enjoy. It truly is the heart of the community.

References:

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.

Academic Library Visit – Northern Virginia Community College, Manassas, VA (7/12/22)

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The Space, Physical Access & Staff

Driving onto the Northern Virginia Community College, you first notice the beautiful, serene campus surrounded by trees. The campus was not intimating in size and made me curious to see the campus’s library.
After parking, I walked down this beautiful trail to the building and found the library on the Lower Level. Accessing the library was easy with a ramp, and signage was typical. My first impression walking in was noticing the back wall of all windows that looked out to a parklike area. Anyone would love to study there with such a calm, peaceful view. Then as you walk into the library, you see the circulation desk front and center. The two staff were engrossed in conversation, and very few people were there. This campus is an older building built in the 1970s, and the library has that same feel. One impressive thing was that the whole middle of the library was set up for studying, with many tables, some specifically made to accommodate wheelchairs. Also, the library has 6 group study rooms available with collaboration stations & dry-erase boards.

NOVA Library entrance, Manassas, Virginia (Nagashima, 2022)

Services & Intellectual Access

Next to the extensive study area was a large section of periodicals and pleasure reading magazines. Conveniently these magazines were located next to the study tables. Located near the study tables were the computers and library catalog access computers. The layout of this academic library, albeit small, was designed with much thought. This academic library is true to what Rubin & Rubin describe as a true ” learning space” rather than just books for reference (2020, p. 171).

NOVA Library, Manassas, Virginia (Nagashima, S. 2022)

Being summer, I did not see any signage about programs, but the next thing I noticed was a couple of appealing displays of books focused on pleasure reading. One display had many manga books, and another displayed about space. Another display area read “Spring into Reading,” which did not have a particular theme to the books; also strange since it was the middle of July. It was pleasing to see that they had nice reading areas for studying and even big bean bag chairs for the students to enjoy.

NOVA Library, Manassas, Virginia (Nagashima, S. 2022)

Collections

As I perused the aisle of books, I was looking for diversity in their collection and noticed a section labeled foreign language Children’s Literature. I was pleasantly surprised to see Spanish, Korean, and Mandarin. Also nearby and easy to spot was a section of books helping individuals with TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language). The collection looked like a typical academic library collection, categorized by Library of Congress system.

NOVA Library, Manassas, Virginia (Nagashima, S. 2022)

Digital Access & Resources

The website for the library is not specifically for the Manassas location but is very resourceful and easy to navigate.   The website encompasses many databases, research guides, the catalog, and LibChat, with chat available 24/7 to answer questions. One great benefit is that NOVA students and staff have reciprocal borrowing privileges with George Mason’s Libraries. Manassas location has one unique collection of digitized images from the dedication of the Manassas Campus. Another excellent online feature worth mentioning is their blog. 

INTERESTING!

One very surprising thing was the massive project that I mentioned earlier. As you can see from the photo, they are giving away about two aisles of books! They even supplied boxes so you could carry them home. Clearly, they are making room for new books, but I was just surprised at the amount of weeding taking place at one time.

NOVA Library, Manassas, Virginia (Nagashima, S. 2022)

References:

Nagashima, S. (2022) NOVA Library. [Photographs of Northern Virginia College Library, Manassas Campus]

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.

School Library Visit – Bennett Elementary School, Manassas, VA

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As you can see from the picture, Bennett Elementary School Library is a welcoming place. This school is in Manassas, Virginia, and is in a struggling economic area. When looking at the website, the first thing that you notice is the vision statement which states the desire to create a safe, welcoming place for all students and to provide a variety of literary choices. It is clear from the library’s website and calendar events that they go the extra mile to make this library a wonderful experience for the children.

Bennett Library, Bennett Elementary School, Manassas, Virginia (Bennett, 2022)

In the physical space, all the books are at the children’s eye level and neatly organized in solid shelving units. The seating area was made up of wood tables and chairs which is traditional & practical. In other school libraries, you might see bean bags and comfort, but this library makes up for that in their extra services.

One extra nice service that the librarians offer is Bennett Birthday Books. The effort was designed with the idea that the students can always open a book over and over like a present keeping it forever. This activity asks for the community and parents to donate money to be able to purchase books. One year they raised over $1000! What an accomplishment!

Most other activities try to encourage these young readers to grow into books and gain a love of reading. The library also offers encore services, Battle of the books, and participates in Virginia’s Reader’s Choice Awards. But another most amazing effort spearheaded by the librarians was the dedication of a free library at the bus loop. It is understood that the children can check out a book during the school year but to have a free library with books available for summer reading is incredible. The first and third graders are the stewards of the free library, and the hope is that they will grow with it.

One thing that I did find surprising was that in their collection, they had implemented a system called Red Dot books. You will find a red dot next to the barcode on some of the books. This indicates a book is unsuitable for younger readers who may read above their grade level. They state that the content might not be appropriate or interesting for young, advanced readers. There is an option for a parent to write a note granting permission for the student to check out Red Dot books. Most of us familiar with the ALA’s Bill of Rights automatically think of an infringement and the interpretation titled “Access to Library Resources and Services for Minors” (ALA 2019b). Rubin & Rubin further elaborate ” that the needs of library users vary and that access to information, library materials, services, and facilities are not to be restricted based on a user’s age (2020, p. 636).   Unique to Virginia is the law which gives parents access to library records of their children, which I am sure has played a part in implementing the red dot books (Virginia Freedom of Information Act, 2022, par. 3).

Clearly, there must be a bigger story about what has transpired at this elementary school library.  To be professional, I hold judgment since I do not know the whole story.  Since it is summer and the school library was not staffed, I hopefully will schedule a visit during the school year to see the struggle this librarian is facing.

References:

American Library Association. (2019, November 27). Access to library resources and services for minors: An interpretation of the library bill of rights. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations/minors

Rubin, R. E., & Rubin, R. G. (2020). Foundations of library and information science (5th ed.). ALA Neal-Schuman.

Virginia Freedom of Information Act. § 2.2-3705.7. Exclusions to application of chapter; records of specific public bodies and certain other limited exclusions. (2022). https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title2.2/chapter37/section2.2-3705.7/