News, Stories and More
Geek the Library at Dragon*Con
The Geek the Library booth at Dragon*Con over Labor Day weekend was a busy place. Thanks to everyone who took the time to sign the geek wall and pick up additional information. Take a look at more photos from the event.
August 31, 2010
New Geek the Library Posters
Our new Geek the Library posters—that follow the theme of our new ads—made their debut during Geek the Library Week. We are delighted to see that they are already getting out there. Here is one of the posters displayed in The Press Sentinel’s window in Jesup, Georgia!
March 23, 2010
Educators Value Geek the Library
The pilot awareness campaign has garnered much attention since our launch in June 2009—even beyond the participating libraries. One exciting development is the adoption of the Geek the Library concept within schools. Educators have found the awareness campaign helpful in bridging the gap between motivating students to use the library for school, and using it to grow and get inspired.
Jaime McGrath, an educator at Gould Elementary School in Savannah, Georgia, has used Geek the Library to put a positive spin on encouraging more students to pick up non-fiction books. Elementary school students, explains McGrath, are notorious for avoiding them.
“We discuss in class the things they are interested in,” notes McGrath, “and then they search the library for those subjects. They become excited about getting what they geek and see the non-fiction section of the library no longer as a burden to shoulder, but as fuel for their personal interests.”
Asking students to ‘get what they geek’ may seem simple, but it really works, says McGrath. Rifling through his students’ desks after school one day, he found books on motocross, fossils, minerals and math concepts—all books students had picked out themselves. “The approach empowers students by putting them in charge of their own library selection decisions. All of my students have discovered new interests they can mine further in the library stacks.”
In addition to broadening their literary horizons, McGrath feels a positive relationship with the library now is important for the future of public libraries. “Children who understand that the library is an invaluable resource to explore their personal needs and interests will grow to be adults who rightly support full funding and expanded access to library materials,” says McGrath.
“Libraries look very different today than when I was a child in the 70’s, and we can only imagine what libraries will be like when these children are voting, running for office and bringing their children to the library. Seeing libraries as a personal asset as children, will encourage enthusiastic support for libraries as these children grow up.”
December 17, 2009
Libraries Promote Lifelong Literacy
Taking part in the Savannah Children’s Book Festival in Savannah, Georgia, got us thinking about just how important public libraries are for young people. Libraries promote access to early literacy learning and all of the benefits good reading skills can bring.
Even if you don’t have kids, supporting the library’s role in improving literacy rates, also supports your community. Illiteracy creates barriers to educational and employment opportunities, and has been linked to delinquency and crime. Public libraries are on the front lines. And they can’t do their very important jobs without your support. Get tips about what you can do.
The American Library Association (ALA) recently filed testimony to Congress about libraries and literacy. Take a look.
November 19, 2009
Savannah Children’s Book Festival
If you were in Savannah, Georgia, on November 14, 2009, you may have seen us at the annual Savannah Children’s Book Festival. Forsyth Park was filled with booths, activities and lots of happy children. Hundreds of people stopped by the Geek the Library kiosk and signed our Geek Wall. Thank you to Live Oak Public Libraries for letting us be part of the fun! See more photos.
November 13, 2009
Geek the Library on Sapelo Island
What does smoked mullet and library funding have in common? Cultural Day on Sapelo Island, Georgia, of course! On October 17, 2009, Geek the Library helped celebrate the unique aspects of Geechee-Gullah culture during this enlightening one-day event. In addition to its rich history, this small island—only accessible by ferry—boasts the Hog Hammock Public Library. This tiny treasure, which was founded in 2002, offers a growing collection of books and other resources.
October 21, 2009
Geek the Library at the Fair in Georgia
It’s fair week in Statesboro, Georgia, and Geek the Library has teamed up with the Statesboro Regional Library to join in on the fun. The library won second place for its ‘I geek agricultural history’ booth and has an onsite library available for all fair goers. The 48th Annual Kiwanis Ogeechee Fair runs through October 17, 2009.
October 13, 2009
loisgeeksrunning
October 09, 2009
More Libraries Get Their Geek On
We are now going into the second phase of the pilot awareness campaign and recently added four new participating libraries and library systems: Milwaukee Public Library in Wisconsin; Piedmont Regional Library System in Georgia (covering Banks, Barrow and Jackson Counties); Shelbyville-Shelby County Public Library in Shelbyville, Indiana; and Zion-Benton Public Library in Zion, Illinois. This enthusiastic group joins our central Iowa and southern Georgia participating libraries and library systems that have been promoting the campaign since June.
October 08, 2009
chrisgeekspuppets
October 07, 2009
waltergeeksastronomy
October 05, 2009
Awareness Campaign Goes Local
Is that a Geek the Library poster I see? Part of the challenge for Geek the Library participating public libraries is to get the awareness campaign out into the community. One way is to partner with local businesses to hang up posters or give out awareness campaign materials. And, look, here we are in Sylvania, Georgia. Great job Screven County Library!
October 02, 2009
briangeekshistory
September 27, 2009
conigeeksknitting
September 17, 2009
rongeeksghosts
September 13, 2009
j'miahgeeksmarimbas
September 04, 2009
Geek the Library Making an Impact
Part of our mission, once we complete our pilot awareness campaign, is to evaluate whether or not we’ve made an impact. And while we have months to go, we’re delighted to report that we already are! Stories from communities in and around our participating libraries, as well as across the country, are coming in about how libraries are adopting elements of the campaign.
One example comes from Creekview High School in Canton, Georgia. Buffy Hamilton, a tech-savvy high school librarian, has adopted the campaign with open arms. Hamilton wants to inspire her patrons—the students—to talk about what they geek, as well as take a new look at how the library can support them and their interests. In addition to creating and distributing custom ‘I geek’ stickers of the library’s brand, The Unquiet Library, she also wanted to recreate the Geek Wall experience. So, with black construction paper and silver markers, her library has taken on new life. Student upon student, she explains, continue to volunteer to showcase their passions in this simple, but significant way.
In addition to celebrating people’s passions, notes Hamilton, the campaign also provides a critical lesson about the value of all libraries and how each person plays a role in supporting them. But if the positive initial response to her efforts wasn’t telling, she says, she recently got full confirmation that the campaign’s personal approach works. “Some ninth-grade football players came in to see if they could take part. Football players! And they came to us.”
The display has been so successful, she says, plans are in the works to help students create custom photos, and perhaps, videos. Reminding the public just how relevant libraries still are and that they offer something for everyone, she continues, can have tremendous impact well beyond the walls of the library. “Geek the Library is a positive movement for all libraries. This kind of advocacy helps all of us.”
August 31, 2009
charissageeksracing
August 31, 2009
Geek the Library Goes Nuts
Geek the Library and Statesboro Regional Public Libraries joined peanut enthusiasts in and around Brooklet, Georgia for the annual Brooklet Peanut Festival on August 15, 2009. This popular festival, which includes a 5K run, a parade and a peanut or two, celebrated its 20th year. We geek peanuts. Take a look at photos from the event.
August 28, 2009
tonygeekstrains
August 18, 2009
Geek at Smithsonian Exhibit in Georgia
What better place to view the travelling Smithsonian Institute exhibition Key Ingredients: America by Food than Vidalia, Georgia, home of the Vidalia Onion! This fascinating cultural exhibit, held at Southeastern Technical College, explores the connections between the foods Americans produce, prepare, preserve and present. Ohoopee Regional Library System, a participating library of the Geek the Library public awareness campaign, will have a booth at the event for the entire six-week stop—between August 8 - September 20. If you are in the area, stop by and learn more about Geek the Library while you eat your way through this delicious exhibit.
August 18, 2009
jennifergeekscookies
August 17, 2009
Trendsetting Green Libraries
Using your public library has more benefits than you think. It’s the place to go if you are going green. Of course borrowing vs. buying books is good for the environment, but many libraries are also making efforts to evolve into more environmentally conscious institutions. Here’s one example in southern Georgia where we have many participating libraries.
August 12, 2009
richardgeeksbooks
Not to be a complete librarian stereotype, but despite the fact that my library provides our community with an ever-increasing (and challenging) array of services, sharing my love for books has always been one of my favorite parts of my job.
Richard is a librarian from Georgia.
July 14, 2009
chuckgeeksukuleles
I geek the fact that it is impossible to frown while playing a ukulele! I geek the multitude of varieties, shapes, sizes, builders, players, etc. I geek ukes because you can learn to play one in a few minutes, but you can spend a lifetime trying to master it. Collecting ukuleles can be almost as much fun as playing them too!
Chuck is a librarian from Georgia.
July 14, 2009
sonyageeksw.w.lawbranchlibrary
W. W. Law Branch Library, in the "Heart" of Savannah, Georgia has been my love from the moment it was built over 30 years ago. As a child, I lived right across the street from the park in which the Book Mobile was located. I would spend all my time in that little moving library. When W. W. Law Neighborhood Center (which housed the library) was built in 1975, all of the children in the area were so excited. I was excited because I finally had a library that I can go to everyday. From being the first child to enter in the VRP Program to working as a Page, that branch has been my life. Now I am the Branch Manager of the very branch that I grew up in.
June 25, 2009
susangeeksclassicmovies
My name is Susan and I geek classic movies. I have wonderful memories of my mother and I, glued to the screen, watching some of the greatest movies. Our favorites featured such cinematic giants as Errol Flynn, Vivien Leigh, Robert Taylor, Tyrone Power, Myrna Loy and so many others. My mother filled me in on all of the artists’ stories—gossip and scandals included—and I felt as if really knew these legends.
My public library has a wonderful selection of classic movies that I regularly check out and watch with my own children, sharing the same stories that I heard long ago. My library also has a great selection of biographies, so I can learn even more about the actors and actresses from my favorite movie era.
June 24, 2009
Successful Launch Event in Savannah, Georgia
The Geek the Library team along with many local library leaders—including Georgia State Librarian Dr. Lamar Veatch—and the Savannah community celebrated the greater Savannah launch of the awareness campaign on June 23. Participants signed the geek wall, enjoyed free food and discussed what they geek.
June 24, 2009
alvingeeksthelibrary
My name is Alvin and I geek the library. As a child, the library became the place that stimulated my imagination and fueled my passion for lifelong learning. This drive was instilled by my mother, who sadly passed away almost a year ago. Even though she is physically no longer here, the thirst for knowledge she gave lives on. In fact, I now make my living by working in the very same library I used as a child.
June 23, 2009
altongeekscoaching
My name is Alton and I geek coaching. They say it’s just a game. Your mind is helping you believe that, but your heart is beating to win. A coach’s pride is in the guidance of his team, each success being a new stripe. And that only makes me want to continue to get better.
Every new season of fresh cut grass and painted lines, I strive to be better than I was the season before. And a coach who doesn’t improve will find themselves sliding to the wolves. Did I say wolves? Yes, I did. There is always another coach wanting to climb the hill you’re climbing and he will bring wolves to catch you. Not ordinary wolves, but trained wolves with his purpose on their minds.
The library lets me dig into the past of great coaches, learn from them and use it to guide me, as I guide my team. Every good coach has been guided. What really makes the difference is from where and whom you get your information.
June 19, 2009
conigeeksknitting
My name is Coni and I geek knitting. When I was in sixth grade my mom taught me how to knit. Even though that was a long time ago, and not so unusual in itself, my mom is left-handed and I am right-handed. So, I learned to knit left-handed. And when I knit, all the patterns are backward and my stitches lean to the left!
It’s not surprising that I stick to very simple projects: a soft shawl for someone in a nursing home or a warm hat for a soldier in Afghanistan. And while I relax and knit, I think good thoughts for whoever may receive the shawl or hat. That makes me feel good.
My library provided me with a wonderful collection of books with beautiful pictures of colorful shawls and easy to follow patterns. It gave me new ideas and lots of inspiration. It also supplied me with the address of the local USO who encouraged me to keep knitting and assured me that my hats would go to a good home.
So even though my stitches are backwards and slant in a different direction, the library kept me straight on the path to making myself feel good about being a geek about knitting!
June 19, 2009
sharengeeksgenealogy
My name is Sharen and I geek genealogy. It began when I was a child listening to my grandparent’s stories. By age 10, I was really interested in learning more about my family, but did not know how to go about doing it. My grandparents gave me an old family history published in 1931.
Later, I met a wonderful woman named Hallie at the library. She taught me many techniques for finding the facts about my family. Also, I attended many genealogy workshops, often at libraries. About 50 years after I first asked by other grandmother about her father, I found my elusive great grandfather at the library on a computer Web site. I was so excited. I floated on air for three days.
Sharen is a librarian in Georgia.
June 19, 2009
Get your geek on. Show your support. Geek the library.