News & Blog

Welcome to Diamond’s Hidden Gems, a blog series in which I introduce you to the University of Central Florida’s library services that you may not know about!

Publishing student work through journals and magazines is a difficult feat, often requiring rounds upon rounds of revisions. UCF has a way for you to share your work while providing you with tools to assist with the publication process. Continue below to read about UCF’s own digital repository. UCF’s Showcase of Text, Archives, Research & Scholarship (STARS) provides access to works by, for, and about UCF as broadly as possible, and for as long as possible.

The intention is to provide free, open access to a worldwide audience. It is an institution-wide digital repository managed by the UCF Libraries. STARS is open to all faculty, staff, students, and affiliates of UCF, though student submissions may be subject to an approval process. STARS also documents library contest winners, most recently the “Love Your Libraries” Sticker Contest (which has already ended, sorry!)  

If you’d like to learn more about STARS and the types of materials you could upload, please visit Diamond’s Hidden Gems – STARS.

LibTech items due on Wed 8/30 or Thurs 8/31 will have loans automatically extended to Friday 9/1 at 7:00pm

• LibTech Hours:
  • Tuesday 8/29: Close at Midnight (12am)
  • Wednesday 8/30: 3:00pm – 1:00am
  • Thursday 8/31: 7:30am – 2:00pm (GameDay)
  • Friday 9/1: 7:30am – 7:00pm (Normal Hours)

Starting Monday, August 21st, the HItt Library will feature OverKnight hours from 1 – 6 am Sunday – Thursday nights.

A UCF ID will be REQUIRED to gain entry to the library during these hours which will encompass part of the second floor and will include 150 seats, desktop PCs, restrooms, and a drinking/bottle refill station.

Only the area shown on the map will be accessible during OverKnight Study hours.

No library services such as check outs or research assistance will be available during these extended hours. There are also no printers available.

Patrons are encouraged to visit during regular hours for full library services.

The 17^th Annual Student Book Arts Competition Exhibit is now open at the 4th Floor Gallery of the John C. Hitt Library. Sponsored by UCF Libraries Special Collections & University Archives, the competition invited UCF and Rollins College students to submit one-of-a-kind artist books. Unlike traditional books, artist books are handmade to reflect the personal artistic visions of their creators ranging from narrative storytelling through but not limited to drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, and/or text. The 17^th Annual Student Book Arts Competition Exhibit showcases of all entries created during the 2022-2023 academic calendar year.

Our guest judge for the competition was Karen Esteves, an artist, designer, and educator from Winter Gardens, Florida. Karen is an active member of College Book Art Association, The Movable Book Society, Chicago, IL, Book Arts Guild of Central Florida, Winter Park, FL and the Florida Craft Society, in St. Petersburg, FL.

This year the competition awarded two students.

“So I’ve Been Told ” by Stacie Becker (UCF) and “In Your Car” by Taylor Ingrassia (Rollins College). Both winners represented the creativity and craftsmanship of artist books and will be part of the Book Arts & Typography Collection at Special Collections & University Archives. Congratulations to both winners!

The exhibit runs from May 2023 – July 2023 which features all student book arts entries and select past winners.

Location: 4th Floor Gallery, John C. Hitt Library

Hours: 9 am – 4 pm Monday through Friday; closed weekends

For more information: speccoll@ucf.edu

We are happy to announce that the John C. Hitt Library and the Curriculum Materials Center has free activity kits for kids. Whether your little ones need something to do while you study or just want a fun take-home activity, please stop by the Circulation desk at the John C. Hitt Library or the CMC for a kit!

The kits include stickers, crayons, and coloring pages.