News & Blog

Tired of spending all your time searching for articles when you could be reading and writing?  Join us online Tuesday, Jan. 15th from 10:30-11:30 for the first Research Tips Tuesday of spring semester!

 In this workshop you will discover the secrets to finding relevant resources quicker using advanced searching methods.  We will explore:

• How to choose the best place to start searching
• How to break down your topic to design an efficient search strategy
• Using advanced search tool to get better results
• Connecting Google Scholar to UCF resources

Register online at: https://guides.ucf.edu/rtt

You’ve worked hard all semester and you’re almost done! We know finals are often the most stressful part of a student’s holiday season so we have a whole week of de-stressing activites to help keep you focused and productive. In addition to our daily events, our coloring table on the main floor will be available all week. All events are free and students may show up or leave at anytime.

Meditation Monday
12/3, 11am – 1pm, Library Rm 223
A quiet and low lit room will be provided for students to join in meditation. Participants are welcome to come and go as they need but please remember to enter and leave quietly so as not to disturb your fellow students.

Therapy Dog Tuesday
12/4, 11am, Outside entrance to the library
Bodhi, CAPS official therapy dog, will be joining us to provide calming cuddly pet sessions to any student in need.

Whimsical Crafts Wednesday
12/5, 11am – 1pm, John C. Hitt Main Floor
Join us as we craft our stress away! Origami sheets, coloring sheets, and blank bookends will be provided to decorate to your heart’s content. Check back after the event on our Facebook page to vote for your favorite student created bookend! Winning bookend artist will receive an official UCF Libraries construction rubber ducky!

Theater Thursday
12/6, 11am – 1pm, Rm 223
Come enjoy a selection of short films courtesy of our Kanopy subscription and will include many Oscar and BAFTA award winners.

Farewell Finals Friday
12/7, 11am – 1pm, Rm 223
Take some time off from your last day of finals to help us complete some puzzles.

Need some holiday break reading?

UCF Libraries will be hosting a Take a Book, Leave a Book event on Monday, November 19 (the week of Thanksgiving break) from 11 am to 1 pm. The UCF community is welcome to browse the selection an take a book that they found interesting. If you would like to leave a book, you can do so but it is not required.

Early drop off locations for leaving a book are the Research & Information Desk of the John C. Hitt Library and UCF HR lobby (3280 Progress Drive in Research Park).

Congratulations to our two Knight Terror: Haunting the Stacks winners!

1st place: “The Name Book” by Daniel Ceruti

2nd place: “Jaw Breaker” by Morgan Campbell

Both are now a part of our KnightVerse in STARS!

Thank you to everyone who submitted a story. There were a lot of very scary stories to choose from which made judging very exciting.

Join the UCF Libraries in celebrating Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead.  This is a traditional Mexican holiday when families and friends gather to honor and remember those that have died.  Typically on Day of the Dead, elaborate altars are created and offerings are made to aid loved ones on their spiritual journey.

Friday, November 2

11:00 am- 1:00pm, main floor
Dia de los Muertos Craft Table – color calaveras (skulls), and make marigolds and papel picado, which are often used to decorate altars honoring the deceased

1:30pm – 3:00pm, Library 223
Documentary film screening with introduction and discussion by Anthropology professor Dr. Beatriz Reyes-Foster

Mexico from the BBC “Feasts” series:
Series in which food writer and presenter Stefan Gates immerses himself in some of the most extraordinary feasts and festivals on earth. By joining ordinary people in these strange and wonderful distillations of their culture and beliefs, he hopes to gain a revelatory insight into how the world thinks and feels. Stefan goes on a wild emotional and spiritual rollercoaster ride, starting with a teenage girl’s bizarre coming-of-age ceremony and ending with the Day of the Dead, a cacophonous cross-cultural festival of the senses during which Mexicans truly believe that their loved ones come back from the dead for three days every year to spend the day with them.

For more information about Día de los Muertos events in the library and related UCF resources visit: guides.ucf.edu/dayofthedead