News & Blog

Join UCF Libraries as we celebrate diverse voices in the Knight community. A series of events, virtual and in-person, are being offered during the month of October 2021. Register to attend with the links in the event titles. 

Diversity in Comics – virtual discussion 

October 12, 2:00-3:00pm 

Join us as we review various forms of comics and discuss the importance of representation in comics and graphic novels. 

Crochet with Gaby – virtual craft workshop 

October 14, 2:00-3:30pm 

Learn about crochet and get started on a beginner’s project with UCF Libraries’ Gaby Gomez. Don’t forget to pick up your crochet pack at the circulation desk at the John C. Hitt Library, Curriculum Materials Center, or Downtown campus library October 4 – 14 after you register (while supplies last). 

Open Heart, Open Mic – virtual 

October 19, 6:00-7:15pm 

Experience the creative works of Knights and friends around the world sharing what the Knight community means to them. Walk-in presentations are welcome! 

Color Your Story bookend decorating 

October 21, 10:00-11:30am 

outside John C. Hitt entrance and the Downtown Library lobby 

Join UCF Libraries at 2 locations to decorate bookends using paint pens, permanent markers, and decoupage as a way to illustrate your truth and lived experiences. Plus you get a great decoration to take home!  

On Main Campus: outside the new Student Union facing entrance of the John C. Hitt Library.  

On Downtown Campus: in the lobby of the Dr. Philips Academic Commons.  

In the event that in-person activities are not suggested for health and safety reasons, we will have craft packs for bookend decorating available for pick up the week of the event at the Circulation desks in the John C. Hitt Library, Curriculum Materials Center, and Downtown Campus Library (while supplies last). 

Graphic Novel Book Club – Butler’s Kindred, virtual discussion 

October 26, 6:00-7:00pm 

Join UCF Libraries in an engaging discussion about the graphic novelization of Octavia Butler’s Kindred. Don’t forget to read the book first! A link to the UCF Libraries’ electronic version will be available in your registration confirmation. 

For full details and registration links: guides.ucf.edu/diversityweek 

UCF Libraries wants to see your design skills! Will you accept our design challenge?

Select one of the titles below and illustrate the cover for that book. The submission deadline is Sunday, July 26, 2020 at 11:59PM.

• Knightro and the Strange, Scary Pandemic Semester
• Knugget Takes a Vacation
• The Golden Vulture Strikes Again

For full contest rules and to submit your illustration, check out the contest page.

• Contests for UCF students only.
• One entry per student.
• If more than one entry is submitted by a student, all the entries by that person will be disqualified from the contest.
• Judges reserve the right to not select a winner due to limited submissions, or lack of exceptional submissions.
• Entries with explicit sexual content will not be considered for this contest.

The winner will be announced on Monday, August 3, 2020. Prizes include a #UCFLibraries water bottle and a limited edition Quiet Space Rubber Duckie.

From megalomaniac leaders to mass suicides, the word cult is an overwhelmingly negative one in popular culture. This series digs deeper by considering what draws people to such groups, how charisma is constructed, and how boundaries between religions and cults are delineated.  Each movie will be followed by a facilitated discussion by a religion and cultural studies faculty member.

Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple
Tuesday, September 24, 2019
3:00pm – 5:00pm
John C. Hitt Library 223

Featuring never-before-seen footage, this documentary delivers a startling new look at the Peoples Temple, headed by preacher Jim Jones who, in 1978, led more than 900 members to Guyana, where he orchestrated a mass suicide via tainted punch.

Facilitated by Dr. Christy Flanagan-Feddon

TheTrials of Muhammad Ali
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
3:00pm – 5:00pm
John C. Hitt Library 223

The Trials of Muhammad Ali investigates its extraordinary and often complex subject’s life outside the boxing ring. From joining the controversial Nation of Islam and changing his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali, to his refusal to serve in the Vietnam War in the name of protesting racial inequality, to his global humanitarian work, Muhammad Ali remains an inspiring and controversial figure.

Facilitated by Dr. Michael Mohammed Knight

Kumare
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
3:00pm – 5:00pm
John C. Hitt Library 223

A documentary about a man who impersonates a wise Indian Guru and builds a following in Arizona. At the height of his popularity, the Guru Kumaré must reveal his true identity to his disciples and unveil his greatest teaching of all.

Facilitated by Dr. Ann Gleig

Fall 2019 Movie series sponsored by the Religion and Cultural Studies Program and co-hosted by UCF Libraries.

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  

National Library Week runs from April 8 – 14. Join UCF Libraries as we celebrate the joys of librarianship and our patrons!

 

Read Stricted: The Dilemmas Surrounding Reading, Censorship, & Challenged Books
Monday, April 9
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
LIB-223

Please join us for a lively and thought provoking discussion regarding reading, censorship, and the history of challenged books to commemorate the start of National Library Week 2018. UCF Research and Information Services Librarian, Sandy Avila will discuss the American Library Association’s Top Ten Frequently Challenged Books of 2017 while providing some background regarding the history of challenged books from around the world. This session is open to students and faculty and no RSVP is required. Meet us at the John C. Hitt Library (main campus) Room 223 to learn more about banned books and the dilemmas surrounding their censorship.

(more…)