College Libraries

De La Salle Libraries 2005

2005 has been a year of “settling in” after the many changes last year. Following the move of the Year 10s to the Kinnoull campus, the collections on each campus have been further examined and refined to ensure that we are providing the best quality, most relevant resources for our students and staff, within our budget constraints. We have continued to maintain our excellent collections with the addition of as many new acquisitions as possible, and the regular replacement of older, extremely well used titles. The floor plan of the Kinnoull Library remains as it was in 2004, with areas for non-fiction books, fiction reading and new journals, the back-issue journal room, the newspaper room, and 18 computers for student use. The staff areas also remain the same with a two-room audio-visual area, and staff workroom. The maintenance and improvement of the Kinnoull fiction collection has again been a priority this year, and loans have increased by more than 50% on 2004 figures. In the Tiverton Library, some changes have occurred. The book stacks have been moved closer together, and the New Book stand relocated to the end of the 900s. This has resulted in a greater feeling of space. Excess furniture in both the Library and corridor outside has been removed, and a newer display cabinet has been acquired. These moves have resulted in a much airier and more open feel to the Library. We have also reduced the number of large tables in the Research area, moving one down to the space near the PCs, and also received two new large tables for that area. As a result we have more seats, but with a less cluttered feel. The soft chairs in the Fiction area have also been assessed, and several replaced with chairs in better condition. The College reading club RIC RAC (Reading Is Cool, Readers Are Clever) was established in 2002 by our Literature Librarian, Mrs Rudin, and, due to popular demand, has been extended yet again this year, this time to include the Year 10s at Kinnoull. Sessions for the Years 7, 8 and 9s continue to be run weekly each Friday, and the Year 10 RIC RAC group meets every second Wednesday lunch-time in Morgan Hall. RIC-RAC now has over 70 members, which is due to the extraordinary efforts and enthusiasm of Mrs Rudin. Book Week: Reading Rocks 2005. As a special “prequel” to Book Week, Christopher Milne, author of the “Naughty Stories for Good Boys and Girls” series, entertained our Primary students. Book Week proper was started with a well-attended Book Week Breakfast for RIC RAC members. The Fourth Annual Book Week Literary Quiz was held in the gym, and was well supported by over 90 boys and staff. The Daily Bulletin quiz again drew much interest. All entries went into a draw for the major Book Week prize of a copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. This year’s lucky winner was Emmanuel Arapis from 7R, and Mr Riordan presented his prize at the Friday assembly of that week. Participation certificates for all members of RIC RAC were also presented at this assembly, as well as a parade of book characters. In a break from tradition, the week finished with afternoon tea for staff, with drinks and our famous book raffle in the Tiverton Library which was well-attended by over 50 staff. Sincere thanks again to Mrs Rudin for another great Book Week. The Library continues to focus on the provision of the best, most relevant electronic resources for our students and staff. All of our resources are available from school and home, with the exception of our Catalogue, which is only available from computers on the College network. Some streamlining has occurred this year, with the cancellation of our lesser-used resources (Encyclopedia Britannica Online, LinksPlus and Austguide). However this has freed up funds to continue access both from school and remotely to World Book Online, Electric Library, Mediascan, ANZRC, and The Source. These are accessible from home by visiting the College’s web page at www.delasalle.melb.catholic.edu.au, and clicking on Staff/Students to log in to the College’s intranet. The Library is strongly committed to the provision of these resources, which make access to information available without having to necessarily visit the Library.