ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 122 / C& RL News National Library Week Suggestions Penny E. Elkins D uPont Library University o f the South Public libraries no longer have a corner on the m arket for National L ibrary Week, April 8-14, 1984. At long last, academic libraries are realizing the potential of public relations to celebrate this week and prom ote the library all year long. Last year the Paul Meek L ibrary, University of Tennes­ see at M artin (UTM), celebrated NLW w ith a dif­ ferent event each day. W e began the week w ith a trea t for our staff and s tu d e n t w o rk e rs— h o m e m a d e cookies in bags trim m ed w ith national library symbol tags th a t proclaim ed “H appy N ational L ibrary W eek!” On Tuesday we extended the celebration to the cam ­ pus by distributing bookmarks w ith trivia ques­ tions th a t could be answered using reference books. On W ednesday we sent the faculty and adm inistra­ tion m ulti-colored flyers incorporating the N LW slogan, “If you w an t to read it, hear it, see it, learn it or improve upon it then ’Go for it!’ at the Paul Meek L ib rary .” O ur library was decorated w ith brig h tly colored helium balloons on T hursday. E ach balloon h a d a m a tc h in g ta g ad v ertisin g NLW . W e ended the week w ith refreshments for the staff. The lounge was decked out w ith balloons and stream ers centering around the national li­ brary symbol. Refreshments included cakes deco­ rated w ith the “Go for it!” slogan and the arrow symbol. Throughout the week staff members wore nam e tags announcing N ational L ibrary Week. W e in ­ corporated UTM ’s school colors and various library slogans (Go for it!; Check it out at the library; Jog yo u r m in d a t th e lib ra ry ) to m ake som e eye­ catching tags. Another N LW project was to play ALA spots on the cam pus radio station, w here we now advertise our services year round. Plans for this year’s N ational L ibrary Week in­ clude more involvement of students and faculty. W o rk in g w ith th e th e m e “ K now ledge is Real Pow er!” we will build displays illustrating aca­ demic library resources. W e are focusing on areas of special interest to our students and faculty, in ­ cluding com puters, job m arkets, rock music, cars, fashion, agriculture and the com m unications in­ dustry. W e hope to involve students and other patrons further w ith contests, quizzes and coupons. One possible activity is a treasure hunt. Leave clues in the card catalog or periodicals file, sending patrons to specific books or journals w here they m ay find further clues or prizes. The search is exciting and involves library skills. Money and gift certificates from local m erchants and restaurants w ould be a t­ tractive prizes for students. Contests draw people into the library. Ask p a ­ trons to guess how m any books were checked out on a certain day, how m any people came into the li­ brary, etc., and give prizes for the correct answer. In general, any type of contest or m arathon event th a t works for other organizations on cam pus will be an equally effective public relations tool for the library. The library may also advertise in the campus new spaper, sponsoring coupons for discounts on xerox charges, lam inating services and book fines or for free hours in the library typing room. C ou­ pons redeem able off-campus for food, record al­ bums and film or concert tickets are especially a p ­ pealing. Full-tim e public relations makes a solid founda­ tion for a positive image of the academ ic library. Bookmarks, displays, annual reports, nam e tags, newsletters and ALA posters are effective, constant reminders th a t the library is the place to become m o re k n o w le d g e a b le — an d w e all know th a t “Knowledge IS Real Power!” ■ ■ E d ito r’s Note: This article has been reprinted fro m the A L A Public Inform ation O ffice’s publication, Power Tools Publicity Book 1984: Ideas for N a­ tional L ibrary W eek and All Year Long. MLA Special Sessions Needed L ibrarians wishing to organize Special Ses­ sions for the D ecem ber 1984 conference of the M odern L anguage Association m ust subm it proposals to M LA’s Program C om m ittee by A pril 9, 1984. T he 7 5-m inute long sessions should appeal to the teaching and research in­ terests of faculty in the fields of language and literature in some concrete way, and should not be related solely to library concerns. Instruc­ tional and online topics are particularly ger­ mane. Session organizers and participants m ust all be members of MLA by April 1, 1984. Faculty participants w ould be an asset, and their p a r­ tic ip a tio n in th e p ro g ra m can be so lic ited through the M L A Newsletter as well as through personal contact. For more inform ation and proposal application forms, contact the MLA at 62 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011, or w rite to Bill Miller, Michigan State University Li­ braries, East Lansing, MI 48824-1048.