Tag Archives: library
Weekly Library Digest: Student Edition
Weekly Library Newsletter for Students 5/17/21
Weekly Library Newsletter for Faculty 5/ 17/ 21
CVU Tries On Reused, Recycled and Free
Ms. Asha Hickok
On Wednesday, January 15, CVU students walked into a transformed library. Tables were skewed across the front of the room with piles of clothes organized by different styles and pieces.
Throughout the day, groups of students filtered through the Clothing Swap, chatting with friends and shopping for donated, second-hand clothing pieces.
CVU’s third annual clothing swap has come and gone. The first two swaps occured last year, one in the fall and the other in the spring. This year, the clothing swap was combined into one event hosted in the library in mid-January, and produced a varied crowd of “shoppers.”
“My favorite aspect is there’s a lot of different people shopping and the normalization of second hand [shopping],” states Robin Lauzon, one of the main organizers of the Clothing Swap. Lauzon explains the roots of the swap and how a small idea was able to grow into a successful and multi-purposed event. Continue reading
Video Feature: Library Upgrades
Mr. Cole Otley
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_fBLzh5jjY
For the Library, Change is Constant and Connections are Consistent
The CVU library is a place students come to study, socialize, and collaborate with one another. “[It] is a place where people can connect,” said Peter Langella, a CVU librarian. “Students can connect with the school, with other classmates, and with themselves.” Though it may not seem like it at first to many, there is a lot more that goes into keeping the library such a great place. The CVU library is constantly adapting in order to fulfill the needs of the entire student body.
Over the past couple of years, the changes to the library have been noticeable. Whether it be the new rooms in the back or the new tables in the front, the library continues to keep people guessing with refreshing new layouts. “The changing environment of the library makes the learning environment better,” Langella says. “I’ve read some studies that claim people’s brains function better in different environments, and it’s different for every person.”
For the Library, Change is Constant and Connections are Consistent
Mr. Cole Otley
The CVU library is a place students come to study, socialize, and collaborate with one another. “[It] is a place where people can connect,” said Peter Langella, a CVU librarian. “Students can connect with the school, with other classmates, and with themselves.” Though it may not seem like it at first to many, there is a lot more that goes into keeping the library such a great place. The CVU library is constantly adapting in order to fulfill the needs of the entire student body.
Over the past couple of years, the changes to the library have been noticeable. Whether it be the new rooms in the back or the new tables in the front, the library continues to keep people guessing with refreshing new layouts. “The changing environment of the library makes the learning environment better,” Langella says. “I’ve read some studies that claim people’s brains function better in different environments, and it’s different for every person.”
The library most certainly offers different spaces for people to learn, and students can take their pick on where they will be most productive. “The library gives students a place to collaborate,” says student body president Bennett Cheer. “That’s why I keep coming back.” There are a lot of qualities about the library that make it the preferred study area for a lot of students. “It’s quiet, calm, clean, and a good place to come get work done,” said CVU student Nikos Carroll. Nikos is among the hundreds of students that come into the library every day of the school week in order to do homework, study, and collaborate in a place that satisfies each need.
Library Stuns World with Summer Renovations
Mr. Lucien “L” Theriault
Champlain Valley Union High School students returned from summer vacation and were greeted by a transformed library space. “We moved into this space 13 years ago and about every year we have made changes to the layout, so this is just another extension… another way to make the space work better,” said Jennifer Lucey, head librarian at CVU and seasoned educational advocate of CVU students.
The changes were thoughtful and incorporated elements that the staff thought would be valuable to the new layout. “For about three or four years we have been researching what we wanted to do, [attending] day-long workshops, to support educational philosophy. We have gone on lots of site visits, talked to the librarians, the teachers and the students who use the space. Our site visits included a variety of libraries [high school, college, and public]… in Chittenden County, around Vermont, and in at least 6 other states [as well as] Ireland,” said Lucey.
Continue reading
Reinventing the Library: Welcome to the Cave
Misters Christopher T. O’Brien and Jacob C. Griggs
The CVU library has always been known for the opportunity it gives you to check out books, socialize at the tables, and get work done in a private setting. However, the librarians don’t believe that the current space is being utilized to its full potential. This is all going to change this summer, with renovations being started and finishing up by the beginning of the 2017-18 school year.
Before any renovations can be made, the librarians are hard at work during this end of the school year weeding out the books in the library. CVU librarian Peter Langella says, “When we weed out the books we take out any books that are not used, inaccurate and irrelevant, that way the books that are remaining are able to flourish.” Because many of the books are being weeded out of the library, many of them are put outside the library on shelves marked, ‘free books.’ These free books were a hit amongst CVU students and staff. Continue reading
Four Corners In Four Years
Mr. Jacob H. Bouffard and Mr. Christopher T. O’Brien
Walking through four corners at CVU on an early Friday morning before school, very few students were socializing in this commons area. Unlike in years past, four corners has begun to fade from being one of the central parts of the school, to an empty area.
Four corners is where all the hallways meet and has been known as the place to be before school. Over the years, the intersection has had many different looks as several students left their trace with paintings on the walls. However, in recent years, students have decided to socialize in other places.
CVU Seniors Charlie Bernicke, Max and Dillon Hamrell and Nick Mogilnicki, were too intimidated freshmen year to be in four corners prior to school, and would instead go into “The Fishbowl” to spend time before school began. “The Fishbowl” is a place in the Freshman core that many freshmen spend time in.
CVU Library on the Rise?
Mr. Christopher T. O’Brien and Mr. Jacob C. Griggs
HINESBURG- Late Wednesday, a CVU senior, Taya Leprevost, went to the CVU library to check out the book, “Midwives.” Taya is one of many students who are checking out fiction books from the library regularly.
Taya is an avid reader and says, “I check out a book about once a month. Usually they are WWII books; however, I needed a break from them so I picked out a fiction book.” Taya has found the book “Midwives” to be very intriguing, considering that the author is from Vermont and that it is also where the story takes place. This isn’t only true for Taya, many more CVU students have been checking out more and more fiction books than non-fiction.
Peter Langella, the CVU librarian, has been around the CVU books for 6 years and he says,“We [the librarians] have been making a conscious effort to update the fiction section of the library with current books, and we can tell with the amount of fiction books being checked out that there is more student interest in fiction books than nonfiction”
Image Credit: Banwell Architects
In his experience at the library he has seen some trends throughout the years. According to Peter, “more fact based sources are now online and students and staff have been checking out less nonfiction books.” Instead of people checking out less books, the amount has increased through the years that he has been here.
Peter also explained, “The library is more of a hang out place. Over the years it has stayed the same, but I believe there should be a student center of some sort. CVU has tried to make places for students like the cafeteria or the front for students to socialize.” Even though the library is meant for studying and getting work done, Peter doesn’t see any other place for students to socialize in the school during their free time, and therefore, is okay with socializing in the library rather than studying.
Although it may seem that the library hasn’t been used in the way it is intended, many books have been checked out daily and students will continue to socialize in the library until CVU finds another place for them to be able to take a break from school during the day.
Games Get Booted Out of the Library
Mr. Jackson Kahn
As recently as three months ago, if someone were to enter the CVU library they were practically guaranteed to see students sharing laughs and experiences while playing popular online games such as Curve Fever and Agario. Today there is no such sight as these games have been added to a growing list of websites blocked by the school. Some might see this as a positive. Students will now use their free block to work instead of playing games; however, there are many reasons to keep these websites available.
Playing online games provides students with cognitive benefits. According to Psychology Today playing online games improves executive functioning. Psychology today defines executive functioning as, “a person’s ability to allot his or her mental resources (such as perception, attention and memory) in ways that allow for rapid, efficient problem solving or decision-making.” The ability to pay attention and memory are arguably the two most important skills needed to be academically successful. If playing online games improves executive functioning they should be encouraged to be played in moderation, not banned.
CVC Video Team: CVU Hangout Spots
Mssrs. Griffin DiParlo, Michael Regan, Megan Gannon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCv86nH9FB4