Pictures from the first session

This is just one of the 97 pictures we took during our first iRead session. To see all of them, visit our Facebook photo album. A big thank you to the National Guard and everyone who attended!

iRead rocks!

Our first session was a success thanks to the Tennessee National Guard bringing a rock wall. Pictures to come soon!

iRead Survey

Please take a few minutes to complete our iRead survey and give us an idea of who you are, why you're participating, etc. Thanks!

Get ready to rock!

We're going to have a rock wall!! We had a little bit of a hard time scheduling one, but we finally managed to snag it! The only catch is that we've had to move our first session from September 22 to September 24. The session will still be at 12:30 at the K-Room, but it's going to be on a Thursday instead of our standard Tuesday. So, mark your calendars and wear comfortable clothes; it's going to be lots of fun!

Upcoming activities!

Whether we like it or not, summer is officially over at Cumberland University, and that means that it's time to start thinking about everything coming up during the fall semester. Our last post was about our tentative schedule. Those dates are no longer tentative! And, for those of you who like to know exactly what's going on at all times, here's a rundown of the programs:

Fall semester:

September 22 - Kick off event to promote the program including a slide show, refreshments, and maybe even climbing a rock wall!

October 27 - Dr. James Lee Ray, Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University, will speak about the current political situation and American military involvement in Afghanistan.

November 24 - Jan and John Bradley will speak about the Lamia-Afghan Foundation which provides humanitarian aid to the children of Afghanistan.

Spring semester:

January 26 - pending! Ideas and volunteers are welcome.

February 23 - Dr. Michael Rex will conduct a session on the literature and art of Central Asia.

March 23 - Dr. Binhazim from the Olive Tree Foundation will speak about Women in Muslim Life

Also, the University Bookstore is selling Three Cups of Tea for $11.00, so if you still need a copy here's your chance to get it without having to leave campus! All of us here at the library are excited about what we have planned so far, and we think the program will be even bigger this year than last year. If anyone out there in Internet-land has any questions about iRead, upcoming programs, or the book itself, leave us a comment or email the library (library@cumberland.edu). We can't wait to see all of you on September 22!

Tentative schedule

We have a *tentative* schedule and a new location! We're moving to the K-Room next to the cafeteria in order to have a little more space. We've also decided to switch our sessions from Wednesdays to Tuesdays from 12:30-1:30.

Here are the dates we have lined up:
September 22
October 27
November 24
January 26
February 23
March 23

We're still finalizing some of our program topics, so look for more information on those as the first session gets closer. Based on what we've scheduled and planned so far, it should be a pretty exciting year!

...Drumroll please...

The 2009-10 iRead selection is Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. As with last year, Vise Library will have a book discussion group that meets around once a month. We are currently in the planning stages of next year's iRead program, so please check back periodically for more updates.