Last modified: Thursday, September 16, 2010
IU's Wells Library offers free, public Constitution Day events
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 16, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana University Libraries is planning several events to honor Constitution Day, which is Friday, Sept. 17.
The Government Information & Kent Cooper Services Department of the Herman B Wells Library and the Political and Civic Engagement program are sponsoring a series of events Friday and and also Monday, Sept. 20. All events are open to the campus and the public.
The kickoff event, titled "Getting the Goods on Congress: Where to Find All You Want to Know," will take place from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., Friday, Sept. 17, on the first floor of the Wells Library, room E174 (between the double set of doors at the south entrance). Lou Malcomb, department head for Government Information & Kent Cooper Services, will lead a discussion on how to access accurate, reliable and timely information on Congress. Contemporary and historical resources will be discussed.
From 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday, Kate Cruikshank, a political papers specialist in the Office of University Archives and Management, will present "Improving Your Research: The World According to Congress: An Invitation to Research" in the Wells Library, room E174. The session will look at Congress from the inside out, using documents from the papers of congressmen Lee Hamilton and Birch Bayh.
Also in honor of Constitution Day, Malcomb will conduct a seminar titled "Espionage in the Library: Government Secrets Revealed: How and Where to find Declassified Documents" from noon to 1 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 20, in the Wells Library, room E174. Malcomb will explain how to access documents created by the intelligence community, such as the U.S. Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration (CIS), the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
In addition to these events is a continuing exhibit titled "Main Street to Capital Hill: Connecting to Congress." The exhibit will be on display through Friday, Oct. 8, in the Wells Library Government Information and Kent Cooper Services (second floor of the Library). The exhibit highlights real documents illustrating how former Indiana Congressman Lee Hamilton helped his constituents influence Capitol Hill and benefit from legislation, plus tips for connecting to Congress and making it work.
Library visitors can pick up a copy of the Constitution in the Wells Library Lobby from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 17.
Congress Week and Constitution Day are a series of events on the Bloomington campus meant to raise critical awareness of the Constitution and Congress and the ways in which they shape society.
To learn more about Congress and to be aware of past and present legislation and publications, visit the IU Libraries Congress Web site at https://www.libraries.iub.edu/index.php?pageId=3046. To discover ways in which you can become engaged in your community, from a local grassroots level to the federal government and even globally, visit the Political and Civic Engagement Web site at https://pace.indiana.edu.
