By Maggie McDonald
Outside of class, there are still plenty of opportunities for the ILS community to connect with each other through student-focused events.
Students, faculty, and staff celebrated the start of the academic year with a banquet in Luddy Hall, which served as both a welcome for new students and a welcome back for those who were continuing in the program. Everyone mingled over Italian food and got to chat with colleagues who they might not see day to day in classes or at work, which helped to create a wider sense of community.
In November, ILS students were invited to donate books for a blind date with a book-style book swap, which brought them back together in December to celebrate a successful semester and the upcoming winter holidays. The books paired perfectly with cookies, which were decorated festively over hot cocoa.
ILS students also had opportunities to share their academic work with one another, including a winter PhD poster session. Seven PhD students showcased their research to students, faculty, and staff, gaining valuable feedback, making connections, and even showing MLS and MIS students the kind of work that they themselves might be able to do if they choose to pursue a PhD.
Students gathered again in the spring for a March afternoon of crafts. Students were able to reconnect and share what they got up to over spring break while making paper flowers out of recycled book pages or building circuits with kits from the Wells Library Makerspace. Lastly, ILS celebrated the end of the school year with a lunch reception at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center.
