Tag Archives: Kelley Center

Celebrate Constitution Day and Register to Vote!

Posted on by 0

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
The Preamble to the Constitution, signed, Sept. 17, 1787, ratified, June 21, 1788.

Happy Constitution Day! Staff from the Kelley Center for Government Information, Data and Geospatial Services are hosting an event on Thursday, Sept. 15th to celebrate Constitution Day.  At the same time, volunteer voter registrars will be helping folks register to vote!  This dual-purpose event will spotlight key elements in our country’s founding and governance structure.  In addition to the four-hour event, two exhibit cases in Fondren Library showcase materials on each of these topics.  The “Voting” exhibit can be found in the first floor elevator lobby, and “Constitution Day” is located in the basement elevator lobby.  Materials in the exhibit cases are borrowed from the Federal Depository Library collection held at the Kelley Center for Government Information, Data and Geospatial Services.

Join us Thursday, September 15th, from 1 – 5 pm, at the lobby in front of the Circulation Desk.  Those attending the event are encouraged to share their thoughts about the Constitution through social media, and enter the raffle for a chance at a cool prize.

For more information about Constitution Day and Elections, see the extensive resources found on our LibGuides: http://libguides.rice.edu/constitution_day and http://libguides.rice.edu/elections_voting

National Park Service – 100th Anniversary & Exhibit

Posted on by 0

Did you know that there are over a dozen national parks in Texas? The nearest park is the Big Thicket National Preserve. The newest one, designated in 2015, is the Waco Mammoth National Monument. This year is a great time to visit a national park and celebrate the National Park Service’s 100th Anniversary!

The National Park Service was created in 1916 by an Act of Congress and signed by President Woodrow Wilson. Beyond the natural areas, the federally designated parks include historical areas, battlefields, rivers and trails and the White House, covering over 400 sites, and 84 million acres. Find parks using this handy map.

The Mission of the National Park Service
The National Park Service preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources NPS logoand values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The National Park Service cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout this country and the world.

The NPS is an agency under the Department of the Interior. As a federal depository library, the Kelley Center includes numerous NPS publications, including annual reports, maps and research reports on topics ranging from Hurricane Katrina to bike trails to NPS facility management. The agency supports preservation, conservation and heritage management with research and community engagement. The NPS hosts a variety of programs and activities to increase awareness of America’s national parks, and the work of the NPS.

As you make travel plans for Spring Break and summer, consider visiting a national park! There is something for everyone! Here is a list of national parks located in Texas.  In Fondren, there are two exhibit cases which showcase materials from the Kelley Center about the NPS.  They are located on the 1st floor and basement elevator lobbies.  Stop by the Kelley Center to check out even more!

Explore, learn, be inspired, and have fun!

Follow the NPS on twitter #NatlParkService #FindYourPark or their website, www.nps.gov

 

 

 

 

News from the Kelley Center for Government Information, Data and Geospatial Services: Spotlight on Patents & Welcome Annie

Posted on by 0

Did you know that on this date, 100 years ago, the design for the Coca-Cola bottle was patented? This familiar contoured shaped bottle was designed after the cocoa pod, the Rediscovery identifier 27687hf1-202302050main ingredient in chocolate! You can read more about this patent, or see it on display at the National Archives.

A big part of what we do in the Kelley Center is helping the public search for patents. As a patent depository library, that is one of our mandates. Siu and Linda offer patent searching classes on a regular basis to entrepreneurs from Rice and the Houston area. In addition, this year, we hosted two widely attended training sessions given by staff from the US Patent and Trademark Office. Our Rice affiliates are productive and garner numerous patents. To support their work and bring more visibility to the library and Rice community, the Rice patents are now deposited in the Rice Digital Scholarship Archive. This project seems to be a first among libraries and one that is sure to garner much attention. Along with the Kelley Center’s Linda Spiro, Siu Min Yu and me, contributors to this project were Scott Carlson, metadata coordinator; Monica Rivero, digital curation coordinator; Lisa Spiro, executive director of digital scholarship services; and Shannon Kipphut-Smith, scholarly communications liaison.

Joining the Kelley Center staff this fall is Yen-Nhi (Annie) Pham as our Government Information and Data Specialist. Annie is a recent graduate of UH with a degree in Anthropology and is currently pursuing her masters’ degree, also at UH, in Sociology. In this part- time position, Annie will be working at the Kelley Center desk as well as building library services for government agency datasets.