By MEGAN SPATH

Guest Reporter

The Reinert Alumni Memorial Library carried out its traditional poster unveiling in a casual ceremony Tuesday in honor of National Library Week.

Since 2002, Reinert has celebrated the week by making posters of Creighton faculty members with their favorite books. Each year, librarians pick through nominations to choose 10 faculty members and a campus group to be featured on large posters to be hung in the library.

This year’s lucky faculty members were Cindy Farthing, Jeff Maciejewski, Jay Leighter, Jim Platz, Matt Seevers, Carole Seitz, Patrick Borchers, the Rev. Bert Thelen, S.J., Sharon Ishii-Jordani and Robert Lueger. The organization was Creighton’s branch of the NAACP.

Reference librarian Jan Pye said there is a committee that chooses who will be featured each year.

Nominations can be sent in online or at the library, and each year that committee goes through those nominations and picks out staff members who haven’t yet been featured.

Along with the faculty members and organization, the library also chooses a student to be featured based on an essay they turn in to the library. Mike Poma, reference librarian at Reinert, heads up the selection.

Poma said two librarians and two faculty members review student essays, looking for an innovative use of resources in the paper, the research done and the overall paper itself. The student chosen as the winner receives the Master of Scholarly Resources award, a certificate and $250.

Poma said it was an easy decision this year as he announced the winner. This year’s recipient was Arts & Sciences senior AnaMaria Seglie for her essay on Washington Irving’s “The Sketchbook.”

“It was a very nice honor,” Seglie said.

The ceremony was held in the lobby of the library. Library director Michael LaCroix welcomed everyone and introduced Poma, who announced the winner. LaCroix then had all of this year’s faculty, including Seglie, tear down the paper covering the posters to reveal them.

LaCroix said the posters are unique to Reinert. The inspiration came from posters from the American Library Association that had celebrities and the word “read” on them.

“We try to pick a variety and involve students in that. It’s become part of our National Library Week tradition,” LaCroix said.

The winners choose their favorite book, a location to have their picture taken and then write up a small piece about why they chose that book.

Reference librarian Mary Nash said the purpose of the posters are to raise awareness of libraries, but more importantly to show faculty in a new light.

“That’s what appeals to me,” Nash said. “Establishing a connection that in a classroom they might not be able to make.”