IMC guidelines

Greetings Students!

 

Welcome back to a new school year. I hope you've had an awesome summer and are excited to learn and grow as thinkers.  (But even if you're not excited, that's okay. There are still a lot of fun things to do and opportunities for growth.) As with every year, we have some tweaks and changes as we strive to improve your experience at Penn and improve our practice as educators.

 

One of the "tweaks" I am talking about has to do with the IMC. For a couple years, I've struggled with the question of, "What is the IMC, REALLY?"  What is an Instructional Media Center? Is it a library? Is it a lounge? Is it a classroom? How can this space best serve our Penn community?

 

I started a group called Friends of the Library last year to try and answer these questions as well as promote the use of the IMC. We created a survey and pushed it out to the student body, and about 500 of you responded.  What we learned is that some students want a quiet place to work, while others want a comfortable place to relax with friends.

 

In trying to find a happy medium and still remain faithful to our mission, which is educating you, because after all, we are an academic institution, I'm here to share what the IMC can do for you and how you can take advantage of the resources here.

 

1.) Help with your homework. The Kingsman Tutor program is in the IMC, every block, every day. Should you find yourself in need of extra help, simply get a pass from your Guidance counselor, sign in, and take advantage of a peer tutor.

 

2.) Study hall pass. If you are looking for a quiet place to study or you want to print off a draft of that paper you are writing so a friend or …..EVEN I…..can proofread it, get an orange study hall pass from the IMC circulation desk in the morning, and then you can come to the IMC after you check in for attendance with study hall.  

 

3.) Small group collaboration. Say you have a group project you are working on and you need time and space to collaborate. New this year is the Small Group Collaboration corner. Just sign up on the calendar on the wall next to the space to reserve it for your group.

 

4.) Before school/after school meeting space. Want to meet up with friends, relax, socialize, and/or get some work done? We are open from 7:30 – 4:00every day. Groups like Handwritten Hearts, Bible Club, Book Club, and Academic Super Bowl meet in the IMC to do just that.

 

5.) Check out resources! We have great books! We have a variety of magazines. We have Chromebooks. We can help you with tech issues and password problems. We can help you locate articles. We can help you conduct research, annotate, and outline. This is what we are here for. All you have to do is ask.

 

What the IMC is not: We are not a cafeteria. The cafeteria has a mop-able floor and wipe-able surfaces. The last two years have seen spills on the carpeting and upholstered furniture that frankly make our space look dirty.  The noise volume during 3rd block has also sometimes been a deterrent for some students and classes to use this space for what it was created for. Therefore, if you want to work on school work during your lunch, that is absolutely fine, and I will write you a study hall pass. But in order to keep the IMC a blended learning space, we are going to keep meals in the cafeteria.

 

I hope we have a great year together, and I look forward to working with you.  Please don't hesitate to ask me for help anytime.

 

Miss A