MJC Library & Learning Center

Every 👏 Day 👏 Is 👏 Black 👏 History 👏 Day!

February is Black History Month—a celebration and deliberate acknowledgement of the beauty, wisdom, art, perseverance, scholarship, and enduring impact of Black people in America and around the world. is a time to honor our country’s Black ancestors as well as Black families, groups, institutions, and individuals who are part and parcel of this American fabric.

And it’s also a time when non-Black people can commit (or recommit) to advocating for antiracist policies in all institutions and making personal life choices that support antiracism.

For more information, please visit our Black History Month research guide: https://libguides.mjc.edu/blackhistorymonth

P.S. The books on display are meant to be checked out!

❤️🖤💚

It's News Literacy Week! And we have a slate of speakers at the L & LC to discuss various aspects of the news--specifically, actual journalism! On Tuesday, February 3, join us as MJC political science faculty Steve Miller discusses the news as the fourth branch of democracy. On Wednesday, February 4, Modesto Focus editor Marijke Rowland discusses how local news connects global and national events to our daily lives and immediate surroundings. And on Thursday, MJC mass communication faculty Kyle Stubbs addresses social media and how it influences our experience of news.

All three presentations take place at the East L & LC at 1:00 p.m.

Spring 2026 semester started last week, and the L & LC is a busy student hub! Amid this lively environment, we've been planning some special activities for the community:

* LETTERS HOME exhibition by artist Thelma Salomon-Saldivar runs through the end of Spring semester. On January 30 at 11:30 a.m., join us for a reception to meet the artist, experience the works on display, and enjoy community and refreshments.

* FEBRUARY 2-6 IS NATIONAL NEWS LITERACY WEEK. Join the L & LC in recognizing this especially important week by attending one or all of our talks by special guests that week:
--Tues. Feb. 3 - MJC Political Science faculty Steve Miller: Democracy and the Fourth Branch of Government
--Weds. Feb. 4 - Modesto Focus editor Marijke Rowland: All News Is Local
--Thurs. Feb 5 - MJC Mass Communication faculty Kyle Stubbs: Social Media, the News, and You.

We can't wait to see you here at the L & LC! More information about the above events in comments.

Therapy Dogs are on our mind! Won't you come visit them on Tuesday/Wednesday during the first week of December? 10:30 - 11:30 am on East & West.

MJC Community: The Library & Learning Center is once again partnering with ASMJC, faculty, and tutors to bring CRAM NIGHT to students at L & LC locations:

Weds, Dec. 3: West Campus 6-9 pm
Thurs, Dec. 4: East Campus 6-9 pm

Featuring food, tutors, librarian help, citation station, access to test materials, and collaborating with pals and professors--in a festive library atmosphere!

Faculty, if you haven't yet signed up, RESERVE YOUR TABLE NOW. Scan QR code or go to https://forms.office.com/r/1nJykJZ9HA.

The L & LC is pleased to announce 24/7 Ask A Librarian Live Chat, offering round-the-clock access to expert human librarians.

Now students can find research help after hours when we're closed or early in the morning before we open.

How to access: Find 24/7 Chat the same way you use our regular chat service. Go to the MJC Library homepage, click Ask A Librarian, and start by filling out the chat box. (Link in comments.)

24/7 Chat - For your early morning & late night research needs!

October 5 - 11 is Banned Books Week! Please visit the L & LC to browse our display and tell us your favorite banned book. You can also share a photo of yourself on IG with a banned book and tag us . See you in the library!

TODAY! Wednesday, September 17: Pick up your free pocket-size Constitution (while they last) at our Voter Registration table inside the East L & LC, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Held in conjunction with the Freedom Forum Club.

See you there!

Paws4Friends therapy dogs will be visiting both Library & Learning Center locations this month.

These furry friends are here to provide stress relief, comfort, and a much-needed break from your studies/instruction/work duties.

Everyone is welcome to stop by, spend some time with these specially trained therapy dogs, and enjoy a moment of relaxation.

Tuesday, April 16th - West Campus Library & Learning Center
Time: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Wednesday, April 23rd - East Campus Library & Learning Center
Time: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Just drop in during the session times. These events are free and open to all students, faculty, and staff.

Take a few minutes out of your day to experience the documented benefits of animal therapy, including reduced stress and anxiety, increased positive emotions, and a sense of connection.

MJC Faculty: Please join the L & LC and the Office of Instruction in a series of hands-on workshops centered around the work of José Antonio Bowen and C. Edward Watson, from their 2024 publication, Teaching with AI: A Practical Guide to a New Era of Human Learning. Dr. Bowen will lead each of the events.

FIRST ONE IS JANUARY 31, 2025, at 2:00 pm. Location/access info below.

Jan 31: Thinking and Working with AI (Keynote Address & Hands-on Workshop): AI is already changing human work and thinking. This workshop includes a general introduction into how AI works, what it can do, and some of the ethics, problems and costs. We will explore the AI ecosystem and practice using different frontier models to explore how AI is changing average. AI is a very different technology so it is critical to determine for which tasks it is useful and for which it is not. Equally, humans will need to understand where human expertise remains essential and where AI can do good enough. AI works best when we ask better questions and evaluate responses: extensions of the critical writing and thinking skills we already teach and value. BRING YOUR LAPTOP. CAT116 & ZOOM

March 7, 2025: AI Literacy, Tools & Techniques (Hands-on Workshop)
AI prompts need to provide more human context and be more literal than the ones we tend to use with a search engine. Since AI uses natural human language, it also needs human-level communication precision: prompt as if you were talking to smart but naïve interns. Prompting is not at all like engineering. In this interactive workshop, you will get to practice lots of techniques on a wide variety of rapidly-evolving AI and API tools. BRING YOUR LAPTOP. CAT116 & ZOOM

March 14, 2025: AI Cheating, Detection, Policies and Writing (Hands-on Workshop)
If an AI can produce consistent average work, then we need to update our policies around grading: why would an employer hire a “C” student if AI can do that level of work? We will investigate how students are cheating and what detectors do. Together, we will design new rubrics for an AI era that articulate how human ‘quality’ goes beyond AI. We will discuss what policies and practices improve motivation and decrease cheating, and why. We will examine new tools that can support both writing and cheating (Grammarly and Lex) and explore new writing post-AI writing assignments. BRING YOUR LAPTOP. CAT116 & ZOOM

March 21, 2025: AI Assignment and Assessments (Hands-on Workshop)
All assignments are now AI Assignments. In the same way that the ease of finding information on the internet forced faculty to rethink what homework students did and how we wanted them to do it, we will all need an AI strategy for assignments and assessment. Since most work will soon be AI-assisted work, we can help prepare students for the jobs of the future with assignments that require or suggest that students use AI to assist in completing them. Through a wide diversity of examples, we will also we how we can reducing cheating and raise standards. BRING YOUR LAPTOP. CAT116 & ZOOM

TIME FOR ALL: 2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
WHERE: Hybrid--In person CAT116. For online, Zoom links are available in VRC listing.

The Letters Home exhibition, currently on display at both L & LC locations, offers viewers a portal into a linguistic landscape wherein the personal dreams and hopes of refugees and immigrants are woven into a tapestry of shared consciousness.

**THIS FRIDAY: You're invited to the artist reception for the photographer, MJC alumna Thelma Saldivar, this Friday, October 25, at 11:00 a.m. at the East Library & Learning Center.**

The exhibition runs from September 3 through December 13 at the East and West Library & Learning Centers. Open hours for both campus locations are 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m. Monday – Friday. West Campus is also open on Saturdays from 8:15 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

The L & LC is proud to display this exhibition, made possible by a Heartland Creative Corps grant through the Stanislaus Arts Council (SAC). The SAC was funded by the California Creative Corps program developed by the California Arts Council in partnership with the California Legislature.

Tuesday, September 17 is National Voter Registration Day! Come visit the East L & LC's "Register to Vote" display anytime and check your voter registration status using the QR code provided.

You're also invited to stop by Tuesday from 12 - 2 p.m. as Freedom Forum Club members support student voter empowerment and civic engagement. https://nationalvoterregistrationday.org/