MCC Libraries News

There's no shortage of health information on the web, but finding trusted, relevant sources and ad-free content can be a challenge. 

The Gale Health and Wellness online database provides comprehensive up-to-date consumer health information. 

Search with confidence knowing you'll find content from reliable sources! 

Election Day is less than a month away! Do have a plan to vote? Make sure you are registered and know what your options are to cast a ballot this year. Before voting, you'll also want to know who's running for office, if there are any ballot initiatives, and what issues influence your decisions. For your information (literally!), we've got a research guide on Elections, Voting & Civic Engagement to help you navigate the process of voting through competing streams of information, misinformation, and disinformation which now include "deep fakes" and photos, videos, and audio recordings that are altered with the help of AI.

Whether it's a singular issue that motivates you, or if you weigh the pros and cons among several issues, it's up to you and you, alone, to decide how to cast your ballot. Media demands your attention with sentiment across a spectrum of heartwarming to inflammatory stories and headlines which range from factual to fallacious. The resources we provide are aimed at enabling you to make an informed decision by recognizing biases and checking the facts on what you see and hear from candidates, campaigns, political parties, and different sources of news and reporting.

Our research guide also provides key dates for registration deadlines, early voting, and voting by mail before Election Day on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, as well as tools for evaluating news articles, information about political polarization, and how to get involved in civic engagement. The dates we provide are based on our location in Monroe County and New York' State, so if you are registered to vote somewhere else, then you should check the official Board of Elections websites in your respective county or state for voting deadlines. Websites like the Federal USAGov's Voting & Elections and the nonpartisan Vote.org can help guide you to the official websites in your voting district.

A representative democracy best represents the interests of its people when more of its people represent their interests at the ballot box, so make your voice heard: go vote!

Many of you already know that, courtesy of the MCC Libraries, you have free access to the digital edition of the New York Times. 

What you may not know is that your access now includes New York Times Audio - a new iOS app featuring audio journalism and storytelling on everything from world events to what to cook.

To activate your complimentary access to the New York Times, visit the New York Times Access at MCC guide. Once you've activated your account, download the New York Times Audio iOS app to start listening! We'll announce the update for the Android app as soon as it becomes available.

Here's more information from the New York Times:

"Our aim is for New York Times Audio to become our “audio front page,” which will bring listeners inside the most important stories of the day in ways that feel original, urgent and accessible.

New York Times Audio is included with a Times news subscription. In addition to our podcasts, here’s some of what you’ll find when you download the app:

• “The Headlines,” a new show lasting under 10 minutes, where Times reporters discuss three of the biggest stories of the day.
• Short pieces from our culture and lifestyles reporters that offer surprise and delight, from a guided tour through the newest pop music to an ode to the magic of “Goodnight Moon.”
• Reporter Reads, where our reporters describe how they found their stories and what surprised them during their reporting, then read the stories out loud.
• The Athletic’s  suite of sports podcasts.
• The archived collection of This American Life, the landmark podcast, as well as new episodes every weekend.
• Magazine journalism from top publishers beyond The Times, read by professional narrators.

The mission of The Times is to help our readers understand the world. We are honored to do the same for our listeners."

In order to access New York Times Audio, users must activate their New York Times News subscription. Users who are logged in to your institution's onsite wifi with their iPad or iPhone will not be able to access NYT apps unless they redeem a News code/pass first.

Exciting news! Artstor, MCC Libraries’ repository of high-quality images from premier museums, photo archives, scholars, and artists, has now seamlessly integrated into JSTOR. This consolidation combines scholarly literature, primary sources, and essential teaching tools onto one platform.

As we navigate through this transition, it’s important to keep in mind that the Artstor platform will retire on August 1, 2024. But no worries - you can get a head start by exploring it on JSTOR now.

To ensure a smooth transition, we invite you to visit our guide, Artstor on JSTOR. This guide is here to assist you in:

• Getting started
• Finding relevant content
• Setting up and maximizing your personal workspace
• Sharing your curated content

If you’ve already curated image groups on Artstor, they will be copied to personal JSTOR workspaces starting in February 2024. Once completed, expect an email with documentation and link to your personal workspace.

For additional details, explore Welcome to JSTOR from Artstor. Don't hesitate to reach out to us at libraries@monroecc.edu or reach out to your department’s liaison librarian for further assistance.
 

In today's educational landscape, video content is a powerful tool for enhancing learning experiences. Did you know that the MCC Libraries offer you four fabulous ways to view and enjoy video content? Well, if you didn’t know, read on!

First of all, the Brighton Campus’s LeRoy V. Good Library maintains an impressive collection of DVDs, featuring educational videos, Hollywood classics, cult favorites, silent films, and television series. Conveniently located at the back of the main floor of the library, you'll find a treasure trove of visual resources. Don't miss the Holocaust, Human Rights, Genocide Resource Center on the 4th floor, offering videos on these important subjects. Borrow any DVD using a valid ID, such as an MCC ID or a driver's license.

For those looking for streaming options, the library has three exceptional options, all free to you by simply logging in with your MCC email credentials. Most of the films in these three databases are more curriculum-driven, but there is no limit as to variety of subjects in each one. Let’s take a look at all three:

1.    Films on Demand. With films produced by The History Channel, BBC, A&E, National Geographic, and a wide variety of independent producers, this database offers comprehensive coverage of current events, diversity, history, science, documentaries, and much more. Every film in the database is instantly accessible, and can be viewed as often as desired, providing professors with the flexibility to integrate videos seamlessly into their courses. 
2.    Academic Video Online (AVON). AVON, like Films on Demand, offers over 80,000 streamed videos across various disciplines such as anthropology, business, counseling, film arts, health, history, music, and more. Faculty members can immediately access every title in the AVON database, enabling them to incorporate relevant videos into their teaching materials effortlessly. Additionally, students and faculty will appreciate the ability to share video with students and entire classes.

3.    Kanopy. This popular video platform operates much differently from Films on Demand and AVON. Unlike the other databases, Kanopy operates on a separate, year-long lease arrangement for each title provided by MCC Libraries. This is due to its "purchase-on-demand" model, which requires careful consideration of our collection budget. We prioritize our faculty's expertise and curricula to ensure the selection aligns with MCC's educational goals while being mindful of budgetary constraints. We encourage you to explore Kanopy and enjoy the many paid access titles we have carefully chosen for our students' learning needs.  

For those looking for pure entertainment, there are several mostly ad-driven sites that offer feature films and TV shows for free. Platforms such as YouTube, Freevee, Crackle, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, and the Roku Channel offer an assortment of content worth checking out. But beware of other sites that ignore copyright. They can not only expose you to legal consequences but may also compromise your device's security!

If you require assistance in finding and integrating video content into your courses, your department's liaison librarian is here to help. Consult them for expert guidance and make the most of the vast array of video resources offered by the MCC Libraries. Elevate your teaching and enrich your student's learning experiences today!

Faculty, are you looking for ways to support your students with their research assignments?  If so, MCC Libraries can help! Librarians have created Research Guides that pull together resources (e.g., databases, books, streaming videos, etc.) that align with courses offered at MCC. The guides are accessible to students through our website or the Library tile on myMCC.

One of our favorite features of the subject guides is that they highlight specific databases, making it easier for students to find articles that are most relevant to their research topics. For example in our Education guide, we've featured databases like ERIC, Films on Demand Education Video, and Education Source. Additionally, upon faculty request, Course Guides are available for individual classes. providing guidance through assignments. For example, a course guide for a 200-level biology course might include a video on how to conduct a literature review.

With more than 40 subjects and 80 guides, the list might look daunting at first, but have no fear! There are several ways to navigate the research guides to find what you need. By default, the list shows all 84 guides organized alphabetically by title. However, you can search the guides using specific keywords or sort the list by popularity or most recent update that are most relevant to your students' needs.

You can group the guides by subject to identify multiple guides that are relevant to your topic. For example, we have ten different subject guides for Research Tips covering important topics such as "Evaluating Online Sources," and "Getting Started," and six different guides relating to Art, Graphic Design & Photography, such as "Art History," "Graphic Design," and "Graphic Novels & Comics." 

Whatever homework or paper your students, MCC Libraries has probably got a research guide to help them get started on it!  Our liaison librarians are available to work with you to create custom guides for your specific classes or assignments. Simply reach out to us if you'd like a guide ready for the next semester. Don't know who your liaison librarian is? Check out our Liaison Librarian Directory to find their contact information.

Remember, we offer one-on-one research help for students who need assistance in getting started finding, or evaluating information. Students are welcome to drop-in at MCC Libraries whenever we are open or schedule an appointment for a one-on-one consultation with a librarian, and we'll be happy to guide you through this process more in-depth. Let's work together to promote student success!

Are you struggling with a research project or assignment? No need to worry! Join us for a workshop hosted by MCC Libraries on Wednesday, April 12th, at noon in the LeRoy V. Good Library, Room 2-423.

During this interactive workshop, a librarian and a learning specialist will provide you with helpful tips and tricks to succeed in your research. We'll cover everything from understanding your assignment to creating a clear focus and managing your citations. By the end of the workshop, you'll have a better understanding of the research process and the necessary tools for success.

Research can be challenging, especially if you're new to it or haven't done it in a while. However, our workshop will be engaging and enjoyable, with lots of chances for you to ask questions. You'll also be able to connect with other students in the same situation and learn from each other.

We can't wait to see you on April 12th! Your future self will thank you for taking this step towards success.

The African American Literature and History library guide is designed to educate college students, faculty and staff, and the broader Rochester community on the unique and powerful legacies of local African Americans leaders from Rochester, NY. Created by Seyvion Scott, the First-Year Experience Librarian, in honor of the Black History Month Celebration at Monroe Community College (MCC), this is the first subject guide to bring awareness to a unique cohort of African American historical figures. In honoring and remembering the rich cultural histories, accomplishments, and monumental endeavors of outstanding African Americans from yesteryear, we bring awareness to their legacies and recognize the positive social change each individual had on the City of Rochester and the United States at large. Inside this guide you will discover new books added to our library's print and digital collections, a description of each item, and a brief excerpt about each African-American historical figure who created lasting social change in their lifetimes.

African American Literature Collection: Curated List 2023

•  African American Architects by: Dreck Spurlock Wilson (Editor)

  African American architects have been designing and building houses and public buildings since 1865. Although many of these structures survive today, the architects themselves are virtually unknown. This unique reference work brings their lives and work to light for the first time. Written by 100 experts ranging from architectural historians to archivists, this book contains 160 biographical, A - Z entries on African-American architects from the era of Emancipation to the end of World War II. The book provide biographical facts about each architect and commentary on his or her work. Practical and accessible, this reference is complemented by over 200 photographs and includes an appendix containing a list of buildings by geographic location and by architect.

•  The Black Librarian in America by: Shauntee Burns-Simpson et al. (2022)

  The Black Librarian in America: Reflections, Resistance, and Reawakening is the latest in the powerful line of The Black Librarian in America volumes. While previous editions we organized around library types, this edition is organized in four thematic sections: A Rich Heritage: Black Librarian History; Celebrating Collective and Individual Identity; Black Librarians Across Settings; Moving Forward: Activism, Anti-Racism, and Allyship. Issues pertaining to Black librarians' intersectional identities, capacities, and contributions take center stage. The Black Librarian in America: Reflections, Resistance, and Reawakening is not only the first edition to be edited entirely by Black women, but it is officially produced by BCALA members in commemoration of the organization's 50th anniversary. Dr. Carla Hayden (14th Librarian of Congress) and Julius Jefferson, Jr. (president of the American Library Association for the 2020-2021 term) contribute moving foreword and afterword segments.

•  Bound for the Promised Land by: Kate Clifford Larson

  Harriet Tubman is one of the giants of American history -- a fearless visionary who led scores of her fellow slaves to freedom and battled courageously behind enemy lines during the Civil War. Now, in this magnificent biography, historian Kate Clifford Larson gives us a powerful, intimate, meticulously detailed portrait of Tubman and her times. Drawing from a trove of new documents and sources as well as extensive genealogical data, Larson presents Harriet Tubman as a complete human being -- brilliant, shrewd, deeply religious, and passionate in her pursuit of freedom. A true American hero, Tubman was also a woman who loved, suffered, and sacrificed. Praise for Bound for the Promised Land appropriately reads like fiction, for Tubman's exploits required such intelligence, physical stamina, and pure fearlessness that only a very few would have even contemplated the feats that she actually undertook. Larson captures Tubman's determination and seeming imperviousness to pain and suffering, coupled with extraordinary selflessness and caring for others.

•  Frederick Douglass: Autobiographies by: Frederick Douglass

  Henry Louis Gates, Jr. presents the only authoritative edition of all three autobiographies by Frederick Douglass who became a great American leader. Here in this Library of America volume are collected Frederick Douglass's three autobiographical narratives, now recognized as classics of both American history and American literature. Writing with the eloquence and fierce intelligence that made him a brilliantly effective spokesman for the abolition of slavery and equal rights, Douglass shapes an inspiring vision of self-realization in the face of monumental odds. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (1845), published seven years after his escape, was written in part as a response to skeptics who refused to believe that so articulate an orator could ever have been a slave. A powerfully compressed account of the cruelty and oppression of the Maryland plantation culture into which Douglass was born, it brought him to the forefront of the anti-slavery movement and drew thousands, black and white, to the cause. In My Bondage and My Freedom (1855), Douglass expands the account of his slave years. With astonishing psychological penetration, he probes the painful ambiguities and subtly corrosive effects of black-white relations under slavery and recounts his determined resistance to segregation in the North. The book also incorporates extracts from Douglass's speeches, including the searing "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July." Life and Times, first published in 1881, records Douglass's efforts to keep alive the struggle for racial equality during Reconstruction. John Brown, Abraham Lincoln, William Lloyd Garrison, and Harriet Beecher Stowe all feature prominently in this chronicle of a crucial epoch in American history. The revised edition of 1893, presented here, includes an account of his controversial diplomatic mission to Haiti. This volume contains a detailed chronology of Douglass's life, notes providing further background on the events and people mentioned, and an account of the textual history of each of the autobiographies.

• Of Minnie the Moocher and Me by: Cab Calloway

  From the back streets of Baltimore where he hustled as a kid, through the jazz clubs of Chicago in the raw and roaring twenties, to the Cotton Club, Hollywood, Paris, and beyond, here in his own words is the story of Cab Calloway - the man who made Minnie the Moocher a household heroine and became one of the most respected jazz musicians and best loved entertainers in America. He sang and danced like no other performer of his time. Tall, slender, handsome, and resplendent in a white zoot suit, his presence on stage was electric. 'Hi-de-hi-de-ho,' he would sing. 'Hi-de-hi-de-ho,' the audience would answer. 'Wah-de-do-de-way-de-ho,' he would intone. 'Wah-de-do-de-way-de-ho,' they would roar back. And on it would go until the crowd was singing, stomping, and dancing in the aisles. It was the Great Depression, but he made them forget. More than that, he made them happy. That has always been Cab Calloway's profession - and the secret of his monumental success - knowing how to make people happy. He has entertained presidents and crowned heads of Europe, Mr., and Mrs. America (as they were then called) over network radio and the first integrated audiences in the South - as well as those still segregated by a rope down a concert hall. He has starred in Broadway shows, made scores of movies, and written hundreds of songs. He has worked - and played - with the greats of his profession from Louis Armstrong to Lena Horne, Duke Ellington to Al Jolson, Dizzy Gillespie to Bill Robinson.

•  The Cradle of Freedom by: Howard W. Coles

  Important to the history of a community - whether city, state, or nation – is the story of the contributions of each distinctive group to the development of the whole. The study of the part played by the Negro in Rochester’s history is therefore important; so also, is the study of the extent to which the Negroes’ experiences in Rochester contributed to their national development. Praise is therefore due to the long and painstaking efforts of Mr. Howard W. Coles to bring together and publish materials on this subject. The wide selection of illustrations and the extensive use made of rare materials brings together in this volume much information respecting the Negro in Rochester. It is most fitting that this compilation should be produced at this time when the thought of the city have been directed back to the career of Frederick Douglass, Rochester’s most historic African American abolitionist.

•  Silent Leader by: Walter Cooper (Foreword); Rodney Brown

  Dr. Freddie L. Thomas was a historian, a scientist, an inventor, an author, a book collector, a composer and a scholar  who had mastered the art of teaching. The focus of the biography is not specifically centered on the scientific aspects of Dr. Thomas's life, but also the political and social environments of the communities he encountered. Equally significant, he reached out to young people, both from prominent and poor families (including gang members) to teach them the importance of obtaining a quality education. He spent an enormous amount of time with youth teaching them everything from basic rudiments of English and Mathematics to complex Mathematics, Physics, Philosophy, and Religion. It was his way to seek out youngsters in the streets, get them interested in learning and then teaching them; if they were willing to apply themselves. He tutored all kinds of people in all kinds of places. Although, he never had a teaching certificate and never received any financial compensation in return. He didn't do it because he was after any gain of money or power. It was his natural way of living. He was, indeed, a Silent Leader.

•  African-American Concert Dance by: John Perpener

   

  African-American Concert Dance significantly advances the study of pioneering black dancers by providing valuable biographical and historical information on a group of artists who worked during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s to legitimize black dance as a serious art form. John O. Perpener sets these seminal artists and their innovations in the contexts of African American culture and American modern dance and explores their creative synthesis of material from European American, African American, Caribbean, and African sources. Perpener begins with Hemsley Winfield, a versatile performer and director whose company, the New Negro Art Theatre, launched the careers of Edna Guy, Randolph Sawyer, and Ollie Burgoyne, among many others. Also profiled are Charles Williams, who directed the Hampton Creative Dance Group at the Hampton Institute in Virginia, and Asadata Dafora Horton, a native African who established himself as the preeminent purveyor of African dance and culture in America during the 1930s. Dafora's African Dance Troupe, which at one point came under the umbrella of the WPA Federal Theatre Project, was a focal point of the famous "voodoo" Macbeth, an all-black production set in Haiti and directed by the young Orson Welles. Stepping onto the path cleared by these early innovators, two important artists combined dance with Anthropology to expand the reach and scope of African American dance. Katherine Dunham and Pearl Primus both studied Anthropology and engaged in extensive fieldwork that infused their dances with Caribbean and African influences. Dunham founded two ambitious training schools, one in New York and one in East St. Louis, while Primus's projects included an African Arts Center in Monrovia, Liberia, dedicated to collecting dance material, teaching, and organizing professional performances. Perpener examines the politics of racial and cultural difference and their impact on these early African American dance leaders. In particular he documents the critical reception of their work, detailing the rigid preconceptions of African American dance that white critics imposed on black artists. He also surveys important black dancers and choreographers since 1950, including Talley Beatty, Donald McKayle, Alvin Ailey, Eleo Pomare, Rod Rodgers, and Dianne McIntyre, and discusses how they have extended and diverged from traditions established by their predecessors.  

•  Rochester Through Time by: Mary Hasek Grenier; Emily C. Morry

   

  Rochester is a waterborne city. The beauty and potential power of the Genesee River's Upper and Lower Falls drew co-founders Nathaniel Rochester, William Fitzhugh, and Charles Carroll to this Seneca-inhabited region in the early 1800s. The two falls spurred local industrial development, while the addition of the Erie Canal in 1825 connected the nascent village to cities across the country and expanded its market, making Rochester one of America's first boom towns. Established as a city in 1834, Rochester has since reinvented itself on a number of occasions, earning a series of reputations ranging from the "Flower City" to the "World Image Center."

•  Civil Rights Movement by: Hourly History

   

  The Civil Rights Movement in America is a broad term for the movement in the mid-twentieth century among and for the African American community in pursuit of equal protection and rights under the law. In reality, it began much earlier than the 1950s and continues until this day. What is more, it was about so much more than the extension of universal rights; the Civil Rights Movement is about the story of the long struggle to overcome the history of slavery and racism. It is a story of triumph over adversity and perseverance in the face of great hardship. Discover a plethora of topics such as The Movement Begins, The Civil Rights Act, Bloody Sunday and the Fight to Vote, The Black Panthers, The Assassination of Martin Luther King, The Fight Continues: The 1970s and Beyond, and much more!

•  Black Mercuries by: David K. Wiggins et al. (2023)

   

  This book fully chronicles the struggles and triumphs of African American athletes in the Modern Olympic summer games. In the modern Olympic Games, from 1896 through the present, African American athletes have sought to honor themselves, their race, and their nation on the global stage. But even as these incredible athletes have served to promote visions of racial harmony in the supposedly-apolitical Olympic setting, many have also bravely used the games as a means to bring attention to racial disparities in their country and around the world. In Black Mercuries: African American Athletes, Race, and the Modern Olympic Games, David K. Wiggins, Kevin B. Witherspoon, and Mark Dyreson explore in detail the varied experiences of African American athletes, specifically in the summer games. They examine the lives and careers of such luminaries as Jesse Owens, Rafer Johnson, Wilma Rudolph, Florence Griffith-Joyner, Michael Johnson, and Simone Biles, but also many African American Olympians who have garnered relatively little attention and whose names have largely been lost from historical memory. In recounting the stories of these Black Olympians, Black Mercuries makes clear that their superior athletic skills did not always shield them from the racial tropes and insensitivity spewed by fellow athletes, the media, spectators, and many others. Yet, in part because of the struggles they faced, African American Olympians have been extraordinarily important symbolically throughout Olympic history, serving as role models to future Black athletes and often putting their careers on the line to speak out against enduring racial inequality and discriminatory practices in all walks of life.

•  Let Nobody Turn Us Around by: Amiri Baraka et al. (2009)

   

  This anthology of black writers traces the evolution of African American perspectives throughout American history, from the early years of slavery to the end of the twentieth century. The essays, manifestos, interviews, and documents assembled here, contextualized with critical commentaries from Marable and Mullings, introduce the reader to the character and important controversies of each period of black history. The selections represent a broad spectrum of ideology. Conservative, radical, nationalistic, and integrationist approaches can be found in almost every period, yet there have been striking shifts in the evolution of social thought and activism. The editors judiciously illustrate how both continuity and change affected the African American community in terms of its internal divisions, class structure, migration, social problems, leadership, and protest movements. They also show how gender, spirituality, literature, music, and connections to Africa and the Caribbean played a prominent role in black life and history.

•  Black Man in a White Coat by: Damon Tweedy

  When Damon Tweedy begins medical school, he envisions a bright future where his segregated, working-class background will become largely irrelevant. Instead, he finds that he has joined a new world where race is front and center. The recipient of a scholarship designed to increase black student enrollment, Tweedy soon meets a professor who bluntly questions whether he belongs in medical school, a moment that crystallizes the challenges he will face throughout his career. Making matters worse, in lecture after lecture the common refrain for numerous diseases resounds: "More common in blacks than in whites." Black Man in a White Coat examines the complex ways in which both black doctors and patients must navigate the difficult and often contradictory terrain of race and medicine. As Tweedy transforms from student to practicing physician, he discovers how often race influences his encounters with patients. Through their stories, he illustrates the complex social, cultural, and economic factors at the root of many health problems in the black community. These issues take on greater meaning when Tweedy is himself diagnosed with a chronic disease far more common among black people. In this powerful, moving, and deeply empathic book, Tweedy explores the challenges confronting black doctors, and the disproportionate health burdens faced by black patients, ultimately seeking a way forward to better treatment and more compassionate care.

•  Pulse of Perseverance by: Maxime Madhere et al. (2017)

   

  What drove three young black men, each from America's most urban environments, to achieve their dreams of becoming doctors? The answer is in the Pulse of Perseverance. In 1998, Max Madhere, Pierre Johnson, and Joe Semien were three young, black, premedical students at Xavier University of Louisiana. Each was struggling with the demands of Xavier's rigorous curriculum, yet each was determined to succeed, even if the statistics, or the stereotypes about black men, said otherwise. By drawing on each other's determination and individual strengths, they forged a brotherhood and created a bond so strong that it would carry them through college, medical school, and well beyond. Now they've come together in Pulse to share their stories and encourage young people of color to pursue high-level careers. Max grew up in New York City and Washington D.C., Pierre in Chicago, and Joe in New Orleans. Underperforming schools, instability in the home, the trappings of street life, or simply being "expected" to fail could have derailed their aspirations, yet all three men refused to accept failure as an option. No obstacle was too great, no ambition too high. Today, Dr. Maxime Madhere, Dr. Pierre Johnson, and Dr. Joseph W. Semien Jr. are each board-certified physicians, as well as fathers and community mentors. Their message in Pulse is both simple and complex: No matter where you're from, no matter what "society" tells you, you can realize your dreams with hard work, determination, and God's guidance.

•  African American Who's Who by: Mike F. Molaire

   

  African American Who's Who of the Greater Rochester Area provides the most comprehensive listing of successful business, social, community and political leaders in the Greater Rochester Area. African American Who's Who is more than a mere compilation of statistical information on successful and notable African Americans in the Greater Rochester Area. This book has three major objectives:
  1. Provide a means of documenting contributions of African Americans in the area.
  2. Identify and reinforce positive role models for African American children, and children of other backgrounds.
  3. Provide a unique networking forum for Greater Rochester Area African Americans. By understanding the accomplishments of their associates, Rochester area leaders can play a more positive role in developing new associations for mutual growth throughout all our communities.

•  Strike the Hammer by: Laura Warren Hill

   

  On July 24, 1964, chaos erupted in Rochester, New York. Strike the Hammer examines the rebellion by the city's Black community and rampant police brutality that would radically change the trajectory of the Civil Rights Movement. After overcoming a violent response by State Police, the fight for justice, in an upstate town rooted in black power movements, was reborn. That resurgence owed much to years of organizing and resistance in the community. Laura Warren Hill examines Rochester's long Civil Rights history and, drawing extensively on oral accounts of the northern, urban community, offers rich and detailed stories of the area's protest tradition. Augmenting oral testimonies with records from the NAACP, SCLC, and the local FIGHT, Strike the Hammer paints a compelling picture of the foundations for the movement. Now, especially, this story of struggle for justice and resistance to inequality resonates. Hill leads us to consider the social, political, and economic environment more than fifty years ago and how that founding generation of activists left its mark on present-day Rochester.

•  Tearing Down Fences: The Life of Alice Holloway Young by: Sally Parker

   

  Born in North Carolina in 1923, just three years after American women won the right to vote, Alice Holloway Young forged a barrier-breaking career in education. From her first day as a substitute teacher in 1952, to her years presiding over the board of trustees at Monroe Community College (MCC), Young was in the middle of it all. She was a tutor, teacher, principal, administrator, school integrator, and community college leader. But Young is more than that – she is a first. She was one of the first of five African American teachers in the Rochester City School District (RCSD), itself a first in integration efforts. She was the district’s first African American vice principal and principal. She wrote Rochester’s Title 1 programs to integrate the schools ahead of federal mandates. And in 1961, she became the only woman and the only African American on the founding board of trustees at MCC.

•  The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes by: Julia Finley Mosca

   

  Meet Dr. Bath -- the scientist who never lost sight of her dreams! As a girl coming of age during the Civil Rights Movement, Patricia Bath made it her mission to become a doctor. When obstacles like racism, poverty, and sexism threatened this goal, she persevered -- brightening the world with a game-changing treatment for blindness! The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: The Story of Dr. Patricia Bath is the second book in a brand new educational series about the inspirational lives of amazing scientists! In addition to the illustrated rhyming tale, you'll find a complete biography, fun facts, a colorful timeline of events, and even a note from Dr. Bath herself.

Are you tired of coming across great online journal articles only to be stopped by a paywall? MCC Libraries can help!

Google Scholar is a great way to find scholarly sources, but it can be frustrating to find an article only to discover that you have to pay to read it. Luckily, there is a solution! If you are on campus, you can connect to MCC Libraries' subscription databases for free through Google Scholar. If you are off campus, you will need to access Google Scholar through the A to Z Databases page on MCC Libraries' website or the Library tile on myMCC, or this link: https://ezproxy.monroecc.edu/login?url=https://scholar.google.com. 

While you search Google Scholar this way, look for two links: ViewIt@MCC and GetIt@MCC. Following these links will lead you to full-text articles available through MCC Libraries' subscription databases. If the article you need is not available in our collection, you can request a copy through Interlibrary Loan, a service where libraries share resources with each other.

That’s not all! There’s another tool that can make your search experience even better. The LibKey browser extension connects you to full-text articles available in the MCC Libraries’ subscription databases with just one click. You can use LibKey not only while searching Google Scholar, but also while on Pubmed, Wikipedia, certain websites, and publisher pages. To learn more about LibKey and download it, visit Libkey Nomad Browser Extension: Find Full-Text Faster!. 

There's no need to pay for an article! You can access any article you need by taking advantage of tools such as Google Scholar integration, LibKey, and MCC Libraries' Interlibrary Loan service. So why wait? Start your research journey with MCC Libraries today and make use of these great resources!

Hey, MCC students! Are you ready to show off your creativity and share your passions with the campus community? Then mark your calendars for May 3rd from 3 to 4:30 pm, because it's time for MCC's second annual Celebration of Learning at the Leroy V. Good Library!

This Scholars' Day event is your chance to showcase any school-based projects that you've poured your heart into. Whether it's a research paper, a painting, or a PowerPoint presentation, this is the perfect opportunity to share your voice with the MCC community. From topics like climate change to social justice issues, there's no limit to what you can explore. Science, humanities, and arts students alike are welcome to participate and showcase their work. 

Here's how it works: Picture a traditional science fair, but with a diverse range of projects from every discipline at MCC. Each student will have the chance to present their work in any format they wish (e.g., poster, PowerPoint, painting, etc.) and share their voice with the community. Guests can stroll around the library and learn about the variety of learning taking place at MCC.

So, what are you waiting for? Faculty, encourage your students to participate, and students, don't hesitate to sign up and share your projects! Show the MCC community what you've got and let your creativity shine! The deadline to apply is April 19, 2023. Ready to join the celebration? Fill out the Intent to Participate Form now!