ESOL Center & Writing Center Offer Help to Summer Session Students

Summer session students take note, the ESOL Center and the Writing Center are open this summer and their tutors are eager to lend you a helping hand!  Students are encouraged to make an appointment online using the links below, but walk-ins are also welcome. Both centers are located on the lower level of the library.

The ESOL Center [Opens May 29]

Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday, 3:00PM to 6:00PM

Looking for help with writing, presentations, pronunciation and conversation enrichment? Come to the ESOL Center. Bentley University students whose home language is not English are invited to take advantage of the free tutorial services offered by Bentley’s ESOL Center.  All students (including graduate students) can schedule an appointment online using the undergraduate scheduling database link, call 781.891.2021 to make an appointment, or drop in to see if a faculty tutor is available.

The Writing Center [Opens May 21]

Hours: Monday – Thursday, 2:00PM to 6:00PM [updated June 5, 2012]  

Writing Center staff are available to provide one-to-one assistance with writing skills. Students can either drop in during open hours, schedule an appointment online, or call 781.891.3173 to make an appointment.

Summer Session Hours Begin May 21

Summer Session begins on Monday, May 21, 2012.  Our regular summer session hours are:

Sunday
1:00PM – 10:00PM

Monday – Thursday
8:00AM – 10:00PM

Friday
8:00AM – 4:00PM

Saturday
9:00AM – 5:00PM

Please note: Hours are subject to change on holidays and holiday weekends (including Memorial Day weekend – May 26- 28), and when classes are not being held.  The Deloitte Cafe has closed for the summer.

To get the most up-to-date information about the library’s hours please view our online hours calendar.

Database of the Month: CQ Researcher

CQ Researcher is a source of in depth, comprehensive reports on a range of social, political, economic, and scientific issues. The reports provide an overview, background and chronology, maps and graphs, and bibliography related to a particular issue. Each report is written by an experienced journalist and addresses a specific question related to an issue. For example, the report titled Campaign Finance Debates poses the question “Should regulations be loosened further?”. The reports go back as far as 1991 and continue to be published every week.

History

CQ Researcher was originally published as Editorial Research Reports from 1923 to 1956,  before being bought by Congressional Quarterly. During these years, Editorial Research Reports provided in depth reports on current events to subscribing newspapers.  The publication changed its name to CQ Researcher in 1991 and is currently owned by SAGE Publications.

Searching CQ Researcher for Reports

You can search CQ Researcher for reports on the topic you’re interested in in two basic ways: keyword searching and browse by topic. Use the Quick Search box at the top of the screen for basic keyword searching. This will oftentimes be enough to find a report on your topic.  When you’re looking at a list of search results, be sure to check out the date of the report on the right.  If you are interested in up to date information, an older report isn’t what you’re looking for. You can arrange the reports in chronological order from oldest to newest or newest to oldest by clicking on the blue arrows under Date.  There is also an advanced search option available where you can limit your search by date range, topic, and specific section of the report.

You can also browse for reports by topic by selecting Topic from the Browse Reports drop down menu in the upper left hand corner of the screen.  Once you select one of the topics listed, a listing of more specific topics will appear, related to the original topic.  For example, the U.S. Presidency topic brings you to a list of 4 sub-topics: Campaign Finance, Campaigns and Elections, Party Politics, and Powers and History of the Presidency.  When you click on one of the more specific topics, a listing of reports related to that topic will appear.

What’s in the Reports?

Each report has the following sections:

  • Introduction
  • Overview
  • Background
  • Current Situation
  • Outlook
  • Pro/Con
  • Chronology
  • Short Features
  • Maps/Graphs
  • Bibliography
  • The Next Step
  • Contacts

The Pro/Con section provides the two sides of the argument discussed in the report, each argument put forth by an individual associated with the issue. The Next Step section lists additional published sources, mostly articles and books, on the topic of the report.  The Contacts section has contact information for government agencies, advocacy groups, and think tanks related to the topic of the report.

Each report also lists related reports in the Issue Tracker for Related Reports area in the upper right corner of the report.  The Cite Now link will create a citation of the report in APA, MLA, Chicago, and Bluebook citation styles.

Connect to this Database

Please visit CQ Researcher to explore this valuable database further or visit our Databases page to view a complete list of our resources.

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Database of the Month provides a very brief introduction to an important research database, highlighting key features of the database that you should know about. If you would like more information about this database (or any of the library’s databases) please contact the Reference Desk.  If you would like a demonstration of this database for a class, please contact our Coordinator of User Education, Elizabeth Galoozis.

Congrats to Our Graduating Student Assistants! We Dedicate These Books & Films to You…

Commencement is coming, making it time for the library staff to bid farewell to our graduating student assistants – Charles “Costas” Blougouras, Jamie Carrillo, Michael Clark, John Cunniff, Anthony DeAngelo, Claude Louis, Nicholas Moutinho, Julia Powell, Melissa Rivers, Safiya Samms, Lauren Steinbrecher, Anika Sutty & April Watkins.
Congratulations and best wishes for a happy and successful future!

It’s a Bentley Library tradition to dedicate a title to each of our graduating student employees in appreciation for their service.  This year, the students were invited to choose either a book or a film to be dedicated on their behalf. We will be displaying all of their individual selections in the New Books area for the next few weeks – stop by and take a look:

  • Charles “Costas” Blougouras – The Hunger Games
  • Jamie Carrillo –  (dvd) Almost Famous
  • Michael Clark –  (dvd) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts I and II
  • John Cunniff –  To Kill A Mockingbird
  • Anthony DeAngelo –  A Game of Thrones
  • Claude Louis –  (dvd) Transformers
  • Nicholas Moutinho –  Ronald Reagan, Fate, Freedom, and the Making of History
  • Julia Powell –  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
  • Melissa Rivers –  Diary A Novel
  • Safiya Samms –  The Perks of Being a Wallflower
  • Lauren Steinbrecher –  The Lonely Hearts Club
  • Anika Sutty – Introduction to Fashion Merchandising
  • April Watkins –  A Good Man is Hard to Find

Thanks goes out to all of our student employees for their hard work and commitment throughout the past year! Have a wonderful summer break, and we look forward to your return next year.

Special Library Hours: May 11 – May 20

The Library’s hours change for the period of time after finals and before the start of Summer Session – May 11 to May 20, 2012.  Evening hours are reduced and we will be closed on the weekends.

– On Friday, May 11, the library is open from 7:30AM to 4:30PM.

– From Saturday, May 12, to Sunday, May 20, the library’s hours are:

Monday – Thursday:
8:00AM – 9:00PM

Friday:
8:00AM – 6:00PM

Saturday & Sunday:
CLOSED

Our hours will change again when summer session classes begin on Monday, May 21. Please note that the Deloitte Café closes on Thursday, May 10, for the duration of the summer.

For more information about the library or cafe hours please check our hours calendar.