A comprehensive report about Kimbel Library's Banned Books Week and the success of the events, games and activities that was held each day.

1. Banned Books Week 2016
Kimbel Library & Bryan Information Commons
Coastal Carolina University

2. Table of Contents
Banned Books Week Day By Day
What Worked Well
Kimbel Library Blog
Press
Social Media Channels
Facebook & Instagram
Twitter
Flyer
Survey
READ Poster
Expense Spreadsheet
Receipts
Page 3
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10
Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Page 14
Page 16
Page 17
Page 18

3. Kimbel Library had something special every single day for Banned Books Week, rain or shine: there
were free buttons, pins, pamphlets, trivia, fun photos and even a s’more roast, just to name a few of
the great activities that students were able to learn from throughout the week.
Prior to Banned Books Week – Advertisements were
distributed, this included outdoor staked yard signs, flyers, eboards in every academic building on
campus, 2 book
displays inside of Kimbel Library, a blog on our library website, a press release, a READ poster of the
director of our library with a Banned Book and an ‘advertisement’ on the university’s theater previews
before every movie.
Kimbel Library utilized our social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram adver-
tising and enticing followers of the prizes and fun events that would happen during Banned Books
Week.
Monday– Set up for Banned Books Week was complete. Virtual Read Out was displayed in our
foyer for all to see. Banned Books Week started off with a bang, or rather a pop, as in a lot of
popcorn! We had popcorn out for the premier of our Virtual Read Out Movie which premiered on
Monday. The movie played 24/7 throughout the
entirety of Banned Books Week. We also had a
table set up including decorations with signage, a
Banned Books Week contest, buttons, bookmakers,
2015-2016 Banned Books list, and a survey. Photos
were taken and posted to our social media
channels for all to see.
3

4. Tuesday- From 2-4 p.m. our Tweet-Out took place. We had approximately 114 participants!
Our library patrons really enjoyed this event. Each patron selected a banned book to pose with for
their “mugshot.” We had a lot of question as to why
certain books were banned and also a lot of
patrons that were surprised by their favorite book
being recognized as a banned book. While the Read Out
seemed to reach lots of new faces, the Tweet-Out had
Kimbel Library
reaching all across the world! During this time period
the social media channels exploded with growth through
retweets, favorites and new followers. Over a dozen
university sponsored accounts
mentioned the Tweet-Out in their own words or retweeted
Kimbel Library to encourage students to participate. The
highlight of the Tweet-Out was when the American Library
Association retweeted one of the tweets, featuring one of
Coastal Carolina
University’s students!
4

5. Wednesday – Patrons continued to
participate in the Banned Books contest, survey,
enjoy promotional items available for selection,
and ask questions about Banned Books Week
regarding what it really is. We also had a Banned
Books Week contest, that consisted of five
mason jars that had quotes from a few selected
Banned Books, patrons had to correctly guess
the title of the book.
Kimbel Library had 58 students take part in the
contest and the prizes were canvas bags full of
banned or challenged books. There were three
winners of the contest: Jessica Moore, Lanes-
sa Salvatore and Rachel White. As students took part in the contest they also were able to take a
Banned Books Week button, bookmark, and 2015-2016 booklet of Banned Books.
Thursday- From 6:30-8 p.m. we
hosted the “Roast Marshmallows, Not
Books” event. There were approximately
215 participants at this event. The set up
took place on campus right outside of our
library. Photos were taken and posted on
our social media channels for all to see.
During this event PASCAL SC directly
tweeted us to let us know that our event
was “great.” During this time we also re-
corded our Virtual Read-Out Video for next
year’s Banned Books Week. We recruited
volunteers during the time of our s’mores
roast. This was the most successful event of
the week! Kimbel Library provided all of the s’more making
essentials for students including a fire pit, marshmallows, chocolate bars, graham crackers, plates,
napkin, and metal skewers to roast the marshmallows. This event took place at sunset, while some
students came from the library, many more were attracted to the event either through social media
advertisements or through word of mouth.
5

6. Friday- Patrons continued to participate in the Banned Books contest, survey, enjoy promotional
items available, and ask questions about Banned Books Week regarding what it really is.
Post Banned Books Week – Our contest received 58 entries. Of those entries
three winners were selected. They have received a Banned Books-themed tote bag, a mug, and six
selected banned books along with a few other Banned Books promotional items.
6

7. What worked well
The overall celebration of Banned Books Week was successful. Library patrons were educated on
what the purposed of Banned Books Week is. Each event that we hosted served a purpose and was
positively intercepted by our patrons. The Tweet Out had approximately 114 participants in 2 hours.
The placement of this event was a centralized location in our library with heavy foot traffic.
Therefore, we caught a lot of attention. We even got a retweet and kudos from The American Library
Association!
The Banned Books Week table that we had set up in our foyer was also in a centralized location with
a lot of foot traffic. This table had signage, promotional items, and information about Banned Books
and also it held our Banned Books week contest. The contest consisted of 5 mason jars that had
quotes from a few selected banned books.
We had 58 contest entries with 3 winners that we selected and have received a Banned Book themed
tote bag filled with Banned Books. The participants were very intrigued by the contest and the table
set up provoked a lot of questions about Banned Books and censorship.
Both of our uniquely decorated Banned Books displays had a huge impact on our patrons as they
walked through our library. Books were checked out and questioned as to why certain books were on
the display. We got a lot of “This book was really banned?” or “Why was this book banned?”
“Roast Marshmallows, Not Books” was our s’mores roast event that was held right outside of our
library. This particular event had approximately 215 participants. We received a lot of positive
feedback for the concept and the name of this event. All of our library patrons and even people
walking by on campus really enjoyed this event, they even discussed and asked questions regarding
Banned Books and why we were celebrating.
What could be improved
Survey
We used a paper survey for this weeks events. There were only a small number of participants that
completed this survey. The survey was not as effective as one would have hoped.
The reasoning behind this was because it was too long. The survey was front and back. Next time
the survey that will be displayed will be only a few questions.
Jail and Bail Fundraiser
We originally planned to create a jail cell for a fundraiser, where students could stand in the cell and
friends could ‘bail’ them out. This idea will be revisited with more time to recieve internal authoriza-
tions and more time to organize the logistics.
New Banned Books Virtual Readout
The new Banned Books Virtual Readout was planned to take place during the s’mores roast. Our
objective was to ask the participants of the s’mores roast to be recorded reading a passage from a
Banned Book. During this time of the evening it was hard to find patrons who were willing to read.
7

8. Kimbel Library Blog
Link : http://kimbellibrary.blogspot.com/
8

9. Press Release
Link: http://www.coastal.edu/coastal-now/news/news-article/
index.php?id=4389
University Calendar
9

10. Social Media Channels
Kimbel Library uses social media daily to inform students, faculty, staff and Coastal Carolina
University community members of news and events happening at the library. Banned Books Week
was no exception. Every day Kimbel Library took to their social media channels to advertise their
Banned Books Week events. Each social media channel was filled with images and videos from fun
events during
#BannedBookWeek. Take a look at the archives on each of Kimbel Library’s social platforms to see
all of the fun had during
#BannedBookWeek.
https://twitter.com/KimbelLibrary
https://www.facebook.com/KimbelLibrary/
https://www.instagram.com/kimbellibrary/
Campus Electronic Boards:
These were displayed on all of the e-boards around campus.
10

11. Facebook Statistics
https://www.facebook.com/KimbelLibrary/
Instagram Statistics
https://www.instagram.com/kimbellibrary/
11

12. Twitter Statistics
https://twitter.com/KimbelLibrary
12

13. Roast Sept. 29
6:30 - 8 p.m.
Blanton Park
All week
in the Kimbel
Foyer
Marshmallows
Not Books
Kimbel Library
Sept. 27 2-4p.m.
Tweet Out
Virtual
Read
Out
Coastal Carolina University (CCU) does not discriminate on the basis of race,
color, religion, sex, national origin, age, genetic information, mental or
physical disability, or status as a disabled or Vietnam-era veteran in its
admissions policies, programs, activities or employment practices. For more
information relating to discrimination, please contact the CCU Title IX
Coordinator/EEO Investigator, Coastal Carolina University, Kearns Hall 104B,
Conway, SC; Title IX email titleix@coastal.edu; office phone 843-349-2382;
Title IX cell phone 843-333-6229; EEO email eeo@coastal.edu; or the U.S.
Dept. of Education Office for Civil Rights at www2.ed.gov/ocr.
Sponsored by the
Judith F. Krug Banned
Books Week Grant and The
Freedom to Read Foundation
Celebrate Banned Books Week
Kimbel Library
Bryan Information Commons&
13

14. Banned Books Survey
14

15. 15

16. READ Software
Our future plans for this software include featuring ‘campus celebrities’ on posters throughout
Kimbel Library, to not only promote literacy but a love of reading. We will feature library staff and other
well known Coastal faces including Coastal Carolina University President, Dean of Students, Head
Football Coach, Head Baseball Coach, Student Government Association President and our school
mascot.
16

17. 17

18. Receipts
18

19. 19

20. 20

21. 21

22. 22

23. 23

24. 24

25. 25

26. 26

27. 27

28. 28

29. 29