Florida Tech Donates Library Books, Materials to Crosswinds

– With new advocates at Florida Tech, Crosswinds Youth Services in Melbourne, is filling its library with donated materials.

Florida Tech’s Evans Library has donated some of the hundreds of gifts to the library of materials (books, textbooks, periodicals, and multimedia
resources) that, for a variety of reasons, can’t be added to the university’s permanent collection. A publication may be outside the scope of the
university’s programs, for example.

Crosswinds’ new facility has space for a small library, but the organization lacks resources to acquire books. Evans Library has joined with the Florida
Tech chapter of Phi Eta Sigma, freshman national scholastic honor society, to transport gifts of library materials from Evans Library to Crosswinds on a
regular basis.

Crosswinds Executive Director Jan Lokay said she is “thrilled with [Evans Library’s] offer and very excited about the program.” Dr. Celine Lang, Florida
Tech dean of libraries, is delighted with the opportunity to support Brevard County young people through Crosswinds.

Ilona Mueller, patron access librarian, will coordinate the program for Evans Library. The students of Phi Eta Sigma, under the guidance of Rodney Bowers,
director of Florida Tech’s Academic Support Center, are the critical link in this new program.
The idea for the program came from the students, who conducted a textbook drive on behalf of Evans Library in the fall of 2003. Duplicate publications from
that drive are among the first gifts of books to Crosswinds. The students will prepare the materials and deliver them to Crosswinds.