Press Release

Summer Academy Campers to Unravel Mystery at the Library

—Concept Based on Book by Saint Mary’s College Librarian—

Contact:
Gwen O’Brien
Director of Media Relations
Saint Mary’s College
(574) 284-4579

June 29, 2009 (Notre Dame, Ind.)—It’s no mystery why campers love Saint Mary’s Summer Academy, an overnight one-week camp for academically and artistically motivated girls, grades 8-12. Each week explores a different interest, like writing, science and math, and theatre. The theme for the week of July 12-17 is “word play.” Among the activities, students will explore the art of storytelling by building comic strips and creating dialogue through conflict and character development exercises.

A mystery event at the Cushwa-Leighton Library on Wednesday, July 15 from 7-9 p.m. will test another necessary skill for writers—the ability to research. The mystery will have a pirate theme and campers will use their investigative skills to look for stolen treasure while learning how a library works. Clues will be hidden throughout the library and the students will run through the stacks exploring library resources and interacting with the librarians and staff to solve the mystery.

It’s the eighth time the Cushwa-Leighton Library has hosted a mystery event, which is usually a library orientation for the College’s students. You could say Saint Mary’s librarian Elizabeth M. Karle wrote the book on hosting library mysteries. Her book “Hosting a Library Mystery,” published in April, is a programming guide for libraries that includes five mystery script examples, each targeted to a different audience. The scripts serve as a way to acquaint patrons with library services, library personnel and special collections.

“The book has been really well received by libraries across the country,” said Karle. “It includes complete instructions for program planning, from how to write clues to organizing investigations. It’s really a one-of-a-kind book filled with creative ways to bring a community into their library and give them an incentive to stay.”

The media is invited to cover the Summer Academy’s library mystery event. Please contact Gwen O’Brien, director of media relations, to arrange. For more information on the book, click here. For information on Summer Academy, click here.

About Saint Mary’s College: Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Ind., is a four-year, Catholic, women’s institution offering bachelor’s degrees in more than 30 major areas of study. The College has six nationally accredited academic programs: social work, art, music, teacher education, chemistry and nursing. Saint Mary's College ranks among the nation's top liberal arts colleges in U.S. News & World Report's 2009 annual survey. Founded in 1844, Saint Mary’s is a pioneer in the education of women, and is sponsored by the Sisters of the Holy Cross.