New York State Library Announces April Public Programs

The New York State Library announces its upcoming programming for April, including webinars and events related to genealogical services, small business development assistance, and other interesting topics. The following upcoming free programming requires registration and is available either in person or online, as indicated in each listing.

April 7-13 is National Library Week. This annual observance provides an opportunity to celebrate the vital role libraries play in ensuring that all New Yorkers have access to lifelong learning opportunities. It is a time to celebrate the contributions of our nation's libraries and librarians and to promote library use and support. The theme for National Library Week 2024, “Ready, Set, Library!” promotes the idea that in our always-online world, libraries give us a green light to something truly special: a place to connect with others, learn new skills, and participate in author talks, workshops, and book clubs.

The April 8th Total Solar Eclipse: When, Where, and How to See It! (Webinar)

Tuesday, April 2, 2024
2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

On April 8, 2024, New York State will experience a total solar eclipse! Regions in the Western and Northern parts of the state will experience totality, while other regions will get to see a partial solar eclipse. With proper eye protection, you can watch the moon cross in front of the sun. In this session, details of when, where, and how to watch the solar eclipse will be provided in addition to what you can expect to see if you are in an area of totality. Information about the fascinating solar science that NASA plans to accomplish during the eclipse with help from Citizen Scientists across the United States will also be covered.

Dr. Valerie Rapson is an Astronomer and public outreach enthusiast who enjoys teaching people of all ages about science. A native of Rochester, New York, she earned her Ph.D. in Astrophysical Sciences and Technology at the Rochester Institute of Technology. At SUNY Oneonta, Dr. Rapson teaches a variety of physics and astronomy courses. Prior to joining the faculty at Oneonta, Dr. Rapson was the director of the Dudley Observatory in Albany, NY. She is a National Astronomy Ambassador and was awarded the 2018 Emerging Leader Award by Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region for being a role model to young women who aspire to become scientists. 

Register for The April 8th Total Solar Eclipse: When, Where, and How to See It!

Expand your Summer Reading Program with the Talking Book and Braille Library (Webinar)

Thursday, April 4, 2024
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM

Learn how the Talking Book & Braille Library (TBBL) can provide you with resources for children and adults with temporary or permanent disabilities. These can be low vision, blindness, a physical disability, or a perceptual or reading disability that prevents the use of regular print materials.

Presenter Laurenne Teachout is a Senior Librarian with the Talking Book and Braille Library in Albany, NY. With more than ten years as a Public Library Director, Laurenne has a BA in English/Writing from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, VA, and an MSLS from PennWest in Clarion, PA. Laurenne embraces the National Library for the Blind and Print Disabled mission and cares deeply about diversity, equity, and inclusion in libraries. 

Register for Expand your Summer Reading Program with the Talking Book and Braille Library

Onsite Walking Tour of the Local History and Genealogy Resources at the New York State Library

Thursday, April 4, 2024

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

And

Friday, April 19, 2024

1:00 PM –  2:00 PM

The New York State Library provides a nearly endless supply of resources for those tracing their family histories. Join us for an onsite tour highlighting published genealogies, local histories, church records, Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) records, United States and New York State Census records, newspapers on microfilm, city directories, and more. Associate Librarian Cara Janowsky and Senior Librarian Jane Bentley-Turo

Register for the April 4, 2024, Onsite Walking Tour of the Local History and Genealogy Resources at the New York State Library

Register for the April 19, 2024, Onsite Walking Tour of the Local History and Genealogy Resources at the New York State Library

Intellectual Property Fundamentals (Webinar)
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

Unfamiliar with patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets? Learn about intellectual property (IP) basics and potential ways to protect your innovations as you transition from idea to product. The session will cover the following:

• What is the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)?
• An overview of intellectual property types: patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets
• Why innovators and entrepreneurs should consider protecting their IP
• How to get started in protecting your intellectual property.

Register for Intellectual Property Fundamentals

The Sewing Girl's Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America (Webinar)
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM

The Sewing Girl's Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America (Henry Holt and Company, 2022), written by John Wood Sweet, follows a seventeen-year-old seamstress named Lanah Sawyer as she sought legal recourse after a sexual assault. A riveting historical drama of the first published rape trial in American history and its long, shattering aftermath. More than two hundred years later, so much has changed. So much has not.

John Wood Sweet is a professor of history at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill and former director of UNC’s Program in Sexuality Studies. He graduated from Amherst College and earned his Ph.D. in History at Princeton University. Much of his work has focused on colonial North America and the interactions of Native peoples, African Americans, and English settlers and how these colonial struggles over power and culture shaped the development of American political culture after the Revolution. His first book, Bodies Politic: Negotiating Race in the American North (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003), was a finalist for the Frederick Douglass Prize. Sweet has served as a Distinguished Lecturer for the Organization of American Historians. Sweet has received many honors and awards, including major fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Humanities Center.  His most recent book is the award-winning The Sewing Girl's Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America (Henry Holt and Company, 2022).  The Sewing Girl's Tale received rave reviews in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and elsewhere when it was published and has gone on to win some of the history profession’s highest honors, including the Bancroft Prize for the best book in American history, the Parkman Prize, which is awarded each year to a book on American history distinguished by its literary merit, the Langum Prize in American Legal History, and the Journal of the American Revolution Book of the Year.

Register for The Sewing Girl's Tale: A Story of Crime and Consequences in Revolutionary America

Visit the State Library's website for a complete list of upcoming programs, including webinars, events, and onsite genealogy walking tours. Additional programs will be added to the website as they are confirmed. If any reasonable accommodation is needed (complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act), contact the Office of Cultural Education at least three business days before the program date by emailing NYSLTRN@nysed.gov or calling (518) 474-2274. 

The New York State Library is part of the Office of Cultural Education within the New York State Education Department and celebrated its bicentennial in 2018. The Library serves the following three major constituencies. The Regent Joseph E. Bowman Jr. Research Library, established by law in 1818, collects, preserves, and makes available materials that support State government work. The Library's collections, now numbering over 20 million items, may also be used by other researchers onsite, online, and via interlibrary loan. The Talking Book and Braille Library (TBBL) lends braille, audiobooks, magazines, and special playback equipment to residents of the 55 upstate counties of New York State who cannot read printed materials because of a visual or physical disability. The Division of Library Development works in partnership with 72 library systems to bring library services to millions of people who use New York's academic, public, school, and special libraries. Library Development also administers State and Federal grant programs that provide aid for library services.