Starkville Friends of the Library to debut Education Resource Center
The Starkville Friends of the Library’s new Education Resource Center will officially open during their monthly book sale on Monday on the bottom floor of the Starkville Public Library.
An entire section of shelves in the library’s Anytime Sales Room is lined with text books and printed educational resource materials. These books will be sold at $0.50 a piece.
A few weeks ago, around 4,000 books were donated to the Friends of the Library by the family of Ronald H. Newell. Newell was an educator who taught in Starkville, Maben and Kemper County. When Newell passed away, his family donated a portion of his text book collection to the library.
The Friends of the Library created the Education Resource Center to share the books with the community. The center will be unveiled on Monday during the monthly book sale, which will last from noon to 6 p.m.
The books vary in grade level and subject-matter, ranging from pre-school to college material. Some
books are vintage and some are more modern.
Danny Cheatham, a member of the Friends of the Library, said the center will be a good resource for both students and teachers.
“I think one of the most beneficial groups would be home-schooled children,” Cheatham said. “In terms of content, these books would be great for them to use as reference books.”
Cheatham said two teachers have contacted the library about the new collection, and asked for foreign language books that they could reference while teaching.
The collection might also be beneficial to college students. Cheatham said Mississippi State University students frequent the library’s monthly book sale in search of books that are helpful in their field of study. Instead of just a few scattered text books, the library now has an entire section for the students to browse.
Of the 4,000 books donated, around 800 to 1,000 are on display, ready for the Monday sale.
“We wanted to do our best to try and make these books available,” Cheatham said. “It’s a treasure trove of knowledge, and there is something for everybody.”