Author Archive

Creative Contest for Teens a Tradition at Emma Clark Library

Setauket, NY – October 24, 2019 –

For the 6^th year now, Emma Clark Library continues the annual Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Contest for junior high and high school students in Three Village. The Library is calling for teens who live in the Three Village Central School District to create an original children’s picture book using their own artwork and text.  The entries will be judged and winning authors will receive a monetary prize and have their work bound, made into a hardcover book, and added to the Library’s shelves. Additional copies of the winning books will also be available for purchase by family and friends. Winners and their families will be invited to an awards ceremony in the Spring. In the past, these awards ceremonies haven been attended by Library Trustees, teachers and top school district administrators, as well as representatives and elected officials from New York State, Suffolk County, and Brookhaven Town, all on hand to honor the winners.

The contest is divided into two grade categories, grades 7 through 9 and grades 10 through 12, with one First Prize Winner and one Second Prize Winner selected from each group.  Each entry can be the work of a single author/illustrator or can be a joint effort between an author and an illustrator (in the event that a winning entry is a collaboration, the prize will be shared).  Each of the First Prize award recipients will receive $400, and each of the Second Prize award recipients will receive $100.  All entrants will receive a Certificate of Participation.

Teens may obtain an Official Entry Form in-person in the Library’s lobby or online at emmaclark.org/picturebookaward starting November 15, 2019. Included with the form are the contest procedures & guidelines.  They should bring their completed picture book, along with a completed Official Entry Form, to the Children’s Department anytime between January 2 – 31, 2020.

Last year’s Grand Prize winners were Nicole Xiao (Grades 7 – 9 category) and Juliet Weschke (Grades 10 – 12 category).  The public may view previous year’s winning entries at emmaclark.org/picturebookaward.

This award is given in memory of Helen Stein Shack by her family.  As a teacher, Mrs. Shack was committed to the education of children, and she especially loved literature written for them.  She was a frequent visitor to Emma Clark Library where, even in retirement, she kept current with the latest children’s books.  The Library is grateful to the children of the late Mrs. Shack who have established a substantial endowment with the Library to cover the ongoing cost of the prizes.

Please note:  A maximum of one entry will be accepted per author. Entries may be a collaboration of no more than one author and one artist/illustrator. Emma Clark employees, trustees, and their immediate family members are not eligible to enter.

The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and on the web at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.

“The Heart of the Three Village Community”

Online Learning Expands at Emma Clark Library

Setauket, NY – October 22, 2019 –

The foundation of any library is its role as a reputable & trustworthy educational resource; for a 21^st century library, that includes online learning. In the next few months, Emma Clark Library will be expanding its online learning collection. With three new, online platforms right at their fingertips, patrons will be able to watch free, high-quality instructional videos from anywhere, whether at home or in the Library.

CreativeBug, available now, is an arts and crafts instructional resource with over 1,000 award-winning video classes taught by recognized design experts and artists. For ease of use, the videos may be filtered by category, class type (i.e. quick, beginner, advanced, multi-part), or instructor. The website also informs the user of the amount of time for each tutorial (ranging from a short 3-minute video to more intense multiple hour classes). Whether a person is making a collage, sewing, knitting, using the Cricut machine, or working on any other arts and crafts project, CreativeBug is sure to help.

Beginning in the New Year, Hoonuit (pronounced “Who-Knew-It”) and Universal Class will be accessible to Emma Clark Library cardholders. Hoonuit provides on-demand video training for more than 500 software applications, including Microsoft Word and Excel, Adobe Photoshop and Dreamweaver, Final Cut Pro, Social Media, WordPress, GoogleDocs and more. These short tutorials are perfect for those looking for a “snip-it” of information.

Universal Class is an online learning platform with in-depth courses on a wide-variety of subjects. The classes may be taken at the user’s pace, and there is also the benefit of interacting with a live instructor via email. There are over 500 courses on a multitude of topics such as accounting, career training, health & medicine, DIY, medical billing, pet care, psychology, real estate, special education, and test preparation, just to name a few.

Hoonuit and Universal Class will be replacing Lynda.com, which expires December 31 (the Library chose not to renew this because of changes to Lynda.com’s policy that raised privacy issues for patrons).

All three of these new, online learning resources may be accessed anytime and from anywhere at emmaclark.org/you-beyond. The Library is thrilled to start off 2020 with these creative and informative tools for the Three Village community!

The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and online at emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.

“The Heart of the Three Village Community” 

Annual Preschool Fair

Setauket, NY – October 10, 2019 –

Emma Clark Library has the solution to narrowing down the search for preschools for your child.  The Library’s annual Preschool Fair is on Saturday, November 2 from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.  This is a great opportunity to speak informally with many local preschools all in one room, ask questions, and help choose which schools you’d like to tour and explore further in the coming months.  This event has no registration and is open to the public.

Representatives from several preschools in Three Village and the surrounding area will be at the event, including (as of 10/10/19):

• Kiddie Academy of East Setauket
• Laurel Hill School, East Setauket
• Miss Lora’s Tots, Nesconset
• Montessori School at Old Field, Setauket
• North Shore Montessori, Stony Brook
• Our Lady of Wisdom School, Port Jefferson
• Play Groups School, East Setauket
• Setauket Presbyterian Preschool, Setauket
• Smithtown Nursery School, St. James

There will also be an Emma Clark Library table at the fair for early literacy resources and information on children’s classes and events at the Library.

If you have any questions, please email kids@emmaclark.org or call 631.941.4080 ext. 123.

The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and online at emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.

“The Heart of the Three Village Community”