Main Library Programs for Adults

Free! Special interest workshops, movies, help sessions. For fun! For real!
There's something for everyone @ your library!
PDF of Current Programs


All programs, performances, and classes are FREE and open to the public. Funding is provided by the FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY. Get involved! Join the Friends of the Library.

Adult and Teen Winter Reading Program (Ongoing Event)
A Cozy Nook with a Good Book!
Cozy up readers, spend time with a good book and maybe win a prize! Every time you read or listen and rate a title you can enter to win. Just read, fill out an entry form online or at one of our three library locations – Main Library, Ellettsville Library or the Bookmobile. Need some good ideas to get you started? Check out the website, ask at the reference desk or pick up a book list near the staff picks display in the New Book area of the Main Library.
Many Weekly Prizes – every week names will be drawn Three Grand Prizes – 3 lucky winners will be chosen from all entries submitted at all the locations to receive an ereader.

January 15 - March 11, 2012 -

Advanced Spanish Language Class
Read Spanish language literature in it's original language! We translate the literature and sing.
No registration necessary. Drop in.

Monday, February 13, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, February 20, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, February 27, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Advanced Spanish Language Class
Read Spanish language literature in it's original language! We translate the literature and sing.
No registration necessary. Drop in.

Monday, March 5, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, March 12, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, March 19, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, March 26, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, April 2, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, April 9, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, April 16, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, April 23, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, April 30, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Monday, May 7, 10:00 AM - Meeting Room 1A

Books Plus Book Discussion
March's title: Room by Emma Donoghue, our 2012 One Book One Bloomington title!

Discussion leader: Wendy Rubin
Join the discussion or just come to listen! Discussions feature new or interesting books for the adult reader. No registration necessary.

Sunday, March 4, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Sunday, April 1, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Sunday, May 6, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Express Computer Topic: Downloadable Books and Music
Learn how to use the library's free downloadable book and music service. This one hour class will give a brief overview of what the library offers by exploring the library's website and instruction guides for downloading different types of media. This is not a class for brand new computer users. Must be proficient at using: a mouse and a keyboard. Participants won't need to bring their downloadable devices to class as this class is not device specific. You will learn about Overdrive Media and Freegal.
Please register.

Wednesday, February 15, 11:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Monday, February 27, 6:00 PM - Program Room 2C

Express Computer Topic: Downloadable Books and Music
Learn how to use the library's free downloadable book and music service. This one hour class will give an overview of what the library offers by exploring the library's website and instruction guides for downloading different types of media. Must be proficient at using: a mouse and a keyboard. Participants won't need to bring their downloadable devices to class as this class is not device specific. You will learn about Overdrive Media and Freegal.
Please register.

Monday, March 5, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Tuesday, March 20, 11:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Monday, April 2, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Wednesday, April 25, 11:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Express Computer Topic: Library's Online Databases
The Monroe County Public Library offers access to several online subscription databases that cover a wide range of informational, educational and research needs. These databases are provided free of charge to all library users. Sign up for this class and become familiar with using databases like: Ancestry, Consumer Reports, Inspire, Legal Resources, Reference USA and much more.
Attendees should be comfortable with using a mouse and keyboard. Please register.

Thursday, March 8, 11:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Wednesday, March 28, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Wednesday, April 4, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Thursday, April 19, 11:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Wednesday, May 2, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Intermediate Spanish
This class is beyond the basics, but still set at an easy pace. Join us to sing and converse in a relaxed atmosphere.

No registration necessary. Drop in.

Wednesday, February 15, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, February 22, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, February 29, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Intermediate Spanish
This class is beyond the basics, but still set at an easy pace. Join us to sing and converse in a relaxed atmosphere.

No registration necessary. Drop in.

Wednesday, March 7, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, March 14, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, March 21, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, March 28, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, April 4, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, April 11, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, April 18, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, April 25, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, May 2, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Wednesday, May 9, 1:00 PM - Meeting Room 1A

Job Search Interview and Resume Help @ Your Library
Bring your printed resume, interesting job listings or your tough questions for one-to-one consultations with HR and employment professionals. Also get advice on possible interview questions and presentation tips. Find resources for your job search right here at the library!

Please register or drop in at any time during the program and bring all relevant work history.

Program is presented in partnership with WorkOne.

Thursday, February 16, 6:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Job Search Interview and Resume Help @ Your Library
Bring your printed resume, interesting job listings or your tough questions for one-to-one consultations with HR and employment professionals. Also get advice on possible interview questions and presentation tips. Find resources for your job search right here at the library! Please register or drop in at any time during the program and bring all relevant work history. Program is sponsored in partnership with WorkOne.

Thursday, March 15, 6:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Thursday, April 19, 6:00 PM - Program Room 2B

New Movie Monday
Popular new releases often have so many holds! Tired of waiting? Join us on the second Mondays every month when we screen a brand new DVD release.
Check the bulletin board in Movies and Music department or call 349-3200 for each month’s title.
Drop in.

Monday, February 13, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

New Movie Monday
Popular new releases often have so many holds! Tired of waiting? Join us on the second Mondays every month when we screen a brand new DVD release. Check the bulletin board in Movies and Music department or call 349-3200 for each month’s title. Drop in.

Monday, March 12, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

Monday, April 9, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

It's Your Money: FAFSA Workshop
Most Indiana colleges require students to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to qualify for financial aid and some scholarships. This workshop will review the form and answer common questions. Participants will also sign up for a Personal Identification Number (PIN) used to sign the application. If you would like to complete the FAFSA, you will need to bring your social security card and drivers license, last year's tax returns and W-2s, records of untaxed income (like welfare or veteran's benefits), and current asset information (bank, brokerage statements, and mortgage information). The state deadline for filing is March 10! Please register. Drop-ins welcome if there is room.

Monday, February 13, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Put It In Order Circulation Volunteer Training
To train new Circulation volunteers how to shelf-read.

Tuesday, February 14, 10:00 AM - Program Room 2B

Introduction to Finding Funders
Learn to find funders for your nonprofit with the Foundation Center's comprehensive funding research tool.

Thursday, February 16, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2C

It's Your Money: Talk to An Expert
Need some unbiased financial advice? Try our free and confidential one-on-one sessions with a financial expert. Appointments are 30 minutes; first-come, first-served. Drop in. Adults/older teens. 4:30-6:30 p.m. Program Room 2C, second floor.

Thursday, February 16, 4:30 PM - Program Room 2C

Foundation Center's Philanthropy IN/Sight for SPEA
Review of the Foundation Center's new mapping tool built for both grantmakers and grant seekers. This class about "Philanthropy IN/Sight" is for an IU SPEA Class.

Monday, February 27, 9:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Foundation Center's Philanthropy IN/SIGHT for SPEA
Review of the Foundation Center's new mapping tool built for both grantmakers and grant seekers. This class about "Philanthropy IN/Sight" is for an IU SPEA Class.

Wednesday, February 29, 9:00 AM - Program Room 2C

Inside/Out: Negotiations of Space and Identity in Arts and Architectures
IU Art History Association Symposium and Discussion
Please join us for a discussion led by graduate students from the IU Art History Department. The interactive talks will present images and ideas as jumping off points for conversation. Topics include:

Savonarola’s Artistic Legacy: Fra Bartolomeo, Mariotto Albertinelli and Jacopo Pontormo by Chrystine Keener Existing scholarship, while recognizing the impact of the Dominican monk Girolamo Savonarola on fifteenth-century artists, discounts the continuation of the Frate’s influence on artists of the following century. Findings suggest that through the wide dissemination of these sermons and letters, Savonarola continued to impact generations of artists and artistic visualizations decades after his execution.

Edmund C. Tarbell's A Girl Mending: Constructing an Ideal of American Femininity in the Gilded Age by Kate Harnish This presentation takes an in-depth look at Boston School painter Edmund C. Tarbell’s A Girl Mending, a piece in the permanent collection of the IUAM. Painted in 1905, its depiction of young and gentle white womanhood fits and perpetuates a distinctly American ideal defined by contrast with contemporary European examples. This discourse on ideal femininity was directly impacted by the heated debate on women’s suffrage.

The Derveni Krater: A Possible Artistic Connection Between Southern Italy and Macedonia in the 4th Century BC by Alice Chapman At the end of the 4th century, a major shift began to occur as the city of Athens lost its once prominent position and other artistic and political centers began to rise to power. This discussion will attempt to locate those centers using the Derveni Krater, a large bronze vessel found in a Macedonia tomb in 1962, as a case study in fourth century artistic production.

Visualizing Gendered Space: Wall Paintings by Women in Northern Ghana by Brittany Sheldon Northern Ghana is dominated by the Frafra people, among whom gender roles are visually manifested in architectural space of each household through wall paintings composed of symbolic motifs.

No registration. Please drop in.

Thursday, March 1, 6:30 PM - Program Room 2B

The Carbon Cycle: Indiana and the World Breathe Together 2011 Update
In a highly visual presentation, IU Geography Professors Dr. Faiz Rahman and Dr. Danilo Dragoni return with an update on their research in Morgan Monroe State Forest using data collected in the forest and from NASA satellites and over-flights. They'll report on the 2011 productivity of the forest and ponder what it means for Hoosiers and policymakers. Registration appreciated. Drop-ins welcome.

Tuesday, March 6, 7:00 PM - Meeting Room 1B

Put It In Order Circulation Volunteer Training
To train new Circulation Volunteers how to shelf-read.

Tuesday, March 6, 7:00 PM - Meeting Room 1C

Wednesday, March 7, 1:00 PM - Program Room 2C

It's Your Money: Make Your Own Piggy Bank
Turn ordinary household materials into a cool container for cash; then learn how to put the bank to work by saving your money. Registration required. Aimed at ages 15-20. All welcome. 7 p.m., Thursday, March 8, Program Room 2B, second floor.

Thursday, March 8, 7:00 PM - Program Room 2B

2011 Protest Movements in Bloomington and Abroad
Global Issues Community Discussion Series 2011 was the year of social and political protests across the globe and right here in Bloomington, including the Wisconsin Labor Movement, the Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street. Learn about the history of protest movements and how they lead to social change. We will also examine the role of new media and its significant impact on the protests of 2011. Panelists include Assistant Professor of Labor Studies, Joseph Varga and Media Studies PhD student, Anas Alahmed. The Global Issues Community Discussion Series is presented in conjunction with the IU Center for the Study of Global Change. Drop in.

Thursday, March 8, 7:00 PM - Meeting Room 1B

One Book, One Bloomington, Four Films "Wild Child" (1969)
Film program to accompany the One Book, One Bloomington event

Wednesday, March 21, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

Preparing Today's Kids for Tomorrow's Jobs
Part of the Reclaiming our Democracy: A Citizen's Forum Series What and how should young people be taught to best equip them for tomorrow’s workplace and to help strengthen the economy of the communities in which they live? Should the focus be on basic work skills and character traits fundamental to job success? Should technology, science, and math taken priority? Should the needs of the local economy determine our decisions? Join other citizens in a careful exploration of the many demands on our public schools. No debates, no speeches from “experts,” just concerned citizens who are willing to listen to each other and share ideas so we can give our leaders the guidance they need. Cosponsored by: Indiana University Libraries, League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, Monroe County Public Library, with support from the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress Please register by March 18.

Saturday, March 24, 1:00 PM - Program Room 2B

One Book, One Bloomington, Four Films "Greystoke-The legend of Tarzan" (1984)
Film program to accompany the One Book, One Bloomington event

Wednesday, March 28, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

Introduction to Philanthropy IN/Sight
Learn about the Foundation Center's interactive mapping tool designed for anyone interested in the impact of philanthropy around the world today.

Thursday, March 29, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2C

Thursday, March 29, 4:30 PM - Program Room 2B

Job Search and Creative Career Exploration
Is your job search stuck in a rut? Having trouble expanding your search in new and creative ways? Learn how to examine previous experiences to uncover your hidden marketable skills that will enrich your resume and broaden your job search. Find out how to maximize your search by learning about how to effective networking - both in person and online, using social media tools. Led by WorkOne Career Counselor Elaine Hubbard and Brad Galin, Senior Director of Human Resources at Stonebelt.

Please register.

Thursday, March 29, 7:00 PM - Meeting Room 1B

One Book, One Bloomington, Four Films "Empire of the Sun" (1987)
Film program to accompany the One Book, One Bloomington event

Wednesday, April 4, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

Introduction to Finding Funders
Learn to find funders for your nonprofit with the Foundation Center's comprehensive funding research tool.

Thursday, April 5, 2:00 PM - Program Room 2C

One Book, One Bloomington, Four Films "Nell" (1994)
Film program to accompany the One Book, One Bloomington event

Wednesday, April 11, 6:30 PM - Auditorium

Improvisational Poetry: Creative Techniques to JumpStart Your Poem
Want to try your hand at writing a poem? Connect with your poetry muse? Please join us in celebrating National Poetry Month by creating a poem of your own. No experience is required. All writing levels welcome. We'll offer a few exercises to get you started, as well as ideas for composing simple poems that anyone can write such as list or shape poems. Please register.
Remember: "You will find poetry nowhere unless you bring some of it with you." --Joseph Joubert

This program is cosponsored with the Writers’ Guild of Bloomington.

Thursday, April 12, 7:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Put It In Order Circulation Volunteer Training
To train new Circulation Volunteers how to shelf-read.

Tuesday, April 17, 10:00 AM - Program Room 2B

It's Your Money: Money Fun Day
We're having a library-wide financial literacy scavenger hunt. You can eat chocolate, win prizes, and put your face on a $100 bill while learning how to better manage your money. Drop in. All ages. 9 a.m.-5:45 p.m., Friday, April 20 second floor.

Friday, April 20, 9:00 AM - Parking Lot Entrance

It's Your Money: Spend Your Money Smarter
Learn how to stretch your dollars -- whether your tax refund or $10 from grandma. Registration appreciated. Aimed at ages 15-29. All welcome. 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 24, Program Room 2B, second floor.

Tuesday, April 24, 7:00 PM - Program Room 2B

Thursday, April 26, 4:30 PM - Program Room 2B

We Don't Know Where to Put You Huck
In 1885, a number of public libraries banned Huckleberry Finn from their stacks. According to the American Library Association, it was the fifth most-frequently-challenged book in the United States in the 1990s. Join us for a panel discussion of this story that continues to both attract and repel members of our community. Does Huckleberry Finn belong in the literary canon and in our schools. What does it continue to reveal about race relations, art and the power of language? Guest panelists include Randy White, director of the Cardinal Stage production of Big River, Suparna Bose, Bloomington parent and Master’s student at the IU School of Education, and others. Thursday, May 3, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Main Library Auditorium

Thursday, May 3, 7:00 PM - Auditorium

More great programs await at the Ellettsville Branch. Check out our Teen Programs too. Find everything on the Library Events Calendar. Sign up to be notified by email about upcoming events.