Ellis Library Student Lounge for Finals Week

The Communications Committee is going to turn 159 Ellis Library into a relaxation lounge for our students on Mon, Tues and Wed evening (6 to 10 pm) of Finals Week. We will be providing snacks, beverages and soft seating. We hope to have some relaxing music, decorations, etc. If you have anything you would like to donate to the lounge or let us borrow, we would appreciate it. We would love to provide some stress balls or other toys and possibly some lava lamps for decoration. We are open to other suggestions also.

Thanks in advance to Reference and Security who will be helping us watch over the room.

–Shannon

Social Media Directory

MU is compiling a list of all social media that is being done on campus. If your department has a social media presence (separate from the main MU Libraries Twitter and Facebook accounts), please send me the following information by next Wednesday, Aug. 15. –Shannon

  • Department/program/entity
  • Type of account
  • URL/channel
  • Person in charge + contact info

ALA Online Workshop on Social Media, Sept. 12

ALA Online Workshop: A More Effective Social Media Presence: Strategic Planning and Project Management
A Workshop with Sarah Steiner and Cliff Landis
A 90-Minute Workshop on September 12, 2012 at 1:30pm (Central)
4F51A Ellis Library

Building a presence for your library on sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn is a great idea, but how do you ensure that you’re doing so in a strategic way that maximizes the benefit to your library and effectively organizes staff time and responsibility? In this workshop, Sarah Steiner and Cliff Landis will show you how to design and implement a social media plan that meets the needs of your patrons and also fits the capacity of your staff. With guidance for assessing your library users’ needs and getting stakeholders on board, you’ll be able to build a strategy from the ground up. You’ll also learn how to manage projects effectively and keep your plan flexible so your library can keep up with the constantly changing social media landscape.

Sarah Steiner is the Social Work and Virtual Services Librarian at Georgia State University Library in Atlanta.
Cliff Landis is Technology Librarian at Valdosta State University’s Odum Library in Valdosta, Georgia.

National Library Week Follow-Up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the National Library Week Celebration on April 10, we asked our patrons to “Tell us why you love MU libraries.”

Here are some of their responses:

  • Yay 4 reading
  • I<3 reading
  • Lots of computers
  • Huge collection of journal to access
  • The Library is awesome
  • The quiet floor!
  • I love the library because it has lots of resources
  • Full of great useful resources
  • What’s not to love? Lots of books, nice people, comfy chairs, gainful employment.
  • Wide range of books
  • Wonderful support staff! I love getting lost in so many wonderful stacks of books.
  • Wide range of books
  • Without the library, I wouldn’t have a quiet place to get things done.
  • I love the fact we have over 300 database. There is one for almost every subject area. Don’t default to summons
  • You make my academic career possible. Thanks!
  • # club Ellis for life
  • Very nice library!  I am proud of it.
  • Quiet place to study! It’s awesome!
  • Thanks for providing such a great facility to study and research!
  • The library is the best! # clubellis <3
  • I love it here! You guys are the greatest! Thanks!
  • Environment
  • Libraries offer information & information is power!
  • Motivates me to study!!
  • They have awesome books!!
  • Print anywhere! And a quiet place to study!
  • It’s quietish
  • The computers, printers are friends. As are the books.
  • Great book selection.
  • Quiet and Easy access!
  • Great study rooms!
  • Thanks for doing what you do!

The Mizzou Identity

University Affairs recently unveiled a Mizzou Identity Standards website. This website lists the “rules” regarding communicating about the University of Missouri.

Here is one of the most important takeaways from the website:

“We are the University of Missouri. We are MU. We are Mizzou.”

This means that we are not the University of Missouri-Columbia, and we are not UMC. This change was made several years ago in all official communication (except for some legal documents) including our letterhead and business cards.

There is a lot more information on this website including MU editorial guidelines and rules about the MU logo.

If you have any questions, please contact me.

–Shannon Cary

 

Call for New Members: Communications/Marketing Committee

The Communications/Marketing Committee is looking for three new members. Members can be staff or librarians.

The group’s primary objectives are:

  1. To undertake activities that establish a clear and positive image of the libraries in the university community;
  2. To build an internal marketing culture by keeping staff informed of marketing activities and goals and by encouraging staff to participate and contribute ideas for marketing endeavors; and
  3. To establish a consistency in communication methods and style by providing advice and coordinating the planning, development and production of promotional products, events and activities for the libraries.

Thank you to Sandy Schiefer for her exemplary service on this committee for the past two years.

Please contact Shannon Cary (carysn@missouri.edu or 882-4703) if you are interested in serving on this committee.

Policy for Posting Flyers on the Ellis Library Information Kiosks

MU Libraries received funding for two information kioks for Ellis Library from the Student Fee Capital Improvement Committee. One of the kiosks is currently located at the north entrance. The other kiosk was damaged upon arrival, so we are waiting for a replacement, which will be placed at the west entrance.

The purpose of posting flyers in Ellis Library is to inform the campus community about educational, cultural and service-oriented programs. Placement of posters is at the discretion of the Director of Libraries, based on space available, time of the event, length of time the library has had the material and the priority of the material as listed below. The library will not accept for display or handout commercial, personal or profit-making information.

The library will display posters providing information about events and issues in the following order of priority based on space available:
1. Sponsored by the MU Libraries.

2. Sponsored by an academic department of MU.

3. Sponsored by a non-academic department of MU.

4. Sponsored by a local educational organization.

All flyers must include the sponsoring organization’s name and current contact information. Flyers are limited to a maximum size of 11 x 17 inches (exceptions will be made for MU Libraries posters). All postings will be removed the day after the advertised event or on the first day of each month.

Flyers must be reviewed and approved in advance of posting by the MU Libraries Communications Officer, 104 Ellis Library.

MU Libraries Receive Funding From Student Fee Capital Improvement Committee

The Student Capital Fee Improvement Committee approved funding for a proposal presented to them by the MU Libraries Communications Committee.

The MU Libraries requested two information kiosks, one for the North Entrance and one for the West Entrance of Ellis Library. These will be attractive, freestanding kiosks where announcements of library events and services can be made available to Library users. The kiosks will be conveniently located near both Library entrances so that users can see the latest information on Libraries news, events and services as they walk in the door.

Worlds connect @ your library: celebrate National Library Week at Columbia’s Libraries, April 12-18

(COLUMBIA, MO) – It’s National Library Week, a time to celebrate the contributions of libraries, librarians and library workers in schools, campuses and communities nationwide–and the perfect time to discover how worlds connect @ your library.

The MU Libraries are celebrating National Library Week by launching on Twitter and asking our users to send us their thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the Libraries. The MU Libraries are connecting with more users in more ways than ever. This year, 50% more patrons have walked through the doors of Ellis Library than visited last year. To accommodate these users, 35 new computers have been added to the Information Commons, two new group study rooms have been made available and additional seating has been added to the Bookmark Café. To keep up with what is happening at Ellis Library and the eight branch libraries, visit our Web site at mulibraries.missouri.edu, join us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.

“The Columbia Public Library is seeing similar increases,” says Melissa Carr, Library Director. “We have added computers and services to keep up with the influx as well.”
We now have 25 new Internet-access computers, and we have added program sessions to help patrons applying for jobs online or who are working on resumés. Our virtual branch is busier than ever and features new information content to help patrons answer many commonly asked questions. You can now also subscribe to regular library news e-mails, receive our RSS feeds or follow us on Twitter.

Stafford Library at Columbia College celebrates National Library Week with patrons by providing free coffee in the library during the week. The library’s collection is highlighted with displays and informational items. “Columbia College students use the library not only to study but to prepare for class presentations and to meet with friends and classmates,” states Janet Caruthers, Library Director. “We are always striving to provide resources and an environment that are beneficial to our students’ needs.”

“Everyday, libraries in Columbia help to transform our community,” says Jim Cogswell, Director of MU Libraries. “At the MU Libraries, the Columbia Public Library and other libraries in the area, people of all backgrounds come together (in person and online) to meet up with friends and study, to attend lectures and concerts or view an exhibit, to do research with the assistance of a trained professional, to get help finding a job or to find homework help. During National Library Week we want to remind the members of our community about the valuable resources they can find at their local libraries.”

First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.