Congratulations to Dr. Denice Adkins for being selected as the 2020 recipient of the Outstanding Library Advocacy Award. Adkins is an associate professor in the MU School of Information Science and Learning Technologies. She has served on the Library Committee, a standing campus committee that makes recommendations to the provost concerning the continued improvement of the library collection and library services, for three years.

Each year, the University Libraries Student Advisory Council (ULSAC) selects a member of the Mizzou community that has shown strong leadership in advocating on behalf of the University Libraries.

Denice’s passionate promotion of the University Libraries has been inspiring to many student leaders and is why ULSAC unanimously voted to present this award to her. Former ULSAC Chair Mathew Swan said, “Students who have served on the Library Committee remain impressed by her passion and thoughtfulness as the committee addresses issues relating to the Libraries. Her service on the Library Committee has been a force for positive change on Mizzou’s campus.”

Thank you for your support and dedication to the University Libraries!

Congratulations to Mathew Swan for receiving the first University of Missouri Libraries Visionary Leadership Award!

Mathew served on the University Libraries Student Advisory Council, both as a representative and ultimately, chair of the council.  With his role on the council, Mathew provided important input to the Libraries about the needs and concerns of students in regards to library spaces and services. His participation in two student vision projects, including trips to academic libraries in other states, was vital in creating student vision documents that are a guiding force for student-focused goals in the Libraries’ strategic planning.

Quoting a letter written by the previous council advisor, “in addition to his library advocacy, his work as director of Tiger Pantry has made it significantly easier for the campus community to access quality food. Through his work with the Libraries, OER, and Tiger Pantry, Matt has consistently and effectively broken down barriers in order to improve student access to resources. Often working quietly behind the scenes, students may not know just how much Matt has done for them. And, the kind of guy he is, Matt probably doesn’t mind that they don’t know.”

We are thankful for Mathew’s leadership during his time at Mizzou. We will miss him dearly and know the world will benefit from his capacity to lead from a place of empathy and dedication to equity.