The 4th-floor lift, which provides access to Special Collections and University Archives, is complete and will be inspected on Friday. It will be available to start using next week.
Staff news
In the News
“Mizzou Libraries host monthly BYOBook Club”
The Maneater, April 2, 2026
Long Night Against Procrastination, April 22
Long Night Against Procrastination (LNAP) is a late-night library event focused on reducing the stress and anxiety of end of semester projects by providing support, stress relief activities and snacks.
We’ll have food to fuel you, crafts to help you take a break and de-stress (stop by anytime during the event to make an “emotional support crochet dumpling”) and prizes when you complete schoolwork on your to-do list!
You’ll be (literally) cheered on by library employees:)
Ellis Library Colonnade
April 22
6 to 10 pm
Join the Fun: Joyful Crafts at Ellis Library for National Library Week
Button Making Event for National Library Week
Stop by and make your own buttons! Choose a design, draw your own, or bring an image to turn into a wearable button. Supplies and equipment are provided—just bring your creativity. This drop-in activity is fun, easy, and open to everyone.
Ellis Colonnade
April 20
10 am to 2 pm
Calming Crafternoon: Make mini-books & decorate a shelf!
Celebrate National Library Week by crafting miniature books and decorating your own tiny bookshelf! All supplies provided—just bring your creativity and love of libraries. Make a small keepsake to take home and celebrate the joy of reading.
Ellis Colonnade
April 23
1:30 to 4:30 pm
Book Recommendations From Your Mizzou Librarians
National Library Week is April 19th-25th, but we are always celebrating library joy.
In this list you will find books about:
- Libraries
- Librarians
- frankly, just books recommended by Mizzou librarians that may have nothing to do with libraries
You can see the list at this link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-V7mG7q-pgQSat8yw8Zhy-meX14LTtLY33tOLEuQSHU/edit?sp=sharing
Peer Navigator Corner: Campus Third Places
Written by: Isabella Bickhaus
At the beginning of every new semester, working as a Peer Navigator in Ellis brings some of my favorite questions to the desk. Recently, I interacted with a student who wanted advice on where to spend their time between classes. This question of where to pass time on campus applies to both new and returning students. Mizzou’s campus is large, and not all academic buildings have seating outside of classrooms. This question reminded me of one reason I enjoy spending time in the Libraries on campus; they’re third places I know I can exist without any expectations. Access to resources, like printers and phone chargers, is also a major bonus.
What is a “third place”? The term was coined by sociologist Ray Oldenburg, referring to spaces in our communities outside of homes (first places) and work (second places). Oldenburg considered third places as “a generic designation for a great variety of public places that host the regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gatherings of individuals beyond the realms of home and work.”
Along with the bustling Student Center, the iconic Columns (weather permitting), and Stankowski Field, the Libraries are popular third places on campus. From the outside, Ellis Library is an impressive building, and libraries can be stereotyped as silent, serious spaces, which can be intimidating. However, Ellis exists to serve students, faculty, and the community as a place to gather and interact. Beyond scheduled events, like BYOB Book Club or Calming Crafternoons, Ellis is a space where students can meet up for coffee in the Bookmark Cafe or heat up food in the microwaves on the ground floor. If I am stuck on campus with a dying phone or laptop, I know I can check out a charger from Ellis. Of course, Ellis provides a multitude of study spaces. From the silent, grand reading room to the collaborative tables on the first floor, there is a place for everyone at Ellis.
Open Studio Portraits
Contact Shannon Cary for a MOCode if you want to get a new headshot.
MULSA Officers Needed for 2026-2027
Get involved with the Mizzou Libraries’ staff association and help us continue making the Libraries a welcoming and supportive place to work. MULSA brings people together through social events, keeps our staff lounge running, and offers thoughtful support to colleagues during meaningful moments. To keep this positive momentum going, we’re looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the MULSA board. We’ll have openings for vice-president, treasurer, Ellis staff lounge chair and community service chair. If you’re interested in contributing to this fun, collaborative and rewarding group, please reach out to the MULSA president, Shannon Cary.
Special Collections and Archives Moving Back to 4 West
Special Collections and University Archives is moving back to 4 West on the morning of April 1st. These departments will be closed from March 31 to April 2 and will reopen on April 3.
Peer Navigator Corner: Magazines
Written by: Annalise Miller
Print media and hard-copy magazines may feel old-school in a digital world, but are actually a great primary source that can be used to study cultural trends, analyze public opinion, examine advertising, track political and social change over time, and better understand how people experienced and interpreted events as they were happening. Mizzou Library has a great selection of magazines both online and in the library itself.
In Ellis Library, physical copies of magazines can be found in a couple of different places. New issues are located behind the Peer Navigator desk in Information Commons 2 on the first floor of Ellis, near government documents and DVDs. Once the whole year of publications are available, these physical copies are bound together and moved into the stacks based on subject.
The Journalism Library, located at 401 S 9th St, Columbia, MO 65211, has an even greater selection of physical copies of magazines including TIME, with others like Forbes and Publishers Weekly available through database access..
Special Collections, located on the fourth floor of Ellis, is another great place to explore historic magazines (amongst other things), with some collections dating back to 1805. The collection includes bridal, religious, beauty, and sports magazines, collections title Style Before Social Media: Fifteen Fashion and Beauty Magazines, and Toys and Collectibles, as well as a variety of specialty publications, such as pet care. All of these materials can be viewed by visiting the Special Collections and Archives homepage and scheduling a time to stop by.
Special Collections also has a wide selection of online magazine exhibits. “Life in America: Sixteen Black Magazines from 1953-1998” looks at the history of influential Black news and lifestyle magazines such as Ebony, Jet, Sepia, and Emerge, that served Black audiences often overlooked by mainstream media. The exhibit highlights how these publications covered news, culture, and every day life. Another exhibit examines the rise of bridal magazines, including titles like Brides and Modern Bride that shaped wedding culture. This exhibit features issues from 1992 to 2011 and explores how print media guided engaged couples through evolving trends and the bridal industry
Online publications that are not a part of Special Collections can be accessed through Discover@MU and searching specifically for Journal/Source Title, or through databases like Fashion Studies Publications that compile magazines for easy searching. Some of these titles include the Vogue archive, Harpaars Bazaar, and Women’s Wear Daily.
Magazines are a great resource at the University of Missouri Libraries, whether you need them for a class, for research, or just as something interesting to flip through.