For chemical engineering student Ashley Anstaett, a strong sense of community is what attracted her to Columbia, the Mizzou campus, and ultimately the Engineering Library and Technology Commons. “Mizzou has a beautiful campus, and Columbia itself is an ideal spot for me… for its size, the cultural events in Columbia are not lacking and one of my favorite parts of the year is the True/False Film Festival where people come from all over to share their passion for film, music, and art.”

Ashley currently works as a chemistry research assistant in the plant science group at the Missouri Research Reactor. “We are looking at improving the zinc and iron content of corn through the use of bacteria that occur naturally in the soil. ” She says her interests are in the environmental aspects of engineering, but her dream is to work in the fragrance industry. “I’ve collected all kinds of fragrances since I was a little kid and love smelling things!”

When Ashley is not working or in class, you can quite often find her at the Engineering Library and she notes that “I don’t know what I would do without the Engineering Library!” The reference materials and textbooks are essential to her for her studies. Most importantly, she says, it is the community fostered by the library space that is key. “I know I can go to the Engineering Library anytime it is open and find someone working on the same thing as me, willing to help, or work together. Even if we are all stuck, it provides a great space for commiserating, drinking some coffee, and enjoying good company.” She also loves interacting with the staff. “It’s nice to see a friendly face every day and know that they are there and willing to help.”

The Engineering Library also supports Ashley’s more leisurely interests. “One of my favorite things about the Engineering Library is that they let me have all of my comics, books, and movies sent there. Using MOBIUS and ILL, you can get pretty much any book or movie you could ever imagine. As a delivery option, you can choose to have them sent to any library on campus you want. I don’t even have to leave Lafferre Hall. I look forward to going to the library each day to see if something I ordered arrived. It’s like retail therapy, but it’s free!”

It’s no surprise then that one of Ashley’s favorite Mizzou memories happened at the Engineering Library. “I was studying intently, heard some commotion, and looked up to see a bunch of folks in T-Rex costumes roaming the library. They were dancing and also maybe … studying?”