home Support the Libraries An Autumn Evening for the Libraries

An Autumn Evening for the Libraries

Friends of the University Libraries invites you to

An Autumn Evening for the Libraries
Thursday, October 24, 2019
6:00 – 8:30 p.m.

The State Historical Society of Missouri Center for Missouri Studies
605 Elm Street (across from Peace Park)
Parking is available in the parking lot directly behind the building.

Enjoy drinks, hors d’oeuvres, music, a tour of the fabulous art gallery with Dr. Joan Stack and a short program. The attire is business casual.

Tickets are $75 per person. Proceeds will go toward renovations in Ellis Library to accommodate the University Archives move from Lewis Hall.

There are two sponsorship opportunities available: $250 level receives two tickets to the event, $500 level receives four tickets to the event

Please respond by October 11, 2019. Send payment to 104 Ellis Library, Attn: Ali Sauer, Columbia, MO 65201-5149. Call Ali at 573-882-9168 for credit card payments. Email sauera@missouri.edu with questions.

 

 

 

home Events and Exhibits Families Welcome at Ellis Library Open House After the Homecoming Parade

Families Welcome at Ellis Library Open House After the Homecoming Parade

Visit Ellis Library immediately after the Homecoming Parade on Saturday, Oct. 12 for refreshments and family activities.The first 100 kids will receive a free mini pumpkin. This event is free and open to the public.

home Cycle of Success, Ellis Library Rare Materials Essential to Understanding History

Rare Materials Essential to Understanding History

Colton Ochsner, a history doctoral student at MU, does research on the origins of fantasy and science fiction films in modern German history. Colton chose the German cinema as his concentration because German films have become very influential. “They made a lot of movies that have spread across the world and influenced film, especially to America. Anything from Blade Runner to Star Wars has been inspired in some way by a lot of these older movies, especially visually. I have been drawn to these older movies in particular because I have known about the occult and I have seen it working in these movies and yet no scholar has pointed it out,” he said.

Knowing how specialized his research could be, Colton sought the help of Ellis librarians. “My research wouldn’t be possible without the librarians help because the books and movies from this era require Interlibrary Loan (ILL) to access them,” Colton said.

“The research Colton is doing on film and esoteric groups in Germany in the 1920s requires materials that are pretty sparse and many have not survived World War II and post-war disruptions,” said Anne Barker, humanities librarian. Anne is also fluent in German and how German libraries are structured, which makes it easier to fulfill Colton’s research requests. Anne helped Colton with deciphering references as he was trying to locate books and articles often with incomplete information. Anne said, “We’re so used to finding things online, it’s easy to forget that many things have not yet been digitized or indexed well.”

Since 2013, the ILL department processed more than 1,200 ILL requests for Colton. Oi-Chi (Ivy) Hui, head of ILL borrowing, works with Colton to fulfill the obscure requests. “It’s teamwork,” Ivy said. She has requested materials for Colton from Germany, France, Switzerland, Canada and throughout the United States. “Since these requests were not processed through the system, tracking correspondence manually and signing papers for copyright compliance is a challenge. Some of these materials took months before they got here,” Ivy said.

“The basic related teachings of the occult during this time-period that includes writings and images are important because in Germany people associated images, ideas and emotions with films,” Colton said. The research materials gave Colton the confirmation he needed. During his research, Colton found a poster from a 1919 film. While looking at the poster, he discovered the name of a book he had never heard. It turns out only two libraries in the world had the book. “It was a piece of pulp fiction literature from 1919. It was only published because it was going to be used to make an action and adventure movie,” he stated. Ivy was able to find the obscure book with the minimal information available and successfully filled the request.

With Anne and Ivy’s help, Colton continues to work on his research with a projected graduation date of 2023.

Cycle of Success is the idea that libraries, faculty, and students are linked; for one to truly succeed, we must all succeed. The path to success is formed by the connections between University of Missouri Libraries and faculty members, between faculty members and students, and between students and the libraries that serve them. More than just success, this is also a connection of mutual respect, support, and commitment to forward-thinking research.

If you would like to submit your own success story about how the libraries have helped your research and/or work, please use the Cycle of Success form.

Article written by Christina Mascarenas

 

 

home Events and Exhibits University Archives Continues Semester-Long 50th Anniversary Celebration

University Archives Continues Semester-Long 50th Anniversary Celebration

To continue the semester-long celebration of its 50th anniversary, University Archives has added a new display to the exhibits in the Ellis Library colonnade. The display Lost MU highlights buildings, walkways, and spaces on campus that no longer exist or have significantly changed over the years.

home Uncategorized Join University Libraries Student Advisory Council (ULSAC) for Open Forums

Join University Libraries Student Advisory Council (ULSAC) for Open Forums

Are you a Mizzou student who has feedback about the Libraries and the ways their services can be enhanced? Come talk with the University Libraries Student Advisory Council (ULSAC) at one of its monthly meetings!

ULSAC is a dedicated group of student leaders who work with Library Administrators to advocate for student concerns. The first thirty minutes of each ULSAC meeting is dedicated to providing all students with an opportunity to talk about their ideas regarding the Libraries.

Fall 2019 meetings are at 5 PM in room 159 in Ellis Library:

  • September 26th
  • October 17th
  • November 7th
  • December 5th

If you have any questions, please contact ULSAC’s adviser, Taira Meadowcroft (meadowcroftt@missouri.edu) or ULSAC’s chair, Mathew Swan (mrs4gb@mail.missouri.edu).

TAGS:

Taira Meadowcroft

Taira Meadowcroft is the Public Health and Community Engagement Librarian at the Health Sciences Library at the University of Missouri.

home Cycle of Success, Engineering Library Library Resources Key to Success in Chemical Engineering Class

Library Resources Key to Success in Chemical Engineering Class

Where do you go if the information you need isn’t online? To the library, of course!

Dr. Karl Hammond, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, supports the Engineering Library by using its resources in his own work and by designing assignments that integrate library resources into student learning outcomes.

In the library he is known for an assignment that requires students (typically Juniors in Chemical Engineering) who are enrolled in Thermodynamics II to find experimental vapor-liquid equilibrium data for a pair of compounds assigned to each individual student.  This assignment typically requires students to consult either online or in-print books containing compilations of vapor-liquid equilibrium data from the literature, often from the early- to mid-twentieth century.  Professor Hammond asks the staff at the Engineering Library & Technology Commons to place several of these books on reserve during the assignment –the library staff typically assign them their own cart  behind the circulation desk.

One of Professor Hammond’s goals for this assignment is to engage students with the library’s printed collection, which often showcases data that are difficult or impossible to access online, thus making students aware that not all useful information has been or will be digitized.  According to Dr. Hammond,  “If you don’t show students a resource exists, they won’t know to look for it.” The wealth of tabular data available also allows Professor Hammond to assign each student in the course a unique pair of compounds to look up and then plot results from models against measured data to get a sense of how accurate the models are and how to use them. Knowing the full breadth of resources available to find thermodynamic data is an essential skill for success in Design I and II, which students take in their final year in the Chemical Engineering major.

Cycle of Success is the idea that libraries, faculty, and students are linked; for one to truly succeed, we must all succeed. The path to success is formed by the connections between University of Missouri Libraries and faculty members, between faculty members and students, and between students and the libraries that serve them. More than just success, this is also a connection of mutual respect, support, and commitment to forward-thinking research.

If you would like to submit your own success story about how the libraries have helped your research and/or work, please use the Cycle of Success form.

 

TAGS:

Mara Inge

Mara Inge is the Electronic Resources & Discovery Librarian. She is also the subject librarian for Classics, Archaeology, Ancient Mediterranean Studies, Religious Studies, and Anthropology.

home Ellis Library, Events and Exhibits University Archives Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary

University Archives Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary

University Archives at the University of Missouri is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2019. Located in Lewis and Clark Halls since its inception, the Archives is the custodian of well over 10,000 cubic feet of records and 10 terabytes of electronic records. Material in its care ranges from photographs to posters, 16mm film to video tape, walking sticks to banners, and blueprints to webpages. To celebrate its anniversary, the Archives has put together a number of exhibits in the Ellis Library colonnade featuring its history and selections from its holdings. The exhibits will be on display throughout the fall semester.

home Ellis Library, Events and Exhibits Introduction to Data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys, Sept. 18

Introduction to Data from the Consumer Expenditure Surveys, Sept. 18

Join us for a talk with special guest Dr. Geoffrey Paulin, senior economist, on Wednesday, September 18, 2019, from 10 a.m. to noon in 114A Ellis Library. Contact Dr. Rui Yao (yaor@missourui.edu) for more information.

Sponsored by Department of Personal Financial Planning, College of Human Environmental Sciences and University of Missouri Libraries

home Cycle of Success Mizzou Librarian Selected as SPARC Open Education Leadership Fellow

Mizzou Librarian Selected as SPARC Open Education Leadership Fellow

Joe Askins, head of instructional services for the University of Missouri Libraries, has been selected as a fellow in the SPARC Open Education Leadership Program, an intensive professional development program to empower library professionals with the knowledge, skills and community connections to lead successful open education initiatives that benefit students.The two-semester program blends online, peer-to-peer and project-based learning to build a comprehensive understanding of the open education space coupled with practical know-how to take action on campus and beyond. Joe is one of 27 fellows selected from a competitive application pool for the program’s 2019-2020 cohort.

“The University Libraries are committed to supporting open education on campus. We are proud that Joe has been selected for this program, and believe that his work will benefit students at Mizzou,” stated Ann Campion Riley, Vice Provost of Libraries. 

The SPARC Open Education Leadership Program spans two semesters, beginning with an intensive online course in the fall to build open education subject matter expertise. In the spring, Joe will work with a mentor to implement a capstone project that will help advance open education at MU and contribute back to the broader open education community as a whole. Joe will join the rest of the cohort in attending the 16th annual Open Education Conference in Phoenix, AZ in late October. 

The UM System’s A&OER initiatives were taking flight right as I arrived at the University of Missouri Libraries in 2017, and I’ve followed the A&OER Task Force’s efforts with great interest in the two years since. The SPARC Open Education Leadership Program represents a great opportunity to learn more about being an effective advocate for open education across the curriculum,” stated Joe Askins.

To support faculty in transitioning to more affordable and open educational resources, the University of Missouri System A&OER Taskforce has created a faculty-first grant funding programs for all UM System faculty who wish to adopt or develop new A&OER course materials. The University of Missouri is also part of the Open Textbook Network through their membership in the MOBIUS academic library consortium, and has a group in the MOBIUS OER Commons hub.

“Academic libraries sit at the intersection of faculty, students, and high-quality resources, and therefore are essential partners in advancing open education on campus,” said Nicole Allen, Director of Open Education for SPARC. “A large part of what makes our program successful is the unique and valuable perspective each participant brings to it, and a vibrant community of practice develops amongst the cohort. We are proud to have Joe Askins among our 2019-2020 class.”

The University Libraries is a member of SPARC, which is a global coalition dedicated to making Open the default in research and education. For more information about the SPARC Open Education Leadership Program, visit sparcopen.org/our-work/open-education-leadership-program.

home Ellis Library, Resources and Services West Stacks Closure: How to Request Materials

West Stacks Closure: How to Request Materials

The west stacks of Ellis Library are closed due to work on the foundation of the building. In order to access materials located in the west stacks, you will need to make a request through the MERLIN library catalog. For detailed information about this process, visit http://library.missouri.edu/inthelibrary/borrowing/requestretrieval/.

If you have additional questions, you may get help in person at the Research Help desk or the Check Out desk. Online help is available at Ask the Librarians!

The stacks will open again during the winter semester.