Good news! MSA has confirmed that the Student Services Enhancement Fee referendum will be put on the ballot for the spring elections. Voting will take place March 6-8.
While this is great news for us, I want to remind everyone that it is not the University Libraries’ job to market this fee. This is an initiative that came out of the office of Student Affairs and the marketing campaign is being carried out by a team of Student Communication Coordinators. I have been working closely with these groups as they’ve developed their communication strategy, and I am confident that they are representing the Libraries well and will continue to do so. If anyone from the media reaches out to you with questions about this fee, please direct them to me or Shannon Cary, our Communications Officer.
If the student body votes for this fee, MU Libraries will receive $12 per student which comes out to approximately $660,000 annually. This amount has been designated for the student priorities listed on the information website:
- Keep Ellis Library open 24 hours a day, five days a week (all levels)
- Extend specialized library hours to meet student demand
- Fund collections/resources
- Improve student learning spaces
For more information about what the Student Services Enhancement Fee will provide, please see the SSEF information page, which will be updated soon now that the “proposed” referendum is official: https://studentservicesfee.missouri.edu/
If any library staff (committees/groups or individuals) would like more information about this fee, I am happy to meet to answer any questions. I will keep you all updated as this campaign moves forward.
–Grace Atkins