Starting this week, the Ellis Library Digiprint Center is selling flash drives and pens.

The final report of the MERLIN Task Force on New Discovery Tools was completed in January and considered by the UM Library Directors group in February. The MERLIN Task Force continued and built on the work of last year’s MOBIUS Task Force that studied next generation library catalogs. The UM Library Directors reviewed the report and were impressed. However, the decision was made to put it on hold until the UM System financial situation is more stable. Visit the staff Web page to view the report.

This year’s Celebration of Service will be Thursday, April 23rd in the Grand Reading Room (Room 201) of Ellis Library.

Lunch will be served from 11:45 am to 12:30 pm and will be provided courtesy of MULSA. Employees are asked to use their lunch breaks if they are interested in attending the catered luncheon.

The Celebration of Service will take place from 12:30 -1:30 pm. Release time is available with supervisor approval.

Watch for an invitation in Outlook.

If you have any questions, please contact a member of the Celebration of Service Planning Group: Shannon Cary, Mark Ellis, Ann Riley, Colleen Smith and Mike Spears.

You may have noticed the nice new mats near both entrances of Ellis Library. These mats were ordered quite awhile ago. The company customized the mats with the MU Libraries logo at no additional charge.

Knitworking, the MU Libraries knitting and crocheting group, is trying to organize to send hand-knit or crocheted blankets, socks, mittens, hats, vests, and sweaters to children in Afghanistan through the group Afghans for Afghans.

Interested in helping?
-If you knit or crochet, please join the group by emailing Cindy Cotner at cotnerc@missouri.edu. The group usually meets every Tuesday during the lunch hour to knitwork and network.
-Even if you don’t knit or crochet, you could donate yarn or money towards purchasing yarn. For details, email Katie Carr at carrkm@missouri.edu.

MOspace is now linked on the MU Libraries home page. For more information about MOspace, visit https://mospace.umsystem.edu/xmlui/pages/about.

The MU Libraries are currently surveying users through a series of pop-up questions on the Libraries Web site. The questions are designed to gather quick feedback on user preferences. The information gathered will inform decisions the Libraries make regarding allocating resources and setting priorities for Ellis Library and the branch libraries. The pop-up question will change every two weeks. All participants, who choose to enter their e-mail addresses, will be entered in a random drawing at the end of each two-week period. The winners of the drawings will each receive a $15 gift certificate to the University Bookstore

Contact Gena Scott at scottgl@missouri.edu if you are interested. For more information about the concert, visit the University Concert Series Web site.

March 5, 2009
Time: 10:00 – 11:00am
Place: 213 Ellis Library
Presenter: Mary Barile, Grant Writer, MU Libraries & MU’s Office of Research

Ready to write a grant?  Then you may want to learn more about: setting up grant timelines; creating a narrative that intrigues the funder; soliciting and using feedback.
Release time is available with supervisor approval. Please RSVP for headcount purposes.