Library Notes

On Tuesday evening, September 18, 2018, Brooks Blevins, Noel Boyd Professor of History at MSU, spoke to a packed house of over 150 about the explorations and impact of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft 200 years ago. Dr. Blevins’ talk was based on his recently published book, A History of the Ozarks, Vol. 1: The Old Ozarks (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2018).

The event, held in the auditorium of the Library Center on S. Campbell Avenue, was co-sponsored by the Springfield-Greene County Library District and the Ozarks Studies Institute, an initiative of the MSU Libraries.

On Friday, September 21, 2018, President Trump is scheduled to attend a political rally to be held in JQH Arena on the Springfield campus of Missouri State University.

The rally will begin at 6:30 p.m., with doors opening at 2:10 p.m. for this no-charge, ticketed event. Ten thousand people are estimated to attend the event, or to participate in protests outside the arena.

Because Duane G. Meyer Library is located two blocks from JQH Arena, library users and employees may experience some minor inconveniences, and a few library services may close early on Friday afternoon.

Per MSU President Smart’s directive, non-essential employees, after confirming with their immediate supervisors, may leave work at 3:00 p.m. on Friday.

Streets, walkways, and parking lots on campus may become congested or closed.

The library as a whole, however, plans to remain open until 6:00 p.m., the normal Friday closing time when classes are in session.

For updates on overall logistics regarding this event, please visit this MSU News Page.

Meyer Library has purchased a manual wheelchair for short-term use within the building.

The chair is available for anyone with an immediate need for mobility assistance.

Home base for the wheelchair is the receiving/mail room area on the First Level of Meyer Library.

Please help ensure the wheelchair is easy to locate when needed by returning it after each use.

The Roy Ellis Collection (M 3) in Special Collections and Archives contains materials that document Dr. Ellis’ 35 years as president of what is now known as Missouri State University. In addition, the collection contains Ellis’ research for The Shrine of the Ozarks: A History of Southwest Missouri State College, 1905 – 1965. The collection has a wide range of information about Missouri and education.

Dr. Ellis was born in Wright County, near Seymour, Missouri in 1888 and taught in rural schools before completing a Pedagogy degree in 1911 from the State Normal School, Fourth District (now MSU).

The President’s Correspondence Series containing letters between the presidents of the four state universities/colleges include correspondence regarding the admittance of African Americans to the institutions. In 1950 Mary Jean Price Walls applied to attend what was then Southwest Missouri State College, but her application was denied. She received an honorary degree from MSU in 2010.

The Army Air Forces certificate documents the Air Corps Cadet Training School’s use of Southwest Missouri State Teachers College under Dr. Ellis’ leadership. Ellis led the college through the Great Depression, World War II, and the post-war enrollment boom.

For more information, see the collection’s finding aid or contact Special Collections and Archives.

Dr. Frank Einhellig, Provost at Missouri State University, recently formed a small ad hoc committee to look at changes in methodologies for funding the publication of scholarly journals, especially page charges, also known as article processing charges.

Tasks of the committee:

• Evaluate the current status and future prospect of changes in publication methodology that relate to page charges and other costs. 
• Suggest potential impact that these changes will have on MSU.

Members:

1. Tamera Jahnke, College of Natural and Applied Sciences (Chair)
2. Wayne Mitchell, College of Health and Human Sciences
3. Tom Peters, Libraries
4. David Rohall, College of Humanities and Public Affairs
5. Libby Rozell, College of Business
6. Jake Simmons, College of Arts and Letters

The Historical Abstracts bibliographic database covers the history of the world (excluding the United States and Canada), focusing on the 15th century to the present. Content for Historical Abstracts includes indexing of historical articles from more than 2,300 journals in over 40 languages and coverage dating back to 1953, with some coverage for titles back to the early 20th century. Essential for libraries supporting upper-division and graduate research, Historical Abstracts provides a robust selection of bibliographic records from thousands of academic journals, magazines, books and monographs. Topics include military history, women’s history, history of education, and much more.

Earlier this summer, representatives from Steelcase, a major manufacturer of furniture for libraries, offices, and schools, invited several employees from Missouri State University to tour their corporate campus in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as well as the library at Grand Valley State University. Leaders from Planning, Design, and Construction, as well as Residence Life, made the trip, as did Dean Tom Peters and Associate Dean Rachel Besara from the MSU Libraries.

In the last few months, Rachel Besara, Associate Dean of Library Services at MSU, co-authored two articles  that have been published in professional journals:

1. Demeter, Michelle; Besara, Rachel; Colvin, Gloria; and Birmingham, Bridgett. 2018. “Send in the Crowds: Planning and Benefiting from Large-scale Academic Library Events.” Marketing Libraries Journal 2 (1): 86-95. “[T]he authors detail four different events that can be replicated in an effort to show how
   easy and beneficial large-scale events can be within the academic library community.”
2. Besara, Rachel, and Renaine, Julian. 2018. “Building a Culture of Strategic Risk-taking in a Science Library: Creating Psychological Safety and Embracing Failure.” Journal of New Librarianship 3: 48-52. “More importantly, how do you create a culture where people feel free to take risks and, sometimes, fail?”

Beginning Tuesday, October 16, 2018, the MSU Libraries will offer a one-credit course on several emerging technologies, including virtual reality, augmented reality, robotics, and 3D printing. The goal of the course is to help students develop practical skills and fundamental knowledge regarding these emerging technologies, which promise to fuel new interdisciplinary work in higher education, business, and industry. It is part of the new badging and microcredentialing initiative that the MSU Libraries is launching. Our microcredentialing program is just one of many efforts at MSU that foster workforce development in Missouri, in order to position the state’s economy for continued growth and development. A team of employees of the MSU Libraries conceived, designed, developed, and will deliver the course, including Rachel Besara, Joshua Lambert, Jan Johnson, Jir Shin Boey, and Sue Reichling. The course will meet in Room 206 of Duane G. Meyer Library for eight weeks, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:00 to 2:50 p.m. Central Time.