The COVID-19 Pandemic had a profound impact on the way we all live our lives. Sadly, approximately seven million people worldwide died from the disease. 

In the grand scheme of things, one relatively minor impact was a decline in the number of on-site users of the Duane G. Meyer Library on the main Springfield campus of Missouri State University. 

Years before the pandemic, the annual number of visits to Meyer Library often was close to three-quarters of a million. For example, in FY16 over 700,000 visits were made to Meyer Library. 

By FY21, the total had dropped to 300,000. Since that low point, the number of visits to Meyer Library has been rebounding. In FY22 we had over 390,000 visits, and in FY23 over 402,000 visits. 

In general, use of online information and information services has continued to grow steadily right through the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Across many measures of our social and economic lives, it will take years to rebound from the impact of COVID-19.