Library Notes

Most of the time, information work relies on thorough, thoughtful planning and quiet, consistent, persistent effort. Sometimes, however, information professionals need to respond very quickly and effectively to emergency situations, in order to save important information. Planning and preparedness remain vital, but rapid response is crucial.  On Tuesday, October 25, 2022, John Thomas (“T”) Woodruff III died after being ill for several years. He was the son of Catherine (“Cass”) and David Brand Woodruff, an exemplary juvenile justice officer in…

Read More Read More

Ernie Bedell will give an author talk on Thursday, December 8th at 7:00 p.m. in the Ozarks Room on the Third Level of the Duane G. Meyer Library on the main Springfield campus of Missouri State University.  His book, Generation B Music & Melodies, recently published, tells the story in the twentieth century and into the twenty-first, of the many generations of the Bedell family who contributed mightily to the contributions of Blacks to the local, regional, and national music…

Read More Read More

Dr. Grace Jackson-Brown is pleased to announce that her new book, Promoting African American Writers: Library Partnerships for Outreach, Programming, and Literacy, is now in print. The product of years of writing and publishing delays that coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, the book was released in October 2022 by Libraries Unlimited, an imprint of ABC—CLIO. Promoting African American Writers: Library Partnerships for Outreach, Programming, and Literacy is a guidebook for all librarians interested in library outreach programming, as well as…

Read More Read More

When Mohammed AlHamad, our E-Resources Librarian and Interim Head of Library Information Technology (LIT), leaves at the end of November to take a new position at Texas A&M – Corpus Christi, we will need to have an Acting Head of LIT in place to continue the good work that unit does for the Missouri State University Libraries and the communities and populations we serve.  Nathan Neuschwander has agreed to serve as Acting Head of LIT until the vacant position can…

Read More Read More

Special Collections and Archives, part of the Missouri State University Libraries, presents a new exhibit on the third floor of Plaster Student Union focused on campus life during the upcoming centennial of 1923. With an estimated enrollment of a whopping 3,000 students, life at Southwest Missouri State Teachers College (now Missouri State University) was very different in 1923 compared to today. This exhibit shares photos and information from yearbooks, student and local newspapers, and other university publications to offer a glimpse into…

Read More Read More

Mohammad AlHamad, who has served as the E-Resource Strategist for the Missouri State University Libraries since June 2021, recently accepted an offer from Texas A&M University — Corpus Christi to serve as Director of Resource Management & Discovery, a faculty position. His final day at MSU will be November 30th. Best wishes, Mohammad. We appreciate the good work you did for the Missouri State University Libraries and its users, and we wish you the best in all your future endeavors.  

Explore and learn about the world of sound and music found in the Smithsonian Folkways collection from the comfort of your little device. A Field Guide to… the Ozarks was curated by Jason Morris (Smithsonian Folklife Festival) with support from Drew Beisswenger (Performing Arts Librarian, University of Arkansas) and the curatorial team of the upcoming 2023 Festival program The Ozarks: Faces and Facets of a Region. There are 26 tracks in this compilation, with a total run-time of 75 minutes. Full…

Read More Read More

Last week the Missouri State University Libraries was notified that an LSTA grant in the amount of $3,500 had been awarded to bring the award-winning author Kwame Alexander to the main Springfield campus next April. With matching funds from various sources, the total project cost will be $12,500.  Dr. Grace Jackson-Brown, a Professor of Library and Information Science at MSU, wrote the grant application and will serve as Project Director.  Dr. Jackson-Brown applied for an Educator Presenter Grant titled “Springfield’s…

Read More Read More

In early November, the Springfield-Greene County Library will host two events that look back on the Vietnam War.  On Wednesday, November 2nd at 6:30 p.m., three military veterans who experienced the Vietnam War as young men share their stories in two powerful programs in the Library Center auditorium. Offering alternatives to Hollywood’s “Rambo” and “Apocalypse Now,” the veterans strive to deliver a “more honest, balanced and nuanced history of that long and terrible conflict” on behalf of the victims and…

Read More Read More

Members of the public are invited to come to the R&R Restaurant in Thomasville, Missouri, at 6 p.m. on Thursday, November 3rd for the “big reveal” of the newly-digitized version of the Civil War era diary of James Posey Woodside.  John Rowlett Woodside, father of James, who spent most of his adult life in Thomasville in Oregon County, Missouri, was a Colonel in the Confederate Army. As a private he fought at the Battle of Wilson’s Creek. According to one…

Read More Read More