Library materials added in December

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during December. We added 87 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order. 

We have purchased 546 items for the collection since July 2014.  If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our "Tell GHL to Buy It" form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Got an Embedded Librarian?

In Winter 2015 or Spring 2015, will your students be conducting research for papers, presentations, or projects? If so, they can benefit from working with an embedded librarian  in your Niihka or Canvas course.

  

First-year students find online searching difficult and are frustrated when navigating complex digital libraries.  Many admit their research competencies are limited. Could your students use some guidance, based on the bibliographies they are building?

Students are already familiar with Google.  Many are unfamiliar with Google Scholar, however, which links back to Miami University Libraries’ full-text holdings of scholarly articles.  Most have never used Miami University Libraries’ discovery service: Articles & More, until shown by a librarian. Articles & More searches 80 databases at once, producing a set of results which can be narrowed to scholarly journal articles or books, and contains  an overview Research Starter for many topics. It also provides  APA or MLA citations for sources. 

With the help of instructors and librarians, students will learn how to:

·         search library databases and Google Scholar

·         read abstracts of journal articles

·         evaluate sources

·         conduct independent research

·         refocus topics

·         dig deeper & persevere

·         cite sources

In 2014, our librarians were embedded in 90 courses, reaching 2,000 students to deliver information literacy instruction and link to academic resources for students enrolled in online, hybrid, and traditional courses.  The embedded librarian service is entering its seventh year in 2015.  We would like to collaborate with you in developing students’ understanding of the research process, related to your discipline!

Please contact any of the Gardner-Harvey Librarians for customized solutions to your course-related research assignments.  We are happy to help with assignment reviews, links to authoritative databases and electronic collections, as well as tutorials and citation tools.  See these sample pages to get a better idea of embedded librarianship.

John Burke, Director, burkejj@miamioh.edu
Jessie Long, Public Services Librarian, longjh@miamioh.edu
Beth Tumbleson, Assistant Director, tumbleb@miamioh.edu

Congratulations to our embedded librarian survey winners!

Did you take a class that had an embedded librarian? If so, you probably received an email a few weeks ago asking you to fill out our online survey. The class who had the highest percentage of completed surveys would receive either breakfast or lunch on us. 

With almost 33% completing our survey, EDT 190 MA were the winners and received breakfast from the library during their final class this week.

Congratulations once again to our survey winning class and thank you to all of you who completed our survey. Your responses help us to keep growing and improving our embedded librarian program.

Library materials added in November

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during November. We added 99 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order. 

We have purchased 456 items for the collection since July 2014.  If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our "Tell GHL to Buy It" form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Library Open on Saturday Before Finals Week

The Gardner-Harvey Library will offer extra study hours to students on Saturday, December 6, 2014.  We will be open from Noon until 4:00pm that day.  If you need a quiet place to study, please come to the library and use our open seating areas, our STAR lounges, or the Group Study Area downstairs.  Staff will be on hand to provide assistance.

Coffee, tea, and hot chocolate will be available.

The Hidden Beauty of Wood

Enjoy a new display at the library of beautiful wood-worked pieces.

Most of the items in the library display were handcrafted by James Barton Wallace.  Mr. Wallace was an avid woodworker and produced most of the objects using a lathe and turning tools.  He enjoyed using all kinds of wood including some unusual woods from native and fruit trees.  The collection includes oak, cherry, black walnut, osage orange (hedge apple), hickory, peach and others.  Different stains and finishes are used to highlight the individual qualities of the wood.  The turned specimens are on loan from Mr. Wallace’s daughter, Maude Haeger, and granddaughter, Shannon Weaver, who is a Miami University student.  

3D Printing: Bring Your Ideas to Life

3D printing can turn a digital file into a practical or decorative item in a matter of minutes or hours.   Join us in the library makerspace to see how 3D printing works.  Learn how to create your own 3D files with software or a 3D scannner, and how to find 3D files that others have created and shared.  Have an item scanned (maybe your head!) for later printing. 

The workshop will be held on December 3, 2014, from 1:00pm-2:00pm in the Gardner-Harvey Library Makerspace on the main level of the library. 

Library materials added in October

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during October. We added 102 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order. 

We have purchased 355 items for the collection since July 2014.  If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Scholarly Commons at Miami University

Miami University Libraries is celebrating Open Access Week, October 20-24, 2014.

Faculty, staff, and students may deposit their scholarly work in Miami University's digital repository called Scholarly Commons, to make datasets, working papers, pre-publication scholarship, and published papers openly accessible, facilitate preservation, and fulfill grant requirements.

If you would like to learn more about which file types, documents, and data sets can be submitted and how to upload your scholarly work, please see this FAQ for details and directions.

Create your own miniature world: Terrarium building at the library

Come to the Gardner Harvey Library on Wednesday, November 5 from 2:00pm - 3:00pm to create your own miniature world!

Live plants, fake plants, rocks, miniatures, all can be used to build your own terrarium.  Join us in the library and create your own miniature world.  

Please RSVP (http://goo.gl/forms/scjVPlwNx6) to ensure we have enough supplies.  If you have any glassware or small items you would like to use with your terrarium, please feel free to bring them along. 

The event is free but please RSVP so we have adequate supplies on hand.

Questions?  Call our InfoDesk at 513-727-3222.

Library materials added in September

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during September. We added 155 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order. 

We have purchased 250 items for the collection since July 2014.  If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Walk this way: our new terrace path is open!

With the incredible efforts of the Grounds Crew and our Physical Facilities department, the hillside entrance to the library is now fully open.  The library terrace has long been available for sitting, studying, and eating outside, but we now have a wonderful patio area and a path that leads over to the stairway by Levy.  This provides easy access to the library from Levy's second floor or from the upper parking lot and Verity Lodge.  Enjoy using this wonderful path of paving stones as you enter and leave the library.

Library materials added in July and August

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during May and June. We added 92 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

24 of the items are DVDs.  People often think that we only buy documentaries and teaching materials on DVD (not that there's anything wrong with that), but we also buy DVDs that can serve both educational and recreational needs.

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order.

If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Support the Gardner-Harvey Library through MoveInMiami

#MoveInMiami 

Tomorrow, Thursday, August 21, Miami University is holding a one-day fundraiser to support activities throughout the University called "MoveInMiami."  The library has been added to the list of possible funds to receive donations. 

As an added bonus to our regional campus donors and friends, Regional Campus Dean Mike Pratt and his wife Patty will personally contribute $10 to the fund of your choice for each new gift raised on 8/21 during this campaign (gift must be $5 or more and must be to a regional campus fund).

This is an exciting opportunity for the library to raise gift funds to support our programming, add new books and technology, and serve members of the Middletown community as well as our students, faculty, and staff members.

If you are interested in making even a small gift to the Gardner-Harvey Library (or our sister library in Hamilton), please use the form at http://www.forloveandhonor.org/RegionalLibraries.  All gifts are tax deductible, and you will be emailed a receipt upon making a gift online.  Gifts must be made on August 21 to qualify for this initiative.

Thank you very much for your time!

John

John J. Burke, MSLS
Library Director & Principal Librarian 
Gardner-Harvey Library
Miami University Middletown

burkejj@miamioh.edu
513-727-3293
http://www.users.miamioh.edu/burkejj

Text your questions to 513-273-5360

How was the library used in 2013/14?

With the fiscal year just ending, here are the full annual stats for several of the Gardner-Harvey Library's (GHL) services. I hope you will find them useful to see how people use the library. Check at the bottom of the document to see how you compare to the average GHL user.

These stats reflect what's happened this year, between July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014. Some stats we keep locally, others we pull from university-wide or OhioLINK-wide systems, and some are provided by database vendors.

Both a Borrower and a Lender Be
- GHL patrons checked out 3,229 books, DVDs, and videos from us (1,249 from our local collection, 1,353 ordered from other MU libraries, and 627 items ordered from OhioLINK - that means that more than 60% of the items used by campus patrons came from libraries beyond GHL). That is a 13% decrease from 2012-2013. We also received 65 articles, books, and audiovisual items from libraries worldwide through interlibrary loan. 

- The GHL collection registered 4,048 checkouts (that's the 1,249 items checked out by Middletown patrons above, plus 1617 items sent to OhioLINK users, and 1,182 sent to other MU libraries - that means that more than 60% of the uses of our materials came from libraries beyond GHL). That is a 10% decrease from 2012-2013. We also sent 116 articles, books, and audiovisual items to libraries worldwide through interlibrary loan. 

- GHL patrons checked out 2,148 reserve items from us (this includes faculty-placed course reserves, textbooks on reserve, laptops, iPads, and other equipment). That is an 17% decrease from 2012-2013. 

- In terms of building up our collection, Middletown faculty, staff, and students ordered 1,047 items to add to our collection this year. That is a 21% decrease from 2012-2013.  That total includes 5 e-books.

- We registered a total of 6,304 checkouts of items in our collection (reserves and circulating materials). The circulating items at GHL number 28,847, so each item in the collection circulated 0.21 times this year (all items in our library circulate). 

- One additional item of interest on item checkouts that happen at our library is the number of items checked our to patrons of other OhioLINK libraries.  We had 423 items sent from OhioLINK libraries and checked out at GHL by patrons from other OhioLINK institutions (using our Pickup Anywhere service - an 87% increase from 2012-13).  We also had 80 of our items borrowed by these OhioLINK patrons in person - a 95% increase from 2012-13).

The Quest for Information
- Middletown patrons downloaded 8,710 full-text articles from Ebsco databases provided to us through OhioLINK . This reflects a new way of measuring your search activity, mainly due to the addition of our Articles & More service in the fall of 2012.  Since that service searches multiple databases at once, our number of searches was multiplied by the number of databases.  So, we'll stick with article downloads and search sessions (7,512 in 2013-2014).

- On their way to these databases, 46 people visit our web site every day. That's a total of 16,906 visits for the year, by 6,285 unique individuals. That's a 1% drop in visits and a 16% increase in unique visitors from 2012-2013.

A Place for Work, Study, and Remove from the World
- GHL is open 61 hours per week.

- We average 280 visitors per day, for a total of 67,207 visits this year.  This reflects a 21% increase from 2012-2013.  

- We regularly schedule the library learning lab (GRD 111) for single class sessions. We also had 2 classes meet there weekly during fall semester and 2 met there during the spring.  We also made use of our study rooms, with 1 class meeting weekly during the fall in STAR Lounge 1, and 6 classes meeting weekly during the fall and 6 classes meeting weekly during the spring in STAR Lounge 2.

- Our two STAR Lounges have been checked out 108 times this year by students.  They were also used weekly by librarians and other faculty and staff members for meetings. 

Helping You Find What You Need
- We logged a total of 630 questions that we answered from our InfoDesk during the year, which averages out to nearly 3 per day.  We do not log every question,we answered, nor every time we check books out, but we try to capture all lengthy interactions with you.  39% of those questions involved technology questions, 29% focused on circulation procedures or policies, 18% were directing people to locations or resources in the library or on campus, and 14% were research-related.  68% of all questions were asked in-person at the desk, while 23% were by phone, 3% by text or instant messaging, and 5% came through email.  Below is an image of the most common words that the questions involved.

- Inside and outside of the library, we gave library instruction presentations in 73 classes this year, reaching 1315 students (a decrease of 17% from 2012-2013). The courses represented were from 21 different departments.

- Our Embedded Librarian program reached students from 80 course sections in their Niihka course sites during the academic year (that is a 19% increase over 2012-2013). We helped over 2065 students with their information needs through the program.

What don't we know about how the library is used?
- One key part missing from these figures is off-campus use of library resources: all off-campus use is tallied as MU-wide use, so we do not know how many Middletown patrons are using databases from home.  We have also lost meaningful data for on-campus use from some of our OhioLINK full-text resources.

- We don't have campus-specific stats for all database searches - we're missing uses of Lexis-Nexis and other databases.

- We hope you'll continue to let us know what you think about the library, what you need from us, and what materials we should order for the collection.

On Average
Taking these numbers and guesstimating a total Middletown community of 2500 students, faculty and staff members (and including community patrons), here's what can be said about the average person on campus. She:

- checks two items out from the library in a year (reserves and local/MU/OhioLINK collection items)
- downloads three full-text articles each year.
- accesses the library web site seven times per year.
- participates in a library instruction session or an embedded librarian course more than once per year (if she is a student).

Thanks to everyone for making the library and its resources a vital part of your academic lives!

2 More Created Equal Films for Fall 2014

The Gardner-Harvey Library is pleased to sponsor the final 2 documentaries in the Created Equal: America's Civil Rights Struggle series this fall 2014.  Both programs are free and open to the public through the National Endowment for the Humanities and the the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

In September we will show and discuss The Abolitionists which runs 180 minutes and was released in 2013, thus commemorating the 150th anniversary of The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863.  For a fuller experience, everyone is invited to view the touring Smithsonian exhibition:  Changing America:  The Emancipation Proclamation 1863 and The March on Washington 1963 on display at the Gardner-Harvey Library from September 8 through October 15, 2014.

The Abolitionists traces the impact of 5 activists:  William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass, Angelina Grimke, John Brown, and Harriet Beecher Stowe in the anti-slavery movement.  These motivated abolitionists used their talents to persuade morally and to act politically to end slavery.

Dr. Linh Dich will screen portions of the documentary and lead a discussion off-campus for the Miami campus, Cincinnati State, Middletown, and the Middletown community. Light refreshments will be served.

What:
Watch online:  The Abolitionists, parts 1-3.
Attend and participate in the Discussion facilitated by Dr. Dich

When:
Monday September 22, 2014, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm

Where:
Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, 1st Floor
1 North Main Street, Middletown, OH 

In October, we will show and discuss Slavery by Another Name which runs 90 minutes and was released in 2012.  The documentary is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning book of the same title by Douglas Blackmon.   The film reveals the little known, shocking history of forced, unpaid labor by Southern African American men lasting until World War II.

Dr. Helane Androne will screen sections of the documentary and lead a discussion off-campus for the Miami campus, the Sonny Hill Community Center participants, and the Middletown community.  Light refreshments will be served.

What:
Watch online: Slavery by Another Name
Attend and participate in the Discussion facilitated by Dr. Androne

When:
Tuesday October 14, 2014, from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm

Where:
Robert "Sonny" Hill Jr. Community Center
800 Lafayette Avenue, Middletown, OH

Library materials added in May and June

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during May and June. We added 190 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order.

If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  We will start into our 2014/15 library budget in July.  We added 1047 items to the library's collection in 2013/14.

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Guess what's new at the library!

We think it will "make" your day. So far, it's sharks, and bracelets, and chain links, and nuts and bolts. It's all that.

But by fall, we'll have it made. Literally. Read more, and let your imagination run wild.

Congratulations to ENG 109 our Embedded Librarian Survey Winners!

Did you take a class that had an embedded librarian? If so, you probably received an email a few weeks ago asking you to fill out our online survey. The class who had the most completed surveys would receive either breakfast or lunch on us. With almost 60% completing our survey, ENG 109 were the winners and received lunch from the library during their final class last week.

Congratulations once again to our survey winning class and thank you to all of you who completed our survey. Your responses help us to keep growing and improving our embedded librarian program.

Metaliteracy

You know the Miami 2020 Plan is in place and guiding curriculum development and institutional priorities.  It highlights learning and discovery, inquiry-based experiential learning, immersion of faculty and students in research and creative scholarship, global engagement, and e-learning.

What may be news is that the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) has a task force in place to revise its 2000 standards.  Discussion of the draft:  Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education  will continue at the American Library Association annual meeting, June 2014.  The revision shifts emphasis to metaliteracy and threshold concepts (knowledge practices or abilities).  Today’s students are creators and curators of information, expected by employers to collaborate in teams to produce digital projects.  Your Gardner-Harvey Librarians have the privilege of facilitating a Discussion Forum for the national membership of ACRL’s instruction section this June.  The new framework will be implemented in 2015. 

What does this mean for me and how will it impact the courses I teach? 

You may wish to redesign one or more of your course research assignments in the next year.  One of the Gardner-Harvey librarians would be pleased to assist you in this effort or provide metaliteracy instruction in a format that meets your students’ needs, whether first-generation, non-traditional, international…

Librarians are glad to offer in-class instruction or Learning Management System Embedded Librarianship or Research Consultations.  Simply start the conversation by contacting us this summer or next fall.  We are happy to collaborate with you to strengthen students’ understanding of issues and skills related to the complex information ecosystem.

Library materials added in April

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during April. We added 122 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order.

It is a pretty eclectic and interesting list, as always, but there's something missing from it.  What's missing?  The book or DVD or whatnot that you or our students need!  Is something missing from our collection that you or others might use?

If you have a suggestion of something to order, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  We are closing out our requests for this fiscal year, but could order it once our new budget year begins in July.  We have added 856 items so far this year.

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Coffee is coming (and tea, hot cocoa, and lemonade)!

The Library will offer free coffee, tea, hot cocoa, and lemonade all during finals week, starting on Monday, May 12th.  It will be set up in our entrance area from roughly 8:00am to 9:00pm, Monday through Thursday, and from 8:00am to 5:00pm on Friday.  Please drop on by and enjoy a cup!  

It's our way of making your last minute studying and paper/project preparation a bit more relaxing.  Thanks for being a part of our library community!

Celebrate Earth Day at the Library!

Tuesday, April 22nd is Earth Day and a celebration of trees and geological samples will be held on the Middletown campus from 11:30-1:00 in the Gardner-Harvey Library.

An exhibit featuring minerals, rocks, and local fossils collected by Middletown Geology students will be on display. It will be staffed by Geology students during that time, and then will be in place for the remainder of the week. The exhibit was curated by Dr. Tammie Gerke and is sponsored by the Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science.

Free tree seedlings will also be available, provided by the Miami Middletown Botany Club under the guidance of Dr. Carolyn Keiffer. There are 100 trees available, with some almost 5 feet tall! There are four varieties:

• Kousa Dogwood 
• Bur Oak 
• White Pine 
• Thornless Honey Locust 

Please come by to learn about the minerals, rocks, and fossils, to get a beautiful tree for your yard, and to peruse a display of library materials related to geology and earth science.

Here's what we said: library goals for 2014

After posting the survey results, my staff reminded me that I should post the library goals that we came up with in December 2013 for our 2014 calendar year.  It is perhaps no surprise that some of the needs we identified overlap so closely with the most common areas for improvement from the survey.  Here is what we're working on this year:

2014 Goals

• Study rooms/offices/closed storage
• Digital media lab/makerspace
• Door repairs
• Artist/mural
• Regular library programming/new workshops

Thanks again for your interest in the library and our shared commitment to meet the needs of the campus!

That's What They Said: One-Minute Survey Results

Here is a short summary of results from the the Library's One-Minute Survey.  The survey was available on the web and in print from February 4 through March 10, 2014.  It simply asked respondents to self-identify by their connection to the University, and to offer one way that they would improve the library.  83 individuals responded to the survey.  38 (46%) were students, 27 (33%) were faculty members, 11 (13%) were staff members, 4 (5%) were community borrowers, and the final 3 (4%) identified themselves as "Miami Alumni" in the "other" blank.

Respondents offered many thoughtful comments and suggestions on library services and the library building itself .  The most popular categories for comments were the following, including samples from each:

• Thanking the library staff (16, or 19% of respondents)

• "I would not change a thing; this library is very efficient and full of resources." (Student)
•  "Fill it with people: students, faculty, community. You are already doing a great job at getting this to happen." (Faculty)

• More study rooms (15, or 18% of respondents)

• "Private and silent reading rooms where power outlets are provided for students to connect their computers." (Student)
• "More quiet study rooms or table space to look at the books you select before checking them out." (Staff)
• "Add more classrooms and study rooms." (Faculty)

• Technology additions (13, or 16% of respondents)

• "Capability to quickly create student online access to media content in various formats (e.g., VHS, DVD, CD, Audio Cassette, 35MM, etc) that would be easily accessible from off campus computers with either Windows or Mac operating systems." (Faculty)
• "A Go-Pro video camera." (Student) 
• "One suggestion is to have hot spots for check out for faculty and staff traveling etc." (Staff/Faculty) 

• Library building issues (9, or 11% of respondents)

• "If I could make one improvement, it would honestly be the front doors. They are old, hard to push, and loud." (Student)
•  "More modern architecture and furniture.  Update as much as possible." (Student)
• "Bigger elevator." (Community borrower) 

• Changes to to improve the library's environment (9, or 11% of respondents)

• "The building would be as calm as possible with little clutter and noise. There would be a sense of privacy and comfort within the walls." (Student)
•  "Fishtanks, terrariums, etc. . . . They could provide interesting "distractions" or "attractions" to students, faculty, etc.  They could also be opportunities for academic engagement." (Faculty)
•  "Sometimes other students are not quiet and it's distracting." (Student)

• Changes to library furniture (9, or 11% of respondents)

• "More secluded areas to study that have comfortable couches and comfortable chairs (the blue ones)." (Student)
•  "Modernize the bookshelves so it does not look so dated." (Student)
•  "Large and solid desks have been replaced by cheaper units with wheels." (Student)

As you can see, respondents had many interesting suggestions for improving the library, and we haven't even mentioned the "covered walkway between buildings" or the "free coffee and pizza."  While those are unlikely additions, we are considering other suggestions, such as checking out magazines, creating "a doodle wall to simulate creativity," and adding locally made art work, in addition to the requests in the most common categories above.

We were heartened to see that we've already met some of the requests, but realize that we need to market these services better: "a small section of children's books" is already available in our Juvenile section, and we just added a number of award-winning 2013 books to that collection, and the above suggestion to give students online access to media content is already in place in our Video on Demand service (though it can be improved).  We also encourage those who wished us to add more books or DVDs to the collection to just let us know the titles you would like, and we'll add them.

One other item bears mentioning here:  five respondents (6%) asked that the library add weekend hours.  Based on our experience in offering those hours for many years with declining visits, and the handful of requests we've received about it during this academic year, we are unlikely to add weekend hours without a clearer mandate.  Instead, our energies will go toward making other improvements and additions to our service.

Thank you for taking the time to participate in the survey!

Library materials added in March

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during March. We added 91 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials, in reverse chronological order.

It is a pretty eclectic and interesting list, as always, but there's something missing from it.  What's missing?  The book or DVD or whatnot that you or our students need!  Is something missing from our collection that you or others might use?

If you have a suggestion of something to order for the 2013/14 fiscal year, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request.  We would like to close out our request period on Friday, April 11.

We are working to spend our acquisitions budget for the year, and we need your requests to make that happen.  We have added 729 items so far this year, and we have the budget to add a few more. What do you need?  Let us know.

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

Library materials added in February

To bring you up to date on what has recently been added to the collection, a new materials list is now available that reflects additions during February. We added 101 books, DVDs, and other items during that time, thanks to your selections and suggestions. The list is sorted by call number, with items grouped roughly by subject area.  

This tag will show you all of the prior lists of new materials.  

Is something missing from this list?  Or missing from our collection?

If you have a suggestion of something to order for the 2013/14 fiscal year, please use our online request form, email Jennifer Hicks or one of our other staff members, or drop by the library with your request at any time.  We are working to spend our acquisitions budget for the year, and we need your requests to make that happen.  What do you need?  Let us know.

Thanks again for keeping our collection vibrant and your information needs met!

How do I find out if the Library has the textbook I need?

Good question!  Finding a textbook can be simple or involved.  This is the process.  

Best case scenario:  the Gardner-Harvey Library has a copy of the textbook you want on Reserve for your course.  The Gardner-Harvey Library buys textbooks for about 30 Miami Plan courses.  In other words, we have many, but not all textbooks.  (Still the library is not the bookstore.  Just because the bookstore is selling or renting the 2014 print or electronic edition, it does not mean the library will have it too.)

At the Gardner-Harvey Library, all Textbooks on Reserve are listed by Course Number and Title so you can easily check.  In these cases, you may usually borrow the item for 2 hours.  You can keep it longer if you check the item out 2 hours before closing.  Then you may have it overnight and return it by 9 a.m. the next day the library is open.

If the textbook is not on reserve, search Books & More (the Miami University Libraries online catalog) to see whether any Miami library owns the title.  Search by Title or Author/Editor.  Sometimes the exact title and edition you want is in the collection!  Then you only need to find it in the stacks or click the Request Item button and enter your Miami ID and Password and Pickup location so that it can be shipped free by van to the nearest library.  You will receive a Miami email notification when it is ready for pickup.  Sometimes the library owns an older edition of the title and it is available.  If you are satisfied with this version, just request it as above.

If the textbook is unavailable at Miami University Libraries, then click the OhioLINK link displayed in your search results or go directly to the OhioLINK Library Catalog.  This allows you to check whether any of the 90 academic libraries in OhioLINK have a copy they are able to lend for several weeks with options to renew.  However, it is unlikely you will be able to keep the textbook for the entire semester.

 

To request an OhioLINK textbook, click the green Request button, Miami, and enter your Miami ID, Password, and Pickup location so the available item can be shipped in 3-5 days.  Sometimes you will find the exact edition you want; at other times you will only see older editions.  It is your decision.  If you see Due Date, Local Use Only, or Missing, the item is not available.  You may choose to pursue another option. 

Other options include:
Finding an eBook of the title, in one of Miami's databases or electronic collections
Checking to see whether a local public library might have the title you want
Going to the bookstore to buy or rent a copy
Buying the textbook online