Library News
Share your six words as part of Race Card Project
Posted on August 28th, 2019
How would you describe your thoughts or experiences about race in only six words?
The EIU community will be invited to share their “six words” as part of The Race Card ProjectTM at Booth Library. The program is sponsored by Making Excellence Inclusive, the Office of Inclusion and Academic Engagement, and the Pine Honors College.
The nationally acclaimed Race Card Project, which began in 2010, encourages people to condense their observations and experiences about race into one sentence with just six words.
“Though most social scientists would argue that race is a social construct and therefore not real, many individuals who are a member of particular ‘races’ experience life differently because of their race,” said Catherine Polydore, associate professor in the Department of Counseling and Higher Education and the chair of the MEI team at EIU.
“Often this difference is experienced as oppressive. Therefore, for those individuals, race is very real,” she said. “Yet, race is an issue that many tiptoe around because of the emotions that discussions of race may evoke.”
Patrons are encouraged to share their “six words” on provided comment cards and post them on the wall in the library’s Marvin Foyer from Sept. 3 through Oct. 11. The official kickoff will be at 4 p.m. Sept. 3, in conjunction with EIU’s commemoration of the 400th, a series of events evaluating the impact of slavery in America.
“Booth Library is proud to serve as the site for such an important conversation here at EIU,” said Zach Newell, dean of Library Services. “It’s vital as a diverse and inclusive campus to encourage all voices to be heard.”
Polydore agreed. “As an institution of higher learning, it is important that we create spaces for conversations or expressions that may not be addressed in other spaces because of those fears. This project is a way to create that space in a passive yet visually powerful way, because of its visibility and anonymity.
“By addressing the elephant in the room, we can begin to make small steps toward a world where race ceases to be,” Polydore said.
For more information about The Race Card Project at EIU, contact Polydore at 217-581-7237 or cpolydore@eiu.edu; Richard England, dean of the Pine Honors College, at 217-581-2017 or rengland@eiu.edu; or Zach Newell, dean of Library Services, at 217-581-6061 or znewell@eiu.edu.
For more information about the national Race Card Project, visit https://theracecardproject.com/.
Research 101 workshops offered
Posted on August 27th, 2019
Students who need tips for conducting research are encouraged to attend free workshops at Booth Library.
Seminar 1: Researching the Literature with Steve Brantley will be offered from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Sept. 17 and again from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Sept. 19 in Room 4450 of the library.
Topics to be covered are:
– What are your online research destinations?
– How do you know when you have enough?
– Identify key journals and key databases.
– Understand controlled vocabularies and how they can benefit your research.
– Learn about open access, open research, and alternative sources for research.
Seminar 2: Organizing your Reference Using Citation Management Software with Kirstin Duffin will be offered from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Sept. 24 and again from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Sept. 26 in Room 4450 of the library.
Topics to be covered are:
– Save your sources to one convenient location and access via the cloud.
– Create formatted citations and your reference section in seconds (really!).
– Understand the software options and features in Mendeley and Zotero.
– Export citation information using library databases.
Seminar 3: Presenting your Thesis (to the World) with Todd Bruns will be offered from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Oct. 1 and again from 10:30-11:30 a.m. Oct. 3 in Witters Conference Room 4440.
Topics to be covered are:
– What happens to your thesis after you submit it?
– Common pitfalls to avoid when preparing your thesis
– How to optimize discovery of your thesis with metadata
Register for the free seminars at https://library.eiu.edu/instruction/thesis101.html.
For more information contact Steve Brantley, head of Research, Engagement and Scholarship, at 581-7542 or jsbrantley@eiu.edu.
New Concepts in Higher Education
Posted on August 20th, 2019
Prior to the start of the fall semester, Booth Library played host to the New Faculty Orientation led by Professor Newton Key and the Faculty Development and Innovation Center. As a way to welcome all the new faculty to campus, we have curated a display of new and recent titles about current issues and concepts in higher education, teaching, creative pedagogy, student learning, professional development, and more. These books are located in the West Reading Room and are available to browse or check out at your convenience.
Reference department has a new name: RES
Posted on August 15th, 2019
The Booth Library reference department has some exciting news — they’ve changed their name to better match their mission! The department is now called Research, Engagement and Scholarship, or RES
EIU students, faculty and staff are familiar with our reference department. They are the librarians and staff at the Research Help desk on the main floor. They help you find resources for your papers. They guide you through library website and direct you to the best research for your topic. They answer your chat questions and emails. They visit your classes and lead instruction sessions here in the library.
All of these services will continue with the new name. But our librarians felt that Research, Engagement and Scholarship better reflects changes in academic librarianship, and the way students conduct research. In contrast to the days when reference librarians acted as mediators between students and information resources, the majority of information queries are accomplished online directly by the student. Librarians today focus on facilitating access to these resources, teach information literacy and collaborate with faculty to promote student success. The terms “Research, Engagement, Scholarship,” are more in line with our academic mission.
Research: More than finding answers for questions, we support students in navigating the information resources, formulating inquiries into knowledge and helping them think critically about what they find.
Engagement: We have always considered engagement with our users to be an essential role. “Engagement” communicates an active interest in outreach and involvement with our students and in the curriculum.
Scholarship: By using this term we honor the academic work our students do. Scholarship tells faculty that we serve their needs and seek to collaborate in their teaching, research and creative activity. Scholarship also suggests a level of teaching that goes beyond the skills training aspect that may be attached to the term instruction.
We look forward to serving you this semester! Please get in touch with us if you have questions about this mission or how we can help you succeed. Contact Steve Brantley, head of RES, at 581-7542 or jsbrantley at eiu dot edu.
Learn about your library; take a tour!
Posted on August 13th, 2019
Eastern students, faculty and staff members are encouraged to take a tour of Booth Library and find out what the library has to offer.
Twenty-minute tours will be offered regularly during the first three weeks of the semester. There’s no need to sign up; just come to the Research Help desk on the north end of the library to join in any of the tours Monday through Thursday. Tours will be offered at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Aug. 19 through Sept. 5. The library will be closed on Sept. 2 in observance of Labor Day.
Tours are also offered by appointment. Contact a research help librarian at 581-6072 to schedule a tour.
Naxos Music Library offers access to thousands of classical and jazz albums
Posted on August 7th, 2019
Booth Library is excited to announce its new subscriptions to Naxos Music Library and Naxos Music Library – Jazz.
Naxos Music Library contains over 145,000 classical albums to stream (added to daily) not only from the Naxos label, but many others including Deutche Grammophon and Erato. From the home page users can search individual titles of pieces or browse categories and artists by individual names or by group.
Recordings also include pdfs links to the original information-rich liner notes that accompany the recordings. In addition to the thousands of sound recordings, Naxos Music Library has additional resources such as K-12 music curricula and interactive music applications for children.
Naxos Music Library – Jazz is a similar streaming database that focuses on jazz. It contains over 17,000 streaming albums as well as liner notes, and the same search capabilities (by artist, etc.) as Naxos Music Library.
Both Naxos music resources also have iPhone and Android app capability for mobile listening as well as playlist creation capabilities that can be used to accompany instruction or assignments. The Naxos Music Libraries also have tabs and links to helpful resources like video tutorials to facilitate learning about all they have to offer.
Space exhibit on display in Effingham
Posted on August 2nd, 2019
“On the Shoulders of Giants: The Moon and Beyond,” an exhibit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, as well as examining current and future space exploration, is on display at the Effingham Public Library, 200 N. Third St., through Sept. 2. The exhibit was curated at Booth Library on the campus of Eastern Illinois University.
“On the Shoulders of Giants” includes a look at Apollo 11 and other Apollo missions; Astronauts who Walked on the Moon; Women in Space; Space and Literature, Movies, and TV; and more.
It was 50 years ago on July 20 that American astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin became the first humans ever to land on the moon. About six and a half hours later, Armstrong became the first person to walk on the moon.
For more information on “On the Shoulders of Giants,” visit https://library.eiu.edu/exhibits/space/.
