The Weinberg Memorial Library typically does not purchase textbooks for the circulating collections. Some textbook publishers and copyright holders limit libraries from holding copies of their textbooks. Textbooks are also updated much more frequently than the traditional library book, thus making them difficult to keep up-to-date. Additionally, the quantity of copies needed and length of the loan can also be problematic for libraries. Due to space limitations the Library would only be able to hold a few copies in the circulating collection and once those copies are checked out, other students can’t use them. However, the Library does have a small collection of textbooks in our Textbook Reserves Collection.
Textbook Reserves Collection
The Library does have some textbooks on reserve in our Textbook Reserve Collection, these textbooks were generously donated to the Library by other students. Titles in this collection have the word “Textbook” before the call number and can be requested at the Library Services Desk. However, they are limited to a one-day loan, so that many students can use them over the course of a semester. To view a list of titles in the Textbook Reserve Collection – type “Textbook Reserve Collection” in quotes into either Royal Search or the Library Catalog to view a list of titles.
Searching for a textbook
If the Library did acquire a print copy of a textbook being used for your class, it would be found in the library catalog. To search for your textbook, go the Library’s Home Page and go to the Library Catalog search bar. Change the pull down menu to “title” and type in the exact title of the textbook into the Library Catalog search box. It can be helpful to know the editor, author, or edition, since most textbooks have generic names such as Fundamentals of Psychology, Microeconomics, etc. and often have multiple editions. Novels and supplemental reading, such as a short story or essay, may potentially be found in the circulating collections of the Library. Use the same procedure listed above to see if the book is in the collection. For more information see our How do I … find my textbook? Research Guide
Course Reserves
Some professors put their textbooks or course materials on reserve for classes. Textbooks on reserve can be borrowed at the Library Services Desk. Typically, textbooks on reserve for classes have shorter loan periods of only a few hours and are meant to be used at the Library. For more information on course reserves see our How do I … find what my professor put on reserves? Research Guide.
EZBorrow
If the Library does not have your textbook here, you may also want to try searching EZBorrow (PALCI), a direct borrowing service. You can find a link to EZBorrow from the Library’s Home Page. EZBorrow is an interlibrary loan system providing access to books not available in the Weinberg Memorial Library. The system simultaneously searches the catalogs of over 50 libraries in PALCI (Partnership for Academic Library Collaboration and Innovation). Books are mailed free of charge and available to pick up at the Library Services Desk.
If you have additional questions about finding or borrowing books from the Library, please reach out to Ask a Librarian.
The Weinberg Memorial Library is pleased to welcome the Class of 2028 to The University of Scranton!
Sign up for the Heritage Hunt, the interactive introduction to the Library and its resources for first-year students!
Watch our welcome video to learn more about the Weinberg Memorial Library.
To consult with a University of Scranton Librarian during our service hours, you can ask for research assistance at the first floor Library Services Desk, call 570-941-4000, or use the Ask a Librarian chat boxes on our website. Assistance is available 24/7 through the chat box, which is covered by librarians not affiliated with the University of Scranton outside service hours.
The Library’s Research & Scholarly Services department, located on the second floor, can assist you with research, such as finding, evaluating, and citing information. Look for the purple “Research Librarian on call” signs to locate a librarian available for drop-in research assistance.Research consultations can be scheduled by using the Ask a Librarian chat box or by contacting your subject liaison librarian directly by email.
To find resources, such as books, periodicals, and media, use Royal Search located on the Library’s home page. The Library’s large collection of e-books, e-journals, and streaming media are available 24/7. To access the Library’s online content, you must first authenticate through my.scranton.edu.
Circulation Services, located at the first floor Library Services Desk, can help you borrow and return print materials and laptops. You can also pick up items on reserve, books placed on hold, and interlibrary loan materials. In the lobby area in front of the Library Services Desk you will find New Books recently added to our collection, our Recreational Reading Collection which offers a variety of new and popular fiction and nonfiction, our new Graphic Novels collection, and our Featured Media Collection that contains recently acquired and popular DVDs.
The Weinberg Memorial Library has five floors and offers a variety of spaces to support your study and research needs including computer workstations, individual study space, group study rooms, quiet study areas, and the Charles Kratz Scranton Heritage Room.
The Library’s Pro Deo Room, Reilly Learning Commons, 2nd floor, and 3rd floor remain accessible to students 24 hours a day when campus is open and include printing stations, group study rooms, and lab computers.
The Reilly Learning Commons (RLC), located on the first floor, is a collaborative space with access to high-powered computers, video and audio recording rooms, and reservable group study rooms equipped with white boards and monitors.
The Media Resources Collection (MRC), located on the third floor, provides media materials for instructional support and student learning. Students can borrow films on DVD or Blu-ray, music on CDs or LP records, and audiobooks. The EdLab collection, found within the Media Resources Collection, consists of children’s literature and K-12 textbooks.
University of Scranton Archives and McHugh Family Special Collections, located on the fourth floor, collects, preserves, and provides access to historical materials including medieval manuscripts, rare books, American penmanship and local and University history. Appointments are recommended.
You may have noticed a change to our Library home page search box on our website.
A new Library Catalog search option was added to allow users to exclusively search our print and physical media holdings. This new search box replaces the “Print and Media Only” checkbox that was previously found beneath the Royal Search search box and provides a drop down menu that allows you to limit by Keyword, Title, Author, ISBN, ISSN, or Subject before you begin to search.
This new user interface eliminates the need to filter out electronic content and provides a real-time view of our catalog inventory for print books, manuscripts, DVD’s, CD’s and other print and physical media formats. Results can be refined through additional filtering options along the left hand side of the screen. This is especially helpful if you are looking for a specific format such as a DVD or materials in a particular language. The Sort by pull down menu on the right provides the option to sort your results by Relevance, Title (ascending or descending), Author (ascending or descending), and Year (Oldest or Newest). To see an expanded record with collection location and call number information click on View details.
Within the expanded record you can find collection location and call number information under Availability & locations.Similar to Royal Search, you can click the Place a hold button to place a hold on items in our circulating collections. Please note that non-circulating items and items on reserve at the Library Services Desk and Media Services Desk do not have a place a hold option.
Additionally you will find a Browse this shelf feature which allows you to view books or media located adjacent to the title you have selected. Clicking on the blue bubbles below Related subjects will create a new subject search based on the subject term. If you scroll further down within the record you can explore expanded details and additional information about the title you selected including content notes and summaries.
To Place a hold or to view the contents of My bookshelf, where you can view your holds and checked out materials, in the Library Catalog, you will need to sign into your Library Account.
To do so, click on the icon in the upper right hand corner and then click sign-in. The sign-in will take you to the University Single Sign-on (SSO) page where you will need to authenticate using your Royal ID number if you are not already signed in.
If this is your first time signing into MyEBSCO after May 29, 2024, you will be asked to personalize your account.
Click on the blue button that says Continue personalized, this will connect your MyEBSCO account to your Royal ID number.
While you can search Royal Search and the Library Catalog without signing in or personalizing your account, you will need to sign in and personalize your account if you wish to place holds on materials. Once you personalize your account you will not see that pop up window again, you would only receive prompts to sign in and authenticate.
If you have any additional questions about the Library Catalog please reach out to Cataloging and Metadata Librarian Marleen Cloutier at marleen.cloutier@scranton.edu or Ask a Librarian.
On Tuesday, July 16th, the upgrade to the ILLiad server software will take place. The upgrade process is estimated to last from 8am to noon, during this time Interlibrary Loan will not be available. The PALCI/EZ-Borrow system is not be effected by this upgrade and will be available to patrons. If the upgrade process completes earlier than expected notice of such will be posted to the Library blog.
Access to PALCI EZBorrow has been restored. You may resume requesting books via EZBorrow. Thank you for your patience while the system was undergoing maintenance!
Charles Cavin Sylvester is the winner of the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize in the Undergraduate Upper-level category
Charles Cavin Sylvester is the winner of the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize in the Undergraduate Upper-level category. This prize is awarded to the winning project completed in a 200- to 400-level course.
Charles is a senior Environmental Science major, he submitted to the competition the paper titled “Environmental Review of CFCs and their Replacements; the Montreal Protocol Plan” completed in the course CHEM 390: Chemical Literature and Writing, taught by Dr. Michael Fennie.
For research purposes, Charles relied on a number of library databases such as Academic Search Elite, ProQuest Central, and the American Chemical Society publications in order to identify pertinent peer-reviewed primary source literature. Charles utilized a wide range of sources including secondary sources such as textbooks and white papers to ascertain governmental information regarding the Montreal Protocol. In his description of research he also mentions obtaining access to three crucial papers for his research through the Library’s Interlibrary loan system. Charles used the citation management software Zotero to manage and organize his large number of sources, and adds that as a first-time user of Zotero, he was amazed at how this tool streamlined his research process.
In choosing this research topic, Charles mentions; “I wanted to choose something that affects everyone, something that is applicable to everyone’s daily life, something that would help better the lives of all. Pope Francis calls us to be stewards of the Earth. Most recently in his “Laudato Deum,” he specifically called out the United States for not being good enough. Therefore, embracing my Jesuit values, I wanted to write an impactful paper on the Montreal Protocol Plan to assess if were we doing enough to protect ourselves from the tragedy of ozone depletion by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).”
Through the research process, Charles mentions, “I have done many research projects throughout my time at the University, but this one truly taught me the notion of not giving up before I found the right data. My strive for Magis drove me. To write a fair and accurate paper, I needed specific data for CFCs and their three replacements concerning ozone depletion potentials, pathways for tropospheric sinks, radiative efficiencies, lifetimes, and global warming potentials. It was not an easy task, but I am extremely satisfied that I was successful in doing so. It made my paper so much more complete. The accomplishment will stick with me, and it taught me a lasting lesson about researching.” His research is timely and describes high-level scientific processes in a readable and straightforward manner. His work details a truly successful application of Science as a change agent for improvement in environmental policy.
Honorable Mention awards in the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize in the Undergraduate Upper-level category were presented to Gabrielle Bingener, a third-year Neuroscience major, for her project titled “Transposing The Wounded Storyteller,” completed in the course ENLT 224: Perspectives in Literature about Illness taught by Dr. Billie Tadros; and to Occupational Therapy major Victoria Smulowitz for her paper titled “The Impact of Breast Cancer Survivors’ Participation in Society Due to a Loss of Occupational Engagement,” completed in the course OT 250: Scientific Writing and Information Literacy taught by Dr. Carol Coté.
Gabrielle Allen and Julianna Lunt are the winners of the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize in the Graduate category.
Gabrielle Allen and Julianna Lunt are the winners of the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize in the Graduate category.
Gabrielle and Julianna are in the Master of Science in Occupational Therapy program. They submitted to the competition their project titled “The Changing Role of Occupational Therapy in Neonatal Care” completed in the course OT 544: Leadership Principles, Ethics, and Pragmatics, taught by Dr. Marlene Morgan.
When Gabrielle and Julianna set off on their Historical Analysis of Occupational Therapy assignment, they wanted to choose a topic that would be beneficial for the occupational therapy profession and focused specifically on vulnerable populations, whose lives have been impacted by advancements in OT. They ultimately landed on neonatal care.
For this difficult historical analysis, they used a multitude of Library resources, from print to digital, and archival. They also sought assistance from the librarians who guided them through how to begin finding and evaluating relevant information. While at first intimidated by the research process, they began to feel “a bit like detectives” as they went about their information seeking. In true Jesuit tradition, they were pushed to become better researchers while tasked with taking time to be reflective of their findings.
In their description of research, they summarize the ways their research process reflected Ignatian characteristics when they say, “Whether it was the discernment of choosing a research topic that would benefit the future of OT and help advocate for the infants in the NICU, or learning how to navigate new equipment to access archival journals on microfilm, this project fostered growth in many different ways.”
They go on: “We found ourselves discussing our gratitude to receive a Jesuit education while completing this research project,” and furthermore apply the Jesuit concept of “Contemplatio ad amorem” to their work on this project when they say:“The research process incorporated active parts and also included reflection of the findings. It was in these moments of reflection that we were able to uncover themes throughout history and have “breakthrough moments”. Most importantly, our research was driven by the love of God because we sought to choose a topic that would improve the quality of life for His most vulnerable creations.”
In this way, Gabrielle and Julianna illustrate how the research process can transform both the researcher and those whom the research will serve.
Honorable Mention awards in the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize Graduate category were presented to Master of Occupational Therapy students Catherine Casola and Kiera Harvey, their project titled “The History of Occupational Therapy in Neurological Conditions,” completed in the course OT 544: Leadership Principles, Ethics, and Pragmatics, taught by Dr. Marlene Morgan; and to Doctor of Physical Therapy students Lauren Colella, Erin O’Shaughnessy, Michele Felice Rovaris, and Sydney Walters, for their project titled “Mental Health Factors and Exercise Adherence in Women with Breast Cancer Interventions: A Systematic Review,” completed in the course PT 773: Scientific Inquiry III for PT, taught by Dr. Anthony Carusotto.
Emma Torok is the winner of the 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize Undergraduate Foundational category. This prize category is designed to recognize research excellence and learning in the first year. It is awarded to the winning project completed in a 100-level course.*
Emma is a first-year Early Education Major who submitted her paper titled “Analyzing the Effectiveness of In-Person Learning vs. Online Learning” completed in Prof. Dawn D’Aries Zera’s Writing 107: Composition course.
Tasked with researching an argumentative contemporary issue related to her major, Emma began her research in class and an information literacy session with a faculty librarian where she learned about different types of resources available including books, videos, online journals, Interlibrary Loan, and more. In her description of research, Emma discussed using the Library’s main search tool, Royal Search, to find peer reviewed articles through the use of limiters and Boolean logic. She shared how adding a variety of sources, like scholarly research articles, but also news articles from the New York Times and NPR, helped balance her argument and solidify her findings.
Emma also discussed the importance of keeping an open mind while conducting research as to avoid confirmation bias. In her application she states, “There have been times when I began my research specifically looking for articles that agreed with my predetermined thoughts. However, for this project, I deliberately searched for articles that stated the benefits of both online and in-person learning. I am so thankful for all that I learned in the library program and on the library website because, without learning other perspectives, my paper would not have been formulated fairly.”
Emma went on to discuss how through the research process she embodied the Ignatian characteristic of Cura Personalis. She states, “My research paper demonstrated this in two main ways: my open perspective to research and my personal connection to my topic. Before conducting any research, and even before finalizing my topic, I ensured that I educated myself on both sides of the debate. Just like St. Ignatius would do, I appreciated and thought critically about both perspectives before deciding my opinion.”
The 2024 Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize Undergraduate Foundational category Honorable Mention award was presented to first-year Biochemistry, Cell & Molecular Biology major Andrew Mauriello, for his project titled “Gene Therapy: An Effective Treatment for Some of the World’s Deadliest Diseases” completed in his WRITING 107: Composition course taught by Prof. Dawn D’Aries Zera.
Currently celebrating its 13th year, the Weinberg Memorial Library inaugurated the Library Research Prize in 2011 to recognize excellence in research projects that show evidence of significant knowledge of the methods of research and the information gathering process, and use of library resources, tools, and services. In 2017, the prize was named for Professor Emerita Bonnie W. Oldham, who founded the prize at the University in 2011. The Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize was fully endowed in 2019 and consists of a prize of $500 awarded to winning projects in each of the three categories: Undergraduate Foundational (100-level projects), Undergraduate Upper-level (200- to 400-level projects), and Graduate.
Prize winners were honored at an Awards Ceremony & Reception on Friday 5/17 at 1:00 pm in the Charles Kratz Scranton Heritage Room of the Weinberg Memorial Library.
Information about the Bonnie W. Oldham Library Research Prize can be found on the website: http://www.scranton.edu/libraryresearchprize
Congratulations to all of our honorees!
*Emma Torok was unable to attend the awards ceremony and is therefore not pictured along with the other winners.
The Library’s recent migration to our new Library Service Platform, FOLIO, included changes to accessing your Library Account and access to user tools within Royal Search.
If you are a Student, Faculty, or Staff member, the following visual guide at the link below will assist you with logging into your account:
In the upper right corner of the Royal Search webpage you will see an icon and the words MyEBSCO.
Click on the icon and select Sign in to my EBSCO at the bottom of the box. You will then be asked to authenticate using your Royal ID number if you are not already signed in.
If this is your first time logging into MyEBSCO after May 29, 2024, you will be asked to personalize your account. Click on the blue button that says Continue personalized, this will connect your MyEBSCO account to your Royal ID number and give you access to the My dashboard tools. While you can search Royal Search without logging in or personalizing your account, you will need to sign in and personalize your account if you wish to place holds on materials or view database articles. Once you personalize your account you will not see that pop up window again, you would only receive prompts to sign in and authenticate.
On the left side menu My dashboard has tools you can use to save and organize your research and to see your holds and checked-out Materials. The Overview link will provide a dashboard for you of all links on the left side menu.
If you click on Holds & checkouts, you can review specific titles you have on hold or have checked out to your account. Under the Checkouts tab you can request a renewal by clicking on Renew.
Troubleshooting
If you are having an issue signing in to MyEBSCO or connecting to resources in Royal Search we recommend the following:
Use Google Chrome as your browser if you are unable to connect with another browser.
Perform a hard refresh of your browser and clear your cache.
If you are using Google Chrome, Firefox or Edge for Windows press Ctrl + F5.
If you are using Google Chrome or Firefox for Mac press Command + Shift + R .
You can find additional instructions for clearing your cache in Google Chrome here.
If you created a MyEBSCO account with your University email address and it does not merge when you personalize, see the following instructions to merge accounts:
The Library does have some textbooks on reserve in our Textbook Reserve Collection, these textbooks were generously donated to the Library by other students. Titles in this collection have the word “Textbook” before the call number and can be requested at the Library Services Desk. However, they are limited to a one-day loan, so that many students can use them over the course of a semester. To view a list of titles in the Textbook Reserve Collection – type “Textbook Reserve Collection” in quotes into either Royal Search or the Library Catalog to view a list of titles. 
