Affordable Learning Implementation Grants – Application Deadline Extended to December 3rd, 2021

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October 28, 2021

3:45 pm

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The deadline to apply for an Affordable Learning Implementation Grant for Spring 2022 has been extended to December 3rd, 2021.

Affordable Learning aims to reduce the financial burden on students by replacing expensive for-cost textbooks and course materials with no-cost or low-cost educational resources. OER stands for Open Educational Resources, which include online textbooks, media, and other materials that are available freely for use and can be remixed/reused for educational purposes. For our Affordable Learning Implementation Grants, formerly OER Implementation Grants, faculty may opt to use existing OER textbooks and open source software that is available online or may compile course materials from appropriately licensed e-books and journals that are open access or available through the Library to replace all, or some, of their for-cost course materials. Please visit the Affordable Learning Implementation Grants web page for more information and reports from previous recipients. 

For a list of links to available OER and appropriately licensed Affordable Learning resources, visit the Library’s OER Research Guide.   

Looking for Affordable Learning resources in our catalog? You can simply search the catalog by typing in “Scranton Affordable Learning” into the Catalog search box on the Library home page. 

For additional information about Affordable Learning and how to find resources that can be used as part of the Affordable Learning Implementation Grants, materials presented at the October 27th discussion on implementing Open Educational Resources (OER) and Affordable Learning materials in the classroom can be viewed on the Library’s OER Research Guide.

Look for the WML Event Materials box on the guide to find links to our latest presentations.

Celebrate Open Access Week! Join the Affordable Learning Discussion 10/27

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October 25, 2021

9:00 am

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The Library invites University of Scranton Faculty to join us during Open Access Week on Wednesday, October 27th, at 11:00 am on Zoom to discuss implementing Open Educational Resources (OER) and affordable learning materials in the classroom.

Discussion will include an introduction to OER, how to locate OER and other open materials within the Library’s collection and online, and suggestions for how you can replace costly textbooks and other resources with OER and/or appropriately licensed library resources. We will also discuss a new trial database, CloudSource OA, and workshop with attendees to utilize this resource that curates and aggregates open access publications and open educational resources from leading academic publishers and universities.

Librarians will also answer questions about OER and the Affordable Learning Implementation Grants (formerly the Open Educational Resources Grants), available to full-time Faculty and accepting applications until November 19th.

Click here to register for the Zoom link.

Weinberg Memorial Library Trials CloudSource OA

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October 22, 2021

9:00 am

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News

Just in time for Open Access Week, the Library has started a trial for CloudSource OA.  We invite all students and faculty to take a look at this exciting new resource which makes searching for open access books, journals, and open educational resources a breeze.  This new search platform curates and aggregates open access content from leading publishers and scholars around the world in one convenient and easy to use location.

The trial period will last until October 31st, 2021 so please take some time to explore.  You can link to the resource here or visit our A to Z Database list and click on “Trial Databases”.  If you have any questions or feedback about this database, please contact Sylvia Orner (sylvia.orner@scranton.edu).

Friends of the Weinberg Memorial Library Gift Funds Phase 1 of the 2nd-floor Renovation Plan

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October 21, 2021

3:07 pm

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Thanks to a generous gift from the Friends of the Weinberg Memorial Library, the Library recently completed phase 1 of its second-floor renovation plan. The $100,000 gift from the Friends Endowment allowed us to redesign the student area at the top of the grand staircase, refresh and update the open computer lab, and create a Collaborative Teaching Space for Information Literacy Instruction and research consultations. The gift went toward improving the carpeting, lighting, and color palettes as well as a variety of new seating options, writing surfaces, and technology layouts.

Students enjoy the new counter height laptop tables as well as the dining room height tables, with power outlets built-in.

 

The computer lab area is refreshed with new built-in tables and fewer desktops to provide students with more table space for their course materials and research. The printers and book scanner are conveniently located on the left side of the room, and students have the option of utilizing dual monitors or plugging their personal computer into a library-provided screen.

 

The new Collaborative Teaching Room provides librarians with another classroom for small group Information Literacy Instruction as well as a new space for librarian-hosted research consultations and meetings.

On behalf of the Library faculty and staff, we wish to express our sincere gratitude for the fundraising efforts of the Friends of the Weinberg Memorial Library. The gift from the Friends’ Endowment is a spectacular start toward our overall plan to renovate the second floor.

Celebrating the Friends of the Weinberg Memorial Library

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October 18, 2021

11:06 am

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Friends

This is Friends of the Library Week, and at the Weinberg Memorial Library, we have a Friends organization truly worthy of celebration! Formed in 1994, the Friends actively support the Library in a myriad of ways, including fundraising, sponsoring programs and exhibits, and purchasing books and technology. Over the years, the Friends have donated more than $75,000 to acquire more than 1240 books and other items for Special Collections and for the circulating collection. In 1997, with inaugural Award winner Jack Palance, the Friends started the Distinguished Author Award program, which brings well-known authors to campus to sign books and speak about their work. Each year in April, the Friends organize and host an annual book sale to benefit the Library. This past September for the first time, the Friends also hosted a smaller book sale during the University’s Family Weekend, which was a great success! Leaves of Class, a program that raffles off donations from local businesses to contest winners each month, is one of the longest running and most successful fundraisers organized by the Friends. In 2016, the library purchased the hugely popular Brody study carrels through the generosity of the Friends. We could not be more thankful for our Friends, whose generosity with their time and resources has so greatly benefited our Library and the University of Scranton!

First meeting of the Friends of the Library Advisory Board in 1994.

2014 book sale in the Heritage Room.

2013 Distinguished Author Committee.

 

Network Resources Outage Saturday, October 9

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October 7, 2021

9:00 pm

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Network resources, including access to the Internet, will be unavailable campus-wide on Saturday, October 9 from 10am – 2pm EDT, for scheduled maintenance.

This outage includes access to library databases via single sign on, and printing services in the library. Those resources will be unavailable until the network maintenance is complete.

Library Access Over Fall Break

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October 7, 2021

6:37 pm

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Yes, the Library will be open by swipe over Fall Break. However, on Saturday Oct. 9 the grand staircase and adjoining lobby areas will be re-carpeted. If you plan to use the library on Saturday Oct. 9, please plan to access the building through the door to the Reilly Learning Commons.

In Search of New Books?

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October 4, 2021

9:30 am

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New Books Book Shelf Check out the New Book Shelf

A selection of the Library’s newest additions to our collection can be browsed on the New Book Shelf located on the 1st floor across from the Circulation Desk.

Want to see what is new but can’t make it to the Library?

There is a quick and easy way to search the Catalog to see the new books we have received within the last month.

In the catalog search box, type “New Books” in quotes.

WML catalog search box

Then use the facets along the left-hand side to refine your results by “Subject” and “Book”.

Selecting facets
Faceting will allow you to see a list of everything that the Library has recently added to our print collection.

If you want to see what new books have come in for a specific subject or keyword, you can use the Advanced Search.

WML Catalog Advanced Search Box

or

You can visit the Library’s Research Guides at https://guides.library.scranton.edu/

New Books link in research guides

You would then pick a subject, for example, “History.” On the History Research Guides page you will see a link to “New Library Books.” Clicking the “New Library Books” link will take you to the Library’s Catalog and a display of all of the new books that the library has acquired for that specific Academic Department in the last month. You can also find additional useful links on the Research Guide page which can direct you to helpful Databases, Reference Books, Websites, and contact information for the Librarian Subject Specialist.