2016 Scholar's Celebration

The MCU Library recently hosted the 2016 Scholar's Celebration.  

This event is held in the spirit of sharing in the areas of faculty and staff's professional interests outside the classroom.  The aim of the evening was to help generate a better understanding of what our community is doing outside the classroom environment; adding to everyone's general knowledge in the process. 

Here is a sampling of the presentations and topics presented:

We have a selection of books that are on display that represent some of the publications MCU faculty/staff have published.  Come take a look!  They will be on display for the remainder of the month of March. 

How To Find Credible Research Sources: CRAAP Method

One of the most common questions that Marymount students mention about the trouble they have with a research project is: 

How do I find credible resources?!?!?!

The Internet is a great resource; however, answering this basic research question can be a HUGE challenge if you don't critically think about your resources.

Luckily, the MCU Library is here to help answer those specific questions.  In fact, that is a large part of our daily mission; to provide access to, training for, and assistance with locating QUALITY information.  

We have created an online guide to help our students better understand how to find credible resources, both online (hello, Google!) and using library resources (databases, books and eBooks).  This is a good place to understand the questions you should try to answer about your resources.

In this guide, we've introduced a concept referred to as the "CRAAP Method." This is an easy to remember acronym that can help you identify a credible resource.  

For more information, check out the "How To Find Credible Resources" library guide to get more assistance with finding credible information.

If you need more help, feel free to contact a librarian.

Travel Books Available in the Library

Flipster: Digital Magazine Service Now Available!

Welcome Back! Library Fall Hours

Celebrate Banned Books Week!

 

This week the library will be celebrating the nationally recognized

Banned Books Week.

Why Banned Books Week?

Held during the last week of September since 1982, Banned Books Week not only encourages readers to examine challenged literary works, but also promotes intellectual freedom in libraries, schools, and bookstores. Its goal is "to teach the importance of our First Amendment rights and the power of literature, and to draw attention to the danger that exists when restraints are imposed on the availability of information in a free society."

Often book challenges are motivated by a desire to protect children from “inappropriate” sexual content or “offensive” language. The following were the top three reasons cited for challenging materials as reported to the Office of Intellectual Freedom:

1.     The material was considered to be "sexually explicit"

2.     The material contained "offensive language"

3.     The materials was "unsuited to any age group"

 

 

American libraries are one of the cornerstones of our democracy. Libraries are for everyone, everywhere.

Read an old favorite or a new banned book this week.


Stop by and check out the list of the Top 10 Banned Books of 2013 at our Banned Books Display!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome to Fall 2014

Welcome back, MCU students! We hope you're as fired up as the Library is to start the new academic year. To get the most out of your classes, be sure to visit the Library often throughout the semester. The Library is the place to:

• Get individual research assistance from librarians
• Borrow a textbook from course reserves (books your professors require you to read for class)
• Find print books and e-books that will help you in writing great papers
• Discover articles from scholarly sources on your topics
• Watch informative films about the subjects you are researching
• Keep up to date with the latest news locally, nationally, and globally
• Find a quiet place to study (for group study, we encourage you to use the Commons)
• Check out something fun to read from our recreational reading and graphic novel collections 

New Fall Hours:

See you in the Library!

Summer at Marymount California University Library

While you are studying abroad in Greece or just on vacation, the library will remain open for Summer session. We will be open all Summer long, so be sure to stop by and say hello! 

New Summer Hours:

Also, be sure to greet Katie when you see her in the library. Katie is our student-worker for the Summer. She will be managing multiple projects throughout the Summer months for the library. Below, Katie can be seen advertising our Summer reading display in the library.

Enjoy your Summer, we will see you in the Fall!

Finals Week @ MCU Library

Finals week is upon us once again at Marymount California University

The library would like to wish our students the best of luck on their upcoming final exams. We also want to be the first to give best wishes to the graduating seniors. We wish you more than luck in your future professional and academic pursuits and have enjoyed your presence over the past four years. The library also wants to wish good luck to our students who are planning to transfer to other institutions, we know you will go on to do great things! Finally, we want to acknowledge the great work that our student workers have done this year, without them none of our success would be possible.

 In reference to finals week, the library will be keeping these hours:

Mon - Thur 8-8

Friday 8-4

Saturday 11-5

Sunday 11-8

The library would also like to thank you for your participation in the annual library survey. We received  a record number of responses this year and we are already using your feedback to improve library services going forward into the future.

As noted by your responses to this year's survey, our small library can get noisy from time to time. We realize due to the nature of the library's size this can be inescapable at times. That being said, we ask all of our students to be considerate of noise levels and respectful of others during this stressful time. If you have plans for collaborative and/or group study sessions, feel free to utilize the student commons and empty classrooms in Cecilia Hall for studying purposes. In accordance with your requests the library hopes to provide an atmosphere and environment that ensures all are well-prepared for finals, and we appreciate your help in keeping the noise levels down so that everyone has an opportunity to properly study and ready themselves for their end of term exams.

Thanks again from your friends in the library and good luck with finals!

What's New @ MCU Library

Welcome Back 

Spring Breakers!

We are now nearing the home stretch of the semester and academic year. Keep up the good work! While you have been away enjoying your brief vacation from school, your MCU librarians have remained hard at work preparing the library for your return. While away the library has undergone a few changes. This month we are transitioning away from the field of Psychology and are now highlighting the theme of Animation. This emphasis includes a display in the front of the library containing a variety of materials relating to the production, history, and business of Animation. Our display includes a variety of library materials including eBooks and print books currently available in the catalog.

Some of the featured ebooks in our display include the the Animated Movie Guide, the Art of Stop-Motion Animation, and Hollywood Cartoons. You can find these titles by clicking on the links or by searching in our card catalog under the ebooks tab. Print materials that are available include Animated Cartoons, the World History of Animation, and the Biography of Walt Disney. These titles are available in the library for checkout along with many more covering the whole spectrum of Animation.

Along with the new display the library has included two more databases into our library collection. We now have access to American Chemical Society (ACS) and Wiley Online Library. Both of these databases can be found under our e-resources tab on the library homepage.

American Chemical Society

 American Chemical Society is one of the world's premier scientific research organizations and one of the leading sources of authoritative scientific research. The ACS database gives us access to over 60 scientific journals spanning such fields as Chemistry, Biology, Environmental Science, and Biotechnology.

Wiley Online Library

Wiley Online Library offer's one of the world's broadest and deepest multidisciplinary collections in the Sciences. It contains online resources in the academic fields of life, health, social and physical sciences. The collection gives the library access to over four million articles from 1,500 journals, 14,000 ebooks, and hundreds of reference works.

The MCU library is also back to our original library hours starting March 22, 2014.

Spring Semester: Mon-Thurs 8-8 / Fri 8-4 / Sat-Sun 11-5

If you have any questions be sure to contact one of our librarians via phone, email, or in person.

Contact
Email: library@marymountcalifornia.edu
Phone: (310) 303-7260

Location
Oceanview Campus
Cecilia Hall 200

The Happiness Index Project has arrived at Marymount

"Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others." 

-Buddha

This month the library is celebrating "Happiness." This is in support of the Happiness Index Project (HIP), an interdisciplinary research initiative Marymount California University is conducting on the well-being of the people that reside in Lake County, CA. This initiative will utilize Marymount students and faculty in field research efforts aiming to identify metrics of well-being for Lake County residents assessing their overall quality of life and regional identity. The initiative beginning this Spring will continue through 2014 and beyond.

Display on Happiness

Happiness Studies LibGuide

In support of this endeavor the library has focused on Happiness Studies by incorporating a "Happiness display" showcasing some of the library resources we currently offer. The library has also created a Happiness Library Guide highlighting the discipline of Happiness Studies spanning multiple academic fields. This guide lists print and electronic resources relevant to the various academic fields and can be found on the library website.

Books: Featured below to the left is one of our 300 books in the library covering the subject of Happiness. The book, Happiness and Education represents just one of the multitude of books available in the library print collection.


eBooks: The library hosts over 85,000 eBooks online through multiple eBook providers. One example on the right from our extensive eBook Collection is The Pursuit of Happiness: an economy of well-being. This title along with many others is available for viewing through the library catalog.


e-Resources: Along with our extensive book collections the library subscribes to multiple online databases and journals containing millions of accessible research articles. Databases that might be relevant for the study of Happiness include Academic Search Premier, PsycARTICLES, ProQuest Psychology Journals, and Salem Health. The library also provides databases with statistical information such as Statistica and Statistical Insight. Finally, the library has access to online video content through Films on Demand. A TED talk by Dan Gilbert titled, Why are we Happy? Why aren't we Happy? is one such example. All of these resources are available through the library website.

If you have any questions or need help in your research visit a librarian during our hours of operation, call us at (310) 303-7260,  or email us at library@marymountcalifornia.edu.

Entrepreneurship takes center stage at Marymount Library

"The best way to predict the future is to create it." 

- Peter Drucker

This month Marymount Library is emphasizing all things entrepreneurial. This includes showcasing library resources for entrepreneurs available both electronically and in print.  Here are a few of the resources we have on this exciting topic:

 Books:  We have several entrepreneur books, including: Bill Gates Business @ the Speed of Thought, The Search for Social Entrepreneurship, and The Entrepreneur Next Door. These titles represent just a small sample of the more than hundreds  available resources on this subject in our catalog.

eBooks:  We have several about entrepreneurship that are available electronically through the library. Titles include: In The Name of Entrepreneurship, Linking Entrepreneurship Education to Graduate Education, and Making Ecopreneurs: Developing Sustainable Entrepreneurship. The library has access to over 1,200 eBooks related to entrepreneurship available through ebrary.

We also have access to over 300 audio/visual items on the subject of entrepreneurship available through streaming via Films on Demand. Film titles like Eco-preneurs: business goes green, Capitalize on your Investment: Veterans in Business, still serving America, and Collaborative Entrepreneurship, represent just a few to choose from. All of these great resources can be found via the library catalog.

e-Resources:  You have access to multiple databases for finding business related information, including company profiles (e.g. Hoover's, First Research, Lexis Nexis); industry data and statistics; (e.g. Statistica, Statistical Insight); and databases for business reference and news (e.g. Business Source Elite, Credo Reference, ProQuest Library: Business).                    

                                                         Click Here for More Information!

This library's recognition of Entrepreneurship also coincides with Marymount California's partnership with the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce in bringing you the Munch & Learn lecture: Five Qualities of Successful Entrepreneurs. This lecture is on Thursday, November 14, 2013 - 11:45 am to 1:00 pm. Information on the event can be found at here.

Marymount Freshman, T.J. Richards, Publishes Book

We are happy to report that we have an author in Marymount's Freshman Class!

T.J. Richards has written a book titled Michael Divine: The Fallen.  T.J. has written and published the first in a fictional, action adventure series. 

According to the book's description, Michael is an Archangel that fell from Heaven.  Gabriel, one of Heaven's most fearsome angels, has been searching for Michael for a long period of time. Michael believes to have finally spotted him; that's when Michael's world is about to turn upside-down.

As far as Michael is concerned, he is your average high school senior, soon to graduate.  Michael's world starts to change dramatically when a series of strange occurrences start to happen and he receives an encounter with a mysterious visitor.  Michael comes to find out that he is not who he thought he was.

What happens to Michael?  Luckily, T.J. has graciously donated a copy of his book to the Marymount library.  You can come by and check out Michael Divine: The Fallen to find out for yourself.  Also, his book is available for purchase on Barnes & Noble's website.


We are looking forward to seeing more of T.J.'s work in the near future!

Banned Books Week 2013

Marymount Library is celebrating Banned Books Week (September 22−28) which is the national book community's annual celebration of the freedom to read.

The purpose of this event, which is typically held during the last week of September, is to highlight the value of free and open access to information in shared support of the freedom to seek and express ideas, including those that may be considered unorthodox or unpopular. The American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country stress the importance of ensuring the availability of those unorthodox or unpopular viewpoints to all whom wish to read them, and to keep banned or challenged materials publicly available so that people can develop their own conclusions and opinions.

So for this week (and for the next month), talk to your students, colleagues, and fellow educators about a banned or censored book. Bring awareness to the problem of censorship and celebrate our freedom to read!

For more information about Banned Books Week or a list of banned and challenged books, visit bannedbooksweek.org and/or ALA's informational website.

Visit the library for the next month to view our list of banned books on our display board, or borrow a banned book today!

'One Book One Peninsula' Featured in PV News

Alan Wang, the "Gar-Ball" designer.
(Photo by Annie Lubinsky, Peninsula News)

With more One Book One Peninsula (OBOP) program activities coming up, including the Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle Festival to be held at Marymount California University on September 27, the community-wide common reading program has been featured on Palos Verdes Peninsula News! In collaboration with Palos Verdes Library District, Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy, and Palos Verdes Art Center, we have truly united our community to discuss and take action in regards to this year's book selection and overall theme: Garbology.

Garbology: Our Dirty Love Affair with Trash, by Edward Humes, provides an eye-opening account of just how much our society wastes, the cost of it, and how some families, communities, and nations are finding a way back from waste so that our legacy to the future won't be buried in our landfills.

The Reduce, Reuse, & Recycle Festival will take place on September 27 from 12 PM to 1:30 PM and will feature interactive games and demos. The festival will also feature the "Gar-Ball," an art piece created by Palos Verdes Art Center intern Alan Wang, that is designed to collect empty plastic water bottles. In addition, Garbology Author, Edward Humes will be on campus from 12 to 1pm! Attendance is free.

To read the OBOP feature article, visit Palo Verdes Peninsula News: www.pvnews.com/news/one-book-event-shows-local-residents-are-driven-to-reduce/article_32bb9df0-213c-11e3-8116-0019bb2963f4.html

For more information on other OBOP events, visit the One Book One Peninsula Facebook page: www.facebook.com/onebookonepeninsula

Pick up a copy of Garbology today in the Marymount Bookstore or check it out from our library.

Fall 2013 Weekend Hours

Looking for a productive weekend?  With the fall semester well underway, Marymount Library is happy to announce our weekend hours!  The library will be open both Saturdays and Sundays from 11 AM to 5 PM, so come on in if you need books, research help, or just a place to study.

Can't get to the library?  You can still get assistance through our online chat service or call us at (310) 303-7260.

Marymount Library is Talkin’ Trash

The Marymount Library is excited to announce an expansion of its annual One Campus One Book program with new community partnerships.  We have joined forces with the Palos Verdes Library District, Palos Verdes Art Center and the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy in sponsoring a community-wide common reading program now called One Book One Peninsula.

For 2013, we have selected a sustainability-themed book since it is a topic of great interest to all of our institutions and to our coastal community as a whole.  After much consideration, the book selected for this year is Garbology: Our Dirty Love Affair with Trash by Pulitzer-prize winning author Edward Humes.

This is a fascinating book that journeys inside the secret world of our biggest export, our most prodigious product, and our greatest legacy:  our trash.  Did you know that each average American produces a whopping 102 tons of garbage in a lifetime, more than any other people in the world?   The author leads readers along the trail of that trash – what’s in it; the hidden costs of it; and how some families, communities, and nations are finding a way back from waste to discover a new kind of prosperity.  Get ready to be surprised!

Why a Common Read?

First launched at Marymount in 2005, our common reading program involves members of our campus – students and employees – reading the same book.  Readers are encouraged to engage in an analysis of the book from a variety of disciplinary perspectives.  This has become a common program at many universities, and within many cities, as a way to help members of a community connect – to have something in common – to engage with each other in talking about their perspectives of a book and to engage in a lively and intellectual manner through a variety of events offered around the book’s themes.   

After all, this is what a college education is designed to do – to broaden one’s perspectives and ways of looking at the world.  

Recent books in our common read program include Rebecca Skloot’s “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” and Father Gregory Boyle’s “Tattoos on the Heart .”

 

Join the Community Fun!

Marymount community members are encouraged to read the book and take part in some of the planned events supporting our One Book program — including a campus visit by Edward Humes on 9/27 followed by a speaking engagement with the author on Saturday 9/28 at the Palos Verdes Peninsula Library.

Stay informed on our many community-wide events related to the book by liking our One Book One Peninsula Facebook page:  www.facebook.com/onebookonepeninsula

Pick up a copy of the book today in the Marymount bookstore or check it out from the library.