All Signs Point to the Library!

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Welcome to Archer Library!

Fall term officially starts on Monday and all signs 🪧 point to Archer Library as your go to📍 destination. Whether you are hunting down peer-reviewed journals, booking a group study room, or looking for a quiet space to focus, we’re where you want to be.

Archer Library Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award

Archer Library Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award

Archer Library and the Instructional Resource Center are sponsoring a $500 Research Award for undergraduate students. This award is in recognition of excellence in research for a student project presented during the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Symposium and will be presented during National Library Week. The award winner will be announced April 22, 2026.

Eligibility

Undergraduate students must present their project at the 2026 Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Symposium. The Archer Library Research Award is for an individual project or presentation. Applicants who fail to submit required award application documents will not be considered for the research award.

About the Research Award

The research award application process requires submission of:

• Research Process Essay: A 250-word (or more) essay describing your research process and use of library tools.
• Bibliography/Works cited paper for your final project.

Documents must be submitted via the Archer Library Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award form; only digital applications will be accepted.

The Archer Library Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award will be given based on the research process essay. The submitted essay should help the judges understand your research process and what you learned while writing this research paper. Interested in learning more? Click the button below to view the judging rubric.

Application Deadline

All documents must be submitted via the application form by midnight, April 1, 2026. We encourage you to apply for the Archer Library Excellence in Undergraduate Research Award.

Open House • Library Wellness Space

Open House: Library Wellness Space

Tour the new Archer Library Wellness Space

Join us on Monday, October 6, from 8-11 a.m. to explore our new Wellness Space.  Meet with Archer Library director Patricia Frank, to learn more about our exciting new space.  This event will include light refreshments and attendees will be given tote bags.

Archer Library Celebrates Upgraded Shared System Software

 OhioLINK libraries “go live” with state-of-the-art system software

On-time and on-budget upgrade of shared system is a milestone achievement for Ohio’s college and university libraries.

OhioLINK libraries have reached an extraordinary milestone with the successful upgrade of shared system software to support teaching, learning and research for Ohio higher education. The on-time and on-budget project was the culmination of more than two years of planning and collaboration, encompassing the migration of more than a million titles.

The entire OhioLINK consortium, composed of 115 libraries at 86 four-year and two-year institutions of higher education across Ohio, is now fully operational on the state-of-the-art Ex Libris Alma/Primo VE system.

“This significant investment in Ohio’s digital infrastructure ensures that students and faculty at all OhioLINK member institutions benefit from faster, smarter and more integrated access to scholarly materials,” said Mike Duffey, chancellor of the Ohio Department of Higher Education, which funded the project and oversees OhioLINK as part of the Ohio Technology Consortium. “This modern, scalable platform will connect seamlessly with the learning environment to lower student costs, enhance academic outcomes and support ongoing innovation in teaching and research.”

Enhanced Features for Library Users

The cloud-based enterprise software suite for OhioLINK libraries also includes five interoperable apps that work together to meet the educational and research needs of students and faculty. The new system’s user-friendly features include:

• Unified search capabilities: A single search box to find relevant media, print and electronic resources, including immediate access to licensed e-journals and e-books.
• Resource-sharing improvements: Real-time tracking of user requests, facilitating fast and easy access to the OhioLINK consortium’s shared print catalog.
• Modern discovery tools: An intuitive user interface supported by AI-assisted research recommendations, citation trails and citation management software exports.
• Integration with Learning Management Systems: Expected in 2026, the ability to link required course readings to library collections, thereby reducing student costs.
• Mobile app: Also in 2026, responsive smartphone technology that will enable full utilization of the library’s system.

In addition, the system streamlines daily operations for library staff and enhances consortial reporting for data analysis and decision-making—essential for OhioLINK’s shared resource negotiations and its statewide collection development and acquisitions team.

Unprecedented Collaboration

Building on 30 years of technological accomplishments, OhioLINK led the migration project in collaboration with Ex Libris. Hundreds of staff from member libraries contributed their time and expertise as part of advisory and functional teams, while also maintaining high levels of library service throughout the migration process.

Over the last 18 months, OhioLINK managed 626 migration-related online meetings that were attended by more than 20,000 member-library staff. Additionally, 243 migration-related videos were shared via OhioLINK’s member-only site and viewed for 3,457 hours.

Collective Achievement for Statewide Benefit

Amy Pawlowski, OhioLINK’s executive director, noted the effectiveness of Ex Libris' project management and acknowledged the contributions from member libraries. “Keeping such a complex project on time and on budget really was a remarkable collective achievement,” Pawlowski said. “Librarians are service-minded collaborators, knowing their contributions would benefit not just their own library’s students and faculty but also their OhioLINK library colleagues across the state, and ultimately the more than 800,000 Ohio higher education faculty and students who use the system. We can’t thank them enough.”

Structured for Success

Standing teams of more than 100 functional experts fielded large volumes of information, meeting regularly and actively participating in an online project management “basecamp.” Implementation was led locally by a designated “Project Lead” at each library. Some of the collaborative teams created for the Ex Libris Alma/Primo migration will continue to offer advice and functional problem-solving for the consortium into 2026 as OhioLINK libraries move toward “steady state.”

Effective Stakeholder Communication

OhioLINK maintained regular communications across the consortium, supplemented with a robust “on demand” project extranet, and functional-expertise-focused online presentations/ discussions that were open to interested library staff. Understanding that the Ex Libris software’s interoperability with non-library campus systems would require local IT support, OhioLINK also held quarterly CIO briefings to ensure campus IT would be able to plan for student information, user authentication and security needs.

Looking Ahead

OhioLINK is preparing to help members launch more Ex Libris apps, including Leganto, which links library collections with campus learning systems to lower student textbook costs, and a mobile app for full library access via smartphones. “We are really happy to have a more secure environment that further facilitates collaboration and efficiencies across the consortium,” Pawlowski said. “OhioLINK was established more than 30 years ago to improve library services through technology, and this system will give us new approaches to getting even better.”

~ Patricia Franks, Archer Library Director

Live! New OneSearch & Catalog

New OneSearch & Catalog is Live

We're excited to announce that our new library services platform, Primo, is now live!  New sites have replaced our old (dated) library catalog, OhioLINK catalog, SearchOhio catalog, and OneSearch. Never fear, our collections remain the same.

Introducing OneSearch Sessions

Join us on Thursday, June 26th, for a preview of OneSearch and a Q&A session:

• 10 - 11 a.m. Archer Library Active Learning Lab: No reservation needed
• 6 - 7 p.m. Online via Teams:  RSVP here

Archer Library • Website Updates

Library Website Updates

In anticipation of our new library services platform, we are making both content and design updates to the library website which will enable us to better support the new catalog and discovery layer. The first wave of updates include:

About the Library: Image Gallery

Thanks to web content specialist Bethany Frazer, we have a new image gallery adjacent to the Welcome to Archer Library introductory information. Here we will feature photos from around Archer Library that spotlight different areas and resources, as well as important news & events.

Library Mission & Vision

Content, resources, and platform updates being made this summer support our stated mission and vision. Including these statements in a more prominent place is a natural progression of the same. Archer Library's mission and vision statements continue to be available on our Faculty & Staff page.

Numismatics Center

The Leo and Laura Thomas Numismatic Center now has its own web page. The Numismatic Center is located on the sixth floor of Archer Library. Visit their new page to discover more!

Reminder • Library Service Freeze

Important Library Service Reminder

OhioLINK, SearchOhio, and InterLibrary Loan book requests are currently paused through Monday, June 23.  The library catalog will be offline beginning Tuesday, June 3rd until our new catalog is available.

Library databases are not impacted by these service pauses. 

May 23 • Library Services Freeze

May 23:  Library Services Freeze
May 23 - June 20, 2025

We are excited to announce that as a member of the OhioLINK consortium Archer Library will be upgrading its library services platform to Ex Libris Alma/Primo in the summer of 2025.

Our campus can expect an improved user experience with a more intuitive interface to find print and electronic articles, books and other kinds of library materials. As we get closer to “go live,” you will see more information about the new system and changes. Training will be available to help you through the transition.

In preparation for these beneficial enhanced library services, all OhioLINK libraries will pause requesting, lending and borrowing, beginning on May 23, 2025. OhioLINK library transactions will resume June 20, 2025, in conjunction with the release of our new library services platform. All Archer Library-owned and Ashland Theological Seminary Library-owned items will continue to circulate as normal.

Learn more on our Library Services Platform Guide.

Questions? email us at: library@ashland.edu.

Next Week: Library Services Freeze

Reminder:  Library Services Freeze
May 23 - June 20, 2025

We are excited to announce that as a member of the OhioLINK consortium Archer Library will be upgrading its library services platform to Ex Libris Alma/Primo in the summer of 2025.

Our campus can expect an improved user experience with a more intuitive interface to find print and electronic articles, books and other kinds of library materials. As we get closer to “go live,” you will see more information about the new system and changes. Training will be available to help you through the transition.

In preparation for these beneficial enhanced library services, all OhioLINK libraries will pause requesting, lending and borrowing, beginning on May 23, 2025. OhioLINK library transactions will resume June 20, 2025, in conjunction with the release of our new library services platform. All Archer Library-owned and Ashland Theological Seminary Library-owned items will continue to circulate as normal.

If you have any questions, please email us at: library@ashland.edu.

Coming Soon: Library Services Freeze

Coming Soon:  Library Services Freeze
May 23 - June 20, 2025

We are excited to announce that as a member of the OhioLINK consortium Archer Library will be upgrading its library services platform to Ex Libris Alma/Primo in the summer of 2025.

Our campus can expect an improved user experience with a more intuitive interface to find print and electronic articles, books and other kinds of library materials. As we get closer to “go live,” you will see more information about the new system and changes. Training will be available to help you through the transition.

In preparation for these beneficial enhanced library services, all OhioLINK libraries will pause requesting, lending and borrowing, beginning on May 23, 2025. OhioLINK library transactions will resume June 20, 2025, in conjunction with the release of our new library services platform. All Archer Library-owned and Ashland Theological Seminary Library-owned items will continue to circulate as normal.

Visit our Library Services Platform page to learn more.

Questions?  Email us at: library@ashland.edu.

Reminder • Library Services Platform Migration

About the Project

As a member of the OhioLINK library consortium, Archer Library and Ashland Theological Seminary Library will be upgrading our library system software to Ex Libris's Alma and Primo VE, scheduled to go live on June 18, 2025. The new system will replace the existing Library Catalog, OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs, and OneSearch. All Libraries in OhioLINK are migrating to the new system.

What Does This Mean?

• New websites will replace the existing Library Catalog, OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs, and OneSearch sites. The library collections will remain the same, but the interface used to search them will look different.
• There will be temporary interruptions to borrowing and requesting, purchase of new library materials, and updates to the library catalog.
• Links to items and searches in the Ashland Library Catalog and the OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs will need to be updated.

Visit our Library Services Platform Migration site for additional information about this project, including a project timeline, information for instructors, and a preview of the new Library catalog.

Library Service Platform Migration

About the Project

As a member of the OhioLINK library consortium, Archer Library and Ashland Theological Seminary Library will be upgrading our library system software to Ex Libris's Alma and Primo VE, scheduled to go live on June 18, 2025. The new system will replace the existing Library Catalog, OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs, and OneSearch. All Libraries in OhioLINK are migrating to the new system.

What Does This Mean?

• New websites will replace the existing Library Catalog, OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs, and OneSearch sites. The library collections will remain the same, but the interface used to search them will look different.
• There will be temporary interruptions to borrowing and requesting, purchase of new library materials, and updates to the library catalog.
• Links to items and searches in the Ashland Library Catalog and the OhioLINK/SearchOhio Catalogs will need to be updated.

Visit our Library Services Platform Migration site for additional information about this project, including a project timeline, information for instructors, and a preview of the new Library catalog.

Author Visit: Mindy McGinnis

 Author Mindy McGinnis
Award winning author Mindy McGinnis will share the environmental research behind her post-apocalyptic YA novel, Not a Drop to Drink, a Choose to Read Ohio title. Mindy McGinnis is the author of multiple novels that span many genres. From historical to fantasy, contemporary to gothic thriller, you can always count on Mindy's books to deliver grit, truth, and an unflinching look at humanity and the world around us. 

Event Details
When:  October 10, 2024 from 5 - 6 p.m.
Where: Archer Library Lecture Hall (Library Ground Floor)
Library Event Calendar:  Download a flyer from our calendar

Event Registration
Seating is limited and registration is requested. Visit the Ashland Public Library's Event Registration page for more information. Registration for this event will close on October 10, 2024 @ 5:00pm.

"At the Library" Brochures & Literature

At the Library

Students, parents, faculty, staff and visitors can now find the services they need "At the Library" from the handy brochure display now available between the Lyceum Cafe and the Writing and Communications Center on the main floor of Archer Library!

Welcome • Writing & Communications Center

The Writing and Communication Center has begun transitioning to it's new location in Archer Library. As of Oct. 16, WCC in person meetings are being held in the new location, the main floor (east side), adjacent to the café. the café. The WCC team looks forward to sharing its resources with you in a friendly, accessible setting. 

The WCC team will continue offering services with written, oral and digital works. The new tools in the library space will make it even easier to seek assistance with presentations and digital productions. The whole team cannot wait to see you there and to be a part of your academic success.

Originally posted on MyAU Portal 10/10/23

ATS Receives ATLA Grant

Congratulations to librarians Sarah Thomas and Daniel O'Brien.

During the third round of funding of the OER Grant Program, ATLA awarded Ashland Theological Seminary a grant to create a multimedia resource on Christian Church history consisting of an interactive timeline linking to informative and educational elements. The resource was developed as a LibGuide and is now available under a CC-BY-NC for use and adaptation by anyone who may be seeking OER in church history.

The grant team consisted of six persons from Ashland Theological Seminary’s faculty, library and other support staff: Dr. Jason Barnhart (Assistant Professor of Historical Theology), Sadie Vanderzyden (Grant Assistant), Dr. Pidge Bannin (Senior Instructional Designer), Karen Reaume (Associate Program Director), Sarah Thomas (Theological Librarian) and Daniel O’Brien (Circulation & Digital Services Librarian). 

The team created a visually appealing interactive timeline that includes informative text and images to illustrate the subject. Dr. Barnhart explains “This interactive church history timeline will provide a free resource to both students taking church history courses, and those looking to increase their knowledge of key people, events and places that have shaped the Christian story. Instead of costly books of charts and maps, students will now have a resource available through the online presence of our library. My hope would be for this resource to expand further with more church history data along with historical data from the Old and New Testaments and the intertestamental period. With photos, charts and videos, students will be able to immerse themselves in both the biblical and ecclesiastical stories of Christianity.”

Read the grant announcement and explore the LibGuide:

• Atla Announces Publication of Grant Funded Open Educational Resource on Church History
• LibGuide:  Christian Church History Timeline

Announcement originally posted on MyAU 10/5/23

Live! Archer Library Website

New Library Website

We're excited to announce that the newly designed Archer Library website is ready for your research needs.  You will find us with academics, two short clicks from the AU Home page;  from the main menu, click the arrow next to Academics and choose Library.

Immediately accessible to users are familiar library research resources including:

• OneSearch,
• Archer Library Catalog,
• A to Z Database List,
• Journal Finder,
• Archer Library Guides, and
• OhioLINK

Featured resources such as the Archer Library Events Calendar, Reserving a Library Study Room, Quick Links, Library Help & Hours, and Contact information are directly below the OneSearch box. Best of all, our popular Ask a Librarian Chat box is fully operational. Stay tuned as we continue to fine-tune content and information presented on our site. If you have questions, or are having trouble locating something on our site, feel free to chat with us online or email us at library@ashland.edu.

➤   Don't forget to check out the new Instructional Resource Center website.

Archer Library • Online Access

Archer Library Quick Links
Access to library resources remains available! We have created a simple Library Guide with quick access to OneSearch, A to Z Databases, Library Guides, Chat, and more. Scan the QR code or go directly to the guide using the link provided below.

Archer Library • Quick Links
https://libguides.ashland.edu/quick

Please feel free to email us if you need additional help at library@ashland.edu.

Library Spaces • Group & Quiet

Space Guidelines

Back by popular demand, designations for quiet study and group work areas in Archer Library. Informational signage has been posted on the book return bins on each floor.  For ease of viewing, floors 4 through 6 have secondary signs on the endcaps. 

Below is an overview of Archer Library space guidelines. The second floor is a combination of group work and quiet study;  as classes often meet in the curriculum textbook annex and a variety of assignments are facilitated by the Instructional Resource Center.

Quiet Study • Floors 3 & 4

• Talking is limited;
• Occasional conversations permitted;
• Cell phone set to vibrate;
• Headphone volume set to personal level; and
• Loud typing is discouraged.
  
  

Group Work Areas • Floors 5 & 6

• Group work is encouraged;
• Normal conversational volume is expected;
• Cell phone conversations normal volume (not speaker);
• Cell phone set to quiet or vibrate; and
• Be considerate of other groups working in the area.

Study Rooms • Floors 2, 4, & 5

• Available for groups and single occupants;
• Normal conversational volume is expected;
• Study rooms follow the space designation of their floor;
• Be considerate of other students working near the room; and 
• Remember, study rooms are NOT soundproof.

New • Library Instruction Program Site

Library Instruction • Welcome

The Archer Library Instruction Program guide is a your gateway to course integrated library instruction sessions. Here you will find information about library instruction session types, instruction support provided by library guides, information literacy Framework, library instruction assessment, and meet Archer Library's instruction librarians.

Explore the Program Guide

What's here? When exploring this guide, you will find forms for requesting library instruction sessions and/or an Archer Library Guide. Further reading includes resources focused on the value impact of academic libraries, information literacy instruction, and overall student success. 

Course Integrated Library Instruction

In-person instruction is held in the Bernice Faber Baker Active Learning Lab, located on the main floor of Archer Library.

Synchronous and asynchronous library instruction, including video tutorials and recorded live sessions, is available using Zoom and Blackboard Learn. Instruction librarians will work with faculty to determine the best way to support online library instruction sessions.

Librarians are available to collaborate with instructors. We will work with you to design instruction sessions and assignments that support your course learning outcomes and the information literacy framework. 

➤ Visit the Archer Library Instruction Program Guide