NEIU Library Suggestion Box
Textbooks through the Library — Thanks!
December 16th, 2008 Filed Under Services
A student comments:
I just wanted to say that I’m very thankful for all the help the librarians provide to the students. So far, I was able to find 3 textbooks that I need for the upcoming semester. Thank you very much. My budget is tight and I’m glad to know that there is always this option available at no cost.
Dave Green, Associate University Librarian for Collections and Information Services replies:
Thanks for your compliment. Sometimes our librarians can help you locate books that are assigned by your instructor. Having said that, I do want to point out to students that there is a difference between books that may be required reading for your class and a “textbook.” “Textbooks” (books that are designed and published specifically for the sole purpose of being used for class instruction) are published by a handful of specific publishers and there is now much controversy surrounding this particular part of the publishing market. In fact, the textbook trade is often referred to as, “a broken market.” A library’s main focus is acquiring “primary” materials. Traditional textbooks fall outside of this scope. Still, we would like to work with others in the university community to help students as they wrestle with overpriced textbooks.
Need library assistance on the other floors
December 15th, 2008 Filed Under Staff
Liz writes:
The one thing that they definitely need is library staff on floors 2,3 and 4 . I wanted to find some books and a woman from floor 1 had told me they were on floor 4 and yet they really were not and even so there was no staff at all to help/guide where I can find them.
Dave Green, Associate University Librarian for Collections and Information Services replies:
Hello Liz. Actually our library, and many other academic libraries, have been cutting back on the number of librarians that are available at information desks beyond the main reference desk. This is due to the budget limitations that academic libraries have been increasingly facing in the past 10 years, as well as the changing nature of how students are seeking assistance.
If you can’t find an item on the shelf, however, return to the reference desk ( not the circulation desk) and ask a reference librarian to go with you to see if they can find the item. Unless the librarian is alone staffing the reference desk, they will be more than happy to accompany you to the other floor to find the item.
The Library’s lower level needs to be quieter.
December 2nd, 2008 Filed Under Noise
Brad writes:
I have spent many, many hours in the library this semester trying to study for the LSAT. It has been very, very tough to find a quiet place. Study rooms tend to be taken up, and on most floors the students are not quiet. Students in the basement tend to be silent, but I can often not concentrate due to the loud talking of the employees. I think it’s called the Illinois Repository section or something like that . . . the employees are off to the right when you get off the elevator. I have been dealing with this for months but am really frustrated now. There is nowhere to go to find silence. It’s bad enough when it’s the fault of students, but library employees are non-excusable. Could someone please speak with these employees and ask them to stay quiet or at least to keep their communication to a whisper? If I’m in the middle of a 4 hour timed practice test, I can’t get an accurate gauge as to my performance if ! my concentration is constantly broken. This has happened almost EVERY time I have been down there.
Dave Green, Associate University Librarian for Collections and Information Services replies:
Hello Brad. I have notified the supervisor of the IRAD area about this issue. Thanks for the feedback.
