Most Mississippi State University students use the Mitchell Memorial Library for quiet studying and research; however, the library offers many opportunities for students to grow as students.
Throughout the academic year, MSU’s library hosts a series of workshops, both on-campus and online. These programs are open to everyone—students, faculty, and community alike. The event organizers are dedicated to teaching Starkville more than just proper MLA citation.
This week alone, Mitchell Memorial offered workshops on writing dissertations, mastering Microsoft Excel, avoiding academic dishonesty and more.
Deborah Lee, coordinator of Graduate Student Services, describes her own workshop and how it can help graduate students.
“The ‘Demystifying the Dissertation Process’ workshop is part of the Survival Skills for Graduate Students workshop series at the MSU Libraries,” Lee said. “The workshop provides an overview of the thesis or dissertation process, from the proposal stage, through defense, with a goal of providing students with strategies that can help them complete their research and graduate.”
Online workshops are especially popular because of the availability for distance learners and busy workers. Students, young and old, can build their resume by learning office staples like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Excel through the library’s programs.
Individual consultations are also offered, along with presentations to entire classrooms. Any student in an English class has likely attended a lecture on plagiarism and research techniques. However, classes in any designation are welcome to visit the library and learn something new.
“We have a wide variety of programs we teach,” said Instructional Technology Specialist Stephanie Agnew. “We also customize workshops to meet specific needs.”
Other lesser-known library features include a wide-format printer, allowing students to print posters up to 44 inches wide. A 3D printer is also available, along with classes on Sketchup, a program for designing 3D figures to print.
The handyman-at-heart can also check out various tools, such as jumper cables, drills and hammers. Also available for borrowing, is an array of digital cameras, projectors and projector screens.
Tanner Gallik, a freshman poultry science major, said he admires how much the library does for MSU students.
“I normally go to the library just to study, but the amount of programs it provides to students is amazing, too,” Gallik said.
Another new and notable feature at Michell Memorial Library resides in the Digital Media Center, the CAVS (Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems) Mixed Reality Lab. Library visitors can experience the opportunity to learn, play, create and explore in a unique way.
Thanks to a generous donation from CAVS, the Mixed Reality Lab is home to two HTC Vives, three Oculus Rifts and two Hololenses. Vive and Oculus Rift are two popular virtual reality devices, known for their intense immersion into the virtual worlds and software programs. The Hololens, however, is an amplified reality device which allows users to view through an actual environment, and additional effects created by their chosen software.
Patrons can also make their own virtual reality programs with the two computer workstations provided. This lab is open to both individuals and classes.
In order to operate one of the high-tech machines, students must attend a group or individual training course and be qualified by a Digital Media Center staff member. After certification, the devices and computers can be reserved for further use by students and faculty of any major or program.
As long as the library is open, students are free to explore other worlds or learn more about this one.