EAST LANSING, Mich., Sept. 2023 – This week the MSU Libraries’ Turfgrass Information Center is making the Turfgrass Information File database publicly available. This database, which is a cooperative project of the United States Golf Association and the Turfgrass Information Center, can be openly accessed at https://tic.msu.edu/tgif. The release of the publicly accessible TGIF database coincides with the 40-year anniversary of the partnership between the USGA and the MSU Libraries. The database initiative began in 1983, with the goal of providing those in the turfgrass sciences expedient access to contemporary literature and ultimately expanding to published and unpublished materials reporting on all aspects of turfgrass and its management regardless of sector, context, geography, language, or age. The USGA provided the seed money to fund this project, with the first record being entered into the TGIF database on Sept. 10, 1984. In 2019, the database saw its 300 thousandth record entered. “The development of what would become the Turfgrass Information File was a specific goal of the USGA Green Section’s original research committee, and the MSU Libraries has done an exceptional job advancing it,” said Cole Thompson, USGA Director, Turfgrass and Environmental Research. “Today, TGIF has become the go-to database for people interested in turfgrass literature. I can’t imagine life without it, which reinforces both its status and how visionary the original development effort was. Allowing public access of TGIF advances our original goals, and the USGA is appreciative to collaborate with MSU Libraries on the effort.” MSU Turfgrass Research Professor John N. “Trey” Rogers III expressed enthusiasm about the database and its move to open access. “The TGIF database has been a tremendous resource for anyone in the turf industry, and certainly a source of pride for me and my colleagues during my 35 plus years on the MSU Turf faculty,” he said. “To watch this vision of Peter Cookingham and others take shape and become the quintessential source for all turf information has been both amazing and gratifying. Open access will only enhance the reputation of the TIC at MSU, and we could not be happier.” The TGIF database indexes material from a wide variety of sources including governments, higher learning institutions, professional organizations and private publishers. Materials include articles from peer-reviewed publications, technical reports and conference proceedings, trade and professional publications, local professional newsletters, popular magazines, monographs, theses and dissertations, fact sheets and brochures, images, software, and web documents. The majority of the database uses English-language materials, but it does include non-English resources. As of August 2023, the database comprised 323,469 records, 67 percent of which link to the full text of the item. According to Elisabeth Mabie, Head of the Turfgrass Information Center, the number of full-text resources in the database is significant. “For turfgrass professionals who cannot regularly visit a research library, access to full-text turfgrass research and other pertinent turf literature can be a challenge,” Mabie said. “However, these are often the individuals who utilize these materials the most. With two-thirds of TGIF database records linking to the full-text of the item, this means many thousands of records link directly to content, saving valuable time and effort that would otherwise be spent locating physical copies for personal use.” The TGIF database, which was previously accessible only via paid subscription and usually at an institutional or organizational level, will be openly accessible beginning Sept. 10. About the Turfgrass Information Center The Turfgrass Information Center houses the most comprehensive publicly-available collection of turfgrass research and educational materials in the world. The Turfgrass Information Center and TGIF database are irreplaceable resources for students, researchers, and professionals around the world who are responsible for maintaining golf courses, lawns, athletic fields, and managed landscapes of every kind, helping fulfill MSU’s land-grant ideal. About the MSU Libraries The MSU Libraries are at the center of academic life at Michigan State University, providing expertise, collections and infrastructure for discovery and creation. The Libraries facilitate connections that support research, teaching and learning in our local and global communities. The Libraries also promote equal access to information and spaces for all and lead meaningful initiatives in accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion.

EAST LANSING, Mich., Aug. 2023 – This month the MSU Libraries is officially launching a new website that offers an updated look and improved functionality, including the new VuFind-based public catalog. The new website can be accessed at lib.msu.edu.  In addition to the more modern appearance of the interface, users will find new site architecture for easier navigation, increased functionality to support discovery of library materials and improved visibility of highly used library services and other library information. The VuFindpublic catalog project, which was launched in May 2023, complements the increased functionality of the overall website by providing library patrons a more comprehensive and intuitive search interface.    The main website update was initiated in summer 2021, with members of the Libraries’ User Experience and Web Services Unit along with members of the Digital Initiatives Division coming together to form what is known as the Libraries’ Drupal Team. With the primary goal of redesigning the Libraries’ main website, the Drupal Team began by evaluating what was then the current website, specifically looking at the website architecture, interface, features and overall aesthetics, and utilizing research tools including comparative analyses, benchmarking and website analytics. Accessibility considerations were also a large factor in the evaluation and redesign process as part of the Libraries’ commitment to DEI initiatives; the Drupal Team worked closely with the Libraries’ Accessibility Unit to identify and address accessibility barriers and implement techniques that support the design and development of accessible websites to ensure that the Libraries’ digital services are accessible to a diverse group of users.   MSU Libraries Head of User Experience Joshua Sanchez emphasized the importance of the users in considering the website redesign. “We have prioritized user engagement and involvement throughout our process,” Sanchez said. “The feedback that we’ve received from our many users has driven our design choices, and we’ve done our very best to improve the site to meet the needs of our many users. We are proud to say that the site is designed and built for the library and our users, by the library and our users.”   The Drupal Team also maintained a commitment to open engagement and communication with stakeholders of the Libraries’ main website throughout the redesign process. Research and design documentation, including analyses documents, remain open and available to staff through the Libraries’ intranet. In addition, open website update sessions were held bi-weekly, which allowed staff to engage with the Drupal Team and provide feedback throughout the process.  MSU Libraries Interim Dean Terri Miller expressed enthusiasm for the website redesign. “I’m very pleased with the work done by the Drupal Team to make our website more responsive to the needs of our users,” Miller said. “Not only did the website receive an upgrade in terms of aesthetics, but the redesign is also much more intuitive and navigable with the much-improved site infrastructure. I’m also excited to see how patrons interact with the new public catalog.”  The MSU Libraries are at the center of academic life at Michigan State University, providing expertise, collections and infrastructure for discovery and creation. The Libraries facilitate connections that support research, teaching and learning in our local and global communities. The Libraries also promote equal access to information and spaces for all and lead meaningful initiatives in accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion. 

EAST LANSING, Mich., August 2023 – In partnership with five other university presses, the University Librarians of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, Michigan State University Libraries and Michigan State University Press announce the launch of the Big Ten Open Books project, a collaboration between the university presses and libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance. The first 100-title collection centered on Gender and Sexuality studies is now available. The works in this collection have all been previously published in print by partnering university presses and are now being made openly available in digital form to read and reuse at no cost. Each title has undergone a rigorous selection and quality certification process that allows readers and users of this collection to trust the veracity of the content made available. MSU Press contributed 13 books to the collection, including award-winning titles like “Debating Women: Gender, Education, and Spaces for Argument, 1835–1945” by Carly S. Woods and “Confessions of a Presidential Speechwriter” by Craig R. Smith.  MSU Libraries Interim Dean Terri Miller was enthusiastic about the collaboration between the Big Ten libraries and presses. “The Big Ten Open Books project is an excellent opportunity for libraries and presses to partner in encouraging equitable access to books across the larger Big Ten community,” Miller said. “I am also very pleased to be able to share the important titles that are coming out of the MSU Press that help to advance the inclusive mission of the Big Ten Academic Alliance by celebrating diverse perspectives.” The Big Ten Open Books first collection brings to readers a wide variety of materials in arts, humanities and social science disciplines that are centered on gender and sexuality themes. The collection’s impact will be seen through its broad sharing of knowledge and high-quality scholarship. Big Ten Open Books creates e-book collections that aspire to the highest standards of discoverability, accessibility, durability and flexibility. This collection has established a distinctive model for unified, open-access publishing of scholarly monographs. It creates open content that is immediately and universally available on the open infrastructure platform Fulcrum, hosted by the University of Michigan. It is also available through open distribution models (including Project MUSE, JSTOR and OAPEN) to envision a robust programmatic future for open monograph publishing. This work is part of the Big Ten Academic Alliance’s development of the BIG Collection’s ambition of uniting the collections of the libraries of the BTAA, and it is supported by the Mellon Foundation’s Public Knowledge program. The partner presses are Indiana University Press, MSU Press, Northwestern University Press, Purdue University Press, University of Michigan Press and University of Wisconsin Press. MSU Press Interim Director Arlene Weismantel discussed the importance of the free exchange of scholarly information, noting that “Open Access publications are available to everyone for free, benefiting diverse readers throughout the world, enhancing readership and prominence for authors, and providing value for everyone who supports our university and scholarship generally.” The Big Ten Academic Alliance continues its advocacy for a sustainable and open ecosystem of publication. Collectively, our institutions’ more than 50,000 faculty are supported by over $11 billion in research funding, and our institutions have invested significantly in our capacity to further the research mission by advancing public knowledge through open publishing. Together, we produce roughly 15 percent of the research publications in the United States. About the Big Ten Academic Alliance The Big Ten Academic Alliance is the nation’s preeminent model for effective collaboration among research universities. For more than half a century, these world-class institutions have advanced their academic missions, generated unique opportunities for students and faculty, and served the common good by sharing expertise, leveraging campus resources, and collaborating on innovative programs. Governed and funded by the provosts of the member universities, Big Ten Academic Alliance mandates are coordinated by a staff from its Champaign, Illinois, headquarters. The 15 world-class libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance members include Indiana University, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue University, Rutgers University–New Brunswick, University of Illinois, University of Iowa, University of Maryland, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, University of Wisconsin–Madison and University of Chicago.   About the MSU Libraries The MSU Libraries are at the center of academic life at Michigan State University, providing expertise, collections and infrastructure for discovery and creation. The Libraries facilitate connections that support research, teaching and learning in our local and global communities. The Libraries also promote equal access to information and spaces for all and lead meaningful initiatives in accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion. About the MSU Press The MSU Press is the scholarly publishing arm of historic Michigan State University. Since its founding in 1947, the mission of the Press has been to be a catalyst for positive intellectual, social and technological change through the publication of research and intellectual inquiry, making significant contributions to scholarship in the arts, humanities, sciences and social sciences. The MSU Press contributed these and ten other titles to the first Big Ten Open Books collection. Contacts: Elise Jajuga, MSU Libraries Communications Manager, jajugael@msu.edu Nicole Utter, MSU Press Marketing & Sales Manager, loughann@msu.edu

A systematic review of the maps contained in Clason State Road Maps, touring atlases, and Green Guides reveal that the road legends and other map symbols varied over the years in systematic ways.

This exhibit features American Jewish cookbooks and schoolbooks from MSU Libraries’ Stephen O. Murray and Keelung Hong Special Collections. American Jews, in their children's books and cookbooks, demonstrated the importance of religion and gender in their families, and asserted themselves as both American and international/multilingual.

In the Enlightenment, learning about science became part of general, polite culture. Many authors wrote books for young children, women, or girls to introduce them to the new scientific discoveries about plants.