Remote Service Hours & Contacts

Until further notice, the library building is closed. Remote service is currently available as follows but may be adjusted based on demand:

• Mondays – Thursdays 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Service contacts:
WOU library staff are online and available to answer questions:
online chat
phone 503-838-8418
text message 503-383-WOU1 (9681)
email libweb@wou.edu

General Services & Current Status

• Access to digital resources
  Databases, ebooks, online journals, campus network drives, and specialized programs.
• Librarian consultations
  Each subject has a librarian with specialized knowledge of resources in that field. Email for help or request a chat appointment.
• Scan and Delivery access to print resources in the library*
• Lending of general equipment (such as DSLR cameras, etc.) is suspended. See below for hotspots and computing equipment necessary for conducting online coursework.
• Summit requests are suspended.
• Interlibrary Loan requests for digital copies of journal articles and book chapters are accepted, although you should expect delays. Requests for hard-copy books and media requests are suspended.
• The National Emergency Library may have a digital edition of a book you need
• Due dates are extended and overdue fines are waived during the pandemic. We’ve pushed all due dates in our system to mid-June, but individual items may have been missed. Do not worry.

Faculty Support

• Library Instruction and Information Literacy for Online Courses 
  The library offers a variety of options to support online courses, including, but not limited to, research guides, tutorials, and Moodle integration. Contact your librarian. We’ll find out what you need and the determine the best option with the quickest turn-around time.
• Purchasing of eBooks and online resources
  Need an online resource to help with remote delivery of course content? Use the purchase request form or contact your librarian.
• Streaming video via Films OnDemand and Kanopy
• Digitization of materials you own for use in remote or online instruction*
  Have hard copies of items that you need to have scanned for use in your course? We can do that. Please include a copy of the digitization form with your materials.
• Resources for creating your own digital/ multi-media projects/lessons

* For both Scan and Deliver and Digitization of personally owned materials, please see the Public Statement of Library Copyright Specialists: Fair Use & Emergency Remote Teaching & Research that has been put together by national copyright experts.

Computing checkout

We are mailing computing equipment needed to conduct coursework online. Upon request through the forms below, we will checkout the equipment to you and mail it to your current residence. As with all other materials available from the library, there is no expense to borrow any of this equipment. The loan will last all of Spring term. We will contact you toward the end of the term to arrange for return.

Wi-Fi Hotspots: complete information and request form.

For all other equipment requests, use this form.

A. Chromebooks

Please note that Chromebooks require nearly constant internet access.

B. Dell desktop PCs

In addition to the PC, a monitor, keyboard, mouse and cables are included. No wireless cards installed. These must be connected with ethernet cable (included). If you have a WiFi router at home, you can plug the ethernet cable into it. 

C. iMacs 

Each includes keyboard, mouse, and cables. Wireless card installed.

D. iPads and iPad Minis

While iPads are optimized in a wireless network, many apps work very well while not connected.

1. Recent standard iPad models
   Come with a keyboard and Apple Pencil. We have 9 iPad kits with Pencil available. 
2. Older standard iPad models
   These come with a keyboard. The iOS can no longer be updated on these and so some apps currently in the App Store are not compatible; however, testing typical Moodle content (on both the Moodle App and through the browser) showed no problems.  
3. Recent iPad Minis
   iPads only; no peripherals. 

E. Webcams

F. Headsets with microphone

Library Updates

• Summer and Intersession Service Hours June 9, 2020

  Intersessions: June 13-21 and August 1-September 27

  Mondays-Thursdays: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

  Fridays-Sundays: closed. 

  Summer term: June 22-July 31.

  Mondays-Thursdays: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

  Fridays-Sundays: closed. 

• Making studying easier during remote learning April 28, 2020

  

  Among the services the library normally provides are scheduled group study rooms and quiet space away from family and domestic responsibilities. With students under stay-at-home orders and the current closure of the Hamersly Library building, we’ve put together some ideas to help you with these study needs:
  

  White Noise | Virtual Study Groups | Physical Spaces | Boundaries | Communication

  Use white noise 

  While some people like to study with music, others find it a further distraction. You might be better off with a steady backdrop of indistinct sound that masks disruptive noise in your environment.  Listen to white noise through earphones for further “distance.” 
  

  If your internet is already struggling with other household activity, opt for downloaded files rather than adding to your streaming load. 

  Search your smartphone’s app store for white noise. 

  Free downloadable nature sounds

  Rainy Mood website and app
  

  Make your study group virtual

  Asynchronous classes might be leaving you floundering with no time structure. Assemble a study group and schedule regular meeting times. If your virtual meetings are done with video, it can be motivating to see others working hard when you feel yourself flagging.
  

  Google Meet is integrated into WOU’s G Suite, so you can easily create a virtual meeting from your Email or Google Calendar. The grid view plugin allows a grid layout similar to Zoom’s for seeing everyone in your group at the same time.
  

  If you prefer Zoom or need specific functionality available only in Zoom, you can fill out this form to request a WOU Zoom account.
  

  If you aren’t a fan of video meetings, try setting up virtual “sprints,” where everyone in your group focuses on getting work done for the same 15-minute chunk of time. You can use a cell phone, kitchen timer, or browser extension like Strict Workflow to track how long you need to focus for.
  

  Make a physical space

  If you have the space to use a different room, or some other physical reminder that you are working, this can help others in your life realize not to interrupt. 
  

  Even if you’re living in a small place where there isn’t a whole room you can claim, using props like headphones or even a piece of paper taped to your laptop that says “STUDYING” can help.
  

  Establish boundaries with family members–and yourself– ahead of time

  Trying to focus in a busy house or apartment with other members of your family can be frustrating, to say the least. 
  

  If you live with family members your own age or older, try to set expectations clearly before you start taking your online/remote class. Letting people know that you need twenty minutes to yourself to concentrate before you start can be more effective than reminding people that you’re busy when they interrupt you.
  

  Studying with children–especially toddlers–can be a challenge. Sometimes there’s just no easy way to get time alone if you are in this situation. If you have other adults in your household who can watch them for a short time, that can be an option. If not, this How to Work From Home With Kids Around blog post has some ideas that might help.
  

  Yes, domestic chores are right there, always. Establish times to attend to them separate from your studying time. Trying to do chores and schoolwork at the same time will both take longer, and you won’t be as good at either.
  

  Be honest with your instructors

  One important piece of advice is to let your instructors (and your fellow students) know what you are working with. WOU faculty are also working from home, in many cases with family members or children of their own. Don’t be afraid to speak up if something is completely impossible in your situation!
  

• Our building is closed but our services are still strong March 30, 2020

  In accordance with the Governor’s Executive Orders 20-12 and 20-09, the Library building is closed to the public until further notice. However, we are dedicated to serving the WOU community, and our remote services are strong! Our COVID-19 page details these remote services.

  Summer Term (June 22nd – July 31st) remote library service hours

  • Mondays – Thursdays, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

  Library remote service hours may change due to service demand and fluid extenuating circumstances.
  Contact us for more information

WOU Campus Updates and Resources

• WOU Novel Coronavirus Information
  Up-to-date information on WOU policies and procedures regarding coronavirus