Throughout the pandemic, it has been very clear that access to our Library is essential to the MacEwan community.  

Since the first time we closed our doors on March 20th, 2020, we’ve been working hard continuing our online services and even creating new ones to increase access. Let’s look at some of the ways you’ve been using our services during the pandemic. 

Research Help 

Library Chat is the main way you’ve been getting in contact with us. You’ve been asking us questions about accessing our collections, finding sources for assignments, and much, much more! In September alone, we answered 967 questions. 

Accessing our Collections 

Our online collections like databases and eBooks have been very important during this time. Between March and October, you viewed our eBooks over 46,000 times! 

Online Tutorials 

We’ve been creating online tutorials and videos for years, but they’ve come in handy in courses this Fall. Over 8,000 students have taken the Library’s SearchPath tutorial and the Writing Centre’s tutorials for Academic Integrity and APA Citation. That’s a lot of learning! 

New Services 

We also created some new services and switched some old ones online to make the library more accessible. Scan on Demand was created 24hrs after we closed in March, 2020. Library Takeout was a quick interim solution to provide access to our books while we were closed for renovations over the summer. We also created an online system for requesting MacEwan ID Cards: 84% of requests we received from August - October, 2020 were through our new online system. 

For more of our COVID response stats, visit Our Library by the Numbers. 

To make sure we continue to provide the best access we can to our library’s resources and services, consider giving us some feedback! 

Whether your Winter 2021 courses are online, hybrid, or face-to-face, your Subject Librarian can create or modify resources and lessons to support your assignments' research learning outcomes and your students' research needs. See what your Librarian can provide in the infographic below. Want to see some examples? Check out our Library Instruction Program page.

Contact your Subject Librarian to get started. 

Access ends: December 31, 2020 

Estimated savings: $7000 

Reason for cancellation: 

• High cost per use (over $35/article accessed) 

• The library has other resources that cover the same topics 

Alternative resources include: 

• ScienceDirect – Life Sciences collection 

• A dictionary of genetics (Oxford University Press) 

• Oxford dictionary of biochemistry and molecular biology (2nd ed.) (Oxford University Press) 

• A dictionary of plant sciences (Oxford University Press) 

• A dictionary of zoology (Oxford University Press) 

• The dictionary of cell and molecular biology (Elsevier) 

• Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia (Gale eBooks) 

• Encyclopedia of evolution (Credo) 

• Concepts of biology (OER) 

• Microbiology (OER) 

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines. 

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource. 

Access ends: December 31, 2020 

Estimated savings: $8,000 

Reason for cancellation: 

• High cost per use (over $40.00 per article access this past year)  

• Low or declining use of the journals 

Alternative resources: 

• Indexing to both journals will remain available and Inter-library loan is available and encouraged  

• Full-text access prior to 2016 is available (Nature Neuroscience in Academic Search Complete; Nature Climate Change in Environmental Complete) 

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines. 

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource. 

Access ends: December 31, 2020 

Estimated savings: $500 

Reason for cancellation: 

• Low use, resulting in high cost per use 

• Many alternative resources available 

Alternative resources: 

• ScienceDirect 

• A Dictionary of Economics 

• Routledge Dictionary of Economics 

• Collins Dictionary of Economics 

• The Penguin Dictionary of Economics 

• An encyclopedia of macroeconomics 

• The SAGE Encyclopedia of Economics and Society 

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines. 

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource. 

Need a print book that’s on campus? We might have a solution...Scan on Demand! 

What’s Scan on Demand? 

Scan on Demand is a newer Library service that came about within 24hrs of our first closure in March. It’s a way for students, faculty, and staff to access our print collections (including textbooks!) while the Library is closed. Staff are on site Monday – Friday to scan items and email the PDF directly to you. 

How Scan on Demand Works 

1. Confirm the item you’d like scanned is on the shelf at MacEwan University Library. TIP: Look for a green checkmark next to the item as pictured below: 

2. Fill out our Scan on Demand Request Form. We’ll process your request as soon as possible. 

3. When your scan is ready, it will be sent to your MacEwan email address! 

Limitations of Scan on Demand 

Due to copyright legislation, we are not able to scan entire books. Each request will be reviewed for copyright compliance. 

Questions? 

library@macewan.ca  

Access ends: December 31, 2020 

Estimated savings: $22,000  

Reasons for cancellation: 

• The Science & Technology Journal Package accounts for less than 5.5% of overall Taylor & Francis journal usage but accounts for 26% of our overall Taylor & Francis costs.  

• The strength of the Taylor & Francis journal collection is the Social Sciences and Humanities Package, which includes key health titles, all of which are being retained 

Alternative resources: 

• CINAHL 

• ScienceDirect 

• IEEE Xplore Digital Library 

Moderate-use titles with 90+ uses over three years combined (average 30+ uses/year) in order of most used to least:

• Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition  

• Society & Natural Resources  

• Traffic Injury Prevention  

• Ergonomics  

• International Journal of Production Research  

• Chronobiology International  

• Behaviour & Information Technology   

Indexing to these journals will remain, and articles may be accessed via Interlibrary Loan. 

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines. 

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource. 

Access ends: December 31, 2020 

Estimated savings: $15,000 

Reasons for cancellation: 

• PressReader access is limited to current and very recent newspaper issues only 

• MacEwan’s PressReader usage appears to be primarily non-academic in nature; most usage is for local or national titles such as the Edmonton Journal and the Globe & Mail 

• MacEwan University Library subscribes to other, more comprehensive, newspaper databases 

Alternative resources: 

• Canadian Newsstream 

• Canadian Periodicals Index Quarterly (CPI.Q) 

• Digital archives of the Calgary Herald 

• Digital archives of the Edmonton Journal 

• Digital archives of the Globe and Mail 

• Nexis Uni 

• PressReader via the Edmonton Public Library, accessible through personal EPL card or MacEwan’s L-Pass program 

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines. In addition, the Bachelor of Communication Studies and School of Continuing Education programs have been consulted to ensure no curricular impact. 

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource. 

A miniature diploma and an afternoon tea? Take a glimpse into what graduation was like in 1979! The following are notes from a December 1979 board meeting.

For the third consecutive year the College has exceeded its target for the United Way campaign. Total cash and pledges collected was approximately $8100, nine percent over the goal of $7400. 

Approval was given for a $10 application to graduate fee. The fee will cover the cost of graduation gown rental, two transcripts, a miniature plastic diploma and attendance at the tea following graduation ceremonies. 

The Board approved establishment charts, effective July 1, 1979, for Mill Woods Campus and Continuing Education Division. (Source: Box 1796, vol. 1, no. 1, 1979) 

For other stories from our past, visit the University Archives.

Access ends: December 31, 2020

Estimated savings: $8,000

Reason for cancellation:

• This resource sees extremely low usage
• Content is primarily French language scholarly journals

Alternative resources:

• Open access articles continue to be made available via Érudit; although often with the most current year being unavailable

Additional information:

• This is an important Canadian-based open access initiative, which the library will continue to support through a moderate voluntary contribution (this has already been factored into the savings).

This cancellation decision has been made based on usage data, cost, uniqueness of content, overlap of content with other databases and impact on disciplines.

Please contact Sandy Stift, Associate Dean, Library, stifts@macewan.ca if you have questions or concerns about this resource.