St. Thomas Libraries Blog

Nvivo Cancelation:  

After careful consideration, St. Thomas Libraries will cancel our on-campus physical subscription to Nvivo. This means that the Nvivo product will not be available on St. Thomas Library computers in Spring 2024.   

However, the St. Thomas Libraries will continue to offer resources, software training, and general support surrounding Nvivo and other Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA) software products to help you plan a qualitative research project and collect, analyze, and share qualitative data. 

More information about Qualitative Data Analysis Software:  

Qualitative data is non-numeric data gathered from sources like interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, participant observation, open-ended surveys, and recordings. Generally, qualitative data is used to understand opinions and experiences. Manual analysis of qualitative data is often very time-consuming and challenging but QDA software makes the data easier to understand, interpret, and process.  

QDA software helps with:  

• Data coding, categorization, and assisting researchers in recognizing themes and categories 
• Text search and retrieval by finding specific information in large data sets  
• Visualization including graphs and charts created in seconds   

Qualitative research support is open to all students, researchers, faculty, and staff interested in using qualitative software and in qualitative research in general. 

St. Thomas students can purchase Nvivo for their personal computers at a reduced student rate. A similar QDA product such as Taggette, Dedoose, ATLAS.ti, or MAXQDA may also be cheaper and more relevant to your needs.   

Questions? Reach out to Conrad M. Woxland, Academic Services Librarian. Learn more here.  

While this is an exciting time of year, it can also be a stressful time for students with the end of the semester and upcoming finals. As the St. Thomas community prepares for finals, the library is here both physically and virtually to help students ace their finals.

Leading up to finals, the O’Shaughnessy-Frey library will remain open until 10 PM on Friday, December 15th and Saturday, December 16th with normal library hours for the rest of the week.

Along with some longer hours, the Libraries sponsor special events during those weeks to help students relax while they work.

One of our most popular events is when we invite trained therapy pets into the library for students to cuddle and play with. While the last therapy pet night is on December 14th, the library sponsors this event a few times throughout each semester, and always during finals week. Something students can look forward to in the spring.

Focus on Finals is an annual event where the library, along with the Center for Student Achievement, provides a cozy environment for students to study and enjoy seasonal treats. This year Focus on the Finals will be on Sunday, December 17th in the library from 7:00-9:00.

And as always, the librarians are on hand until the very end of the semester for any last-minute research needs 24/7 via Ask a Librarian Chat, and scheduled consultations in person, email, or Zoom.

The entire campus is closed from December 23, 2023 until January 2, 2024. The University Libraries re-open on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, with regular hours beginning at 7:30 AM. See you in 2024!

It’s a well-known fact that students have access to online library resources which contain the full text of scholarly and popular resources, articles, books, and book chapters.  What’s noteworthy is that the libraries have recently acquired subscriptions to the digital, web-based versions of The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. In the past, students could access these newspapers, but they were presented in a static format without images that did not allow students to browse headlines.

The new arrangement allows students to easily browse headlines and read complete articles on their phones or laptops. Furthermore, they can explore additional content from these newspapers’ websites, including videos, podcasts, puzzles, and games.

For those who seek more analysis of current news stories, the libraries now subscribe to the web version of The Atlantic Monthly, a highly respected journal with a rich history of covering politics, foreign affairs, the economy, culture, the arts, technology, and science. Additionally, for an international perspective on news, business, and politics, the libraries maintain a subscription to the web version of The Economist.

Accessing these news sources is free, but some may require you to create separate accounts, which are also free. You can find detailed instructions for setting up these accounts on our website. Additionally, our friendly librarians are here to help via Chat, Zoom, or in-person to answer any questions you may have.

We’re excited to provide students with access to these valuable resources and are eager to assist with all their research needs throughout the year.

The St. Thomas Libraries regret to announce the Leisure Reading Collections at the St. Paul O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library and the downtown, Minneapolis Keffer Library are being retired. The Leisure Reading Collections started in 2008 and provided popular fiction and non-fiction titles to the St. Thomas community.  

The St. Thomas Libraries encourage patrons to visit and support local public libraries to find popular reading titles.  If patrons have a permanent address within the Twin Cities area, they may be eligible to sign up for a library card at the St. Paul Public Libraries, the Hennepin County Libraries, or the Ramsey Country Libraries. These library systems also offer ebooks and audiobooks on the popular Libby app, which can be accessed through an e-library card. Check out your local library’s webpage to learn more.  

Questions? Reach out to Meghan Manahan, the Associate Director for Collection Management & Services, at mkmanahan@stthomas.edu

by Deb Juarez Wohlert

The O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library caters to a variety of needs and interests for students on campus. It provides traditional library spaces where students can find a quiet environment to read, relax, and explore the extensive book collection across four floors. These conventional library activities remain relevant even in today’s technology-driven era.
Additionally, the library offers spaces for social interaction. The first floor encourages conversation and group work, with multiple computers available, and there’s even a coffee shop serving a wide range of hot and cold gourmet coffee drinks and light treats. Moreover, students can utilize the podcast studio in the library that is equipped with necessary tools and software, allowing them to access multimedia resources for class-related projects or personal endeavors.
And when students do need to focus on writing papers or using library resources, the library staff will be readily available to assist them. More on that next month.
As an academic library, OSF aims to promote curiosity and motivate users to explore diverse subjects, expanding their knowledge beyond the classroom. By integrating both traditional and modern elements, the library creates an inclusive and dynamic environment, enhancing the overall learning experience for students.