Shockers United at the University Libraries: Home

For more information about ebooks, please refer to our guide at https://libraries.wichita.edu/ebooks

University Libraries Online Catalog
Limit initial search statement to "ebooks' under Add Filter.

University Libraries SmartSearch
Limit search results to "ebooks" under Source Type.

University Libraries Ebook Portal
Search ebooks by title or browse by title or subject.

The following services are all available for you to use remotely:

Reference Assistance

Email the Research and Instructional Services team at wuknows@wichita.edu. Email general questions or concerns to librarystaff@wichita.edu. A librarian will return your message as quickly as possible according to the order in which it was received.

You will see a green light and a chat box on the left side of this page when chat help is available. Hours are typically 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday.

Interlibrary Loan

Interlibrary Loan service is now available for physical items. You may place requests for those materials at any time. Please note that many libraries remain closed; as such it may be more difficult to locate copies of books to borrow. For the safety of our employees, incoming materials will be held for three days prior to processing and the Interlibrary Loan office will be closed to walk-in guests. Please pick up materials at the main Circulation Desk. If you need assistance, contact interlibraryloan@wichita.edu. 

Returns

All materials should be returned to a book drop rather than directly to staff at the Circulation Desk so that they may be held prior to processing. Items will be backdated to their return date. Ablah Library offers three book drops located at the northwest entrance to the building, inside the building near the Circulation Desk, and the 24-book return on the north side of the building between Ablah Library and the Media Resources Center (indicated on the map below.)

Those who have moved away from the Wichita area entirely should return their books by mail to the following address:

Wichita State University Libraries
c/o RETURNS
1845 Fairmount Street
Wichita, Kansas 67260-0068

Most Ablah Library materials do not accrue overdue fines, however, we aim to waive all fines incurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Please contact Circulation staff if you have any problems with your checked-out materials at librarystaff@wichita.edu or 316- 978-3582.

Instruction and Consultations

Subject experts are available to Wichita State students and instructors for one-on-one consultations online. You can schedule an online consultation with them via email. Instructors can also arrange for a librarian to provide remote instruction for their courses. In either case, the librarian will work with you to find a mode of communication that works best for all parties.

Embedding a librarian in your Blackboard course is a great way to provide more consistent and personalized assistance for your students. An embedded librarian is especially useful for online classes that involve a research component. Including a librarian in Blackboard can also extend students' access to research assistance after an information literacy instruction session. Librarians can be active in the course to the extent the faculty member prefers.

To find the librarian best suited for your course, see the Directory of Subject Librarians. 

To add a librarian to your Blackboard course 

You'll need to assign them the role of Embedded Librarian.

1. Log in to Blackboard and select the course you want to embed the librarian in.
2. Under the section header “Course Management” of the left of the screen, click on Control Panel, then Users and Groups, then Users.
3. Under the header “Users,” click on Find Users to Enroll.  Type the librarian’s myWSU ID, which is the username, in the search box.
4. Use the drop-down box labeled “Role” to select Embedded Librarian.  Click on Submit. 
5. The librarian will show up in the class roster with the role Embedded Librarian.

In addition to contact information for an embedded librarian, there are a number of tools that can be added to Blackboard to assist students in their research:

• Ask-a-Librarian reference chat widget - Contact your subject librarian for more information.   
• Subject or Course Guides - Copy the URL to the guide and paste it into a content area in Blackboard. You can also contact your subject librarian if you would like to have a customized research guide created for your course.

Your subject librarian will be glad to select research tools and helpful information that are pertinent to your course and, if you have embedded her/him, will put them into Blackboard for you.