The Doris and Harry Vise Library Mission Statement
The mission of the Vise Library is to provide information resources and services that support the curriculum of Cumberland University. The Library provides assistance in accessing information to students at all locations where courses are offered.
Vise Library, established in 1989, is open six days each week during fall and spring semesters, five days a week during the summer. Although only currently enrolled Cumberland University students and Cumberland University faculty and staff may check material out of the library, community visitors are welcome to use most of the library’s resources in-house.
The Vise Library plays a central role in the life of Cumberland University, its students, faculty, and staff. It is the repository for a wide variety of information resources that supports the curriculum of the Schools at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The staff provides a high level of service to the University’s learning community through access to and training in the use of its electronic and print resources. Students will find themselves recognized and often called by name in the library of this comfortably small university. Each librarian serves as a subject specialist for a number of disciplines and uses this expertise to assist students researching within those fields. Following is a description of the various resources and services provided by the Vise Library.
Books
About 35,000 print books are housed within the library building. Access to a collection of over 40,000 e-books is available to students, faculty, and staff 24 hours a day from any Internet location. An online catalog provides assistance in locating material in the library.
Periodicals
The Library subscribes to over 300 print periodicals. Students may access millions of full-text articles from thousands of professional and popular publications through any of the library’s over 90 electronic databases. Like the library’s e-book collection, students may use these databases 24 hours per day from any Internet location.
Audio-Visual Room
Vise Library houses a growing collection of over 2,000 videocassettes and DVDs on a wide range of topics related to the university curriculum. The Audio-Visual Room contains over 300 sound recordings on compact discs and individual listening and viewing stations are available.
Computing Resources
The Library provides computer workstations for accessing its electronic databases, e-mail, and the Internet. ’s entire campus provides wireless computing to students with wireless-enabled computers. Campus computing resources are open only to employees and currently enrolled students.
Curriculum Materials Center
The Curriculum Materials Center in the Vise Library contains a collection of Pre-K-12th Grade materials such as sample textbooks, videos, educational games, and testing materials. These items are used primarily by students in Cumberland University’s School of Education & Public Service. The library also has a collection of over 3000 juvenile books. The juvenile book collection contains Caldecott and Newberry winners, and other award-winning titles in the area of children’s and young adult literature.
Special Collections
Library is home to three special collections. The Stockton Archives holds many of the papers and other memorabilia of Cumberland University’s long history as well as a collection of old and rare books, including an original edition of the War of the Rebellion series. The Library’s Tennessee Collection focuses on state and regional materials with an emphasis on Wilson County. The Nobel Collection contains English-language works written by Nobel Laureates in Literature.
Interlibrary Loan
The Library’s NALA holdings are augmented through its participation in the Nashville Area Library Alliance and the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC). These interlibrary loan programs allow borrowing material from regional, national, and international libraries.
Delivery of Material by Mail
Students enrolled in distance education courses that live outside of Wilson and surrounding counties may request that library books, audio-visual and other materials be mailed to them at no cost.
Online Reference
Cumberland University students, faculty, and staff may request help with brief reference questions using the library’s online reference service. For more information see Ask-a-Librarian services on the Library’s web page. Online tutorials and guides are also available.
Use of Library Material
Only currently enrolled students and university employees may check material out of the library. Students and staff may borrow books for three weeks and audio-visual materials for three days. Faculty may borrow books for four weeks and audio-visual materials for one week. Reserve materials are for in-library use only. Anyone wanting to check out material must present a Cumberland University ID at the front desk.