DONALD E. U. EKONG LIBRARY WEEKLY REPORT

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DONALD E. U. EKONG LIBRARY WEEKLY REPORT
10TH – 14TH FEBRUARY 2025 

  1. On Thursday, February 13, 2025, the office of the University Librarian received Community Development Projects, a book donation from Indorama Petrochemical Limited (2024), Nigeria; Biz Pages Publishing and Printing Company Limited.
  1. On Friday, February 14, 2025, Donald E. U Ekong Library celebrated Valentine’s Day with a programme titled: ‘For the Love of Knowledge: Amor et Scientia,’ The event commenced at 11:07 a.m. There were 90 participants, including library users and staff members. The welcome address from the University Librarian, Prof. Helen U. Emasealu, delivered by Dr. Mary IG-Worlu, emphasized the theme’s relevance in promoting knowledge and learning. The programme featured games and reading competitions among library staff and students.
  1. The American Corner, Port Harcourt, has resumed activities for 2025. The Corner offers unlimited Internet connectivity, laptop lending, empowerment, and informative programmes. In the week under review, the American Corner hosted three programmes as enumerated below:
      • Education USA (5 Steps to Study in the US), and Introduction to ELibraryUSA Awareness programme; Family Medicine (Improved Medical Care Services, Healthier Families); and Master class edition of AI tools that makes research and academic works easy, on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, respectively. The programmes attracted seventy-six (76) participants in the order of 28, 18, and 30, respectively.
      • The American Consulate has established an ‘Opportunity Fund’ funding scheme for academically outstanding indigent students. The registration is available @ https://opportunityfundsnigeria.org. The fund is only available to those applying to schools in the USA and only covers upfront costs (application fee, test fee, admission fee, among others).
      • The American Consulate has outlined programmes to engage, empower, and enlighten community members. Staff and students are encouraged to register for this opportunity with the American Corner @ https://forms.gle/fNmcMpyXqw7jULpa7. Visit the Corner after registration for onboarding. Registration is FREE.
  1. The American Consulate released updated content on the ELibaryUSA databases. Users are encouraged to register @ https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSctxY_kuoyIpjD79ymeWxuol0DkU1mi3AfObJTNNcZFx_Wtyg/formResponse or visit the American Corner, Port Harcourt for guidance on remote access to the database. Also, the American Corner has received access to subscribed Chat Generative Predictive Text (ChatGPT) and is inviting staff and students to maximize the benefit of this technology at the Corner.
  1. Upcoming Programmes: The American Corner, Port Harcourt, will be hosting the following programmes:
    • Education-USA: Wednesday, February 19, 2025;
    • Navigating the United States Government Exchange Programme: Friday, February 21, 2025; and
    • Career Opportunities in S.T.E.M.: Monday, February 24, 2025.
  1. The American Corner recorded two hundred and fourteen (214) users in the week under review.
  1. The statistics for the week indicate an increase of 5.8% in patronage from two thousand nine hundred fifty-three (2,953) registered users recorded in the previous week to three thousand, one hundred and twenty-five (3,125) registered users recorded in the week under review.
  1. The Donald E. U. Ekong Library (Central Library) maintained two shifts: 8 am- 9 pm on weekdays and 9 am- 5 pm on Saturdays.
  1. The Knowledge Commons (for undergraduate students) and the Research Commons (for Postgraduate students) are accessible to students and researchers who wish to utilize the e-resources of the Library. Similarly, the Elsevier training laboratory on the second floor of the Library has internet access to all subscribed databases and is accessible to faculty members.
  1. The Library has online subscribed access to MatLab. The MaTrics Laboratory (MatLab) is a proprietary multi-paradigm programming language and numeric computing environment that indicates matric manipulating and plotting functions-abc data, implementing algorithms, creating users, and interacting with programmes written in other languages.
  1. The Library has received updated content on the OnePro Database (https://onepetro.org/journals). This database facilitates the provision of information on oil and gas to registered faculty members and researchers.
  1. The Library has received updated content from the SpringerLink Database (https://www.springernature.com/gp). This data helps in the publication of robust and insightful research, supports the development of novel areas of knowledge, and makes information accessible globally.
  1. The Library is receiving updated content on the JSTOR Database (https://www.jstor.org). This database provides registered researchers with informative materials that cut across every discipline, including the sciences, social sciences, arts, education, technology, law, and other research-related disciplines.

Supplementary Information:

The Library is unrelenting in its commitment to providing access to knowledge. Therefore, staff and students are encouraged to take advantage of the numerous resources that are domiciled in the Library. For a real-time response to information about the Library and its collections, library patrons can access the virtual librarian Chatbot on the website of the Library @ https://library.uniport.edu.ng/.

The dedicated staff is committed to rendering quality and efficient service delivery in the Library, which has a rich collection of books, non-book materials, and research materials. Please visit the Library at https://library.uniport.edu.ng/.

Donald Ekong Library Communication Channels for remote access are as follows:

Phone: +2349138269564
Website: https://library.uniport.edu.ng/
E-mail: library@uniport.edu.ng
Facebook: uniportlibrary
LinkedIn: Uniportlibrary
Twitter: @uniportlibrary
YouTube: Uniportlibrary

Signed:
Prof. Helen U. Emasealu, CLN
University Librarian