This document provides an overview and recommendations for researching three policy proposals: (1) campus organizations should not exclude students based on status or beliefs, (2) texting/cell phone use while driving should be banned in Ohio, and (3) efforts to prevent veteran suicide should be increased. For each policy, the document lists relevant resources such as CQ Researcher, LexisNexis Academic, statistical and state/federal government databases and websites that can be used to research the topics. The document provides brief descriptions of the databases and how to access them on the library website or online.

1. COMM 101
LIBRARY RESEARCH FOR
PROPOSITION OF POLICY SPEECH
Peter Thayer, MLS
Reference & Access Services Librarian
Legacy Library
November 1, 2012

2. Session Overview
• I will talk about how to research three
different policy proposals:
– Campus organizations at public institutions should
not exclude students from membership because
of their status or beliefs
– Texting and using a cell while driving should be
banned in Ohio
– Federal government should increase its efforts
toward preventing suicide among military
veterans

3. Policy 1
Campus organizations at public institutions should
not exclude students from membership because of
their status or beliefs
Recommended Resources:
–CQ Researcher
–LexisNexis Academic
–Supreme Court Collection

4. CQ Researcher
• What is it?
– Good source of information on current and
controversial topics
– Each issue is devoted to a single topic
• Where is it?
– Print – 1st Floor Reference, Ref. H 35 .E351
– Online through the Marietta College Library
web site Go to site

5. LexisNexis Academic
• What is it?
– Research database that includes newspaper
articles
• Where is it?
– Online through the Marietta College Library
web site Go to site

6. Supreme Court Collection
• What is it?
– Cornell University Law School web site that
provides summaries and full text of
Supreme Court decisions
• Where is it?
– Online at www.law.cornell.edu/supct/ Go to site

7. Policy 2
Texting and using a cell phone while driving should
be banned in Ohio
Recommended Resources:
–CQ Researcher
–LexisNexis Academic
–ProQuest Statistical Insight
–Ohio Capitol Connection
–Public Policy Organization Search

8. ProQuest Statistical Insight
• What is it?
– Database of statistical publications produced by
government agencies, international organizations,
etc.
• Where is it?
– Online at http://search.proquest.com/statistical
Go to site

9. Ohio Capitol Connection
• What is it?
– Database that provides access to Ohio legislative
and other government resources
• Where is it?
– Online through the Marietta College Library
web site Go to site

10. Public Policy Organization Search
• What is it?
– Google custom search engine especially created
by me for finding information on public policy
organization web sites
• Where is it?
– Online at:
http://www.google.com/cse/home?cx=01165480
3637091528974:h-qjcv2lyno Go to site

11. Policy 3
Federal government should increase its efforts toward preventing
suicide among military veterans
Resources I used:
– CQ Researcher
– LexisNexis Academic
– ProQuest Statistical Insight
– Public Policy Organization Search
– Academic Search Complete
– CQ Weekly
– White House
– THOMAS
– USA.gov

12. Academic Search Complete
• What is it?
– General research database that includes full-text
of over 5,000 full-text periodicals
• Where is it?
– Online through the Marietta College Library
web site Go to site

13. CQ Weekly
• What is it?
– Weekly publication that covers what's going on in
Congress
• Where is it?
– Print resource in reference book area on the
library’s 1st floor
• Use Academic Search Complete to find articles
Go to site

14. White House
• What is it?
– Includes material issued by the current
Presidential administration such as news releases,
policy statements, speeches, executive orders, etc.
• Where is it?
– Online at http://www.whitehouse.gov Go to site

15. THOMAS
• What is it?
– Provides summaries and full text of Congressional
bills and laws
• Where is it?
– Online at thomas.loc.gov Go to site

16. USA.gov
• What is it?
– One-stop destination for finding federal
government information on the Web
• Where is it?
– Online at usa.gov Go to site

17. THANK YOU
AND
REMEMBER TO VOTE ON OR BEFORE
NOVEMBER 6!!!