News
Views and Updates from the Library on the Learning Commons Project We are packing up our library. Yes, we are. In the hands of library workers, the books are journeying from their shelves, first to book carts, then to sometimes temporary and other times permanent locations for the duration of the Learning Commons construction. One of the books that we’ve already moved is Illuminations by Walter Benjamin, whose essay “Unpacking My Library” inspired the opening sentences of this post. Along with…
This week, March 1-5, 2021, is Open Education Week, an annual global celebration of open education efforts, including open courses, open textbooks, and other open educational resources (OER). OER and textbook affordability go hand in hand. OER are free or extremely low cost by definition. When courses are taught using open textbooks and other OER, students save money. That’s even more important now because COVID-19 has taken a heavy economic toll on students, as U.S. PIRG reported last week in…
Ancient coins, federal agents, mysterious circumstances at an international border…what sounds like a scene out of an Indiana Jones movie is a real-life story of lost artifacts that have now found a home with UW Libraries Special Collections. The story begins in 2017 at the US/Canadian border in Blaine, WA. When a vehicle was refused entrance and attempted to return to the United States, US border agents discovered and seized a collection of 51 ancient Greek Hellenic and early Islamic…
Last update: 2/10 News and Announcements Libraries Operations Update: We are pleased to announce that the UW Libraries plans to open Individual Study Space @ Research Commons located on the ground floor of Allen South on the UW Seattle campus. The space will open when preparations for COVID compliance are complete, no later than the start of spring quarter (March 29). This space is intended to provide a clean, safe and quiet space for individual study with access to WIFI…
The University of Washington and Cambridge University Press have entered into a transformative “read and publish” agreement to promote Open Access publishing. Negotiated with our consortial partners in the Orbis Cascade Alliance, the agreement is designed to maintain UW’s access to Cambridge’s outstanding journals while also supporting the Libraries’ strategic goal of Advancing Research for the Public Good by making UW scholarship available to more readers and researchers all over the world. This is UW’s first read and publish agreement…
UW Bothell and Cascadia College Campus Library’s Community Reads program strives to build community through shared intellectual experiences and discussions around social justice, equity, and diversity. With something new to read, watch, and listen to each quarter– participants get a variety of perspectives and mediums to engage with. Although this year’s digital interactions may look a little different from past years’ in-person events, the Community Reads 2020-21 committee has curated an interactive Canvas course that provides a variety of different…
The UW Libraries has begun a two-year pilot partnership with The Wall Street Journal. Current students, faculty and staff may register now to get free access to WSJ.com, the WSJ mobile app, podcasts, and educator tools now through December 22, 2022. Recognized as a leading source for business and finance, The Wall Street Journal also covers U.S. and world news, politics, arts and culture. What happens after the pilot? During the two-year trial, UW Libraries will assess usage data to…
With the holidays upon us, we would like to echo the public health advice from UW Environmental Health and Safety to encourage all huskies in having a safe and healthy holiday. The following is the latest news and updates from the Libraries: UW Press Book Sale: Get 40% off books now through December 31st – local stories with global appeal for every reader on your list. Makes the perfect gift. Libraries Operations: No change. We anticipate very little change in…
In 2019, the UWCHR celebrated its 10th anniversary. As a part of the celebration, I facilitated a public FOIA training workshop, and rewrote the training manual to be relevant to a wider audience looking to do public interest research. The manual, How to FOIA, was published by UW Pressbooks and provides guidelines on how to file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, highlighting an important tool for human rights activists and anyone conducting research on the U.S. federal government. How…
We seek transparency in our planning processes during this time of constant change. Our monthly blog updates will outline the latest news on UW Libraries reopening plans and resources each month. These monthly blog posts will also be posted on the Libraries COVID-19 update page ongoing. Here’s the latest news for November: Operations UW Libraries remains in a Phase 2 operational plan, and we do not anticipate any changes to operations in the coming month in terms of access to…