September, 2024
On behalf of UW Libraries, a warm welcome to all new and returning students, faculty and staff.
No matter what point you are starting from in your UW journey this year, the UW Libraries will inevitably play an important role helping you to navigate resources, learn new skills and expand the visibility of your research and UW impact. Through thousands of research consultations, classroom instruction sessions, workshops and orientations, UW Libraries supports teaching, learning and research in new and inventive ways across campuses and across disciplines.
From podcasting to publishing, data mining to data management, the Libraries are a hub for open and digital scholarship services, supported by programs like UW Libraries Most Wanted Research Series; Storytelling Fellows, and Open Education Resources and Publishing support. Programs like the Graduate Student Research Institute and Community fellowships create communities of practice to share ideas and skills outside of the classroom, expanding opportunities for learning and connection. As Library services continue to expand, partnerships like the Big Ten Alliance will be instrumental in advancing our collective capacity to offer more dynamic and diverse programming.
Big Ten Academic Alliance
Aside from football, one of the exciting benefits of the UW joining the Big Ten Conference is that we are now members of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, a partnership of 19 schools that support the academic mission of all member institutions through collaboration. The BTAA Library Initiatives program has been a core part of the BTAA since its founding in 1958, and provides seamless access to over 158M volumes (the third largest book collection in the world), plus programs around open scholarship, accessibility, GIS and much more. As the UW Libraries onboards into the BTAA, we will share more information around these many exciting new services and the benefits to the UW community.
Your Libraries
When on the Seattle campus, I encourage you to take advantage of the technology-rich spaces designed for collaboration, hybrid work, and in-person support offering a wide range of services including the Open Scholarship Commons, Research Commons, and Health Sciences’ Li Lu Library. Special Collections’ newest exhibits will open to the public on September 25 – Zeitgeist: Seattle in the ’20s, and The Language of Flowers–showcasing the breadth and depth of UW Libraries’ most rare and unique collections, and the Libraries calendar is your guide to hundreds of free learning workshops, cultural events and more throughout the year.
UW Tacoma Libraries continues a strong tradition of social justice by offering a variety of socially engaged programming from the Library’s Makerspace such as the Fix-It-Fair where students can have clothing, bikes, and more repaired free of charge, and the free Food for Finals led by the Student Library Advisory Board. The newly piloted Sensory Friendly Space will have extended hours in Autumn Quarter, and the award-winning RealLit Book Club will kick-off its 7th academic year. Multi-unit staff are working hard on an ambitious audit of our Young Adult collection focussing on equity, diversity, and inclusion. We are also celebrating the completion of the Tacoma Japanese Language School Oral History digital exhibit and the installation of the commemorative photo in the Tioga Library Building.
The UW Bothell/Cascadia College Library continues to play a vital role in the classroom, teaching with partners in more than 260 courses across campus in the past year. The library is significantly expanding the number of student study pods this fall. We are also looking forward to hosting the second annual popup Arcade during Welcome Week plus a new Drag Story Time event. The Community Reads program, open to all, kicks off its 10th year centered around the book, Becoming Kin and the theme of decolonization.
The Libraries blog is often the first place news and announcements are shared via the Libraries monthly update and on social media channels, so be sure to connect with us on these channels to stay informed throughout the year.
Thank you to all of our UW Libraries teams and campus partners who work with us to make these and so many other programs and services, contributing to UW impact every day.
Sincerely,
Simon Neame
Dean, University Libraries