Like many libraries, the Paul V. Galvin Library at the Illinois Institute of Technology receives more donated books than can possibly be added to the collection. Many of the donated titles are fiction and while we do have a leisure reading collection, only a small fraction of the books are of interest to the library. As a matter of policy books that are not selected for the library’s collections are sold to dealers, offered to other libraries, or donated to charities. Even with those options available, the backlog of donated materials continued to grow 

It’s not unusual for college students to struggle with college life during the course of an academic year, but the stress experienced at the end of the semester is in a category of its own. The extra pressure associated with wrapping up a semester makes it a particularly high-stress time for many students: assignments and papers need to be completed, finals studied for and preparations made for heading home. Or, for some, it means facing the reality that they cannot travel home due to lack of time or funds.

2022 marks the first year that Juneteenth will be recognized as a federal holiday.

As an academic health science library, I wondered how we could provide an appropriate context for our diverse university community.

The inspiration came from an unexpected as well as controversial source: J. Marion Sims, “father of gynecology,” whose innovations resulted from experimentation on enslaved women.

Northern Illinois University is a Carnegie 2 research institution tucked away in DeKalb. It has the distinction of being home to Illinois' only Center for Southeast Asia Studies.  The Founders Memorial Library holds a distinctive collection of materials to support the work of the Center. In addition to his responsibilities as the collection's curator, Hao Phan, has made significant contributions to preserving and providing access to primary research materials in Southeast Asia. I talked with Hao about his work with the Southeast Asia Collection at NIU.