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Implementing the Strategic Plan
In May 2014, the University of Cincinnati Libraries launched our Strategic Plan. The plan defines our mission to “empower discovery, stimulate learning and inspire the creation of knowledge by connecting students, researchers and scholars to dynamic data, information and resources.” It announces bold objectives under four pillars of Digital Technologies & Innovation, People, Space and Data to Information to Knowledge. By meeting these objectives, we will achieve our vision to become the “globally engaged, intellectual commons of the university – positioning ourselves as the hub of collaboration, digital innovation and scholarly endeavor on campus.” As the first step in the implementation of our Strategic Plan, we will undertake 10 initiatives…
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A Note from the Dean
Welcome to Source Online. Source, UC Libraries newsletter, published its first issue in winter 2002. Since that time, a lot has changed in both UC Libraries as well as in the world of libraries. No longer are libraries viewed as just storehouses of books. While access to information is still a cornerstone of what we do, more and more, libraries are becoming integral partners in the creation, access, interpretation and preservation of knowledge. Although students, faculty and researchers still come to our libraries to check out books and access our electronic resources online, they also use our facilities to work in groups on projects, to create videos, multimedia and digital objects for enhancing e-learning, to see…
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Documenting India – The STRC Travels Abroad
The goal of the Digital Technologies & Innovation pillar of the Strategic Plan is to “develop innovative technologies and services that transform and generate new modes of inquiry, access, scholarship, learning and creative ways of working together.” This has long been the mission of the Student Technology Resources Center (STRC), and this past spring its manager, Jay Sinnard, took that mission to a whole new level when he traveled with a class to India in order to provide media support as the students conducted interviews and created videos. Led by Dr. Ratee Apana, the UC Forward class, Transforming Lives, learned about Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) that deal with the global problem…
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New (and not so new) Faces in UC Libraries
Within the last 12 months, 11 new people have joined the ranks of UC Libraries. Many of these new positions are in direct support of the initiatives and objectives of the Strategic Plan. Glen Horton, for example, has joined the Digital Repository team to help build scholar@uc. Eira Tansey and Nathan Tallman’s work with digital content allows users to interact with library resources in new ways. eLearning is a strategic initiative of both the Libraries and the university, and Lori Choudhury’s work in this area will help further the cause. Many of our initiatives call for enhancements to library space, Amanda Welter will work to make those necessary changes. In…
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Sitting Smart in Langsam Library
In the evolving world of modern academic libraries, change is a constant. The Walter C. Langsam Library is no exception. In 2013, the Student Technology Resources Center (STRC) experienced major renovations, which resulted in a dynamic space that is now a highlight of the library’s 4th floor. This year, library enhancements focused on furnishing comfortable, well lit, technology-friendly and functional study areas. Modular, lounge-style furniture was installed on the busy 4th floor of the library, providing students with soft seating equipped with outlets to power their electronics while they study. A laptop bar was created from re-purposed shelving and mounted at counter height for students to use, and additional seating…
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Historic Cincinnati Subway and Street Images Website
The University of Cincinnati Libraries have created a website and digital archive that provides access to the historic Cincinnati subway and street images, a collection of over 8,000 photographic negatives and prints taken as part of a failed subway development project in the 1920s, and photographs documenting various street projects from the 1930s through the 1950s. Available at http://digital.libraries.uc.edu/subway/, the “Cincinnati Subway and Street Improvements, 1916-1955” website includes construction images as well as both interior and exterior shots of private residences and city scenes. In addition to providing access to the historic prints and photographs, the website also documents the story of the failed subway project and includes a construction…
