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Shamella Cromartie, associate dean of organizational performance and administration at Clemson University Libraries, was named a 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work to expand outreach, membership, and support for Black librarians in South Carolina. We recently spoke with Cromartie to learn more about these projects.

Library vendors have announced several new products, partnerships, and programs during the past two months. Here’s a sampling of recent news. 

When thinking of how to best sum up this year’s Charleston Conference, held November 11–15 and available to view online December 9–13 (along with exclusive “online only” sessions), one word sprung to mind: collaboration. As a first-time attendee from a publishing technology background, it was wonderful to see so many professionals from the worlds of libraries and publishing come together to tackle challenges that are affecting the entire information industry.

Searching to update collections and fill information gaps? Consider these 580+ new and forthcoming print titles. Also included are updated lists of reference fun reads. 

Support research and scholarship with these 80+ new and forthcoming databases and online products, spanning specialized topics and general reference. 

Scheduled to be updated in late 2024/through 2025, consider these 140+ databases and online products. Arranged by category, these resources range from titles on the arts to those addressing technology.

Salem Press, 75 years old this year, offers multivolume resources that meet the needs of many readers. LJ talked to Leslie Mackenzie, Salem’s president and publisher, about Salem’s vision for reference and its approach to making its materials accessible to all.

Coherent Digital provides students, educators, policymakers, and librarians with wide-ranging resources for research, learning, and discussion. LJ talked with Eileen Lawrence, Coherent’s cofounder and senior adviser, to discuss Coherent’s materials, selection process, and commitment to finding, preserving, and making endangered content accessible.

Bibliodiversity, state-of-the-art content, and hand-picked works supporting curricula make academic ebook platforms key parts of the collection development ecosystem.

From the research services of a presidential center to a large public library system and an academic music archive, explore three libraries around the country and the resources they rely upon.

Part two of Gale's Refugees, Relief, and Resettlement archive excels as a resource supporting research in history, political science, sociology, diaspora studies, and migration and refugee studies. 

BBC Monitoring provides exceptional primary documents about political, social, military, cultural events, and intelligence gathering from the start of World War II to the early 21st century. 

Academics have a shared goal of making their work highly accessible for a worldwide audience—and they agree that F1000Research, which is part of Taylor & Francis and supports researchers in all subject areas, is an effective platform for achieving this goal.

Open-Access publishing advances global scholarship by making research results more widely accessible to anyone with internet access. However, publishers of Open Access journals have struggled to find a financial model that works well for all parties. Now, a new model from PeerJ is rethinking that approach to remove barriers to choosing Open-Access.

This comprehensive guide explores how leading libraries worldwide leverage technology to enhance student engagement, streamline operations, and support academic excellence in the library. These libraries, large and small, are prepped to handle and embrace innovations without losing sight of their core mission. Download the whitepaper

Libraries continue to emerge from the pandemic, with spaces designed to promote social interaction along with quiet study—places that work for everyone.

The data for new academic library buildings and renovations featured in LJ's Year in Architecture 2024.

As Lorcan Dempsey, formerly with OCLC, observed in portal: Libraries and the Academy (2008), “discovery happens elsewhere”—that is, people are using internet search engines, recommendations from social media, or emails from friends and colleagues to discover content. Search can be a powerful tool, provided you know what you are looking for. Yet there are significant problems associated with the search process.

On October 24, the Association of College and Research Libraries announced the publication of its 2024 report for the Project Outcome for Academic Libraries (POAL) toolkit. Data in the report offers a snapshot of POAL’s use and impact in FY24, from September 1, 2023, to August 31 of this year. The report is available as a free download from the Project Outcome for Academic Libraries website.

An excellent resource for those beginning their journey in education or users conducting upper-level searches, this database is highly recommended for any institution with undergraduate or graduate education programs.

As with the previous modules in the series, this collection of primary resources is exceptional, with unique content and user-friendly features. It is an excellent resource for researchers of gender and women’s studies, LGBTQIA+ studies, cultural studies, and social history. Moreover, it expertly expands upon the five earlier collections of the archives and pairs well with other Gale primary resources.

Tarida Anantachai, director of inclusion and talent management for North Carolina State University Libraries, was named a 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work rethinking how to approach recruitment and hiring through a more inclusive, diversity-focused approach. LJ recently spoke with Anantachai to learn more about her work in this area.

In an effort to minimize student boredom while learning library information, Jacksonville State University (JSU) librarians implemented gamification―introducing game mechanics into non-game environments―which studies have shown can increase engagement and motivation, and in turn, improve learning across age groups and settings. JSU librarians Karlie Loren Johnson and Kimberly Westbrooks analyzed their results in “Quelling the Boredom with Alternative Instruction: Augmented Reality, Escape Kits, and Scavenger Hunts.” 

Putting off adoption of new technologies puts libraries at risk of falling behind in serving their users effectively. For libraries tackling new initiatives, the ability to manage change is crucial. We spoke with several library leaders to learn how they reduce organizational stress and navigate change at both the organizational and individual levels.

Nicollette Davis, assistant librarian for kinesiology, social work, and health sciences at the Louisiana State University library system, was named a 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work advocating for BIPOC people, both in the library system and in the community. We recently spoke with Davis to learn more about her projects.

The Exact Editions Literature Collection is an attractive option for users who want easy and mobile access to a curated collection of popular literary journals and magazines. 

The Gale Peterson’s Test and Career Prep database is an outstanding resource that provides a plethora of tools and tests to help learners prepare for exams and career challenges. 

On August 13, a New College of Florida student posted images to social media showing a dumpster full of books situated outside the campus library. As the story and images went viral, New College issued a statement that the library’s weeding project was separate from the removal of items from the GDC, and that the center was being “repurposed.”

At the MIT Press, we believe that everyone deserves access to scholarship. Our dedication to this mission remains strong as we head into the fourth funding cycle for Direct to Open (D2O), our model for open access monographs. Libraries and consortia can commit to support the program through November 30, 2024.

I realize that genealogical research has long been associated with the retiree demographic, something one’s grandparents might do in their free time, and not what today’s students would gravitate toward on their own initiative. But that is where the wonder of the required assignment comes in, and where budding amateur genealogists are made. As the great American novelist William Faulkner once said, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” And that’s what I try to instill in the students I teach about the wonders and magic of genealogical research.

We’ve been shaking things up at the MIT Press for over 60 years, changing how knowledge flows between academics and the world. Reflecting and amplifying the values of an educational institution that places a premium on experimentation and open knowledge, the MIT Press has been a leader in open access publishing for decades.

Most people, but not all, would agree that the internet has benefitted research and researchers’ working lives. But can we be so sure about the role of new technologies today, and, most immediately, generative AI?

Informative and impactful, EBSCO’s Magazine Archives database chronicles important events, people, and popular culture movements of the 20th century.

The Policy Commons database is a powerful search engine that offers discovery and access to millions of gray literature documents on public policy.

The Asian American Experience database is an illuminating resource that offers unprecedented access to a range of materials centered on Asian American politics, arts and entertainment, literature, science, and more.

With approximately 30,000 academic journals worldwide, how do you determine which one is the best fit for your research? There are likely to be many suitable journals in your field, but targeting the right journal is an important decision, as where you choose to publish can influence the impact and visibility of your work.

Researchers’ attitudes to AI vary significantly across career stage, subject area, and country. While 76% of researchers say they have used some form of AI tool in their research, our survey uncovered unexpected generational differences and polarised opinions on the impact of AI.

From Homer to Euripides, ancient Greek literature has an abundance in poetry, prose and plays—but how well do you think you know these works? Test your knowledge with our short, fun quiz and don’t forget to let us know how you did!

Many accessibility options are available to academic librarians and library workers, but the costs involved in training staff, reworking spaces, and purchasing tools can be limiting. It therefore falls on each library to best allocate their resources. In order to bring to light possible approaches, Osama Youssef Smadi, associate professor of special education at the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University in Saudi Arabia, surveyed students with disabilities. In the 2021–22 academic year, 160 students with physical, health, visual, and hearing disabilities registered with the university’s Special Needs Services Center.

On July 16, Ithaka S+R released a new report, “Exploring Basic Needs Support Across Public and Community College Libraries,” as the first phase of its Maximizing Public-Academic Library Partnerships project. The report, authored by Senior Analyst Sindy Lopez, Analyst Sage Love, and Researcher Melissa Blankstein, surveys basic needs services promoted on public and community college library websites to see where that information differs, overlaps, and could potentially be expanded as partnerships.

Offers an extraordinary look inside the world’s premier producer of Shakespeare plays and other renowned theater productions outside of the Shakespearean canon. 

This well-designed, stimulating resource offers robust content for students, instructors, and researchers of dress history and design, including film and theater costuming. 

The first half of 2024 has been full of astronomical events—the eclipse, the northern lights, and sublime images of space. Here on Earth, LJ reviewers have discovered 490+ stars of their own, with books that have earned the magazine’s highest accolade, a starred review. To celebrate these dazzling reads, we have gathered their constellation of reviews, with an accompanying downloadable spreadsheet, sortable by subject/genre and BISAC heading.

Anyone who is attending this year’s American Library Association (ALA) Annual Convention in San Diego hoping to hear more about artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on libraries has not been disappointed. “Breaking Boundaries: Harnessing the Power of Artificial Intelligence and ChatGPT to Transform Library Services,” one of the earliest panels on Saturday morning, was presented to a full house—five conjoined rooms with every seat taken.

Resource sharing between libraries is nothing new, of course — but what is new is the ease with which potential resource-sharing partners can find each other. We spoke with three librarians who play leading roles in the Rapido/RapidILL resource-sharing community. 

Many college and university libraries have amassed special collections and are digitizing these collections to share them more widely. Yet, institutions often struggle to find sustainable solutions for accomplishing this work. Skidmore College is solving this problem with the help of a flexible suite of services for digital collection stewardship from ITHAKA.

Bloomsbury Visual Arts hub is a comprehensive resource covering all aspects of the visual arts, from the art to the artist to the industry. It is an essential, top-tier resource for the study and practice of the visual arts across all areas.

This archive is a dynamic resource for faculty, students, and researchers interested in the economic, historical, and sociological challenges of the Caribbean in the late 19th century.

Understanding how students use and reuse library resources and services is critical for academic libraries. Students make up the bulk of library end-users; they determine whether and how collections are used, how library spaces are used and whether services provide value.

Digital-native users want library resources in digital form. Vendors who furnish those resources are expecting the library to share content responsibly. Using a digital delivery platform, University of Tennessee Libraries are making both groups happy—and enjoying streamlined workflows as a bonus.

In recent years, the scholarly nonprofit Ithaka has prioritized advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), both within the organization and in its outward-facing work. As that process evolved, Kate Wittenberg, managing director of Ithaka’s digital preservation service, Portico, saw that its archival conservation mission aligned in many ways with social justice ideals. In summer 2021, she began to identify underrepresented community collections that might be at risk without a preservation strategy, and in 2023 Portico launched a pilot project connecting the curators of those archives to its expertise and resources.

I'm sure every library has encountered this situation: a student comes in and says, “do you have this book? I need it for this course,” and that's the first time that the library ever hears about this resource being mandatory reading for a course. 

In the aftermath of the Los Angeles Riot of 1992, Korean Americans gained visibility and recognition as a minority group—distinct from Chinese and Japanese Americans—because they were featured so prominently in media coverage. Korean Americans were often a largely invisible group in the United States prior to the Los Angeles Riot.

JSTOR’s Path to Open pilot project and MIT Press’s Direct to Open program are both demonstrating that open access (OA) monographs are receiving significantly more use and are cited more often than non-open counterparts, according to a recent JSTOR webcast and an impact report released last week by MIT Press. 

This responsive digital resource provides up-to-date, highly searchable information for students seeking to cite sources and engage in the research process, from formatting to documenting to using inclusive language. Highly recommended for any undergraduate or graduate institution.

Librari facilitates inquiry for students and other patrons curious about AI, offering opportunities to integrate AI into curricula in thoughtful and structured ways. 

Exploring the same play through different performances helps us to deepen our understanding, challenges any assumptions about meaning, and demonstrates many possible interpretations. There are multiple filmed performances of individual Shakespeare plays here on Drama Online which can be used to support teaching and learning.

To celebrate the launch of this new collection we are offering free to access extracts from some of the best known works of Medieval Literature. For a limited time only, explore the free content brought together below and bring the language and culture of the global Middle Ages to life.

Chelsea Heinbach is the teaching and learning librarian at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She was named a 2023 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work (with Nimisha Bhat, Hailley Fargo, and Charissa Powell) in developing the blog and related podcast (created by Amber Sewell): LibParlor, a site dedicated to helping researchers find community resources and have a place to ask questions, discuss issues, and share expertise. She and the team received an Institute of Museum and Library Services grant to create LibParlor Online Learning (LPOL), a free, online curriculum devoted to research topics and how-tos. LJ recently followed up with her to learn more about her work.

Fifty-seven percent of academic libraries report that the use of audiovisual (AV) sources such as news reels, recordings, performances, and films have increased over the past three years—with 21 percent describing significantly increased usage—while only 15 percent say that use of these resources have decreased, according to Library Journal’s recent AV Primary Sources Survey of Academic Libraries, sponsored by AM, that netted 220 responses from academic librarians in the United States and Canada. Thirteen percent of respondents said that college and university students now prefer AV primary source materials, compared with 18 percent who prefer print and other archival primary source materials.

Asian American activism refers to campaigning in the Asian American community for social and political change. Although there is tremendous diversity within the Asian American community, most groups have shared experience of discrimination, exclusion, and racism throughout their history in the United States. 

As Head, Advanced Research Services and Digital Scholarship Librarian with the University of Victoria Libraries, Matt Huculak examines librarians’ role in scholarly communication, archiving, and collecting, while collaborating with other disciplines to bring that documentation to life.

In her scholarship, as in her instruction, Allison Jennings-Roche aims to seize opportunities to make people think critically about libraries as public institutions and about the information systems that impact their lives.

“Librarians have the wit and grit to get things done,” says Scott Summers, a former high school English teacher and school librarian who now brings that experience to his work as assistant director of the Media and Education Technology Resource Center at NC State University’s College of Education.

As an American Library Association Emerging Leader, Nicollette Davis is always looking for ways to improve the library field. Through the We Here organization, she helps BIPOC library and information science professionals support each other in a welcoming space.

While she wears numerous hats at North Carolina State University Libraries, Tarida Anantachai says that “my work is centered on people and supporting not just who they are as fellow colleagues, but especially who they are more personally, and their individual lived experiences.”

When she was in college, Dr. Shamella Cromartie had a job at a public library where leadership and others were Black, which encouraged her to pursue a career in the field. “It’s important to see people that look like you in these positions so that you know that you can do it, too,” she says.

Thanks to Nardia Cumberbatch’s leadership, Valencia College in Orlando, FL, was the first library in Florida (and second academic library overall) to complete the Sustainable Library Certification Program.

Jenay Dougherty aims to increase representation of Pacific Islanders in leadership roles, both within librarianship and in everyday life.

Dr. Aisha Johnson’s research, publication, and consulting on African American librarianship dates to her undergraduate years at Florida State, where—after growing up in a diverse area of south Florida—she found herself one of the few Black political science students.

While many academic librarians are aware of Project MUSE as a resource for scholars in the Humanities, there is additional benefit in providing access to the large volumes of content on MUSE to inform Science Technology Engineering Math scholarship.

Shavonn Matsuda, head librarian at the University of Hawai‘i Maui College Library, was named a 2023 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her efforts to incorporate traditional Hawaiian languages and cultures into the academic library and cataloging system to guide Hawaiian scholars and community members more efficiently and robustly. LJ recently followed up with her to learn more about her work.

Many librarians lauded the development of Open Access (OA) publishing models, which offered, at least initially, to help solve the problem of an unsustainable and inequitable scholarly communications ecosystem while simultaneously addressing a growing interest in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). In the past year, the idea that, with appropriate guardrails, Artificial Intelligence (AI) can also play a role in changing scholarly communications has risen to the fore. But can OA, DEI, and AI ever live up to their promise of an affordable, equitable and sustainable publishing ecosystem?

Because Project MUSE believes that knowledge has the power to enrich lives and that a sustainable scholarly ecosystem is essential for advancing humanity, we partner with mission-driven publishers and libraries to curate dependable content and fuel interdisciplinary discoveries that benefit everyone.

This extensive database of previously unaggregated primary-source documents provides a view of the United States government’s documentation of a crucial period in U.S. and Indigenous history. A valuable resource for researchers seeking firsthand reports in U.S. political and military history.

While writing this post, nestled here in Baltimore, the world watched and witnessed the devastating collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, after it was struck by a cargo ship. The bridge, a landmark here in Charm City, arched over the Patapsco River carrying more than 12.4 million commercial and passenger vehicles in 2023. 

Academic librarians are helping both students and instructors navigate the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence.

While Project MUSE curates humanities and social science scholarship from around the world, we’ve witnessed the demand for Latin American books on the global market double since 2020. Yet they haven’t always been easy to access – until now.

In close collaboration with its customers and the broader community, Ex Libris develops solutions that increase library productivity, maximize the impact of research activities, enhance teaching and learning, and drive student mobile engagement.

It sounds like a story from Jack London or Jon Krakauer: In 1966, two men traveled down the Yukon River in Alaska by canoe to recover papers from abandoned cabins. Paul McCarthy and H. Theodore “Ted” Ryberg were concerned that the generation of former gold miners who came to Alaska in the late 19th century were dying off, and they wanted to preserve that piece of Alaska history. Those explorations would prove pivotal to the Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives formally founded by McCarthy in 1965 at the Elmer E. Rasmuson Library at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

Do you know your orcs from your elves, and your witches from your warlocks?
Test your knowledge of the varied world of fantasy literature with this quick quiz!

This user-friendly Gale database contains primary sources from the 19th to 21st centuries that are sure to appeal to people interested in modern counterculture and social histories, along with progressive political and societal movements. 

This Gale database offers a distinctive look into the history of American environmental conservation.

Libraries are incorporating collaboration, creativity, and a steadfast commitment to create accessible and inclusive spaces. Also, LJ looks at EBSCO's academic ebook accessibility findings.

In this episode of The Oxford Comment we spotlight two aspects of Native American culture that transcend tribe and nation and have been the recent focus of OUP scholars: language and religious beliefs.

Reference works contain entire worlds, arranged, indexed, and designed to support research and exploration. These aids—hefty both in physical form and in depth and resonance—provide new interpretations, offer access into decades of academic work, and foster fresh ways of thinking.

Free reference sources, vetted, smart, and endlessly useful, are a rich resource for scholars and students. Here are our five top picks for 2023.

Databases foster deep research, expansive reading, and a myriad of inquiry avenues. These 10 tools, covering food, Shakespeare, study skills, and much more, are our selections for the best databases of 2023.

For those ready to become frequent flyers in the upcoming year, our curated reading list features ten exceptional books that will ignite your wanderlust and serve as invaluable companions on your journeys. Whether you’re seeking inspiration, practical travel tips, or a deeper understanding of the world, these books have got you covered.

Ry Moran, associate university librarian for reconciliation at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, was named a 2023 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for his work bringing the university’s reconciliation department to fruition and developing a podcast called Taapwaywin, which means “truth” or “speaking truthfully” in Michif, a language of the Métis people. LJ recently touched base with Moran to learn more about his work with truth and reconciliation, and how the podcast is going.

With the rise of English as the world’s lingua franca, countries have adopted English in their own unique and fascinating ways. It is therefore more important than ever to record these words and phrases.

HeinOnline’s revamped, improved, and expanded iteration of Congress and the Courts provides a broader contextual foundation to analyze judiciary systems and actions.

The United States Geological Survey’s topoView offers access to maps in a way that's educational and entertaining.

Are you looking to broaden your book list? Why not try a book that doesn’t exist? Literature is full of fictional books – books which exist only in other books.
 

Promote critical thinking and informed discourse with Ground News - the revolutionary news comparison platform. Empower your students with the tools to discern facts from fiction and navigate media manipulation. Perfect for the upcoming election. Try Ground News today!

What did 2023 hold for academic libraries? What progress have we seen in the library sector? What challenges have academic libraries faced?

Since its founding in 1984, the University of Mississippi’s Blues Archive has collected virtually everything related to the Blues, from sheet music, concert tickets, and recordings to record label business files and even clothing. Thanks to a website revamp and a multiyear grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) to digitize materials, this year the archive is starting its 40th anniversary in style.

Rhiannon Sorrell, assistant professor and instruction and digital services librarian at the Kinyaa’áanii Charlie Benally Library at Diné College in Arizona, was named a 2023 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work preserving and digitizing Native films and storyteller narration. We recently spoke with Rhiannon to find out more about what she’s working on.

Willa Liburd Tavernier, research impact and open scholarship librarian at the Herman B. Wells Library at Indiana University–Bloomington, was named a 2023 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work facilitating open educational resources and the development of open pedagogy projects. We recently spoke with Tavernier to find out more about these projects and what’s next for her.