Academic Libraries vs. Public Libraries: Information for Teachers and Media Specialists
Teachers or Librarians/Media Specialists from Hyde Park Academy, Kenwood Academy, and Woodlawn High School must contact the Library at least two weeks in advance of their visit. To schedule a program contact:
Rebecca Starkey
Reference Librarian/Instruction Services Specialist
The Joseph Regenstein Library
773-702-4484
rstarkey@uchicago.edu
As a University library, our primary mission is to serve our students, staff, and faculty. As a result, our public school programs may be unavailable at specific times in the academic year. We are unable to provide programs in September and October, or during the University's reading periods and finals week. At other times of the year, programs can be held mornings from 8:30 am to Noon, with Friday mornings being preferred. As the number of students and faculty using the Library decrease during Summer Quarter or interim periods, we may be able to provide programs at alternative times during those weeks.
View the University of Chicago's Academic Calendar
School groups may visit the Joseph Regenstein Library, our humanities and social sciences library. Visits to the D'Angelo Law Library and the John Crerar Science Library may be arranged upon consultation.
School groups of up to 15 are allowed, which is the number of seats available in our computer classroom. The Library may accept groups larger than 15 if students can bring their own laptops. However, these visits are dependent on available staffing.
All school groups must be accompanied by a teacher or school librarian/media specialist. Larger groups may require additional supervision at the discretion of our University librarians.
All school groups are required to develop a program with our University librarians. The program must relate to a specific assignment that makes use of the unique collections held at the Regenstein Library. The assignment must have a specific research goal that can be completed within the allotted visit time. With the exception of AP students at Kenwood Academy and the International Baccalaureate Program at Hyde Park Academy (whom have special access arrangements), students will not be allowed entrance into the Library after the program to complete their assignment. The Library's subscription electronic resources (databases, online journals, etc.) cannot be accessed outside of the Library.
The most successful Library visits have students working on a project that uses specific types of items from our collection. Below are some examples of good assignments for a Library visit:
Broad research assignments, such as "Chicago History" or "Education in China", are often difficult for students to complete during a short library visit. Position papers (i.e. "Argue that abortion/cigarettes/guns should be illegal") are also extremely difficult to research due to the size and depth of our collections. It is also recommended that all students are working on the same assignment, or that groups of students work together on a few select research topics so that they complete their assignment during the visit.
School programs are generally held in the Library's computer classroom, which is equipped with 15 student computers, an instructor's workstation, and a projector. All students using Library computers must comply with the University's Acceptable Use Policy for Information Technology. Please be aware that a printer is not available in the classroom. Limited printing may be available outside the classroom for a fee. However, we strongly encourage the use of portable USB drives for saving any documents you may need.
Our librarians will do as much as possible to provide appropriate books for your assignment in the classroom. Should there be a need to go into the stacks or our reference areas, students must be supervised by a teacher or librarian/school media specialist.
Books may not be checked out of the University of Chicago Library. Photocopies are available for a fee.
For information about campus, such as parking or places to eat, please view our Visitor Services Page.
