Collections for research, teaching and learning during COVID-19: Ensuring access to critical material for faculty, students and staff

At the Library, we understand the importance of online resources that are accessible to faculty, students and staff from anywhere in the world, especially online resources that allow multiple users. Acquiring resources needed for research and coursework, as well as faculty and student requests remains a high priority; please know that the Library will work with you to find resources.  We take the following into consideration:

  • We are giving preference to the purchase of books in e-format since they are available to all users in all locations, recognizing some e-books cost substantially more than their print equivalents, which may make them prohibitively expensive
  • Textbooks are not typically available for purchase electronically by the Library, only for individual purchase, which can be expensive for students
  • Some publishers restrict access to electronic titles to only one user at a time
  • Not all publishers allow resources to be downloaded and some may restrict printing to one page at a time
  • Streaming media and types of non-print digital resources may not be available for purchase or rent to libraries (e.g., movies, music, even musical scores may only allow licensing for individual use)

During the quarter, many of your students may be embarking on research opportunities, such as  research  assistantships, fellowship applications, etc. For information on how to support these opportunities, visit the Remote Student Research Experiences website, which includes lists of resources for both mentors and students.

We look forward to partnering with you to acquire material that you need for your research and teaching and welcome discussions about what material is available electronically, what material is available for teaching purposes, and how we can help you find alternatives to resources that are not readily available and help you find alternatives to resources that cannot be reasonably acquired for institutional use.

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