News

In partnership with six member university presses, the University Libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance announce the launch of the Big Ten Open Books Project, a collaboration between the university presses and libraries of the Big Ten Academic Alliance.

TOME@UMD, a program of the national TOME initiative, is now accepting applications for four grants of up to $15,000 each that will sponsor the publication of open access, digital monographs by UMD faculty members. In addition, TOME@UMD will fund the open access publication of two previously published monographs up to $5,500 each. With a deadline of October 16, 2023, the process calls for an Expression of Interest from eligible faculty in all disciplines, but with preference given for those in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. 

The UMD Libraries is pleased to announce that Natalie Trapuzzano has been named University Archivist in Special Collections and University Archives (SCUA). Trapuzzano had been serving as the Assistant University Archivist for UMD Libraries since June 2022.

The University of Maryland Libraries will host a virtual dialogue on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, from 3:00-4:30 pm ET, to explore actions that can be taken to ensure libraries remain bastions of intellectual freedom for all. American librarians are increasingly becoming the latest targets in the political and cultural wars spreading across the country, part of a growing movement to ban books, censor ideas, and restrict educators’ ability to discuss race, gender, identity, and LGBTQ+ issues in the classroom.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to announce the generous commitment of Sarah M. Pritchard ‘75 to establish both the Sarah M. Pritchard Endowment and the Sarah M. Pritchard Fund for Librarian Professional Development. These gifts will support the professional growth of UMD library faculty and their engagement in a wide range of scholarly activities. Preference will be given to faculty members’ research initiatives and continuing education related to promoting inclusion, diversity, equity, and interdisciplinarity within their practice of librarianship.

The University of Maryland Libraries is pleased to share the latest issue of our annual Illumination magazine. Read about some of the creative ways we’re advancing the university’s public service mission and supporting our community’s pursuit of excellence.

On Wednesday, May 3, a group of faculty, staff, students, and alumni gathered in Hornbake Library for an alumni panel reflecting on the campus’ protests against the Vietnam War in 1970. The “30 Days in May: Reflections on the Antiwar Movement at UMD” panel, hosted by UMD Libraries, invited five alumni back to the university marking 53 years since the historic protests.

The University of Maryland Libraries is excited to announce the acquisition of Ford’s Theatre records. The Ford’s Theatre records will be archived with Special Collections in Performing Arts (SCPA) and located in the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library.

Jordan Sly, Head, Humanities and Social Science Librarians, and School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures Librarian for German, Italian, and French, has been elected as the Chair-Elect of the University Senate for the 2023 - 2024 term after which he will become Chair of the Senate and then Past Chair serving for a total of three years in these positions.  

Through the University of Maryland Libraries, Africa Commons: History and Culture is now available to UMD faculty, staff and students. This resource, produced by Coherent Digital, is made available as part of our participation in the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Collective Investment Program (CIP, formerly Large Scale Acquisitions program). Africa Commons provides access to millions of pages of full-text primary source content to all BTAA member libraries, including the University of Maryland Libraries.