News & Announcements from Libraries

The Illinois Association of College & Research Libraries (IACRL) Awards Committee is excited to announce the opening of applications for the OER Campus Kickstart: Award for Growing Illinois OER Programs. If you have been looking for a way of getting financial incentive to your faculty to take on OER...

Makerspaces in libraries are great. While makerspaces allow people to get creative and discover new ideas for projects, using the new equipment can be daunting for those who are unfamiliar with it. That’s why The Workshop Lab at Palatine Library District created an easy and accessible way to...

The Oak Park Public Library has published an impact report that details progress made last year in its anti-racism strategic priorities. In her introduction, Executive Director Joslyn Bowling Dixon writes: "With Stephen Jackson, our Director of Equity and Anti-Racism, leading the charge, our library...

There were plenty of kisses seen between parents and their children at the Lunar New Year celebration, a Sunday afternoon memory maker on Jan. 22 at the Northfield branch of the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library. Amelia Kmiec, Northfield branch services librarian from Norwood Park, said the Lunar...

When Illinois State University conducted a Textbook Affordability survey in the spring of 2019, it was clear there was a problem—one felt by institutions across the United States. The survey found that 73% of students did not acquire a textbook due to cost, 89% delayed purchasing a textbook or other...

3D printing was launched at Illinois State University’s Milner Library as part of our Make It Space initiative in the fall of 2018. Initial interest was strong, but our staff was flooded with requests after we moved the printer to a highly visible, publicly accessible space. Since then, we’ve had...

Once upon a time, there was a library nestled amid farm fields in Central Illinois. Now, this library was not big, but its patrons loved the library, and the library loved all the people that came to visit. The kind people who ran the library wanted to do everything they could to provide materials...

In May of 2022, a patron came up to the Reference Desk at the Northbrook Public Library asking for help with her new cell phone. She said that she had previously used a flip phone, but was told by her phone provider that they no longer supported it and that she needed to get a smartphone. She said...

Northern Illinois University Libraries are home to a vital, growing Southeast Asia (SEA) Collection, probably the largest in Illinois. The university is home to a Center for Southeast Asian Studies ( https://www.niu.edu/clas/cseas/index.shtml) and several Southeast Asian languages are taught on...

"In Chicago Ridge, everyone is here for one another and is always ready to help whenever they see someone in need." Aseel Alhamidi Aseel Alhamidi graduated high school in 2021 through the library partnership with Smart Horizon’s Career Online High School Program. Eleven Chicago Ridge residents have...

Stan Pawlowski is a long-time Chicago Ridge resident, avid library user, and a member of our Board of Trustees. We asked Stan to share his library story. “I began utilizing the library about four years ago on a consistent basis. I had just lost my job and was eager to get another position as soon as...

It’s not unusual for college students to struggle with college life during the course of an academic year, but the stress experienced at the end of the semester is in a category of its own. The extra pressure associated with wrapping up a semester makes it a particularly high-stress time for many...