News, announcements, updates, and happenings in the UVA Library

Juggling childcare and academia can be hard! The University of Virginia Library wants to make it easier.

Beginning in fall 2024, the UVA Library is offering Childcare Fun Packs for check out at Shannon Library. The Fun Packs are sets of age-appropriate entertainment materials, available to caregivers of all kinds.

The University of Virginia Library has six locations; an array of cozy study spaces; millions of books, journals, videos, and newspapers available for checkout or browsing; and new resources arriving each day. And did you know we also offer events ranging from exhibitions to concerts for UVA and the Charlottesville community throughout the year?

As we close out 2024, check out five upcoming events for those who love cars, crafting, coding, coffee, and more. All Library events are free.

Guest post from Dave Ghamandi, Open Publishing Librarian and Managing Editor of Aperio:

Aperio, the UVA Library-led open access press, is pleased to announce the launch of Research in Special Education (RiSE), an open-access journal.

The UVA Library, in collaboration with the Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education, is embarking on a new IMLS-funded project to develop a collaborative community hub, designed as a dynamic resource to support librarians, educators, and technologists in navigating the rapidly evolving landscape of AI and open educational resources (OER).

The project will feature:

• a comprehensive knowledge base,
• a curated resource repository,
• and a platform for ongoing discussions on technical, ethical, and legal issues.

The project will also include an AI-OER Fellowship Program, which will convene practitioners to test AI tools, share insights, and contribute to establishing best practices in the field.

We are pleased to announce that Carmelita Pickett, Associate University Librarian for Scholarly Resources and Content Strategy at UVA Library, has been elected to a three-year term with the HathiTrust Board of Governors. Pickett has been active with HathiTrust for many years, serving in the Program Steering Committee and functioning as the Shared Print Program Liaison. Read the full announcement from HathiTrust.

HathiTrust was founded in 2008 as a collaborative of academic and research libraries. The HathiTrust Digital Library preserves and offers access to more than 18 million digitized items, and HathiTrust programs seek to protect and expand access to library materials.

Pickett says:

November is Native American Heritage Month – a perfect time to honor Indigenous traditions, cultures, and histories. At UVA Library, we’re highlighting work created by and about Native Americans.

Thanks to Librarian for History and Religious Studies Keith Weimer, and Curator of Material Culture Meg Kennedy for the book recommendations below.

It’s nearly Halloween, and to celebrate the holiday we’ve put together this compilation of chilling stories about UVA Library covering supposed spirits in the stacks, creepy items found in Special Collections, and recommended horror reading from two of our librarians. Stop by one of our six locations to check out a book, pick up a specialized sticker, or perhaps hunt for a ghost.

The post below was originally published by Brandon Butler in 2023 and has been updated for Open Access Week by Scholarly Repository Librarian Sherry Lake.

The 2024 Open Access theme of Community over Commercialization continues last year’s theme prioritizing approaches to open scholarship that serve the best interests of the public and the academic community.

The post below was originally published by Brandon Butler in 2023 and has been updated for Open Access Week 2024 by Scholarly Repository Librarian Sherry Lake.

The post below was originally published in 2023 and has been updated for Open Access Week by Scholarly Repository Librarian Sherry Lake.

The theme for Open Access Week 2024 is a continuation of 2023’s “Community over Commercialization,” focusing on prioritizing approaches to open scholarship that serve the best interests of the public and the academic community.

Library communities have long sought to facilitate the sharing of knowledge — they lessen financial barriers, seek to understand their audiences, and encourage discovery and innovation. The UVA Library supports quite a few programs to this end, and aims to facilitate open publishing through tools, assistance, and the power of the academic community.