Dartmouth College Library in the Twenty-First Century
Contemporary college and university libraries are indispensable to critical inquiry, reflection, and the collective pursuit of knowledge. Never just a warehouse of books, they are an embodiment of the liberal arts, facilitating learning, partnering in original inquiry, and serving as a seat of inspiration. Dartmouth College Library’s physical spaces are a place where a community gathers to learn, engage in research, and socialize. Yet the Library also extends well beyond these walls. Today, most of our resources are available wherever a user may find themselves, and we collaborate with a global library community to preserve and bring a world of information to you. In contrast to enduring stereotypes – or the experiences of mid-nineteenth-century Dartmouth College students! – the Library is a welcoming place. In an age of high-tech wonders, it is also a high-touch, high-energy institution of continuous inquiry and collaboration fundamental to the contemporary liberal arts.
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Emma Coultrap-Bagg ’08 and Jay Satterfield, 2008
Emma Coultrap-Bagg ’08 and Librarian Jay Satterfield examine a fine-edition book donated to Rauner Special Collections by her parents. In a digital age, the Library’s wealth of rare books, manuscripts, and fine editions speaks to the profound and enduring power of the technology of print.
Baker-Berry Library Open House, 2009
Here, librarians Barbara DeFelice and Bill Fontaine welcome members of the Class of 2013. Annually, Dartmouth College Library welcomes the incoming class, inviting them to explore the resources and meet the people ready to support them across all disciplines and throughout an undergraduate education.
Shotaro N. Nakumura ’13, 2012
Shotaro Nakamura ’13, surrounded by books and connected to the world, retreats into quiet study.
Peter Carini, Archivist of the College, in Rauner Special Collections Library, 2015
College Archivist Peter Carini explores a rare text with Ian Sullivan '18, left, and Christopher Nkoy '18 while being filmed for a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), a learning endeavor extending Dartmouth’s instruction to the world.
Listening to Oral History at Rauner Special Collections Library, 2006
A twenty-first-century student listens to an oral history of President John G. Kemeny before his portrait in the Rauner Special Collections Library. Amongst his many contributions, President Kemeny championed computing in undergraduate education from the onset of the personal computer revolution he helped to begin.