University Libraries

By Maureen Schlangen

The first time communication professor Sam Wallace came to Roesch Library, it had just opened. It had plenty of space on its seven main floors — “shelves and shelves in the stacks without any books,” Wallace recalls — and an ambitious acquisition plan to serve an emerging research university.

Years later, when Wallace joined the faculty, Roesch Library’s shelves, study carrels, reference desk and instruction spaces were full, and the circulation desk was bustling; a nexus of both academic and social interaction, Roesch draws about 2,000 visitors per day during typical weeks of the semester — and many more during exam weeks.

Since 1971, Roesch Library has been as much a part of campus life as Flyer basketball, Christmas on Campus and the student neighborhood. Its technology, spaces and resources keep advancing with the latest learning, research and teaching methods.

“And the library professional staff are the best,” he says. “They are far more valuable to me than just finding things that I need and making them appear. They are listeners, problem solvers — guides through the maze of databases and search strategies.”