University Libraries

By Maureen Schlangen

An academic library is the utility player in the higher education lineup: versatile, reliable, responsive, proficient, wise and always at the ready. Supporting student learning, graduate and undergraduate research, writing, faculty scholarship, dialogue, collaboration, and personal and professional development, Roesch Library has the facilities, expertise, technology, personnel and materials to support effective learning and teaching. 

Open early … and late

With limited exception, Roesch Library, the main university library, is open every day, normally from 8 a.m. to midnight during regular weeks of the academic term. Research and writing assistance is available in a variety of forms. Hours are posted online.

Materials aplenty

The libraries have more than 1 million print and electronic books and provide access to more than 400 databases and more than 95,000 print and electronic journals. Membership in the library consortium OhioLINK gives access to approximately 44 million additional items, delivered on demand within a few days. As a Federal Depository Library since 1969, Roesch Library also provides access to print and electronic government records.

Designed for utility, comfort, access

Following the August 2019 completion of a comprehensive renovation of two floors, Roesch Library now has a modern design that caters to student, faculty, and staff needs articulated in surveys and engagement events before design. Highlights include several public service points for access services, research consultation, and peer writing support; a variety of reservable class, small-group, and individual work spaces; a space called the Dialogue Zone to not only have challenging conversations, but also develop an appreciation for and proficiency in dialogue; scanners and printers; 36 computer workstations, some with double monitors; a technology-rich instruction space called the Collab; the Scholars’ Commons, a work space for faculty and doctoral students; and a unique student-designed project area called Concourse D with a recording studio, editing workstations, team tables, movable whiteboards, and “maker” supplies. Open study areas are available throughout the building with noise levels that vary by floor. An open-access institutional repository, eCommons, provides a permanent and discoverable electronic archive of University scholarship, culture, and documents.

It’s the place to be

All of these spaces and services drew 147,251 visits to Roesch Library in 2020-21, despite a large number of remote students and a reduction in the number of seats to ensure safe distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Twelve asynchronous co-curricular learning programs designed by the Libraries staff and faculty drew more than 12,000 participants in 2020-21.  

Custom-designed instruction

Library faculty taught almost 400 instructional sessions and tutorials to more than 7,100 students in 2019-20 with specialized research instruction for honors students (Note: statistics not yet available for 2020-21). Sessions cover topics such as subject-specific and interdisciplinary databases; basic and advanced search techniques; and searching for and requesting material through OhioLINK. For graduate programs, library faculty work with departments on custom instruction.

Make it a habit

Roesch Library also is the home of the Flyer-favorite Pauline A. Money collection of nun dolls, accurately outfitted in the attire of dozens of orders of religious women in the United States. A gift of alumna Pauline Money, this collection stands sentry on the silent sixth floor, reminding students that all styles of study are welcome and encouraged in Roesch Library.

New-student orientation 2021: Root in Roesch

When new students arrive on campus, their orientation typically includes an in-person introduction to the library to learn about the spaces, services and materials available. The fall 2021 activity is an interactive online scavenger hunt called “Root in Roesch: A Choose-Your-Own Library Adventure!”

More information

See the Libraries website for hours, services and the new and improved library catalog. Or, stop by the first-floor lobby for a good book from the leisure reading collection. Roesch Library is here to help kick off another successful semester at the University of Dayton.

— Maureen Schlangen is the e-scholarship and communications manager in the University Libraries.