From the Dean: Stewarding Digital Access for Tomorrow’s Learners & Researchers
A common thread through this issue of Stay Connected is digitization and how the Colorado State University Libraries serves students’ learning and research today and will serve them far into the future.
Transforming information from an analog format to a digital one can greatly expand access to that information. Once digitized, information is more shareable and accessible to the world. Where once it would take weeks, or months, for a book to be shipped across the globe, now it takes seconds to download.
While digitizing information helps expand access today and into the future, it comes with drawbacks. Digital materials take continuous care. As technology continues to rapidly changing, new devices and digital formats are invented, and then become obsolete.
Libraries and archives must work persistently to maintain and steward digital information across platform migrations, format changes, and IT updates.
In the past, you would buy a book, put it on a shelf, and there it would stay for 50 years. Now, with digitized materials, your shelf disappears every five years or so as server lifespans come to an end. You have to keep replacing the shelf, because the technology used to create that shelf changes and eventually becomes obsolete. It takes so much labor, time, and funding to ensure tomorrow’s learners and researchers will have access to the vital information in the Libraries’ care. I’m proud of what we are able to accomplish every day, through the support of donors.
As you read these stories and watch interviews with our student employees, I hope you feel inspired by our employees’ dedication and effort, as well as their impact on learners and researchers from now and into the future.
As you read these stories and watch interviews with our student employees, I hope you feel inspired by our employees’ dedication and effort, as well as their impact on learners and researchers.
– Karen Estlund, dean of libraries
Features
Students investigate local German Russian history to explore global issues
Archival materials about the impact of Germans from Russia on Northern Colorado are helping students and researchers engage with global research topics.
Student Voices
Students in the Archives: Aubree Vecellio (Video)
Aubree Vecellio (B.A. '25) talks about her hands-on work with getting historical CSU yearbooks online and why it matters.
Students in the Archives: Cameron Kacsh (Video)
Cameron Kacsh (B.A. '24) talks about what he's learning as a student worker in the Archives and how his work helps researchers.
When the internet was new: From student worker to tech innovator
Student worker-turned-innovator Alex Welch (B.A. '99) talks about how working at Morgan Library and his business classes were the secrets to his success.
Engagement
The art and science of wildfire recovery (Photo Gallery)
From Burn to Bloom, a public art and science event on Aug. 19, brought together the Fort Collins community to engage in playful art and science activities, all-ages education, and hopeful community reflection.
CSU Libraries in the news & media
The impact of the CSU Libraries' materials and expertise is hard to ignore. This is a round-up of recent appearances of our materials and expertise in news and media outlets.
All hands on deck: Summer flash flood and recovery
Flash flooding is a threat that many people fail to prepare for, but not staff at the Morgan Library. When a major storm hit campus on the evening of July 31, staff leapt into action in a flash.
11 things that are always free at Morgan Library
There are a lot of words to describe the Morgan Library. Some examples? Welcoming, comfortable, inspiring, community-centered. One word you’ll never hear? Expensive.