Mission Statement
In accordance with the
mission of Long Island University and
LIU Post, the
B. Davis Schwartz Memorial Library supports and expands the educational and research capabilities
of LIU Post, providing the highest level of instruction, services, resources, and facilities. As the
intellectual center of the campus, the Library prepares LIU Post students for academic success, for
lifelong learning, and for being responsible global citizens.
The Library strives to:
- Ensure that every LIU Post student achieves information literacy, developing the research
skills to find information and the judgment to evaluate and utilize it effectively
- Provide students with instructional experiences of the highest quality, whether in individual,
group, classroom, or virtual environments
- Continuously assess and improve the Library's technology, infrastructure, and informational
resources as a vital and dynamic part of the learning programs of the Campus
- Provide convenient and effective access to information
- Promote interaction and collaboration with campus departments and with university libraries
- Recruit, encourage, and develop an innovative and qualified staff who shares its expertise
with the LIU Post community
- Maintain a safe, healthful, and comfortable physical environment conducive to the pursuit of
knowledge and the exchange of ideas
The Library subscribes to the American Library Association's
"Library
Bill of Rights."
(Approved January 12, 2010)
Introduction to the Library
The B. Davis Schwartz Memorial
Library has a large and diverse collection
with over 2 million volumes, access to more than
49,000 periodicals,
and over 250 online databases, most
of which include scholarly, peer-reviewed, and professional journals,
as well as over 300 online encyclopedias.
Remote access is available for most of these databases to LIU users.
The library is equipped with more than 70 computers for student use and
wireless internet access, along with a quiet study area for students, a copy
center, and the Bookmark Café. Additional computers can be found
in the Information Technology labs that are also in the library.
The collections of all Long Island
University libraries (including the
Brooklyn, Brentwood and Rockland
Campuses) are listed in LIUCat. This
computerized network makes information
available to faculty and students at all
LIU campuses. Books, journal articles,
and other library materials that are not available at this campus can be
requested through Interlibrary Loan;
materials within the LIU library system are forwarded
by the University courier systems,
by fax, or by mail.
The library is open 86 hours a week,
including evenings and weekends, with
special extended hours during final
examinations periods. The library is also the home of the
College of Education,
Information and Technology, the
Department
of Computer Science and Management Engineering, the
Palmer School of Library and Information
Science,
Academic Multimedia Support Services,
the Office of
Information Technology,
the Post Library Association, and the Hutchins Gallery.
An extensive instruction program is
available to students through
class lectures, demonstrations, orientations, and the
Book a Librarian service.
Various classes demonstrating
the intricacies of conducting research
using all types of sources and formats,
including online resources, are offered to
the entire Campus community.
Library competency education is provided to
undergraduates through a seven-session
library workshop. The Library collaborates
with the English Department to
teach Information Literacy.
The Reference Services Department is part of
Reference Commons, which combines
the collections of the Reference
Department, the Center for Business and
Information Research, and the Library
and Information Science Library.
The Reference collection, with 36,000
volumes of reference and research materials,
is particularly strong in the areas of
literature and the art. LIU users
can avail themselves
of the online chat service or request
research help via email.
The Center
for Business Research
was developed through the integration of
the former Nassau County Research
Library with LIU Post's existing
resources. Its broad range of materials
include company directories, international
resources, industry data, and financial
services
The Library and Information Science Library's
resources are primarily used by doctoral,
master's and undergraduate degree students
in the Palmer School of Library
and Information Science. There are
more than 22,000 volumes in this specialized
collection located in the bookstacks, along with online
and hardcopy journal subscriptions.
The Periodicals Department houses a current and retrospective
collection of over 7,000 journals, magazines, newspapers, and other
publications - over half of which are not available elsewhere through our online
subscriptions to over 49,000 titles.
Print and online
indexes and databases provide
access to the material. While a wide
range of academic subjects is included in
its holdings, the Department is particularly
strong in psychology, education, literature,
art, and business.
The Instructional Media Center is the
multimedia resource center of LIU
Post, with over 1,500 films,
videos, interactive CD-ROMs, and a rich
variety of other audiovisual resources.
The IMC contains media equipment,
production, and preview facilities. Its
exemplary collection of curriculum
resources for K-12 (teacher resource
materials, children's books, and textbooks)
supports the Education and the
Library and Information Science programs.
The Digital Initiatives and Art Slide Library is a collection of
more than 100,000 slides encompassing a
vast array of images dating from prehistoric
times through the 21st century and
represents all forms of art media.
The Special Collections Department
contains many notable holdings, such as:
the only portion of Carlotta and Eugene
O'Neill's personal library that survives as
a whole; the William Randolph Hearst
art photograph collection; a comprehensive
collection, donated by the Theodore
Roosevelt Association, of TR's life, times
and writings; 5,000 movie posters mainly
from the 1940s and 1950s; letters by
Henry James to his publisher; the Fine
Art Facsimile Editions of the Book of
Kells and the Tres Riches Heures of Jean,
Duc du Berry; and the developing
Winthrop Palmer collection of rare
books of Irish and French literature.
The Department also has the archives of
Long Island University, especially
LIU Post, featuring a complete run of
the student newspaper, The Pioneer, and
the student yearbook, Opticon, as well as
other University documents.
The American
Juvenile Collection (AJC)
contains children's books of
fiction and folklore printed by American Publishers between
1910 and 1960. It continues the gathering of children's books by
Christine B. Gilbert, formerly a professor at the Palmer School, that
included fiction and non-fiction, mostly from Great Britain, published
before 1909. The AJC retains a few of them, especially appropriate
fiction titles. It is anticipated that the
AJC, when complete, will
hold 25,000 titles, the most comprehensive depository on the
continent. Ultimately, the majority of the collection will be
first editions. Presently the AJC contains over 2,000 first
editions among its 5,250 volumes. Some of the books are
especially noteworthy: The Blind Pig's Book, an
artist's journal of his publishing colleagues by Kurt Wiese;
a dummy copy of The Little Stone House, together with
the first edition by Berta and Elmer Hader, as well
as a good run of their many books; and an extensive collection of
the drawings and illustrated book by Paul Brown, a noted
Long Island illustrator.
The catalog
is available over the internet, or, for personal inquires, email
diana.spirt@liu.edu.
The Post
Library Association, a Friends of the
Library organization, was founded by Mrs.
Winthrop B. Palmer, a former member of the
Board of Trustees of Long Island
University and a professor of English at
LIU Post. The PLA conducts many cultural
and educational programs in the
Hutchins Gallery. Alumni and other
friends of the University are cordially
invited to join the membership.
Through
the generosity of the Carleton H. and
Winthrop B. Palmer Memorial Fund, an
endowment of over four million dollars
enables the library to purchase materials
in the arts and humanities, supplementing
its regular budget for acquisitions and enriching collections immeasurably.
