The University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press (UD Library) is now a member of the Greater Western Library Alliance (GWLA), joining 36 other member institutions. A project-oriented consortium of research libraries located across the United States, GWLA is nationally recognized as a leader in the transformation of scholarly communication and a facilitator in the application of new information technologies.

As part of GWLA, the UD Library will share interlibrary loan (ILL) reciprocity with member institutions; champion focus areas such as content development, resource sharing/document delivery, cooperative collection management, student learning outcomes and digital collections; and participate in professional development opportunities. Through membership, the UD Library will also have built-in support to promote and advocate for scholarly communications, national print and digital preservation initiatives, and continuous improvement of ILL and document delivery.

“We are thrilled to join GWLA and its impressive member institutions,” said Trevor A. Dawes, vice provost for libraries and museums and May Morris University Librarian for the University of Delaware Library, Museums and Press. “An overarching idea within our strategic plan is partnership and collaboration. Through collaborations with GWLA members, we look forward to strengthening the pillars of our plan and aspects of the 21st-century library, including efforts surrounding student success and learning, as well as research, scholarship service, and discovery.”

The criteria for GWLA membership includes classification as either “R1: Doctoral Research University (Highest Research Activity)" or "R2: Doctoral Research University (Higher Research Activity)" by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. A member institution must have unique and extraordinary qualifications within its research mission, as reflected in collections of distinction as well as in its ability to add breadth and depth to the resources and services offered to the current GWLA membership. The institution also must possess quantitative factors comparable to other GWLA institutions with regards to materials budgets and staff-to-student ratios.

In August 2017, a two-person GWLA team visited the Library for an on-site evaluation, similar to a college accreditation visit, to analyze collection size and scope, services, and potential contributions to the alliance. Membership was approved at the GWLA Fall Membership Meeting on September 19, 2017.

“GWLA is delighted to welcome the University of Delaware Library to our community,” said Mary Case, university librarian and librarian and dean of libraries at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and current GWLA board chair. “With its long record of strong collections support, a burgeoning campus digital humanities initiative with the Library, university press and museums as key partners, and significant special collections, Delaware is well-positioned to contribute to the robust resource-sharing at the heart of GWLA and to the realization of its strategic initiatives.”

The site visit committee was impressed with the connection and close collaboration of the Library, museums and university press under a single administrative umbrella. The Library also closely works with the digital humanities initiative, which is beginning to bring disparate digital humanities groups together from across campus. This synergy of the library, museums, university press and digital humanities is an interesting and dynamic intersection of disciplines. The committee also noted the strong and sustained support the UD Library, Museums and Press has received within the University.

The Library’s Special Collections department was specifically recognized for the recently acquired Mark Samuels Lasner Collection, as well as works of Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. Special Collections also houses the manuscripts and papers of political figures, including those of U.S. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

The Greater Western Library Alliance is a consortium of research libraries across the United States. For additional information, visit the GWLA website or follow GWLA on Facebook.