Hello,
My name is Devin Savage and I’m the Dean of the Illinois Tech Libraries. On behalf of the university’s main library, the Paul V. Galvin Library, I would like to welcome both the new and returning students to campus. Serving as a beloved study and social hub on campus, the Galvin Library provides welcoming, safe, student-oriented spaces that accommodate both individual and collaborative learning. Whether you seek a quiet study space, a group study room for team projects, or an interview booth for virtual interviews, the library is here for you.
At the Galvin library, we strive to be an unconditional ally to students and your success here. We want to help you find the resources that are necessary your studies, provide space for you to work and learn, and meet your needs as best we can. Most of all, our librarians, staff, and student employees are here for you. We want to help you learn how to find, evaluate, and use good information. You can even request a personal research appointment for one-on-one academic assistance with a librarian who specializes in your area of study. If you prefer immediate assistance, visit the Research Help Desk on the second floor of the library, seek help through our online chat, or email library@illinoistech.edu.
In addition to our library staff, collections, and spaces, the Galvin library also hosts campus partners such as the ARC’s tutoring services and the OTS helpdesk, and we collaborate with the Writing Center, University Career Services, and the Student Health and Wellness departments to meet you where you are with the services you need. Detailed hours of operation can be found on the library’s website at https://iit.libcal.com/hours/.
Libraries are of course known for their resources, but we are especially proud of our textbook collection, in which we strive to include a copy of every textbook required for every undergraduate course. We also provide seamless virtual access to our online collections and databases. Our integrated search allows you to search our catalog, research guides, and the full-text content of many online journals all at the same time. Additionally, the library also is a part of I-Share, a statewide resource sharing system of more than 90 academic libraries that provides physical and web-based delivery of materials via interlibrary loan. This service allows you to borrow a nearly limitless supply of books and articles from other universities as part of your experience here. The Galvin library is also well-equipped with various non-traditional resources available for checkout, such as laptops, Wi-Fi hotspots, webcams, and calculators.
We have worked hard to reinvent the virtual and physical spaces of the library in order to offer our users places to innovate, collaborate, experiment, and grow. The Exploration Space is equipped with 3-D printers, an electronic cutter, and button makers for student and student group use. Meanwhile, the Galvin Library Media Space (GLaMS) provides the spaces and tools for video production, sound recording and editing, and streaming. Our Institutional Repository (https://repository.iit.edu/) offers all Illinois Tech faculty, staff, and students a place to deposit and/or share digital, scholarly and educational works for discoverability and/or compliance. We also host the official Tech News archive in the Repository! In addition, we also offer journal hosting services, and the latest endeavor that we are happy to work with is the publications of the Socially Responsible Modeling, Computation, and Design initiative – the SoReMo Journal (https://soremo.library.iit.edu/). And we have also recently migrated and re-launched our internationally renowned, distinctive digital collection Voices of the Holocaust (https://voices.library.iit.edu/).
We welcome you to get involved with our library as a member of our Student Advisory Group, or even just drop us a note and let us know what you’re thinking about at library@illinoistech.edu! We are glad you are here, and we want to hear from you.
Best of luck in all of your endeavors this year!
-Dean Devin Savage