From the Dean

What a difference a few years make! For many years, Blackwell Library at Salisbury University had the distinction of appearing regularly on the Princeton Review’s “This Is a Library?” list, featuring the worst college libraries. That was true as late as 2018. Just two years later, in 2020, for the first time, the SU Libraries earned an accolade as one of the Princeton Review’s “Best College Libraries,” and this year, we again won that honor, coming in at no. 23 in the nation.

The process by which the Princeton Review creates its various rankings is somewhat opaque. It is, however, based on student feedback to a question asking how they rate the library facilities at their school. I am grateful to our students for recognizing and appreciating the improvements we’ve made.

The biggest improvement, of course, is the move in 2016 from Blackwell Library to SU’s new library facility, the Guerrieri Academic Commons. But I don’t think the building on its own accounts for the meteoric rise in our ranking. Our current staff is smart, creative and flexible. It is deeply committed to serving the students and is always seeking ways of making them feel welcome and providing them with better services. This was evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when we led the University System of Maryland in providing curbside pickup, controlled digital lending and open hours. Our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion; our efforts to reduce textbook costs for students; our end-of-semester relaxation activities; and sundry other services and activities also contribute to the high regard in which students hold the Libraries. You may read about some of our current activities and interactions with students in this newsletter.

Thanks, students!