A Quick Tour

Lower Level

The Huff Art Gallery features the work of local artists, artists of state and national reputation, as well as the work of Spalding students, staff, and professors. There are nine to twelve stimulating exhibits annually, representing artistic work in all media.

Library Lecture Lounge, a large multi-purpose assembly room, seats 150 persons. It is used for public lectures, artists' presentations, workshops, multimedia presentations, and classroom activities.


First Floor

The Circulation Desk houses all book and monograph reserves (photocopies and other  items are accessible by web on the Electronic Reserves server) and handles routine circulation of print materials and multimedia equipment and materials. Also found here are psychological testing kits and the library video collection.

Newspapers and Current Journals - current journals are displayed in a range of stacks along the north and west walls, where they are easily accessed; daily newspapers are kept at the circulation desk, with all back issues organized by title and date on the end stack of bound periodicals on the third floor.

MARS--Library Catalog and Check-out System (the epixtech Horizon System, a state-of-the art library automation system whose purchase and installation was made possible by the generous gifts of Mary and Mason Rudd, in whose honor the system was named)--is available on all Public PC stations throughout the first floor for collection searching. The search module is available also via the World Wide Web and can be accessed from the library's home page.

The Reference Collection contains a rich array of encyclopedias, dictionaries, indexes, bibliographies, and discipline-overview and -specific resources for both the undergraduate and graduate populations at Spalding and in the Metroversity.

LAN Clusters provide multiple access to major web-based indexes and full-text databases. The indexes and databases on the system include resources for both the undergraduate and graduate populations at Spalding and students in the Metroversity; many of these are available remotely to the University's faculty and students by private passwords.  Also, most of the computers throughout the first floor also have Microsoft Office on them for students' use in creating and editing papers and presentations (an end-user assistant is usually on-hand to assist users and answer user questions.  All printing is sent to a single, high-speed printer, where students may pay the printing cost (5 cents per page) and retrieve their output.


Second Floor

The Circulating Books Collection contains almost 200,000 books, each of which is normally available to students for a four-week period and renewable twice. New titles are added to the collection each semester, and obsolete titles are weeded regularly to ensure that holdings are appropriate to research needs in all disciplines and at all levels. The collection exceeds the recommendations of the Association of College and Research Libraries.

Special Collections, including the following--

The Edith Stein Center for Study and Research -- Spalding's is one of only a few such centers worldwide that gathers and maintains original manuscripts and first and special editions of the works and thoughts of this renowned phenomenologist. Also included in this special collection are biographical materials and key studies on aspects of Stein's thought and work. The library provides cataloging and maintenance of the collection, while the Center itself is administered by Spalding University's philosophy faculty. Scholars from other universities worldwide visit and make us of the materials housed here.

The Kentucky Collection -- a large and diverse gathering of books on all aspects of Kentucky and its culture: books by and about Kentucky's remarkable authors; books on the state's fascinating history and politics; colorful works on native flora and fauna; and much more!

The University Archives houses and organizes records related to the history of the University and contains a significant amount of material relating to the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth. This well-organized collection is available for use on site by those interested in the development of Spalding and its role in higher education.

Fiction for Fun -- Last but not least, the library maintains a special collection of purely fun and entertaining reading for the university community. All genres are represented in this special paperback collection, from mysteries and international intrigue to romance, fantasy, and science fiction. The collection is kept fresh by frequent contributions made by both faculty and students, and provides an enjoyable break from the demands of scholarly activity.

Third Floor

Bound Periodicals are arranged alphabetically by title. Spalding's collection of over 22,000 bound journals grows annually with the binding of items from its subscription list of over 450 titles.

The Writing Center, which provides scheduled sessions daily, offers help in math and writing at both remedial and advanced levels. Help is provided by faculty members and upper-level students.