Howard University News January 3, 2012 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: Rachel Mann Communications Specialist 202.238.2631 rachel.mann@howard.edu http://www.howard.edu/newsroom/ Howard University Joins the Washington Research Library Consortium Increases access to information resources for students and faculty through shared library collections Howard University and the Washington Research Library Consortium are pleased to announce that Howard University has joined the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC), a collaborative partnership of major universities in the Washington, D.C. area to share library collections and information technology. Established in 1987 by many of the major research universities in the Washington, D.C. area, the WRLC exists to augment and enhance the information resources available to students and faculty. Other universities comprising the WRLC include The American University, The Catholic University of America, Gallaudet University, George Mason University, The George Washington University, Georgetown University, Marymount University, and the University of the District of Columbia. Effective immediately, faculty members and students will realize a number of benefits from Howard University's affiliation with the WRLC. Chief among these is access to the circulating collections of books and other research materials from the libraries of the other participating universities. Borrowing will be facilitated by access to the Consortium's consolidated online catalogue of the member institution's holdings. The WRLC's courier service will transport borrowed materials to Howard University's main library, generally within twenty-four to forty-eight hours. Benefits also include access to and borrowing privileges at member libraries, operational support for library information technology, technological support for creating and maintaining digital collections, and access to an off-site storage facility in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Additional services will be added in the months to come. "Current and former Howard librarians are delighted that the University has joined WRLC," according to Dr. Arthuree M. Wright, Interim Director of University Libraries. "In this increasingly global, interconnected world, no library is an island unto itself. Our students and faculty will benefit from using discovery tools that will unearth pertinent shared resources which will, in turn, promote conversations and facilitate collaborative knowledge creation." Mark Jacobs, WRLC Executive Director, stated that "the partner universities are especially pleased to welcome Howard University, with its exceptional and distinctive collections, into the WRLC." Howard University patrons may consult the HU Library website, http://www.howard.edu/library for links to policies and procedures for using the WRLC. For more information about the WRLC, visit www.wrlc.org. SANDRA M. PHOENIX Executive Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 404.592.4820 Skype:sandra.phoenix1 1438 West Peachtree Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (Lyrasis) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children.