New librarian envisions a more open and accessible Cook Library

Deborah Nolan, TU’s new university librarian, says Cook Library is poised to become a place for people and ideas, and not just a repository for information and study.

“Today’s successful libraries welcome the public rather than intimidate it,” explains Nolan.

Before taking her post on August 1, Nolan held a series of progressively responsible positions in academic libraries, most recently as associate director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Library at Wake Forest University, a private liberal arts institution in Winston-Salem, N.C. She sees similarities between Wake Forest and Towson in that both schools have devoted staff and take community outreach seriously.

“One of Cook’s strengths is the dedication and solid teaching qualities of its staff,” says Nolan. “I plan to build on that by providing our staff—and by extension the TU community—with high quality materials and resources.”

“On the physical side, Cook should have ample amounts of light, open space, places for collaborative work and places to study that are quiet and comfortable,” she adds. “The first-floor renovation was a great start, but more renovation and refurbishing needs to be done to make the library a place where faculty and students want to spend time meeting, discussing and researching.”

Nolan believes that library staff can be further integrated into the TU community. “I’ll encourage our librarians to work more closely with the faculty, especially in bringing classes to Cook to do research in a specific field,” she says. “An effective way for students to become comfortable with the library is through hands-on experience with our databases.”

Nolan also sees Cook Library taking a more substantial role in servicing the greater Baltimore community.

“Cook shouldn’t be merely an information repository and place where students cram for exams,” she says. “We should host more cultural events and guest lectures that are open to the public, along the lines of the Alexander Hamilton series this past spring. And it’d be wonderful to hold such events in a larger, more accessible space instead of a small room hidden away.

“In fact, I’d love to see Cook Library become Towson’s intellectual ‘family room.’”

Story by Stuart Zang/Photo provided by Deborah Nolan

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