I grew up in a home with a library. It was located in the fancy front room that was reserved for special occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas. The entire south wall was lined with bookshelves packed with books that flanked a huge fireplace that when lit, chased away the damp.
We lived a little over 3 ½ miles from town and I would often beg to go to the little library in Frankfort. The librarian, Susie Peterson, with her red hair and big smile, welcomed everyone to the small space.
Before I took my first trip outside of the United States, books offered an expanded view of the world beyond that which I knew growing up in rural southern Ohio. Dr. Seuss taught me that “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
WIU is fortunate to have a special collection of books dedicated to expanding our world view and introducing us to people and places we may never visit. It’s called the Area Studies Research Center and Collections.
The Area Studies Research Center and Collections is located on the 4th floor of the Malpass Library on the Macomb Campus. The collection provides patrons access to physical and digital materials that promote a global perspective on issues, multicultural insights, cultural competence, research, and scholarship. The center houses collections on Hispanic/Latinx and Caribbean Studies, African and African Diaspora Studies, Asian-European Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, Women, Gender, and LGBTQIA+ Studies, and Illinois Regional Heritage Studies. In the Quad Cities there is a collection focusing on Antiracism, Intolerance, Genocide, and Holocaust Studies.
The Areas Studies Research Center and Collections strives to build unique and distinctive collections that are enduring contributions to history and global understanding. The collections are open to the public and are a collaborative effort with the Library of Congress and the University of Puerto Rico-Río Piedras Library System. The collaboration with the University of Puerto Rico allows WIU to digitize rare materials related to the Caribbean, thus safeguarding them for future generations.
In addition to the books, a large part of what makes the Area Studies Research Center and Collections center special are the people who work there. Librarian Sol Cátala Valentín, a CT Vivian Scholar at WIU, is dedicated to developing and maintaining the area studies collections, with the help of graduate and undergraduate students from Afghanistan, Nigeria, Spain, and México.
As the library grows its area studies collections, it will continue to focus on the humanities, social sciences, and liberal arts. The goal is to provide access to physical and digital materials that promote a global perspective on multicultural insights, cultural competence, research, and scholarship.
As our world becomes increasingly more diverse, it is crucial that the library is able to provide our faculty, students, and the public with the resources they need to understand our changing world.
In the middle of Forgottonia, we have a rare treasure.
As Sidney Sheldon wrote, “Libraries store the energy that fuels the imagination. They open up windows to the world and inspire us to explore and achieve, and contribute to improving our quality of life.”
Make Ms. Peterson and all the librarians smile and stop by the WIU library soon and spend some time browsing through all it has to offer.
Heather McIlvaine-Newsad is a Professor of Anthropology at Western Illinois University. Her research focuses on collaborative action for sustainability.
The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the university or Tri States Public Radio.
Diverse viewpoints are welcomed and encouraged.