KINGSTON, R.I. – April 2, 2021 – The University of Rhode Island has become the newest member of HathiTrust, a forward-thinking global collaborative of research and academic libraries working to ensure the preservation and accessibility of the cultural record. HathiTrust holds the largest set of digitized books managed by the academic, research, and library community offering unprecedented opportunity for members of the URI community to access a wide array of research and scholarly materials.
Launched in 2008, HathiTrust has a growing membership comprised of more than two hundred libraries, including those in the Big Ten Academic Alliance, University of California System, Ivy League and the Library of Congress. Over the last 12 years, members have contributed more than 17.4 million volumes to the digital library, digitized from their own collections through a number of means including Google and Internet Archive digitization and in-house initiatives.
“URI’s membership in HathiTrust re-enforces our firm commitment to advancing contemporary scholarship and ensuring the URI community has access to the largest collection of digital content across disciplines,” said URI Provost Donald H. DeHayes. “I commend our library faculty and leadership for their forward-looking efforts in positioning URI on the cutting edge in our pursuit of innovations in learning and discovery through our partnership in this global collaborative of research and academic libraries. URI faculty and students will benefit immensely from access to this comprehensive digital archive of library materials.”
HathiTrust serves a dual role. First, as a trusted repository, it guarantees the long-term preservation of the materials it holds, providing the expert curation and consistent access long associated with research libraries. Second, as a service for members and the public good, HathiTrust offers persistent access to the digital collections. This includes viewing, downloading, and searching public domain volumes, and searching access to copyrighted works. As a member, URI will join the global, collaborative governance structure of the HathiTrust organization, whose members steward this collection.
Access to HathiTrust will also benefit URI community members who may not be able to physically get to the library – of particular importance in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The past year has shown us all the value and strength in working together to face common challenges. By welcoming the University of Rhode Island to the HathiTrust membership, we continue to expand the network of academic libraries collaborating to not only digitally preserve the scholarly record, but also to lay the foundation for new ways of teaching, learning, and research,” said HathiTrust Executive Director Mike Furlough.
The University community can access materials through the HathiTrust website, or through the “Find Resources” search box on the URI Libraries homepage, which will search the library catalog. For more information on using HathiTrust with URI credentials, visit: https://uri.libguides.com/hathitrust. For questions, contact Associate Professor Julia Lovett, Digital Initiatives Librarian, at jalovett@uri.edu. Follow the Libraries on Twitter @URILibraries.