February 3, 2017

[The Dean's Update is a reoccurring column introducing the Libraries' monthly newsletter In Circulation.]

Let us not forget that in mid-February, around the world and in different ways, loving people celebrate Valentine's Day.  In related ways, libraries seek to ensure that many of our shared feelings of bonding with our global community remains perpetual. Though it is a sweet day of romantic gestures and delicious treats, its origins came from those living in restricted environments sending assurances to loved ones that their bond could not be broken.  

When browsing Valentine's Day greetings, I came across this short verse by Sanober Khan, a contemporary Indian poet:

In a world
full of
temporary things

you are
a perpetual
feeling.

--Sanober Khan

This poem helped me capture my ill-formed challenge--finding continuity for our deepest emotions that link us to each other amidst the fluctuations of our planet.  

Librarians face this challenge with their fundamental principles to preserve human expression, to foster open communication, and to ensure that truth emerges from scientific inquiry.  We are not only 'fact checkers,' but we are also guides - helping others become inquisitive and evaluative amidst a growing landscape of diverse expressions and false information disguised as news. We also carefully store historic records and then seek to expose that information so people can discover new insights and bond with authors from the past. And we work diligently to foster communities that celebrate engagement with people of different backgrounds and that share in the exploration of diverse ideas through conversation, through reading, and through mining and analyzing data. 

This issue of In Circulation, as others, shares stories of ways at Drexel we put these values to practice.

To paraphrase Khan's verse as a wish for you:

In a world full of multiple changes
Pursuit of knowledge and love of humanity are a perpetual feeling

Happy Valentine's Day. 

Danuta Nitecki
Dean of Libraries