Cecilia Preston
Researcher
Sarah Hare
Scholarly Communication Librarian
Indiana University Bloomington
Roger Schonfeld
Director, Library and Scholarly Communication Program
Ithaka S+R
The vast majority of university students are at peak lifetime access to scholarly resources. After graduation, despite some alumni provisions and public library efforts, their access to indices, databases, and content platforms shrinks substantially. In past generations, before the digital transformation, the differences were less dramatic. Many university libraries would offer walk-in access to users, with all the wealth of their print collections and catalogs available for use. Today, we expect point-of-need access to information resources, not to have to schedule time to visit a library. And, perhaps more importantly, even when going to a welcoming library, many resources are locked behind computers or wifi that require a login. Is this a crisis for the independent scholar and lifelong learner?
