Morris Library

Morris Library and Library Affairs welcome Dr. William Walters as our new dean. He was formerly the executive director of the Mary Alice & Tom O’Malley Library at Manhattan University.

Sheryl Tucker, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, said Walters is a welcome addition to the SIU family.

“With overwhelming support of the faculty, staff and the search committee, we are delighted he will be joining SIU,” she said.

Walters noted that SIU Carbondale’s recent designation as Research 1: Very High Spending and Doctorate Production in the Carnegie Classifications of Institutions of Higher Education makes it just one of three public R1 universities in Illinois.

“That places us in a great position for further development of the university's research capabilities, for undergraduate education with a hands-on, experiential research component, and for the kinds of specialized instruction that are not available at many other schools,” he said. “These are all exciting opportunities, and I'm glad to be joining SIU at this time.”

Learn more about Dean Walters at https://news.siu.edu/2025/04/040325-siu-chooses-dean-for-library-affairs.php.

The Friends of Morris Library will host its annual library fundraiser on Friday, September 6, 2025, from 5:30 - 8:30pm in the Hall of Presidents and Chancellors.

The Friends will present Morris Library's Special Collection Research Center with a collection of manuscripts for plays about the early years of coal mining in
southern Illinois. SCRC staff will have a display of related items from the collection
and provide a talk about the treasures of Morris Library.

School of Music faculty and students will provide light music before and during
dinner, which Hunan will cater.

Tickets for the evening are $75 and are available from https://siuf.org/FML2025 and sales end August 23, 2025. Please call 618-453-1815 for more information.

Amy Etcheson, Director of SIU Press, with Dr. Mark Poepsel of the SIU Edwardsville Department of Mass Communications, has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (William and Flora Hewlett Foundation) to convene a hybrid, statewide mini-conference in early 2026 that brings together OER leaders to evaluate the feasibility of establishing the Southern Illinois University Press as a collaborative project management hub for OER publishing in Illinois and to create a strategic roadmap for developing and sustaining a statewide OER publishing support model.

In recognition of Disability Pride Month this July, we've highlighted some books and websites that offer assistance for people with disabilities, as well as biographical and fictional stories about their experiences and information about history and demographics. Check it out!

Open access and open source research websites, tools, datasets, dashboards, and visualizations to help supercharge your research. These cover every topic under the sun, and the list is expanded weekly.

The Inclusive Collection highlights books featuring topics, authors, characters, perspectives, experiences, and expertise that members of systemically marginalized and excluded communities of people bring to every genre and discipline.