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Libraries are like a second home to me. As an undergraduate at Oberlin College, the library was my preferred place of study. I spent long and often late hours there consulting the collections, browsing the bookshelves, and furiously typing out assignments on one of the few publicly available computers. When I wasn’t working at the library, I was working at the library—my student job was in the acquisitions department, slipping tattle-tape in the spines of newly cataloged books, and more rewardingly making friends with the staff. I didn’t realize at the time how these experiences would foretell the long arc of my career path, which now finds me the interim director of a very similar library.

Like Oberlin, Bowdoin has a strong sense of community, and the library is a nexus, bringing together students, faculty, staff, and visitors. There is a warmth to this library, fueled by the enthusiasms of our remarkable staff and the shared sense of wonder, discovery and curiosity that permeates Bowdoin. I cannot imagine a more wonderful library than ours, and I am deeply humbled and thankful to have this short window in which to lead it. While I have been at Bowdoin for a decade, everything suddenly feels new again.

The next few months will surely be a time of extraordinary transition for all of us. In addition to continuing to adapt to near daily changes in teaching, learning, and research wrought by AI, the library’s facilities are a point of primary discussion as the College considers its next campus master plan and envisions its future.  I’m excited to learn and grow with the entire library staff as we move forward with our work of advancing the pursuit of knowledge and encouraging opportunities for meaningful connection while embracing the opportunities for change and growth afforded by this particular moment in Bowdoin’s history.

We are launching The Biblio File newsletter to keep you more closely informed about the work of the Library, from our future plans to new collections available right now. My hope is for all of you to feel as comfortable and welcome in this library as I do—it is, after all, your library, too.

All the best,

Kat Stefko

Interim Director of the Bowdoin College Library

Please join us in celebrating International Day for Persons with Disabilities at Bowdoin by visiting our book display on the first floor of H-L and reading books recommended by Bowdoin students!

This collection is deeply personal as it highlights what matters to Bowdoin students, especially those who identify as disabled themselves. It centers books that focus on the lived experiences of disabled people rather than on textbooks that, while informative, portray an academic perspective that may come across as incomplete. In short, these books go beyond explaining a diagnosis.

Additionally, this display serves as a means for disabled authors to share their first-hand perspectives, and as a reminder that providing space to learn about each other’s experiences is a crucial step in becoming a more aware, empathetic, and accepting community. It also exemplifies how each person’s journey with disability is unique, serving as both recognition of challenges and celebration of diverse identities.

The display results from a collaboration between the Disabled Students Association, the Student Accessibility Office, and the Library and will be on view through the first week of December.

View the digital collection here.

We invite you to browse the Politics, Protest, Propaganda, Posters! collection display on the first floor of Hawthorne-Longfellow Library.

With this display, curator Neiman Mocombe (‘26.5) intends to help contemporary audiences “identify the blatant and subliminal political messages surrounding us today.” His display looks at how visual design has shaped public life, from Soviet and World War I propaganda to Peace Press activism, Shanghai calendar art, and election campaigns. The display will be on view through the end of December—stop by and check it out!

Browse the collection in our catalog

Ingrid Nelson, Professor of Sociology, was joined by moderator Professor Brian Purnell this past Thursday, November 13th to discuss her recent book, “Yet Another Costume Party Debacle: Why Racial Ignorance Persists on Elite College Campuses”.

 

 

Her work examines the fallout from three racially-themed costume parties that occurred at Bowdoin between 2014 and 2016 and places them into greater organizational sociological context, using interviews and surveys with students who attended and organized the parties, as well as Bowdoin Orient articles and Yik Yak posts preserved by Special Collections and Archives.

Read more from The Bowdoin Orient

Access a digital copy through Bowdoin Library

H-L Library’s Faculty New Book Collection highlights the latest in Bowdoin faculty book publications.

Among the titles published this year are two by Shuqin Cui (Shu-chin Tsui), Bowdoin Professor of Asian Studies and Cinema Studies. Her titles can be found along with other scholarship located in the Collections Highlights area, across from the Circulation Desk in H-L Library. Click the links below to view them in the catalog.

For more information about the Faculty Display, contact Carmen Greenlee.

 

 

For the month of November, we invite you to browse the Native American Heritage Month collection display on the first floor of Hawthorne-Longfellow Library.

Neiman Mocombe (’26.5) has curated a collection of biographies, coffee-table books, and personal essays that illuminate the stories of contemporary indigenous people. With this collection, Neiman intends to address that “too often, Native Americans are portrayed as static, undeveloped, and frozen in time. This exhibition shares how Indigenous communities have persevered with strength and resilience, maintaining their sovereignty despite immense historical and ongoing adversity. Their courage is evident in the works selected here.”

View and borrow from the collection