Angela M. Rice, B.A., M.L.S.
Dean, Jerry Falwell Library

Rory Patterson, B.A., M.A., M.L.I.S.
Associate Dean, Library Administration and Special Collections

Rorie Fredrich, B.S., M.L.I.S.
Associate Dean, Library Services and Operations

Jeremy McGinniss, B.S., B.M., M.L.I.S., M.A.
Associate Dean, Research, Instruction, and Collections

Kory R. T. Quirion, B.A., M.A., J.D.
Director, Finance and Accreditation

Purpose

The Jerry Falwell Library promotes learning, discovery, and research by providing robust resources, engaging instruction, flexible spaces, and outstanding services to the Liberty University community..

Overview

The JFL’s 170,000 square-foot facility opened in 2014 and has seating for approximately 2,475. The library provides three levels of quiet, group study rooms, event spaces, learning commons, lockers, and a fully equipped technology commons. With a collection of nearly 3.2 million physical and electronic items, the library supports the university’s curriculum and areas of research focus while also providing additional resources to help develop well-rounded students. The majority of the physical collection is housed in a climate-controlled two-story robotic book retrieval system with the newest and most frequently used items accessible on traditional browsing shelves. The library provides individualized and group information literacy instruction and research assistance in a variety of in-person and virtual formats and venues. During the fall and spring academic terms, the library is open over 100 hours per week. 

Resources

The library collects, organizes, and provides access to physical and electronic resources in a wide variety of formats. Digital resources include over 2.7 million e-books, video and audio streams, digital scores, and other electronic content. The physical collection consists of approximately 428,000 books, DVDs, CDs, scores, models, and non-traditional materials such as tools, electronics, cookware, and other practical and recreational items. Approximately 450 online research databases from industry-leading information providers offer access to more than 246,000 unique journals, magazines, newspapers, and other periodicals. The majority of these resources are discoverable and directly accessible through a single-search interface on the library’s homepage. The university’s online population and others working off-campus can access electronic resources through a single sign-on authentication system.

In addition to the general collection, the library oversees several specialized collections. The Archives and Special Collections Department preserves and provides access to materials related to the history of Liberty University and related entities as well as other materials of enduring value that support the university’s mission. The Jerry Falwell Museum, located in the Hancock Welcome Center, houses memorabilia and other materials that tell the story of Liberty University’s founder, Jerry Falwell Sr., as well as the founding of Liberty University, Thomas Road Baptist Church, and related ministries. Housed on the Terrace Level of the JFL, the Curriculum Library supports the School of Education by providing access to a variety of preschool through grade 12 teacher-edition textbooks; teaching resources; English as a Second Language materials; and educational games, manipulatives, and models while an extensive selection of children’s, adolescent, and juvenile literature provides reinforcement for classes in curriculum development. The library also maintains Scholars Crossing, an open-access institutional repository that archives students’ theses and dissertations as well as journals and other scholarly works created by members of the Liberty University community. 

Additional resources are available through the library’s professional memberships and partnerships. Membership in the Center for Research Libraries (CRL) enables students and faculty to request materials from CRL’s collections of approximately 5 million newspapers, journals, books, pamphlets, dissertations, archives, government publications, and other resources from all regions of the world. Students and faculty can also borrow materials directly from other libraries participating in the Atla and Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA) cooperative borrowing programs. 

Services

The Customer Service Center on the main floor of the library serves as a starting point for help with borrowing services, research questions, room reservations, and computer assistance for those visiting the library in person. For online students and others using the library resources remotely, a research support center provides services via phone, chat, and email whenever the JFL is open.

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) services enable students, faculty, and staff to request electronic scans of articles and chapters not available in full text through the library’s databases. Residential and local online students, faculty, and staff can also use ILL to borrow books or media items from other libraries across the United States if JFL does not own the item or if it is unavailable at the point of need. Online students and faculty can use ILL to request that items from JFL’s physical collections be mailed to them. 

Instruction

Highly qualified library faculty provide group and individual information literacy instruction to residential and online students in a variety of formats and venues. This instruction is designed to help students learn to identify, access, evaluate, and use information and ideas in an effective, efficient, and ethical manner. Librarians work collaboratively with other faculty members to deliver course-specific instruction virtually or in person. Additionally, librarians offer webinars that are live-streamed and recorded as well as video tutorials and discipline-specific research guides. Individual research assistance is available in person during normal business hours and via chat, email, and phone any time that the JFL is open. Virtual and in-person appointments are available for more in-depth research consultations. 

Spaces

Located in the heart of campus, the Jerry Falwell Library is an anchor point on the southern end of the academic lawn. A spacious atrium, casual seating areas, reading rooms, a café, multiple balconies, and dedicated quiet and deep quiet spaces create a relaxed, scholarly atmosphere. Over 30 group study rooms with writable walls and digital displays support student productivity and collaboration as do portable and stationary dry erase surfaces available throughout the facility. Event spaces afford opportunities to host speakers and other activities while seven learning commons provide an array of options for group and individual study.

Library spaces include a variety of technologies to facilitate learning and productivity. Over 100 computers are available in the Dodak Technology Commons and throughout the building while copy/print/scan stations are available on every floor. Two book scanners, a number of secondary monitors, and assistive technologies for those with audio and visual impairments are also available in the library. Various forms of virtual meeting technologies are available in the Active Learning Classroom (JFL 171),  Scholars Conference Room (JFL 362), Scholars Lounge (JFL 380), and the Terrace Conference Room (JFL 001), and all group study rooms are equipped with Neat Boards to facilitate interactive and collaborative virtual learning. In addition, wireless Internet service is available throughout the facility for laptop and mobile devices, which can be charged in one of over 200 lockers with electrical and USB outlets or with a portable charger from one of three battery kiosks. A 22’ x 12.5’ interactive media wall featuring news, weather, a university timeline, and a video tour of the library is a focal point of the library atrium.