Welcome Letter

Brian E. C. Schottlaender

Welcome to the Winter 2011 issue of Domain. In this issue, we are pleased to introduce you to some fascinating people, including collectors Barbara Luce and Ben Evers, and J.R. Bachman, a recipient of our Undergraduate Research Prize. Last month, several friends and supporters joined us for a fantastic trip to visit the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino. We have a recap of the trip and some photos to share with you. Thanks to those of you who were able to join us.

On a more challenging note, the Libraries have been told to prepare for significant budget cuts in the next year, due to the State's continuing fiscal crisis. The campus is expecting a cut in the vicinity of $60 million and the Libraries, which have already had to absorb some $5 million in cuts, are planning for at least a $3 million cut. Unfortunately, we can't continue to absorb significant cuts without consolidating and closing some of our libraries. Consequently, we are planning for the likely closure of  the Center for Library Instruction & Computing Services (CLICS), International Relations & Pacific Studies (IR/PS), and Scripps Institution of Oceanography libraries, and could conceivably begin these closures this summer. The Medical Center Library is slated for closure on April 1. What this means is that we would consolidate select collections and services from these libraries into the Geisel Library building and the Biomedical Library building. As challenging as this process will be for all of us on campus, the Libraries just completed a strategic planning process that clarified our goals and priorities and helped us map out a process to achieve them.

For more information about the Libraries' budget situation:

• http://libraries.ucsd.edu/budgetcutsFAQ

Sincerely,

Brian E. C. Schottlaender

The Audrey Geisel University Librarian