70 ways OSU Library supports the land-grant mission

October 16, 2023

Education, research and extension driving forces behind services and resources

The Edmon Low Library’s 70th anniversary celebration comes to a close by marking 70 ways the Library supports the land-grant mission. 

The term “land-grant” refer to federal lands that were sold or leased to provide funding to colleges. For this reason, the schools were designed to be accessible to all citizens.

“The land-grant mission was an attempt by the federal government to provide access to a college education for anyone,” said David Peters, retired OSU Libraries Archivist. “These schools were not just for the elite, it was an attempt by the federal government to provide access to a college education to anyone who wanted to try.”

This focus on accessibility is widely reflected the OSU Library’s approach to service delivery. For example, the study rooms throughout the Library that provide a quiet place to focus and the new Heritage Arts Studio that allows people to work with the textile arts are accessible to all students, staff and faculty regardless of their academic department or rank. 

The land-grant mission has three pillars: education, research and extension.

One way the OSU Library has continued to support the education arm of the mission is through the promotion and support of open educational resources, which are created to be freely accessed at no additional cost to end users.

The OSU Libraries are also at the heart of campus research. The Library has subject-specialist librarians who are available for advanced research support in every academic department at OSU. The OSU Library supports education and research beyond the campus by allowing Oklahoma residents over 18 to check out print materials and access academic subscriptions in-person.

Through extension, land-grant institutions provide resources to address public needs. The OSU Library offers free and open digitized collections of unique and rare materials, public programs, museum-quality exhibitions, video tutorials and trainings, reference support, educational curriculums and more. All these resources are available to public at no charge.

These are only a few examples of OSU’s dedication to the land-grant mission. To see more, visit OkStateLibrary on Pinterest.

STORY BY: Maddie Rogers, E-Commuications Intern

URL: https://library.okstate.edu/news/archived-news/fall-2023/70-ways-osu-library-supports-the-land-grant-mission

Last Updated: 6 November 2023