Support Library Collections

The costs of purchasing and maintaining rich and diverse collections, both traditional print and electronic resources continue to rise, while state allocations to support university budgets continue to decline.

The Robert E. Kennedy Library strives to support the instruction and research efforts of all of the Colleges by providing access to the widest array of information resources. Working collaboratively with the colleges to raise funds that directly support the print and digital resources needed by each college is an ideal way to support faculty and students while also strengthening the Library. You can support both the Library and an academic program by contributing to an existing academic area endowment for Library resources and collections or setting up a new College-specific endowment.

Strengthening collections to support all disciplines

Research and teaching needs of our faculty and students require that our collections reflect the most current information and that information should be made available on a 24/7 basis.

We have an ongoing need for more information resources than the library's allocated budget can cover and we ask for your support to maintain and build our collections.

The print and electronic resources listed below have been identified by our College Librarians as critical to our mission to support research and teaching here at Cal Poly. We ask you to consider a donation to support one of these resources.

Agriculture, Food & Environmental Sciences

Environment Complete Index
This is one of the most comprehensive databases for the environmental sciences and related disciplines, including agriculture, ecosystem ecology, renewable energy sources, natural resources, geography, pollution & waste management, environmental technology, environmental law, public policy, and social impacts. This database would be beneficial to all departments in the College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences.

Architecture

MADCAD
MADCAD.com is an online guide to thousands of building codes and standards. Cal Poly's Architecture and Environmental Design students would be most effectively served by a customized subscription package including International Building Codes with Commentary, National Fire Protection Agency Life Safety Codes and California Title 24 ADA Compliance Guidelines. Online access would be a valuable tool for students and would bring Cal Poly the full and current digital access experienced by professionals in the industry.

Business

Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan Online provides full text global research reports on emerging high-technology and industrial markets in 50 countries. Reports are available in four categories: Industry, Technical, Economic, and Applications for Growth. Students would have access to a deeper range of market research reports, specifically in areas not covered by marketresearch.com, including information and communication technologies, environment and building technologies, and emerging industries.

Engineering

Knovel
Faculty and students need access to relevant and reliable content and data, whether looking up a chemical formula, comparing properties of substances or researching alternative energy sources. Drawing from more than 90 leading technical publishers and professional societies including AIAA, AIChE, ASHRAE, ASME, and SAE, Knovel provides access to professional quality technical information and provides interactive tools to analyze the results.

Liberal Arts

Early English Books Online
Early English Books Online is one of the first and foremost databases of digital books. From the first book published in English through the age of Spenser and Shakespeare, this collection of facsimile document images now contains more than 125,000 titles. It would provide incredible value to Cal Poly students, not only in the obvious fields of literature and history, but for applied fields such as Graphic Communications and Art and Design. This collection allows students and faculty to fulfill the most exhaustive research requirements - from their desktop - in many subject areas, including philosophy, linguistics, theology, music, fine arts, education, mathematics, and science.

Science & Math

Web of Science Historical Back files
Web of Science provides access to leading scholarly journal articles as well as proceedings of international conferences, symposia, seminars, colloquia, workshops, and conventions in the sciences and social sciences from the year 1900 onward. Cal Poly faculty and students, whether performing research or in the classroom, would benefit greatly from full and complete access to this extensive record of science scholarship.

Special Collections

Artists Books
Produced in very small editions or as "uniques," these books-as-art or artworks in book form are primary source materials that support teaching and learning across the Graphic Communication, Art & Design and Humanities curricula at Cal Poly. Acquiring contemporary artists books will enrich both the collection and the learning experience of students and teachers who interact with them.