2022 marks the 45th anniversary of opening the Health Sciences Center Library Building, the home of the Health Sciences Library and Informatics Center (HSLIC), HSC Information Technology, and School of Medicine and HSC Academic Affairs units who occupy the first floor.
To commemorate this anniversary, HSLIC is serving cupcakes in the library lobby on October 11th from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. Melissa Rethlefsen, HSLIC Executive Director, will speak briefly at noon. Everyone at the HSC is invited to stop by for a cupcake (while supplies last) to celebrate.
Construction began on the library building in July 1974 with a $2.24 million federal grant from the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The architect for the building was Harvey Hoshour, who received a Merit Award from the American Institute of Architects for its design. UNM assumed the building in January 1977, officially opening on June 6, 1977.
The “Library and Learning Resources Center” building was dedicated in October 1977. Robert D. Sparks, M.D., Program Director of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, was the keynote speaker for the dedication. He was joined by UNM President William Davis, Medical Center Director and School of Medicine Dean Leonard M. Napolitano, Library Director Erika Love, and Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe Robert F. Sanchez, who gave the benediction.
Prior to the opening of this building, the library had occupied Medical Building 2, a former 7-Up bottling plant, from the School of Medicine’s founding in 1963 until 1977. During those 14 years, the library’s collection grew from 5,000 to over 80,000 volumes.
Library employees moved into the new building over the course of 3 months, from March through May 1977, with the help of Hallett Moving Company of Chicago. UNM Physical Plant supervised a team of 16 student employees to move book boxes across the Upper Plaza to the new building. As part of moving the collection, a complete inventory was taken, and some 4,000 items were repaired. Library staff also installed the first 3-M Tattletape security system, which required inserting a security strip on over 40,000 volumes, as part of the move.
When it opened, the new library building served over 1,500 students from the School of Medicine, College of Nursing, College of Pharmacy, Allied Health Program, and several affiliated research and patient care organizations. It also served as a statewide information resource center for the National Library of Medicine’s Regional Medical Library Program. Today the library building serves well over 2,000 students and is the only publicly accessible health sciences library in New Mexico. The building has changed with the advent of electronic resources; and while the need for open stacks has decreased, it remains a central gathering place for the campus to collaborate, work together, and learn.
Erika Love, the library’s second Director, called this project “. . .the culmination of [Dr. Robert Devitt’s] primary goal as the Library’s first administrator.” She began her position at UNM in March 1977, at the height of preparations to move into the facility. "The vision of architect Harvey Hoshour and Library Director Erika Love has stood the test of time. The library building remains a gem on campus, featuring stunning views and a sense of community. HSLIC remains the heart of the HSC campus," said Melissa Rethlefsen, Executive Director. "We are thrilled to celebrate our building and continue to improve it to meet the needs of today's and tomorrow's students."
Sources:
A collection of HSLIC annual reports from 1976 to the present can be found in the UNM Digital Repository.
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