The archives at the SUNY Old Westbury Library feature two new digital collections that focus on the history of the University. Supported in part through aid from the Long Island Library Resource Center, the two new collections were achieved through participation in the "Accessing Archives Program."
“Digitally preserving Old Westbury's history and providing unhindered access goes beyond just our community, it allows others to share and learn from our unique mission,” said Christa DeVirgilio, Senior Assistant Librarian for the Digital Initiatives & Archives. “The digital finding aid has made the contents of the collections held in the library archives onto a searchable digital interface so scholars can see for themselves our history and impact.”
The first digital collection is "Strikes, Protests and Sit-Ins," which focuses on the 1976 and 1977 student strikes at SUNY Old Westbury, including several primary source documents from students, faculty, and administration. The collection is featured in the SUNY Digital Repository, a centrally managed online repository that stores and highlights materials with a focus on historical and special collections from SUNY campuses and SUNY System Administration.
The second collection consists of SUNY Old Westbury Senior Projects and Research from the 1970s and 1980s, featuring a selection of senior projects, oral histories and their corresponding papers. This collection is part of the New York Heritage digital collections, with over 430 libraries, museums, archives, and other cultural institutions sharing the history of the people, places and events that contributed to the making of New York State.